Chapter 12
12
THREE MONTHS LATER
Belinda had spent the past months throwing herself into building her photography portfolio and business. She was gaining referrals, finding her best advertising to be from word of mouth—especially when it involved weddings. Happy brides and happy bridal parents often translated into telling their friends.
She still came in early mornings to help with the bakery. However, by now, her sister had hired several other employees, so even on the mornings they were slammed, the lines went faster, and their system for delivering the fabulous coffee and pastries was easier.
At first, it was hard not to look up every time the bell over the door rang. Part of her hoped it was Aaron; the other part was almost glad it wasn’t. She had come to realize that, in some ways, she had done exactly what his brother Andy accused him of… leaving before getting hurt by the other person. But what good would it have done to stay if he wasn’t willing to fight for us?
When the morning crowd slowed, she walked back into the kitchen, smiling at Bess’s expression as she rolled out the pastry dough.
Looking up, her sister smiled in return. “Are you getting ready to leave?”
“Not yet. I’m waiting on someone.”
Bess’s brow lifted to her hairline. “Who?” Suddenly, her brow snapped together. “Who?” she asked again, only with an accusing tone.
“Someone from the community college has seen some of my work and wondered if I could teach him more about photography.”
“Oh, a he . That sounds interesting.”
“I don’t know anything about him other than he said he’d been at a wedding that I had done and had gone to my website. We’ve only communicated by email, so don’t get your hopes up. He’s probably married with six kids or single for a very good reason.”
“Well, you can’t blame a girl for hoping her sister finds the right one.”
Her chest gave a little tug, as it always did when she thought of Aaron. They had ended almost before they began, yet she still missed him. Still missed the idea of what they could’ve been. Pushing those thoughts down, she stared at Bess and said, “You’re one to talk. I haven’t seen you with anyone in a long time.”
“Who has time to date when you’re starting a business?”
“Agreed!” Belinda said. “Anyway, we’re independent women who don’t have to have a man.”
“Agreed,” Bess said, mimicking her. Then she sighed. “We might not have to have one, but I wouldn’t mind a romp now and then.”
One of the new employees poked her head through the doorway. “Belinda? A man out here says he's supposed to meet you.”
Bess wiggled her eyebrows, and Belinda threw a dish rag at her. Walking out, she was stunned to see a handsome man, probably only a few years older than her, with a camera strapped around his neck and a nice smile on his face. Walking forward, she thrust out her hand. “I’m Belinda.”
“Nice to meet you, Belinda, I’m Daniel.”
Turning, she waved goodbye to Bess, who waggled her eyebrows again. They walked outside, and she was thrilled that the March day was mild with no blustering wind. Turning toward Daniel, she said, “You mentioned wanting to go to Easton?”
“Yes,” Daniel nodded. “I thought about taking a group of students from my History of the Eastern Shore class there, and this would give me a good chance to take some pictures and get to know the buildings a bit better.”
“That sounds good. I haven’t been out there in a while.”
“This may sound forward, but do you want to ride together? I’d be more than happy to drive and bring you back here since it’s on my way, and you’re giving me a free photography lesson.”
She usually would have refused to get into a car with a stranger, but she’d checked with her friend Joanne, who worked at the community college, and had made sure they employed him. Joanne dated Bryce, who worked for the Virginia Marine Police. This made him a coworker of Andy, making her think of Aaron. Great… all roads lead back to Aaron. Forcing those thoughts down, she smiled up at Daniel. “That sounds great.”
He nodded and guided her to his car. As he opened her door, he apologized. “I’m really sorry, but I’m a huge snacker, and my car is usually messy. I managed to pick up all the potato chip bags and shove them into the back. Now that I think about it, I should have bought some of Bess’s pastries for us.”
She laughed, finding him easy to talk to. “No worries,” she said, holding up a bag. “I took care of it.”
“Damn, that’s perfect.” He sat behind the wheel and smiled at her before turning back to the windshield and pulling out of the parking lot.
It didn’t take long to come to the little town of Easton, the county seat of North Heron. As they drove along the road, the few shops and restaurants were dominated mostly by the large sheriff's department, the county jail, and the court buildings. Staring up at the sheriff's department, it struck her that was where Aaron came to work every day.
“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Daniel asked.
“I’m sorry?”
“Oh, I didn’t get my whole thought out. My students tell me that’s such a bad habit of mine. I was referencing how large the county's law enforcement and judicial buildings are now compared to that.” He pulled into a parking spot and pointed at the small, historical buildings set to the side. The remnants of a small brick jail and the historic courthouse were situated in an area known as The Green.
“You’re right,” she said, already looking at how the sun and clouds were positioned for various photographs.
