Chapter 2
Katie
I clutched the binder and iternary to my chest. My heart
pounded so hard I thought others could hear it. Levi was going to help me
take pictures. He was going to help me take pictures of people, at a wedding.
I didn't know which one was more
anxiety-producing. The handsome cowboy with his shaggy black hair and dark grey
eyes, taking pictures of people, or hoping that everything turned out great
because these were once in a lifetime wedding photos. I searched in my pocket
for a Tums. No luck. Levi walked to the archway where his mother was attaching
balloons to it. His jeans looked good on his long legs. What was I thinking? Get
it together, Katie. He was not my type. He'd never noticed me before, even
when I had a huge crush on him in high school. Those were the days. My tongue
swelled in my mouth and my throat closed up whenever he glanced my way. Shaking
my head to clear my thoughts, I headed outside to my truck. The noon sun beat
down on the asphalt and heat rose from the surface. It was going to be a
scorcher this weekend. It was always hot in south Texas on the Fourth of July.
"I should've worn shoes," I muttered
to myself as my flip flops slapped the pavement.
The heat started to burn the bottom
of my feet. Finally, I reached my beat-up old truck. The paint was peeling from
the doors and an old dent stood out on the tailgate. I pulled out my camera and
checked the lens. Everything was in my bag. Annie was lucky I traveled with my
camera at all times. The perfect picture could happen at any time. I slung the
nylon strap over my head and opened the binder on the hood of my truck. There
were pictures of people posing by trees, in long grass, by a waterfall, being
backlit, and close-ups.
"She doesn't do anything
halfway, does she?"
"No, she doesn't." The
low timbre of his voice jolted me from my thoughts.
"Don't sneak up on a
girl." My hand flew to my chest to contain my galloping heart.
"It's impossible to sneak
wearing spurs." He set one booted foot on the tire of my truck and leaned
toward the binder. The spur in question glinted in the sunlight. "She has
a lot of ideas." He turned the page. "Are you going to get all of
these?"
I shrugged. "I've to check out
the park first and see what would work."
"Ma'am, I am at your
service." He bowed low, sweeping his hat from his head.
He winked as he straightened to his
full height. He was a whole head taller than me. Most men were as I was barely
five foot three. The grey in his eyes was the color of storm clouds on a winter
day. He gently touched my shoulder, jerking me back to reality.
"Katie, are you ok?"
"Yep, never better." I
snapped the binder shut, grabbed my backpack from the passenger seat, and
placed the binder in it. "Let's get started, cowboy."
I marched off to the grove of trees
beside the pavilion. Levi's spurs jingled with each step he took as he followed
behind me. I sighed. It was going to be a long weekend.
A few hundred yards away from the
pavilion was a small stand of oak trees. Their trunks twisted to the sun while
pale green lichen grew on their bark. These weren't the stately oaks of the
east, but their wiry, scrappy cousins. They fought against drought, extreme
heat, and pests. The trees intertwined in a complicated dance with their
branches reaching out over an open space. I marked off the area and framed it
out in my mind. I took a couple of practice shots, but without people, it would
be hard to tell.
"Levi," I turned to where
he stood, leaning against a tree. "Can you stand between the trees? I need
to be able to gauge the lighting."
His brow furrowed at my request.
"The wedding will be in just
over 24 hours from now. The light will be similar. Please."
He slowly made his way to the
center of the trees and shoved his hands in his pockets. I snapped a picture. I
groaned when I looked at it on the screen. It was awful.
"No, stand like this." I
placed my hands on his shoulders to turn his body.
Electricity ran up my arms. A
half-smile pulled at his lips as he watched me. A blush spread up my neck as I
turned him this way and that.
"Now, stay like that.”
“Yes, ma’am.” A grin cocked on his
lips.
I shook my head as I marched back
to my spot and took some more pictures. The butterflies in my stomach danced. Keep
your focus, Katie. I moved from side to side and changed the height of my
shot. He flexed his biceps, placed one foot on an imaginary rock, fanned
himself with his hat. His antics helped me to relax as I worked on getting the
best exposures. I jotted down which ones worked well all the while trying to
hide the growing amusement as he clowned around. He leaned against a tree and
used his cowboy hat to cover his face, pretending to fall asleep. Soft snore
came from him. I crouched down to get a different angle. A flash of red caught
my eye.
"Let's go over there." I
pointed to a rose-covered archway.
I strode down the path and around a
bend. The archway stood at the end of the path. The scent of roses filled the
air. A small bench sat under the arch. A bubbling of water drew my attention to
a quaint water fountain. It was the centerpiece of this quiet sanctuary in the
park.
"This is perfect." I blew
out a breath.
I brought my camera up to look at
it through the lens. I needed to back up to get enough of the arch. I bumped
into a solid mass. His spicy scent washed over me as his hand grasped my elbow
to steady me. My breath caught in my throat.
He leaned down and whispered in my
ear. "Where do you want me?"
A shiver ran down my body as my
stomach twisted into a knot. I twisted around to meet his eyes. He smiled down
at me. The skin wrinkled at the corners of his eyes. His hat shielded his face.
"Under the arch." I
stepped away from his touch and pointed to the bench. "Sit on the bench,
please."
He settled on the bench, resting
his boot heels on the seat. He winked at me before closing his eyes and leaning
back on the seat. The angle was not right. It distorted the picture. I needed
to get up higher. I stepped up on the edge of the fountain. The next few shots
of the cowboy in the archway were almost perfection. My anxiety over the
wedding gradually dissipated as I took another picture. As long as the handsome
cowboy kept his distance, my heart might stay whole.
Levi
I closed my eyes to enjoy the sunshine as she capered about
taking pictures of me under the arch. The smell of roses overwhelmed my senses.
I brought my hat over my eyes as I pretended to be anywhere else but here. Somewhere
I didn't have to drag my gaze from the beautiful woman engrossed in her
pictures. Her nose wrinkled as she concentrated, her blouse gapped when she
squatted down, and her jeans hugged her curves nicely. It was getting hard not
to notice her, especially when we touched and it felt like my whole body was magnetized
to hers. She mumbled to herself, breaking the silence. I cracked one eye open
to watch her as she balanced on the edge of the fountain. If she fell in, it
would make it hard to look away.
"Levi, wake up. I'm done here.
Let's go over there." She hopped off the stones and walked to a large open
grassy area
I groaned as I slowly got up and
stretched. My watch read a little after 1:00 PM.
"Yes, ma’am," I called
after her.
She waved her hand in the air and
kept going. Man, she looked good, walking away. Curves in all the right places.
I wondered if she has a boyfriend wherever she’s living. A jolt of jealousy
shot through me. Why did it matter to me if she had someone? But it did matter.
I jogged after her. My spurs jiggling with every step.
