“You too,” I replied.
He hurried off inside and I looked down at his text on my phone. He was real. I couldn’t wrap my head around anything that was happening.
I hopped in my car and called Hailey, but she still didn’t pick up.
I had to tell someone what was going on.
8
LYDIA
Itried calling Hailey at least five times on the way to the gallery. Of course, when I really needed to talk to her, she wouldn’t answer. If I had actually met Max two years ago, I would’ve definitely told Hailey about it. But what if shedidknow about him? It was only going to mess with my head even more.
Luckily, when I pulled up to the store, I wasn’t too late. There was no one waiting outside. Grabbing my purse, I hopped out and quickly ran into Trailblaze Adventures next door, hoping Hailey would be there. It turned out only Oliver was. He looked up at me from the cash register and waved.
“Good morning. Are you only now getting to work?”
My heart started to race with impatience; I really needed to see Hailey.
“I had to take some muffins to my grandmother,” I said, rushing over to the desk. “Where’s your wife? She’s not answering her phone.”
Oliver chuckled. His light brown hair curled around his ears and his beard had gotten bushier within the past week. “That’s not surprising. She took the day off and we both know that when she does that, she unplugs from everything. However, I do knowshe’s at the grocery store stocking up on things for your girls’ night tonight.”
Out of all the days I needed to see her, she wasn’t going to be around. How was I going to wait until tonight to talk to her?
“Is everything okay?” Oliver asked, his brown eyes furrowed with concern.
I nodded. “It’s fine. I just had something I needed to ask her. If you happen to get a hold of her, please tell her to call me. If not, I’ll see her at your house tonight.”
It was going to be torture if I had to wait that long.
The bell on the door jingled and I backed away from the desk. “See you later,” I said, moving out of the way so Oliver could greet his customer.
I hurried out and stopped at the front door of my store. Before I could open it, someone hollered my name. And just like that, I froze at the sound of his voice. I’d heard it last night in my dream.
When I looked toward my left, Ben was sprinting down the sidewalk toward me with his camera around his neck. He looked the same as in my dream, even wearing the same blue coat. The only difference was that his sandy blond hair was a tad bit longer up top.
“Ben?” I called out.
He closed the distance and chuckled. “Good. You remember me. I was so afraid you wouldn’t. A lot can happen in a year.” A lot could happen in a night. I peered down at his hand, and in between his fingers was one of my business cards.
In my dream, I met him last Christmas Eve and gave him that business card. He was leaving to study photography overseas. If there was any time I needed to talk to Hailey, it was now. How was any of this real? First, Max showed up, and now Ben.
Ben’s expression turned hopeful. “Is there still any space for me to showcase my art in your gallery?”
There was one picture of his that I fell in love with in my dream. It was of a dew drop on a leaf with the sun shining through it. What were the odds of that being a real picture he took? It was time to find out.
“Yes, there is,” I said, opening the door wide. “Do you have some of your favorites on your camera?”
He nodded happily and walked past me into the store. “I sure do. I even have your favorite still on there.”
The breath hitched in my lungs, and I slowly closed the door. “Oh yeah? Which one?” I asked, walking over to set my purse on the computer desk.
Ben lifted the camera from around his neck and grinned the whole time he searched through his photos. When he showed me the one of the dew drop, my mouth fell open. It was the same one.
“That’s it,” I said low.
He smirked. “I know. I have a whole folder I can email you. It has all my favorites in it.” In my dream, his pictures had a magical quality to them; I couldn’t wait to see them. Hopefully, Violet would be feeling better soon so we could get them framed and on display.