They climbed from the car and walked over to one of the buildings. She began by explaining the lighting and shadows of this time of day and how they affected the look of the buildings. She then moved into camera angles and the story that different photographs could tell, even of the same subject.
Daniel was interested and plied her with excellent questions.
Before she knew it, two hours had passed, and she had to admit she’d had a wonderful time.
“Would you ever consider teaching a class?” he asked, turning his attention to her.
“Photography class?” Her brows lifted in surprise.
“Yes! I think you’d be amazing, and the college is always looking for someone to offer a class.” He winced, then shook his head. “I have no idea how much something like that would pay, and it might be on more of a photography club rather than an actual college class for credit. But if you’re interested, I can certainly find out more.”
While her weddings and events photography were paying her bills, it would be nice to be paid to teach photography to help augment the lower income during winter since brides loved their spring, summer, and fall weddings.
They walked back to the parking lot and stood at his car for a moment as they continued talking. She pulled out her camera bag and set it on the hood of his car, showing him a few of the more advanced filters and lenses she used.
He joked, “So that would be for a close-up, especially if someone wanted to do something silly, right?”
He struck a ridiculous pose, and she laughed as she snapped his picture. Then they stood close together as he peered down to look at the pictures on her camera screen. He was taller than she, although not as tall as Aaron. Hiding her grimace, she hated that she was still comparing other men to him.
Not wanting their time to take an awkward turn, she turned to put her camera back in its bag. “I think that’ll do it for today’s lesson. I hope you learned something helpful.”
“This was more than I could’ve hoped for, Belinda. I feel like I should pay for your time. I can’t believe you volunteered to do this for me.”
“It’s fine although I would be interested in hearing more about possibly teaching a photography class or a club. Check it out, and you can let me know.”
His smile was warm as he nodded. “Absolutely, I will.” He walked her around to the passenger door and opened it, allowing her to get seated and buckled before he shut it.
Instead of pulling directly out of the parking lot, he detoured past the modern jail and the judicial building, driving right by the sheriff's department. She looked over as a group of men and women came out. She wanted to scan to see if Aaron was among them but refused to search. If he wasn’t there, it didn’t matter. And if he was, well… that also didn’t matter either.
Daniel drove back to the bakery, and as she started to get out, he said, “I had a really nice time today.”
She turned back and smiled. “Me, too.” He seemed to want to say something else but held back. She was afraid that he would ask her out, and she panicked. “Let me know about the classes if anything comes from that.” She climbed out of his car and waved.
She unlocked the door leading to the apartments. Unsurprisingly, Bess popped her head out when Belinda reached the top of the stairs. Grinning, she followed her sister into her apartment, loving how it always smelled like sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and coffee. Grabbing a cookie and accepting the cup Bess handed her, they sat on the sofa.
“He was cute.”
Belinda choked on her sip of coffee, then glared at a smiling Bess. “I swear I think you say things just as I’m drinking to watch me sputter all over myself.”
“Well, younger sisters have to get their jollies where they can,” Bess retorted. “But seriously, he was cute.”
“True, but it wasn’t a date. And I was afraid he was going to ask for one when he dropped me off.”
A crinkle formed between Bess’s brows. “And that would be bad because…”
Belinda shrugged, then flopped her head back and stared at the ceiling. “I don’t know. It’s not bad. I just wonder if I even know how to judge who would be a good date and who wouldn’t.”
“You don’t have to figure out if… wait, what was his name?”
Rolling her head to the side to glare again at Bess, she said, “Daniel. I told you that when I sent you his info in case I never came home. You should have memorized that so you could have called the police when they looked for my body.”
“Oh God, don’t say that and stop being dramatic. Now, where was I? Oh, yeah. You don’t have to figure out whether Daniel is a good date. You can just go out for fun. Or for a good fuck.”
Belinda snorted and set her coffee mug on the table. “That’s it. No more talking and drinking!” She stretched out her legs and nudged Bess with her foot. “Let’s face it, neither of us has been getting any action lately.”
Bess’s lips pinched together tightly for a moment before she sighed and shook her head. “Do you think you’ll at least see Daniel in a professional capacity again?”
Leaning forward with a grin, she said, “He brought up the possibility of me teaching a photography class at the community college or as a photography club. It might not pay much, but it would be fun.”
Bess reached over and grabbed Belinda’s hand. “That sounds great! Well, then, good for him. I’ll give him my seal of approval just for that gesture!”
Grabbing her mug back from the table, Belinda settled in as Bess turned on the TV. They began watching the latest reality dating show, laughing at the dating woes of others. It might not be exciting, but it was better than drowning in her own dating mistakes.