The Last Place You Look, page 11
Julia glanced at her watch. It would have to wait, though. Her break was exactly two minutes from over.
* * *
“Dude, are you sure this is a good idea?” Chris leaned against her workbench and sipped his coffee.
Taylor continued applying stain to the bookcase she’d finished that morning. “No, I’m not.”
He folded his arms. “Tell me how this all happened again? I’m not sure I’m clear.”
He wasn’t clear because she hadn’t told him. She couldn’t decide if he’d tease her mercilessly or give her some sort of brotherly lecture about getting her heart broken. Either way, she wasn’t interested. “We’ve been hanging out. There’s a mutual attraction.”
“But you’ve been like her dating coach, or wingman, or whatever. You can’t switch teams in the middle of the game.”
“It’s not a game.” Even if she appreciated the analogy, she didn’t have to concede the point.
“You know what I mean.”
“She put me on the spot about why we hadn’t gone out.” Not that she hadn’t given plenty of thought to what she’d like to do with Julia on a date. After a date.
“And why hadn’t you gone out?”
He sort of knew the answer, which made the question all the more annoying. “Because she’s looking for casual.”
“And you don’t do casual.”
She sighed. “Right.”
“She’s changed her mind?” Chris gave her the same exasperated face he made when she regularly nixed his idea of opening her own shop.
“Not exactly.”
“So, if you have the hots for someone and that’s what’s on the table, maybe you reconsider.” The second the words were out of his mouth, his eyes got big. “You don’t have the hots for her. You’re in love with her.”
She cringed. “Maybe you could stop saying ‘having the hots.’ It’s so juvenile.”
“Only if you stop changing the subject. Are you in love with her?”
“No.” Maybe she answered a little too quickly, but it wasn’t a lie. “I haven’t spent that much time with her. There’s no way I’m in love.”
“But you’re in the vicinity, I can tell.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
He set down his coffee and crossed the room. He pointed a finger at her. “You might not say it, but you have it bad for her. Relationship territory, not banging.”
She rolled her eyes before closing them and shook her head. “I’m never in banging territory.”
When she opened her eyes, he had his worried brother look on. “True, true. You’re about as old-fashioned as they come.”
“I’m sorry, did you only come here to harass me? Because I have work to do.”
“Hey, now. I’m not harassing. I’m looking out for you. If you’re all in and she’s not, it could end badly.”
“I’m not all in.” She wasn’t that stupid.
“But you have this way of being whatever everyone else needs, which is great for everyone else, but not always for you.”
She maybe had that exact fear simmering. “Eh. It’ll be fine.”
“Who are you and what have you done with my sister?”
She’d spent the better part of her adult life waiting and hoping the woman she was meant to love would appear on her doorstep. It hadn’t gotten her very far. “You know what? It might be a terrible idea, but I’ve decided to go for it.”
He nodded slowly, as though trying to digest her words or, perhaps more accurately, figure out if there was some hidden meaning.
“I mean, what’s the worst that could happen?”
He laughed then, a real laugh, long and hard. “Famous last words, T. Famous last words.”
“Don’t you have somewhere to be or something? Cleaning the house or making dinner for Jack?” Jack, Chris’s husband, was a mortgage broker who did not get summers off.
“No.” Chris shrugged. “My house is clean and I’m meeting Jack in Ithaca for dinner.”
Taylor sighed. She didn’t begrudge teachers their summers off and, normally, she enjoyed the extra time they got to spend together. But at this rate, it was going to be a long couple of months. “Then how about we stop discussing my love life and get to work?”
Taylor had cut pieces the day before, so ten Adirondack chairs came together in no time flat. When her phone rang with a call from Julia, she ducked outside, saying to Chris, “Be right back.” Once out of earshot, she swiped her finger across the screen. “Hey, you.”
“Did you set me up?”
Other than her efforts to set herself up with Julia, she had no idea what Julia might be getting at. “What are you talking about?”
“Amanda. Did you tell her she should hire me to take Cal’s senior pictures?”
It took her a second to place even knowing an Amanda. Then it hit her. Friend of her sister, a bit older. She couldn’t even remember the last time she’d seen her. “No?”
“Why did you say it like a question?”
“Um, because I have no idea what you’re talking about?” That came out like a question, too, but she was legit confused.
“You didn’t suggest it? Even mildly?”
“I only know one Amanda, and barely. I certainly wouldn’t be giving her advice.”
“Huh.”
When she didn’t elaborate, Taylor ventured a, “Julia?”
“What?” There was genuine confusion in her voice.
“What’s going on?”
“Oh. Yeah. So, I got this phone call out of the blue from Amanda Russo. You know her, right?”
At least it was the Amanda she remembered. Perk of a small town. “Only a little. She’s in the married with kids set.”
“Her youngest, Cal, is going to be a senior.”
Christ, that made her feel old. “Okay.”
“Anyway, she calls me and says she saw the pictures from Jessica’s wedding and asked if I do senior pictures. Like, professionally.”
