Elias worked his jaw as his lips twitched. “A…camera? Your…cootchie?”
“Yeah. So, now my brain just keeps coming up with these really lame double-meanings.”
Elias rolled his lips in as his face reddened from the effort of not laughing. “Stupid double-meanings, huh? Like what? They can’t be lame if they’re making you laugh.”
“Flash.”
Elias shrugged. “Okay.” But his twitching lips continued to give him away.
Wren played along. “Damn. See? Told you they were lame.”
“A little lame. Hit me with another one.”
“Overexposure.”
Little noises came out of his nose and he rolled his lips back in.
“Aperture.”
“Aperture?”
“It means an opening.” She stared right at him. “Like with the lens diameter.”
Elias’ chest and shoulders jumped.
“Was that a chuckle?”
“No. That was a, um, hiccup.”
“Yeah, right. What happens if I say wide lens? Like, open that lenswidefor me,baby!”
Elias’ laughter filled the truck. “That’s not lame, that’s gold, Wren.”
“Two points! I’m winning!”
He cleared his throat. “Just so you know, there’s nothing wide about yourlensor your aperture.”
Wren stamped her foot, trying not to laugh. “Why, thank…thank…you.” Then she lost it and cracked up. “That’s the nicest thing any date’s ever said about me.” She grinned at him. “And, I’m still ahead.”
“Negative. Ha, get it?”
“Nowthat’slame.” But she still laughed, feeling a warm flutter in her chest.
“Fine, we’re even.”
“If you say so.” Wren shook her head, grinning.
But her grin slowly dried up now that they were cruising down the road near the house she’d photographed earlier. They took the opposite fork in the road, unmarked except for a sign saying PRIVATE. She rolled the ball of foil between her hands and tried to think of how to approach her potential clients.
The trees lining the road gave way after a few minutes and opened up. Wren’s eyes widened at the sight of the vast landscape stretching out before them. The mountains rose majestically in the distance, their peaks still dusted with snow even in the summer. A pristine lake shimmered in the sunlight.
“This place is gorgeous,” Wren murmured, momentarily distracted from her worry.
“The people who live here sure love it,” Elias said, his tone giving nothing away.
Wren shot him a suspicious glance.
Elias just smirked as he pulled the truck to a stop in front of a large, rustic cabin with a wide porch. A couple of rocking chairs sat by the door, and a pair of muddy boots were propped up against the wall, giving the place a lived-in, cozy feel. Wren could tell the cabin was old, but someone had done a lot of work to fix it up. The roof looked new and so did the addition on the back.
