The Winning Ticket (Circle of Friends #1)

17. One Of The Few People Who Truly Understands Me

JAKE

17

I follow Bri as she leads the way towards the City Botanic Gardens. The day is warming up, and I am grateful she wanted to go early. We’ve wandered across the Story Bridge, and Maddie happily sniffs every dog we see.

Bri has been stopping every hundred meters to snap different photos, trying to find the right angles and capture the right light. It means nothing to me, but watching her get lost in her passion makes me smile. I’m grateful that she has something she is so passionate about and is eager to get up early on a Saturday morning just to take photos for fun. I feel the same way about my music, but seeing someone else enjoy their hobbies has always made me smile.

Once we arrive at the gardens, she heads straight for the hibiscus plants in the middle, eager to get up close with her new lens. After she’s snapped about a thousand photos and I’ve wandered all around to let Maddie sniff every blade of grass, Bri calls me over to show me the screen of her camera while sitting on a nearby bench seat.

“Look at this. I can’t believe the detail, and this is without any editing,” she says.

Her face lights up like a kid at Christmas, and she shows me the close-up image of a bee that landed in the flower’s centre.

“That’s really impressive,” I nod, and I’m being honest while I stare at the screen.

She knows what she is doing. It’s far more impressive than any photo I’ve ever taken.

“Have you ever had anyone pay you for your photos?” I ask.

“Not yet. But the more I’ve been thinking about it lately, the more I’ve wanted to try and see if I can make this into more than just a hobby. I’m thinking of taking a few courses. I have so much more spare time now… I guess the one good thing that came from my time with… him… it gave me a chance to see how a professional photographer operates. Thankfully, I have all the equipment already, and he didn’t decide to keep anything he’d given me.” Her face falls slightly at the mention of her ex, and I once again wish I could punch the guy.

It’s clear that her self-worth has taken a hit, and I would do anything to make her see just how amazing she is.

“Well, let’s forget about him and just look at finding you a course that you like,” I say, steering the conversation away from the douche-bag, and she shoots me a small smile.

“What sort of photography do you want to do? Like weddings and stuff?”

She screws her face up. “No. As much as the portrait stuff is where the money is, I want to do landscapes or things like this,” she points towards the screen. “Although, I would probably have to dabble in portraits if I was to try and make a living out of this. But maybe I can find a way to use my marketing degree… I dunno. It’s probably stupid.”

I watch her flick through the photos she’s taken. “It’s not stupid, Bri. You’ve put a lot of thought into this, haven’t you?”

She’s quiet momentarily, biting her bottom lip before looking back at me. “Yeah. I think… I’ve had a lot of time over the past few weeks to try and work out what I want to do with my life. As much as I’m glad to be back in Brisbane, I want to do more things for myself. I’ve always just done what was expected of me or what my family thought I should do. Then I met Richard, and it was always about what he wanted to do. He got me my current job through his connections. You know the holiday we were meant to go on?” I nod. “It was all for his work and hanging out on a private island in Thailand. While to some people that sounds amazing, we’d done that so many times, and I hate the beach. Anytime I suggested something different, he always found a way to talk me around to what he wanted to do…” She looks away from me as though she’s having trouble admitting these things. “I think this is why I can’t talk about this with Morgan. She means well, but she just tells me what she thinks I should do to put this all behind me. Or where I should live. She doesn’t realise that she’s treating me the same as Richard. Like I’m not capable of making the choices for myself.”

I let her words roll around in my head while I look at her. I can tell this has taken her a fair bit of effort to admit it out loud, and I’m honoured that she trusts me enough to open up about how she’s been feeling when she hasn’t even said any of this to Morgan.

“Well, any time you need an escape or want to just get away and take photos, I’ll happily come along for the ride. I’ve enjoyed hanging out with you since you’ve been back. And for the record, I hate the beach too.”

She smiles at me, and my heart feels a little lighter at the sight of it.

“Thank you, Jake. I’ve enjoyed spending time with you, too. I’d forgotten how easy it was just to be around you. Even now, after all these years of not seeing each other, I feel like you are one of the few people who truly understands me.”

“I’m glad, Little B, because I feel the same with you.”

She reaches over and squeezes my hand before standing up again. “Come on, I want to try and find a few more flowers.” She heads off in search of more garden beds, Maddie and I trailing behind her.

As she bends down in front of another flower, I pull my phone out of my pocket and snap my own photo. It might not be as fancy as any she takes, but it captures her joy perfectly as far as I’m concerned. I don’t think I’ve ever found her quite as beautiful as I do now, and I know it’s because she is so happy.

There is something about this woman. I try not to think about it too much, unsure of my feelings in all of this, but for now, I am happy to spend as much time with her as possible and be the friend I know she needs. Even if I know I am playing a dangerous game with my heart.

Several hours later, we’ve walked all over the city and finally returned to the apartment with an exhausted dog and sore feet. I had to carry Maddie for the last hour because her little legs had just had enough.

“Oh, blissful air con. I’m so glad we didn’t turn that off,” Bri says, kicking off her shoes and collapsing onto the couch.

I put Maddie down and remove her lead, hanging it up where Bri keeps it. I turn back and stop to look at Bri. She has let her hair out, and it’s splayed out behind her head against the back of the couch. I feel the now familiar tightness in my chest, and I admire her momentarily while she stares at the screen on her camera. I know the sore legs and arms from carrying the dog are worth it for the smile playing across her lips.

I clear my throat. “Will you edit them this afternoon?”

“No, I’m exhausted. I’d rather just chill out in the spa for the rest of the afternoon,” she says, turning the camera off and putting it on the coffee table.

She doesn’t move to get off the couch, though, and I grin at her after a moment.

“Need a hand getting up?”

She pokes her tongue out at me. “I don’t think I can move on my own.”

I chuckle and walk around the couch, reaching out to help her. She places her hand in mine, and I pull her up. I overestimate how much strength I need, and she collides with my chest when I pull her up too quickly.

She places her hands on my chest to steady herself, and I wrap my arms around her to keep her from falling backwards.

“Shit, sorry,” I say, looking down at her.

She looks up at me, her blue eyes perfectly framed by her long lashes, and my eyes immediately drift to her lips. Her breath hitches a little, and everything in me screams to close the distance between our lips and kiss her.

But I manage to control my urge to feel her lips pressed to mine, clearing my throat again while I step back, letting my arms drop to my sides. She looks at me for a moment longer and then smiles at me. The gorgeous smile makes me want to throw caution to the wind, say “fuck it”, and tell her everything that has been going through my head since she stepped back into my life.

But I don’t. I can’t risk ruining this friendship we have rebuilt, and I know she is still dealing with a broken heart.

Instead, I let her step around me and head into her room to change into her swimmers while I stand there for a few minutes. Then I make the snap decision to go and see my mother.

Perhaps some space will help me forget everything I want to do to this woman.

I’ve been lying to myself for weeks, telling myself we were just friends… I know I want more. So much more.