"Oh, I don't know," the senator replied. "Some of these aren't bad."
Jayden let out a nervous laugh. "And some of them are pretty horrible."
The senator smiled as he handed the camera back. "Well, you did say you weren't a professional yet. With a little more practice, you could be. You have a good eye."
"Do you know about photography?" Jayden asked.
"Not a bit." The man laughed. "I just know what I like."
Jayden swallowed tightly when the senator glanced at him, his eyes sweeping down Jayden's body. He had to have imagined that. The senator had been married to a woman for years. Granted, they had recently gotten divorced, but he didn't think it had anything to do with the senator liking men, but maybe he was wrong. Maybe everyone had been wrong all this time.
Only one way to find out.
"I'm Jayden." He held out his hand.
The dimples that appeared when the senator smiled nearly made Jayden groan. "Wilson."
Jayden glanced up when a beer bottle was set down in front of him. "How much do I owe you?" he asked the platinum blonde. The older woman reminded him a bit of Marilyn Monroe, or at least what she'd look like at fifty years old.
"That'll be three dollars, sugar."
Jayden grabbed a five-dollar bill out of his pocket and handed it over. "Keep the change." He looked back at Wilson. "Can I buy you a beer?"
Wilson indicated the beer sitting in front of him. "I already have one, but thanks."
Jayden nodded, grabbed his beer, and took a sip. "Do you come here often?" He winced when he realized what he'd asked. Was that the world's cheesiest pick-up line or what? "It seems like a nice place."
"No, I'm just in town visiting some friends. You?"
Jayden just held up his camera. He wasn't about to admit he was a reporter. Luckily, he hadn't started researching the diamond story yet, so no one knew who he was.
"From what I hear, there's some really nice views of the valley from up on the mountain. There's supposed to be a great spot about halfway up. I'm hoping to get some pictures tomorrow."
Not a lie, so Jayden didn't feel too bad about sharing that information. He actually did intend to go up the mountain to take some pictures, but he was going to do it on his way up to talk to a man named Jonah Cade, who was supposed to be the grandson of the man who founded Cade Creek.
The dimples came back when Wilson smiled. "Nice."
"I was going to grab something to eat," Jayden said. "Want to join me?"
"Uh…” Wilson shot a quick look around the bar.
"You don't have to if you've got something else going on. I just thought I'd offer."
"No, that actually sounds pretty nice."
Jayden smiled. "Why don't you find us a table while I grab some menus?"
Wilson pointed to the sign behind the bar.
Jayden frowned as he turned to look at the sign, and then he laughed. "Okay, they serve burgers. How do you want yours?"
"All of the above, cheese, bacon, and onions, and I'll have fries with it."
"Oh, a man after my own heart." Jayden winked at Wilson before turning to wave the barkeep down and put in their order, two of the same. He stuffed his camera back into his bag then turned to scope out the room. "See any available tables?"
"There's one toward the back. I'll go stake a claim if you want to wait for our burgers."
"Go sit, boys," the barkeep said as she waved a hand with surprisingly long red-painted nails. "I'll bring it out to you when it's done."
