Page 7 of Crash with Me

“I’m sure you’ll find this hard to believe, but I was a total nerdy artsy girl.”

Again, his heated stare turns my insides into pools of desire.

“I worked at the hardware store in town after school every day to save money for a camera,” I say. “I kept track of every dollar, every penny, and turned down countless trips to the mall with my friends.”

“Did you save enough?”

I nod. “But it didn’t matter. On my sixteenth birthday, my parents surprised me with my dream camera. I used my savings to get extra lenses and photo editing software.”

“Do you still like photography?”

“I love it.” I scoot a little closer, my body drawn to his. “I take it with me almost everywhere I go. I capture pictures around town. I sometimes do portraits. But, mostly, I love still-life.”

“What’s your favorite thing to photograph?”

“Nature, of course. I try to get out for hikes a couple of times a week. There’s something about being out in nature. Just my camera and me. The trees.”

He nods. “The birds.”

“Water flowing through the streams.” I sigh. “I don’t know if I’m any good, but I love framing a scene and capturing it.”

“I’m sure your work is great.”

“How do you know that?”

“You’re too passionate about it to be anything short of spectacular.”

My heart skips a beat, the butterflies in my belly flap their wings.

“I’d love to see it sometime.”

My eyebrows shoot up. “You would?”

“Definitely. May I?”

Nodding, I turn away from him only long enough to reach for my phone, charging on the nightstand.

I pull it between us and pull up my digital portfolio. We both lean in to watch it load on the screen. Our heads are so close together, they’re nearly touching.

I hold the phone as Seth swipes through each picture. He pauses and studies each one, as if there’s going to be a test over it later. Every so often he makes a noise. A little hum that comes deep in his chest.

When we reach the last one, he turns his dark stare to me. “Just as I suspected. They’re spectacular. You’re spectacular.”

I want to kiss him. I want to throw myself at him and wrap my body around his, showing him with my body how happy his words have made me.

I settle on a softly breathed “Thank you” and return my phone to the nightstand.

“I’m sure you’ll find this hard to believe,” he says, when I’m back in my position, curled up on my side facing him. “But I also love hiking.”

“I suppose it’s kind of a prerequisite when you live here.”

“It’s why I could never leave. Have you ever thought about living anywhere else?”

I shake my head. “I did a year of college in Portland. But…”

“You missed it too much.” He nods. “I felt the same thing when I was away at school.”

“Where did you go?”

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