Liv smiled at Liam as if pleased he’d remembered. “Look, here it is.” She tapped open her phone.
She had it as her phone’s wallpaper? She really was a fan.
He studied the image, the way Mr. Darcy cupped Elizabeth’s head and kissed her with a hunger Liam had not experienced in years. Not with Trinny. Not with Toni. Had he ever?
“Are you saying you want me to take a similar photo?” Drew asked.
That’s right. The reason they were here was to find a photo. Not for Liam to daydream about kissing. Especially not to daydream about kissing the woman sitting next to him.
“One day,” Liv said. “We’re hoping to maximize our links to the film, and we can’t break any copyright. But the fountain and the house are things we should definitely take advantage of.”
Drew nodded. “I see what you mean.”
“Now, I want you to send me high-resolution images of those pictures I selected tonight if at all possible. We will pay you for the exclusive rights to them, and put your name on documentation so we can license those photos and create postcards, magnets, bookmarks, and the like. And we’d be looking to incorporate them into a guidebook down the track. Does that sound like something you can help us with?”
Drew nodded. “It definitely sounds doable.”
“I know it’s a lot to ask, but I feel like we could be a good fit.” She glanced at Liam.
“Drew, we’d like to work with you,” he agreed.
“Well, uh, thanks. It’s a big commitment, but I’m happy to try.”
She talked contracts and numbers, which widened Drew’s eyes and made Liam internally wince until he realized that one exclusive image could be used multiple times, in multiple ways. Even if they only purchased two images, it might ultimately prove cost-effective.
“Okay, so we’ll see some images tonight, yes?”
Drew agreed, thanked them, and said he’d be in touch.
She walked him to the front door, then slumped as Drew hurried away. “What a day.”
“Are you okay?”
She sighed. “So tired.”
Maybe George’s idea of an afternoon off tomorrow wasn’t such a bad one. He had opened his mouth to ask if she might be interested when her grandmother called and asked Liv if she was ready to go.
Liv shot him a look, murmured a “Thank you” again, and then hurried to her grandmother.
And because she’d admitted to being tired, he didn’t have the heart to stop her collecting her bag or exiting. So he leaned against the heavy wooden front door and watched her walk away.
Chapter 16
Sunday passed with church in the morning and no offer of a date in the afternoon. That didn’t matter—too much—as it was obvious by the people who surrounded Liam as well as those who wanted to speak to her that there were more pressing matters to take care of.
While some people expressed their disappointment at the opening weekend’s poor visitor numbers, others with handicrafts and homemade produce to be sold on consignment in the gift shop were excited to meet Liv. The crafts were an easy yes, the price to be determined later. The honey and jams and other food products needed ingredients listed on the side, as per UK government regulations.
She also met Patricia Vandersynk, the head teacher at the local village school, who was keen to join their little band of organizers. “I’ve had plenty of experience in applying for grants and things. We’ve been granted one more year to boost the pupil numbers; otherwise, it will have to close. It’s the school holidays now, so I want to do all I can to help keep my school alive. Having the Hall open would provide jobs, which would bring people here, and boost enrolments.”
But only if the Hall could make money so that they could employ people. No pressure, then.
By the time she’d returned home to Gran’s, she was as weary as she recalled ever being. After a quick midday meal, she had to sleep, her brain as tired as her aching limbs.
On Monday she returned to the Hall, thankful to have the chance to work quietly without Camilla inserting herself into every conversation she had with Liam and George. They’d helped her choose two of Drew’s photos—one of the front aspect of the house, another of the parterre garden with the still fountain in front of the house facade, both taken when the break in the weather had allowed the sun to hit the windows. It wasn’t quite the perfect fountain shot she’d imagined—the fountain needed to work for that to happen—but Liam said that the plumber had rescheduled for later this week.
She was conscious of a new awareness with him, a feeling compounded by George’s too-wide smiles and winks, something that left her flustered and perhaps a little more short tempered than she’d otherwise like to be.
“Sorry, but I have a lot of work to get on with.”
