Page 87 of The Mistletoe Bluff
Maya gaped at me, her breath shuddering in the cold air. It was the first time I had said those words, and I meant them with all my heart. I hoped they would put her fears to rest for good.
“I’m not going anywhere, Maya. Unless you tell me to leave, I’m staying wherever you are. You may not be ready to say those words yet, but I know how you feel about me.” I put her hand over my heart. “I feel it.”
Maya’s throat bobbed as she swallowed.
“I’m staying here, Maya,” I reaffirmed. “With you.”
Her lips turned down at the corners. “But what if I have to leave Meridel?”
“Why would you need to leave?”
She sighed before speaking so fast, I had to concentrate to understand everything coming out of her mouth. “I have a lot of debt, Oliver. I didn’t have the cash for those photography classes or the lens I had to buy, and waitressing doesn’t pay enough money to live offandpay down my debt. I entered that contest because of the prize money. If I had won, I would have been able to pay everything off. But now that I withdrew, I’m back to square one.”
A stray tear escaped the corner of her eye. “I’ve tried for so long to make photography a career in Meridel, and it’s just too small. I can’t grow here. I don’t have enough connections, and there aren’t enough people in this small town to need or be able to afford enough photoshoots to keep me afloat. Now that the prize money is out of the picture, I’m going to have to consider leaving. Head somewhere where I have more of a chance at success, or…” She paused and let out a long breath. “Or seriously consider giving up on photography altogether and finding something else to do.”
The thought of Maya no longer behind a camera made my heart throb. She was made for it. No…I couldn’t let her give up. Not when I might have had the power to help.
Though she was upset and discouraged about this, hope flared in my heart. From the first moment at that engagement shoot days ago, Maya had proven how talented she was, and how focused she could be, and deserved so much more than what she had been able to do thus far.
Her photos were full of life, and the world needed more of them.
I hadn’t dared to entertain the idea I had back then, but now that things had changed, I wondered if she’d be more open to the idea.
“Answer me this, Maya. Money aside, do you want to leave Meridel?”
“No.”
“And if you had more opportunities for photoshoots, would that enable you to stay?”
“What are you talking about, Oliver? I just said—”
I put a finger to her lips. “What if I had an idea that allowed you to stay here,anddo what you love?”
Her eyes narrowed. “And how would that be possible?”
“What if…” I hesitated. Why was I nervous to tell her mydream? “What ifwestarted a business together? I have a lot of connections and previous clients that would jump at the chance to work with me again thanks to theIowa Artist Gazette. We could do shoots together, and you can keep all the money until your debt is paid off. I have enough saved to float for a while.”
Maya blinked repeatedly like I had spoken in a foreign language, and she was trying to piece my words together one by one. Finally, she said, “Are you serious, Oliver?”
“I’ve never been more serious in my life.”
“But what about your job?”
“I quit.”
Her eyes bulged. “When?”
I shrugged. “Before I came outside.”
“Don’t you think that’s a big deal?”
I shook my head. “It’s been a long time coming. I want to see what I’m capable of outside of my father’s shadow.” I ran my thumb over her cheek. “I want to see whatwe’recapable of, Maya. Say you’ll at least think about it.”
“But…you’re from England. Are you saying you’d move to Meridel permanently?”
“Turns out I have a very compelling reason to stay,” I replied, running my fingers across her cheek, down her neck. “Youare what I want.Thisis what I want. Having a life here with you means gaining all the things I never dared to dream of.”
I brushed my lips across hers. “I wantyou, Maya. As long as you’re here, there’s nowhere in this world I’d rather be.”