She might not have orchestrated it, but it didn’t surprise her. “I swear I had nothing to do with it.”
“I believe you. I wasn’t mad either way. It was just so weird. So out of the blue.”
Of course she would think that. “You take really amazing pictures. I don’t think it’s out of the blue at all.”
Julia sighed audibly on the other end of the line. “But I don’t know how to take senior pictures.”
“I think it’s just taking pictures. With a high school senior in them.”
Julia coughed, but it didn’t quite cover up the snort that preceded it, which made Taylor smile. “Don’t be a smart-ass.”
“What did you tell her?”
“That I didn’t have any formal training.”
“And what did she say in return?”
“That Cal hated the idea of senior pictures and she figured someone less traditional would probably do better anyway.”
She could empathize. “Sounds perfect, then.”
“You really think I can do this?”
No matter what developed between them romantically, she hoped, if nothing else, the time they spent together might help Julia feel more confident in herself, her talents. “I think you’re going to do amazing.”
“You would say that.”
“I would. I’ve seen what you can do with a camera.”
“Speaking of cameras…” Julia trailed off.
“What about them?”
“Do you think I could borrow yours? I should probably buy my own at this point, but I’m going to need a few paychecks before I can save up for one worth bothering with.”
“Absolutely. I’ll bring them both tomorrow night. We can play around with the manual focus so you feel comfortable with it.”
“You’re the best.”
Taylor ended the call and returned to her workshop. She found Chris lounging against her worktable, making a show of twiddling his thumbs. “All right, all right. Back to work.”
“Are you going to tell me who that was? Or do I even need to ask?”
“It could have been a customer for all you know.” It didn’t bother her he knew it was Julia, just that he assumed it was.
“Was it?”
“No. Julia got asked to do somebody’s senior portraits and needs to borrow my camera.”
“That’s awesome. And awesome that you helped her get into it.”
For all his poking at her, Chris had a good heart. “She really is talented. I don’t have anything against the winery, but I’m pretty sure working in the tasting room is not how she wants to spend her life. Maybe this could turn into something.”
“Wait, are we still talking about photography?” Chris offered her a suggestive look.
Okay, maybe looking out for her laced with teasing. “No reason it can’t be both, right?”
Chapter Thirteen
Julia opened the door and sighed. Taylor stood on her porch in dark jeans and a button-down, holding a bouquet of what appeared to be wildflowers. “Hi.”
Julia didn’t use the word swoon lightly, but it came to mind. Even though she didn’t really consider herself a hopeless romantic, it was impossible not to bask in the butch splendor standing before her. Paying attention to her. Courting her. Okay, courting might be an overstatement, but it was the closest to it she’d had in as long as she remembered. Even the early days with Erica were more about the flash of first love and not being able to get enough of one another. This—whatever this was—with Taylor felt different, more intentional.
She realized with a start that she’d been staring. “Hi. Come in.”
She stepped back and Taylor crossed the threshold, handing her the bouquet. “I’d like to say I picked them myself, but I’d be lying.”
Probably not the time to admit imagining Taylor in a flower shop made her even more fluttery than the idea of her in a field. “They’re beautiful. And you really didn’t have to.”
Taylor smiled. “That’s why I did.”
When did Taylor Winslow get so smooth? “Do you mind if I put them in water before we go?”
“Of course not.”
Julia headed toward the kitchen. “This assumes I can find a vase.”
Taylor followed. “My money is in the cabinet over the refrigerator.”
“Why would you say that?”
She shrugged. “Accessible, but out of the way. It’s where you put the stuff you don’t need every day.”
It sort of made sense, even though it was the last place she’d think. She set the flowers down and dragged a chair over to the fridge. Sure enough, an assortment of vases were crammed in with a crystal punch bowl. “Well, I’ll be damned.”
“Perhaps your grandma and my grandma were kindred spirits. Or maybe it’s more of a universal grandma thing.”
“Either way.” She snagged one of the vases and climbed down.
After getting the flowers situated, they spent some time with Taylor’s camera. She remembered more than she expected. That and knowing she had close to a week to fiddle with it eased a lot of her worry. She offered Taylor a thank you as they headed out. Taylor walked with her to the passenger door and opened it. Apparently, it was a thing with her. A perfectly charming, make her sigh kind of thing.
When she did sigh, Taylor raised a brow. “Do you not like it or are you just not used to it?”
A fair question, one that deserved an honest answer. “Not used to it.”
Taylor pushed the door closed and got in on her side. She started the engine and offered a sideways smirk. “I can work with that.”
Julia nodded, not wanting to make a sarcastic comment but not trusting herself to say something sincere without being sappy. This whole thing could get her into some serious trouble.
Taylor drove them east, away from town. Julia wanted to ask where they were going, but she also liked the idea of being surprised. Of having someone want to take the reins when it came to making plans. Erica had done that so much in the beginning, but as her career became more demanding, Julia took over more and more of all the other details of their life together. She’d not minded, not really, except when it felt like Erica was merely going through the motions. Which, obviously, she was.
