AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I was at the studio space, which was located on a busy street in the city. It was expensive, but a perfect place to be noticed, especially since the front of the building was nothing but huge glass windows, letting in natural light and allowing anyone walking by to peek inside and see the pictures I was hanging on the wall.
I was going to offer portraits and event photography as well as submit my work for publication in magazines and newspapers. I was so excited about this new venture that I’d been obsessing over it since I got back to New York.
And it provided a great distraction from my persistent heartbreak.
There was a knock on the door, and I turned to see my mom standing there. She was wearing a brightly patterned maxi dress and a bright smile. My mom was in her fifties, but she looked younger than that and was strikingly beautiful. Her short black hair fell into her eyes while she waited for me to climb down off a ladder and unlock the door.
“Hey, what are you doing here?” I asked as I let her inside, locking the door behind her.
I had a sign in the window that said CLOSED, but I didn’t trust that someone wouldn’t try to come in. The place was a complete mess, and I didn’t want potential customers walking around inside while I had boxes and cleaning supplies scattered everywhere.
“I wanted to come see the place. I can’t believe you’re finally doing this. It’s such a better fit for you than working for that airline.”
I gave my mom a look. “Being a flight attendant wasn’t that bad.”
“You literally went missing a week ago because your planecrashed,” she pointed out.
I cringed, remembering the way she’d cried while holding onto me the night I arrived back in New York. I’d met my stepfather’s gaze over her shoulder but Trevor looked just as helpless as I felt. My poor mom had been worried sick about me, and I couldn’t help feeling a little guilty about that because I truly enjoyed my time on the island.
There was nothing I could do about it, though. I was just glad to be back. As much as I enjoyed my time with Hayden, it wasn’t real life. The longer we were there, the stronger my feelings for him would have become. That would just make getting over him even more difficult than it already was.
“Is this from the island?” Mom asked, approaching a print I hung on the wall opposite the entrance, so that it would be the first thing that the customers saw when they walked in.
“Yeah,” I said, walking over to stand beside her. “It’s the waterfall in the middle of the island. So beautiful and peaceful.”
In my mind, I was replaying my time spent with Hayden there. It was where I really started to get to know him. I learned that there was more to him than what I saw on the surface. Looking back, I knew that I probably started to fall for him there.
“What are you thinking so hard about?” my mom asked.
I blinked and looked at my mom. She had what I would call a knowing smile on her face, but I knew that couldn’t be what it was. I didn’t tell her anything about what happened between me and Hayden. I shared the bare minimum with her when I got back, that we crash landed on a private island owned by the Reid family and that we had food and shelter for our brief stay.
“Nothing,” I said with a shrug. “I was remembering how nice the cool water felt against my skin.”
“I’m surprised you got in,” she said with a laugh. “You’re not usually so bold.”
“Yeah…well, I better get back to work.” I turned away from the picture and started to open the box on the floor behind me. Most of the boxes were filled with framed pictures to be hung on the wall, but a few in the back had my photography equipment inside.
“It’s noon, and I’m guessing you’ve been working on this all morning,” my mom said. “Am I right?”
“You think you know me so well just because you’re my mom,” I teased.
“Moms know everything. You’ll do well to remember that.” She grabbed a picture of my roommate, Evelyn, out of my hand. “Now, go next door to the cute little diner there and grab some lunch.”
I frowned at her, wondering why she was being so persistent. “I ate there yesterday while I was here cleaning the place. It sat empty for a year and you wouldn’t believe how dusty it was.”
“Well, I saw that they claim to have the world’s best milkshake, and I want you to grab me one. Strawberry.”
I furrowed my eyebrows even more. She was acting strange. She wasn’t usually this bossy.
“Every diner in the city claims to have the best milkshake,” I said, shaking my head. “Just like every pizza place says they serve the best slice and every coffee shop claims to have the best coffee around.”
“No sassing me,” she said, surprisingly stern. “I’m going to stay here and hang these pictures while you enjoy your lunch break.”
Okay, weirdo.
I rolled my eyes behind her back. “Fine, but I won’t be gone long.”
“Take as long as you need.”
