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“Gorgeous. I really like the one with the driftwood.” Liam nodded approvingly at a shot that depicted the waves crashing up over several big rocks with a gnarled piece of driftwood wedged between them.

“Me too!” I said enthusiastically. “I think that one’s a winner for sure!”

“Mind if I try?” Liam reached his hand for my camera.

I was really weird about other people using, or even touching, my equipment. So weird, I never let anyone else near it. However, there was something about Liam that made me hand him my camera without a second thought. “Sure,” I said with a big smile as I passed the camera to him.

I looked away from Liam and out towards the water as I started to adjust my beanie, pulling it down further over my cold ears. “Hey, Anna. Look at this for a minute,” Liam said from next to me.

I turned my head towards him and he immediately snapped a picture. It took me a minute to register what’d happened. When it did, I immediately started to get upset. I didn’t like my picture taken at all. That was one reason I preferred to always be behind the camera. However, what upset me even more was him getting the picture by surprising me. That was not cool.

I tried to keep my voice calm as I focused my gaze on Liam. He was looking down at the digital image on the camera. “Liam,” I said firmly. “Delete it. Please. I don’t like having my picture taken.”

Liam looked up at me. “I’m not going to delete it until you see it,” he said, turning the camera toward me.

I refused to look down at the image. “I don’t want to see it. I want you to delete it. Please.” As hard as I tried to keep the irritation out of my voice, I was failing miserably. My tone was cold and short as I felt my anger rising.

“Anna, please just look at it.” Liam scooted closer to me and held out the camera again. “If you don’t like it after you see it, you can delete it.”

I let out a frustrated sigh. Liam didn’t understand. Every picture of me just captured all the things I didn’t like about myself. That’s why I preferred Oliver’s drawings of me. He was able to take some artistic license and fix those flaws. The camera captured them all. One of the things I loved most about photography was how it managed to perfectly capture a split second of time exactly how it looked. It was also the thing I hated the most about it when it came to pictures of myself.

Liam held the camera out to me again. “Just look at the picture and then you can delete it.” His voice was soft and soothing as he scooted over again, closing the distance between us until his side was pressed up against mine.

“Fine,” I finally conceded.

I’d intended to only glance at the picture and quickly delete it, but when I saw it, I paused. My face was perfectly framed by the blue sky behind me and Liam had caught me with a small smile playing at the corners of my mouth. My cheeks were flushed a rosy pink, and the ends of my long, dark hair fluttered around in the breeze from under my gray beanie. The thing that really caught my attention were my eyes. There was a sparkle in them that hadn’t been there for a very long time.

“This is the most beautiful subject I’ve seen today,” Liam said quietly as I stared at the image.

“You don’t really mean that,” I said quickly, refusing to make eye contact. Instead, I kept my focus towards the ground like I was intently studying each and every rock.

Liam reached over and gently lifted my chin until I was gazing directly into his eyes. “It is…you are. I don’t know why you can’t see it, Anna, but you are beautiful. Your deep, dark, soulful eyes; your lush lips; your beautiful, smooth skin; and your gorgeous dark hair. I have to stop myself from trying to run my fingers through it every time I see you. You’re breathtaking, Anna.” Liam continued to cup my face with his hand as he slowly rubbed his thumb on my cheek. I could feel tears start to form in my eyes. No one had ever talked to me like that before. “You’re so incredibly beautiful just the way you are,” Liam whispered softly.

I didn’t know what to say. A tear slipped from the corner of my eye and rolled down my cheek. Liam brushed it away with his thumb. “Thank you,” I whispered as I continued to gaze into Liam’s deep blue eyes. What was happening? I suddenly felt so confused as emotions swirled through me. It was definitely a moment, but I just couldn’t quite decipher what kind of moment it was.

“I hope you keep the picture,” Liam said as his eyes searched my face. I gave him a small smile and he wrapped his arms around me into a tight embrace. After a few breaths, I relaxed into him and hugged back. It felt good…comforting…safe.

“You hungry?” Liam whispered into the top of my head which rested up against his chest. I quickly nodded. I was actually starving. Liam chuckled and I could feel the rumble in his chest. “There is a diner a short drive from here. Greasy burgers and fries. You game?”

I pulled away from Liam. “That sounds great.” I quickly wiped the back of my hand over my eyes and took a deep breath. “Thank you, Liam. For everything.”

Liam leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on my forehead. “You’re welcome. Now let’s get some food in you.”

I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand again to make sure all the tears were gone. “Just so you know, that’s one of the sexiest lines a guy can ever use on a girl,” I told Liam with a smile.

Liam laughed and I was relieved that the heaviness of the moment seemed to lift. “I’ll make note of that. Thank you for the tip.” Liam stood up and grabbed my camera equipment. “Now let’s get moving. There are burgers to be eaten and possibly milkshakes to be drunk.”

“You speak my language fluently,” I laughed back at him as I playfully bumped my side into his.

We walked back to the car in silence. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe compatibility was really all that was needed to start a good relationship. As much as I liked Liam, I didn’t feel that wild “want to get him naked and roll around with him” attraction. Maybe that would come with time? What would happen if it didn’t? Would whatever there was between us be enough?

Chapter 7

Asking for a Friend

THE REST OF THE afternoon with Liam went by quickly. The diner did indeed have great food and, despite the moment on the beach, the meal and the ride home were both relaxed. We slipped back into our easy and natural flow of conversation almost like the beach moment never happened. There were stretches of silence but it was comfortable, not awkward.

It was dark by the time Liam brought me back to my apartment. He walked me to the front door and helped bring all of my equipment in. Liam stood in the entryway with his hands in the front pockets of his jeans as I took my coat off and hung it on the hook by the door. “Thank you again for today, Liam. I had a really great time.” It was true. Even with the picture incident, it had been a nice and fun day.

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