When they rolled into Trumansburg and Taylor pulled into an open parking spot right on Main Street, she said, “Have you been to Fig since they reopened?”
She’d heard about the fancy overhaul to the restaurant, but hadn’t been. “Not yet.”
“You’re going to love it.” Taylor seemed to catch herself. “I mean, I hope you will.”
“I have no doubt.”
In addition to a new menu, the inside had been redecorated. Her memories were fuzzy, but gone were the heavy tables and chairs and wood paneling. The new design managed to feel both light and intimate.
They shared a bottle of wine and the most incredible asparagus and ricotta bruschetta. She convinced Taylor to share an entree with her, too, so they could order dessert. Conversation meandered from Taylor’s work to Julia’s role at the winery. “I should probably try to learn the business side of things, or the wine making, but they don’t stir my soul, you know?”
“I do. Your passion and how you earn a living don’t have to be one and the same.”
She had a point. “Yeah.”
“I think you need both, though, one way or another.”
“I can’t believe I neglected both for so long.” Julia straightened her posture. “But no more.”
Taylor nodded. “We all get caught up in the noise sometimes. What matters is you’ve sorted out where you want to be and what you want to do.”
Julia lifted both hands defensively, but laughed. “Let’s not overstate things, shall we?”
Taylor angled her head. “I think you’ve got more figured out than you’re giving yourself credit for.”
“I don’t know if that’s true, but I’ll take it.”
After an insanely delicious lemon tart, they left the restaurant and meandered through town. There was live music in the park, so they stopped under a tree and listened for a while. Toddlers and a few elderly couples danced. “Are they polkaing?” she asked.
“I think so. The old folks at least. The kids seem to be winging it.”
Julia chuckled. “Right.”
On the walk back to where they parked, Taylor took her hand. It was casual but, like the kiss on Taylor’s sofa, confident. On the ride back, music played softly. It took Julia a second to realize it was country. Just one more thing that felt both foreign and familiar.
“So, how do I measure up?”
Julia bit her lip and shot Taylor a sideways look. “Measure up to what?”
Taylor laughed. “Never mind. I don’t think I want to know.”
“The food was spectacular. The entertainment a very close second.”
“Oh, good.”
She paused for a moment, not wanting to seem flip, but not wanting to lay it on too thick, either. “The conversation, though, heads and tails above.”
Julia caught the smirk of self-satisfaction before Taylor turned a genuine smile her way. “I’m glad.”
She’d not expected it to be bad, but she also hadn’t expected it to be perfect. And it was pretty damn near perfect. “Me, too.”
In her driveway, Taylor once again came around and opened Julia’s door. It was the sort of thing she could get used to, honestly. Just like in town, Taylor took her hand for the short walk to the front porch. They stood by the door for a moment, not saying anything, but looking at each other with those hesitant smiles that came with not knowing what to do next. Did Taylor feel half the anticipation she did?
“I really did have a nice time.” Julia tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, suddenly nervous.
“Same.” Taylor looked so relaxed it wasn’t even funny.
“Does that mean we get to do it again?”
She nodded. “We do.”
“Good.” Julia thought for a second that might be the end of it, but no.
Taylor kissed her in the glow of the porch light and she felt about eighteen. Only there was no curfew, no one waiting up to make sure she made it home safe and into bed alone. Just her and Taylor and the desire that had been simmering between them all evening.
“Would you like to come in?”
Taylor gave her a knowing smile. “I appreciate the invitation, but no.”
“No?” Surely she’d misheard.
“No. I’m not staying over on our first date. And if I come in now, that’s exactly what’s going to happen.” Nothing in Taylor’s expression indicated she was joking.
“But we’ve already spent the night together.” It came out a bit more petulantly than she would have liked.
“Don’t tell me you’re incapable of delayed gratification.”
Julia frowned. “Not incapable. I just don’t see the point.”
“It lets you know if you really want something,” Taylor said without breaking eye contact.
“I’m pretty certain I want you.” She trailed a finger down the front of Taylor’s shirt. “If you come in with me, I’ll show you.”
Taylor’s eyes intensified. “I’m sure you would. But I’m pretty set in my ways when it comes to stuff like this. I’m not going to let you convince me otherwise.”
She wasn’t sure whether she admired Taylor’s resolve or loathed it. “You’re serious.”
“I am.” Taylor leaned in and kissed her again. And not some chaste peck on the cheek. It left Julia weak in the knees and more than a little hot and bothered. But then Taylor smiled the most casual of smiles. “Good night, beautiful.”
She opened her mouth, but all that came out was a small squeak.
At the bottom of the porch steps, Taylor stopped and turned. “I really would like to do this again.”
Julia bit her lip. “Yes, please.”
“I’ll text you.”
“Text me when you get home, too. Just so I know you made it safe.”
Taylor offered a casual salute, and then she was gone. Julia unlocked her door and went inside but watched from the window until Taylor drove away. When her taillights had disappeared from view, she turned and slumped against the door.
