Chapter Eleven #4
Is this a bad idea or the best idea I’ve ever had? I guess Daria’s reaction when she gets here will let me know.
When I unloaded my thought process to Micah two days ago, I expected him to talk me off the proverbial ledge. Instead, he pushed me off of it, and now here we are, standing at the ranch thirty minutes away from Daria’s house, waiting for her to arrive.
Micah exits the lodge looking like a cowboy straight out of my dreams in dark brown pants with a dark denim shirt tucked in. He’s even chewing on a toothpick. “You’re gonna put a hole in the ground with all that pacing,” he chastises.
“What are you, tryna get into character?” I question, yanking the toothpick out of his mouth. Before I realize what I’m doing, I wrap my lips around it, ignoring the chills that rack my body when his eyes bulge.
“You didn’t know I was a method actor?”
“Oh, really? And what else does this method acting entail? Will I see you riding a horse later?”
“No, but if you want, I can show you a few rope tricks.”
I’d forgotten how easy it is to lose myself in Micah, to get sucked into his charm and hang on to his every word.
“Oh, Micah.” I shake my head. “You know, it actually makes sense that you’d be a method actor.”
“Why do you say that?”
“You have this quiet intensity about you.” It’s unnerving and intoxicating at the same time.
“Quiet intensity, huh?”
Like right now. And I don’t even think he realizes he’s doing it. “It’s not a bad thing.” I guess.
“Nah, it’s not. And besides, I like knowing what you think about me.”
Before I can respond to that, Daria’s car pulls up to the ranch entrance.
“Showtime,” he says as he plucks the toothpick from my mouth and walks off with it back between his teeth.
Sam opens Daria’s door, and she steps out looking like a ray of sunshine in a yellow jumpsuit with her hair falling in soft waves around her maple-hued skin.
“Dani, what is happening?”
“Well, I know you’re feeling unmotivated to design, so I wanted to remind you of who you are. We’re doing a little photoshoot with your work.”
“You mean Tanya’s designs?”
“Consider it a collaborative effort. Tanya had a vision, but you brought it to life in a way only you can.” She still looks a bit skeptical, so I continue. “Come onnnn, Magnolia x T. Holden. You know Tanya would’ve paid a small fortune to see that.”
She breaks at that. “Yeah, she would’ve.” She takes my hand and lets me lead her to the action.
She gets a kick out of seeing Micah in his cowboy gear. Since Tanya’s designs only included women’s clothes, we had to improvise his outfits. We thought this look would pair well with the black lace tulle dress I’m currently wearing.
“Y’all look amazing,” Daria says.
We cycle through most of her designs, following her direction, while Sabrina, the photographer I hired, snaps away. She’s a local photographer I’ve worked with before and who happened to owe me a favor. I saved it for the perfect occasion.
Daria is in her element among all Tanya’s fashion, bringing her own flair.
During one of the indoor shots, we use the dressing room area.
I’m looking at myself in the mirror wearing a cute sparkly dress, but my makeup is sprawled out all around me and my legs are thrown up on top of the vanity in defiance.
In another shot, Micah kneels in front of me as if he’s hemming my skin-tight mid-length leather dress, but the shot is taken from the mirror angle so you can’t see his face and you can’t tell what he’s doing on his knees in front of me.
I’m looking back at the mirror with a wink to sell the potential scandal as well.
Daria claps excitedly when she looks at the last set of shots Sabrina took. “These are perfection! You are the moment. Oh wow, Tanya would’ve loved your smolder in this one.”
She thanks Sabrina and prepares to start breaking everything down, but I stop her.
“Actually, there’s one more shot I’d love to get.”
“Okay, let’s do it.”
“We’re gonna need two more models.”
“And … will I be pulling them from the sky?” she queries.
I motion for Sam and Hannah to come out and in walks Daria’s parents. Her mom is wearing a heather gray pantsuit Tanya designed with a peplum-style waist and a large faux fur neck scarf. Her dad is wearing a classic black suit.
Daria yelps in surprise. “Oh my God, Mom? Dad?”
Her mom is a little stunned at first when Daria shouts out to her, but Sam assures me that she’s doing okay.
This ranch is the place her parents got married.
When Daria mentioned it by her pool, she didn’t give the specific name, so I’m sure she didn’t think much of it when she pulled up.
The moment she said she was going to donate her and Tanya’s designs, I knew exactly where I wanted to have this photoshoot.
It didn’t take me long at all to find the ranch near her house.
There were only two options, and the owners were more than happy to help me when I told them what I was trying to do.
I thought having her parents take vow renewal pictures in something she designed would be an ideal ending to this photoshoot.
A way to show her that she doesn’t have to choose between her parents’ care and her career.
Their nurses have been integral in making sure that this would be okay for them, which is why I kept it a surprise in case things changed on the day.
Micah gives me a thumbs-up and a bright smile after we look over and see Daria holding back tears while in her parents’ arms.
After the photoshoot, Micah and I leave Daria with her family and head back to the house. We still haven’t figured out the next clue, but I think it’s time to give Daria and her parents their house back, so we’ll head to a hotel if need be. I’m prepared to physically fight Daria if she protests.
“Today was really incredible,” Micah says once we’re settled in the living room with the TV on.
“It really was.” Today reminded me of all the good parts of my modeling career. It reminded me how much I loved it.
“That was all you, Dani. You are … otherworldly.”
I’ve never seen this look on his face before, this wild excitement. His body is buzzing.
“I think you’ve got an adrenaline high.”
“I do. Because of you. Seeing you take charge and make that happen for Daria? She’s going to cherish this moment forever. You should be proud of yourself.”
Thank God the deep hue of my skin does a mostly decent job of hiding when I blush. I pull my pajama shirt away from my neck and force my eyes to stay on his. “Well, thank you. And thank you for being my fellow model today. I really couldn’t have pulled this off without you.”
His hand gently lands on my shoulder. “I’ll be whatever you need me to be.”
Something tells me he doesn’t just mean in this context.
Daria returns a couple of hours later, sighing dreamily, before she marches up and pulls me into a bear hug.
“Damn, are you Tanya? You’re squeezing me way too tight,” I joke as I struggle to breathe.
After she lets me go, she plants a big kiss on my forehead. “Thank you. Thank you both for today.”
“Of course.”
“I think this calls for a celebration.” She goes to her pantry and comes out holding a bottle of champagne and three glasses.
“Have you been saving that?” I ask.
“This was a gift from Tanya, so I thought it was fitting. She told me to hold on to it until I found my spark. If this feeling isn’t spark, I don’t know what is.”
“Did she say those words exactly?” My heart starts pounding.
“She said something like until I rediscover my spark, but same thing.”
I internally roll my eyes at Tanya’s lack of subtlety. Good one, Tanya.
“Well, then, yes, let’s definitely open that up.”
Micah joins us in the kitchen and opens the bottle for us.
The corner of the label is peeling, and this champagne is too expensive for that, so I grab it and pull it free the rest of the way.
“Has that always said that?” Daria asks when Tanya’s next clue is staring us right in the face.