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A fresh wave of energy hit me as I picked them up and let myself int the dark apartment. I set them down and put my jacket and camera bag away. I grabbed a soda from the fridge and dropped down on the floor with a pair of scissors, tearing excitedly into the packages.
Thanks to that little bonus from Marnie and online shopping with two-day delivery, I’d managed to gather a half-decent collection of vacation clothing.
I smiled pulling the new, brightly colored bikinis from the box and set them on the couch beside me. I added the flip flops. The new pairs of shorts. New T-shirts.
Now, if only the airline wouldn’t lose my luggage. Fingers crossed.
Now that I had the clothes to pack, there was just one other thing…
My cameras.
I’d been half tempted to not even take one, making do with my cell phone, but I knew…knew if Lucas didn’t see a real camera in my hand, there’d be a lot more questions than I was wanting to deal with on my once in a lifetime dream vacation.
I stood up and headed across the room to my desk. My camera bags and boxes were piled in a messy stack against the back of my desk, the folders of various rejections and everything else tucked between the wall and one of the boxes. I hadn’t felt up to filing them anywhere else but the trash can, to be honest, but some part of me had kept them. Maybe when I was in a better mindset, there’d be some glimmer of hope inside one of them if I was lucky, something I could hold on to.
I’d bring my waterproof point and shoot, obviously. I was tempted to take my big baby, but so many lenses, so many chances to damage it.
So not enough money in savings to replace or repair it.
Nope, Baby was staying home.
I grabbed my waterproof print and shoot camera and packed it carefully in my camera bag I had tucked under my desk. It was small enough to fit easily into my carry-on and still leave me room. I’d throw a few shirts in there just in case and put everything else in my suitcase.
I couldn’t help but start to get excited.
I hadn’t been out of the country in years and never anywhere as exciting or beautiful as Curaçao. I’d done some research over the last few days, making a small list of places I wanted to see and experience. The beaches were one big draw.
The ocean.
The turquoise water.
I didn’t know what I’d agreed to—I kept wanting to pinch myself.
No snow.
No cold.
Just sunshine and tropical beaches and my camera.
And Lucas.
We hadn’t had enough time together lately. After he’d gotten hired at the law firm, he started to become the invisible presence in my life, the occasional text. He’d stop by the diner at least once a month and we’d share a meal after my shift was over, but other than that, our schedules never seemed to align much.
It’s not that he’d moved on to other people. He’d just become a workaholic. I’d watched it happen his last year in law school, the way he’d spend all night studying in the diner. I’d be bringing him pot after pot of coffee some nights while he studied. Jimmy even made a reserved sign up for him so he always had his own spot, not having to worry about coming in and being without his space.
All his books spread over the tabletop, his coffee beside him, highlighters and ear pods… His work ethic had always inspired me.
I’d even snuck a photo of him studying once, lost in thought, scribbling down notes. I’d gotten it framed and had given it to him just before graduation. His mom had liked it so much, she’d made me get her a copy for herself and had even paid me back for it.
Even despite the lack of actual face time, I knew enough of what was going on in his world. The steady stream of women in and out of his life, or more to the point, in and out of his bed. He’d been making up for lost time was how I first looked at it—he’d studied so hard, I was practically the only female he spent time with outside of school and his internship. I’d even been mistaken once as his girlfriend, which had sent a hasty blush from my collarbone to the top of my head. I’d had a crush on Lucas probably since we met. He’d never made a comment about my slight sugar addiction, had never tried to get me to be anything but me. He supported my photography dream.
I was used to him and his little eccentricities.
He liked being single.
He was too driven for a relationship.
He was too driven to see his best friend had had a crush on him from practically the beginning. From the moment he’d walked into that gallery…I’d fallen, fallen harder than the candy had hit the ground when we met. But I’d been so focused on school, I told myself I didn’t need a distraction, which Lucas would inevitably be, and so, instead, he became my best friend, my confidante, my everything.
