“He’s definitely going to propose,” I assured her. “Everyone sees the way he looks at you. He’s obsessed. He’s not breaking up with you.”
Ava turned to face me and raised an eyebrow. “Speaking of obsessed… Nico Cirone?!”
I grimaced in an attempt to hide the way my lips were curling upward and I ducked my head. “I know, I know. You can’t say anything to anyone, though.”
“He’s the guy from the club that night too, isn’t he?”
I looked back up at her and nodded. “I didn’t want to say anything because that was obviously just something random. But yeah… we’ve been hanging out and talking since then.”
“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!” she said loudly before taking a sip of her drink. “I mean, I can understand why you wouldn’t want anyone to know, but shit. He’s fucking hot as hell and I’m your best friend.”
“I’ll lose my job if anyone finds out about it and I can’t afford to lose it right now.”
Ava nodded and fell silent as she looked around the room. “What if you didn’t have to work for the Vipers anymore? What if you could make your dreams come true and do this full-time instead?”
I looked at her as I chewed on the inside of my cheek. “I mean, that’s what my goal is. There’s no guarantee that it will happen or work out. Working for the Vipers right now is a sure thing. That’s what pays my bills, and I can’t jeopardize that.”
“Tonight is obviously going so well. If we can use this to get the ball rolling, you’re going to have people calling you all the time.” Ava pulled out her phone. “My cousin is due in, like, two weeks to have a baby. I’m forcing her to book a newborn shoot with you.” She looked up at me and her eyes were wide. “And my one friend who is getting married. The photographer she originally hired recently backed out, so she’s going to need you too.”
“Ava,” I started as I shook my head at her. “You can’t just force all of these people to hire me.”
She waved her hand dismissively. “Nonsense. I’m not forcing them. It’s all word of mouth. You’re a talented photographer and we’re going to make this happen for you.” She smirked and winked. “That way you don’t have to be Nico Cirone’s dirty little secret.”
“I’m not his dirty little secret,” I argued as I lifted my glass to my mouth.
Ava nodded. “You’re right. He’s your little secret.”
I almost spat my drink out and half choked on it as I swallowed down the liquid and laughed. “Oh my gosh, Ava,” I laughed as I shook my head at her. “That sounds so bad.”
“Tell me I’m wrong.”
“You’re not,” I said as we both giggled. We quickly finished eating as the wedding began to shift again and it was time for the two of us to get back to work.
As much as I didn’t want her pushing my work on other people, I was excited for the possibilities. For the different jobs and making my dreams come true.
But more importantly, I was excited for what this could do for Nico and I.
He wouldn’t have to be my secret anymore…
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
NICO
Shifting my weight on my feet, I checked the time on my phone again. Harper told me about twenty minutes ago that she was leaving the venue. She should be here any minute. I couldn’t help but feel a little awkward standing outside of her door with a bouquet of flowers. I didn’t tell her I was going to be coming by and I suddenly felt nervous about being here.
What if she didn’t want to see me? Was it weird that I came here with flowers like she just won an award? I was insanely proud of her for chasing after her dreams and making a name for herself. I just wanted to show my support and this was the first thing that came to my mind.
Movement from down the hall caught my attention and I looked down to see Harper walking toward me with her bags of equipment. She was wearing a light gray dress that hugged her curves in all the right places. Her black heels clicked against the floor beneath her feet and I couldn’t stop my eyes from trailing along her bare legs.
Fuck. She was breathtaking.
Harper fumbled with the keys in her hands and her eyes bounced to mine as she let out a gasp. “Nico,” she said breathlessly as a wave of confusion passed through her irises. “You scared me. What are you doing here?”
Her eyes dropped down to the flowers and then back up to meet my gaze. A pink tint spread across her cheeks and she instinctively batted her eyelashes at me.
“Here,” I said to her as I reached for her bags while handing her the flowers. “Let me carry those and you take these.”
She didn’t argue as she slid the straps from her shoulders and I took them from her. She looked down at the flowers in her hands and back up to me. “What are these for?”
“Just because,” I told her with a shrug as she unlocked her apartment door and let me in with her. “I wanted to surprise you and let you know how proud I am of you.”
Harper paused just inside her apartment as she turned to look at me. “You got me ‘just because’ flowers? And showed up at my place to surprise me?”
I swallowed roughly over the walnut-sized lump that formed in my throat and nodded. “I did,” I said quietly, not fully trusting my voice.
The look in her eyes was a mixture of surprise and contentment. No words needed to be spoken between us in that moment. The meaning behind the flowers shook me to the core and it wasn't until she questioned me on it that the reality of the situation hit me in my fucking soul. I didn’t just go out and buy people flowers.
“The only person I’ve ever bought flowers for before was my mother,” I told her with nothing but pure honesty. My voice was barely audible and Harper’s eyes searched mine. “The last ones I bought were a week before she passed away.”
Harper’s eyes were soft and I watched the moisture collect on her lashes. She took the bags from me and set them on a bench that she had by the entrance. She stepped closer to me, wrapping her arms around my torso as she pressed herself flush against my body.
Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around the tops of her shoulders and held her close as I buried my face in her hair. It wasn’t often that I allowed the grief to settle in, but I couldn’t help myself right now. There was something about the moment that had a rush of feelings slamming into my chest. My heart constricted and I blinked back the tears.
I had already grieved the loss of my mother, but those damn flowers. They had emotions rushing back to me in a moment and I needed to focus on Harper. She was the one who could ground me in this moment.
“Thank you for the flowers,” she murmured against my shirt as she held me tightly. “They’re beautiful.”
I slowly pulled back from her and she leaned her head back to look up at me. “Then they’re perfect for you. You deserve everything in the fucking world and I want to be the one who gives it to you.”
She stared back at me. “Nico…”
“Shh,” I shushed her as I lifted a finger to press to her lips. “You don’t need to argue with me. I won’t say anything more. I just want you to know that you’re important to me, okay? And I’m so goddamn proud of you. You had the opportunity to explore another avenue in your career and you killed it.”