Page 23 of That First Flight
I aim for the spot between the main house and the other small house on the property and snap at least a dozen.
God, it’s beautiful.
I turn the truck off quickly and jog up to the front door of the main house.
Within seconds, an elderly man answers the door.
“Good evening, sir. My name is Oliver. I’m a travel and lifestyle blogger from the city.”
He smiles and extends his hand to greet me. “I’m Samuel.”
“Pleasure to meet you.” I nod. “Listen, I wouldn’t normally do something like this on my travels. But when I arrived in town, something about this spot, this house and this view pulled me to come down here and snap a few scenic images of the mountains for my next post showcasing the town.”
“Okay?”
“Would you mind if I went into your backyard and took some pictures? You have the perfect view, by the way. But I will keep the house and the little cottage off to the side out of the images.”
“That’s a super nice camera.” A little girl comes up to the door, her eyes locked on the camera around my neck.
I say little girl, but she looks to be about eight or nine years old. I’m not good with kids and ages, so maybe I’m completely wrong about this one.
However, I am intuitive when it comes to kids and who they look like. She doesn’t look anything like the man who I want to assume is her grandfather. She’s got bright blonde hair that lays off one shoulder in a braid, and bright green eyes.
Familiar,bright green eyes.
But how many people in the world have green eyes? Honestly, I think I just can’t get a particular set out of my head.
After Macey and I enjoyed some lunch together when her boss forced her to take a little break, I realized quickly I can’t get enough of her, which sounds nuts. Besides our flight, I haven’t spent more than thirty minutes with her.
Yet she’s had a chokehold on me since.
I even found myself at the Bar and Grill of all places for New Year’s Eve in hopes she would be working since she seems like a workaholic. But she wasn’t there.
Talk about a disappointing way to end the year.
“You like taking pictures?” I finally ask the girl.
“I’m not good at it, but I do love it. I just use my phone.” She shrugs.
“If it’s okay with your grandpa, you can come out back with me and snap a few if you want.”
The girl looks up at Samuel, her hand covering her mouth as she lets out a chuckle.
“You calling me old, boy?” He joins her in laughter.
“Shit—I mean shoot,” I stutter. “I’m sorry. I just… assumed.”
“You know what they say about assuming?”
“I do.” My eyes trail down to the girl. “But I won’t say it. I’ve already let one bad word slip.”
“It makes a donkey out of you and me,” she finishes for both of us.
I point down to her, bringing my gaze back up to Samuel. “What she said.”
Samuel scans my body up and down. My guess is he’s assessing to make sure I’m a normal human being. He gives me a side eye, but jerks his head. “Head on back. I’ll be watching from the kitchen window. You only have a few minutes. Dinner is almost ready.”
“Okay.” She jumps up and down, following me outside.