‘It was enough,’ Ella said, squeezing her one last time before letting go. ‘And if there’s more to say, you can say it to us over dinner later. I know you think you owe us all something, but you don’t, Mia. If anything, we all owe you.Youchanged all our lives when you gave us those boxes, and that means more than words can say.’
Before she could reply, her attention was diverted by her editor coming up to congratulate her, and then there was a steady stream of people wanting to talk to her about her collection and ask questions. And before she knew it, the gallery owner had come to whisper in her ear that there was only one photograph left for sale, which had Mia exhaling and feeling tears prick her eyes for an entirely different reason. All those years of hiding the photographs away, even though she’d known they were her best work—and now they were out there in the world and being loved by everyone who saw them. Ethan would have been so proud.
But all the people who’d been gathered around her seemed to disappear when she saw a familiar figure leaning against the wall. Instead of his usual uniform of jeans and scuffed boots,he was wearing a suit with an open-necked shirt, and he looked even more handsome than the day she’d first laid eyes on him.
Joe.
Mia couldn’t see anyone else as she walked towards him. She hadn’t invited him tonight because she wasn’t sure whether she was ready for him to see her work; to see her like this. Or maybe it was because she’d worried that if she ever saw him again she couldn’t bring herself to walk away. But there he was, somehow, standing on the other side of the room, watching her.
‘How are you even here?’ she whispered once she was close enough.
‘That wasn’t exactly the welcome I’d been expecting,’ he said, as he flashed her one of his too-gorgeous smiles. ‘I thought you’d at least compliment my choice of clothes first.’
Mia laughed. She couldn’t help it. From the moment they’d met, Joe had brought a lightness into her life, had made her feel alive again, and just standing in front of him brought it all back to her.
‘You look…’ She stood back and shook her head, not knowing what to say. ‘You look fantastic.’
‘I don’t dress up for just anyone, Mia,’ he said. ‘I didn’t even wear a suit to my sister’s wedding.’
Her breath caught as he touched her cheek, his thumb gentle as it brushed across her skin.
‘How did you know to come here?’ she asked.
‘Because someone named Ella called the bar and told me that I needed to,’ he said. ‘And I’m so pleased she did.’
When Joe kissed her, it was like they were back in France again. Everything else disappeared until it was just them; his hands cupping her cheeks and her mouth moving softly against his.
‘I’m so proud of you,’ he murmured when he finally pulled away, their foreheads pressed together. ‘But you should have invited me yourself.’
She didn’t want to ruin the moment by telling him that she hadn’t known if she wanted him there, or that she didn’t want to ask him and then be devastated if he didn’t come. Or a host of other reasons that had seemed logical in her head but now felt ridiculous. Because he was here now, and that was all that mattered.
‘You live in Paris.’
He laughed, but it sounded more like a grunt. ‘And you live in London.’
‘We both have lives and jobs and?—’
‘We can move.’
She breathed and he exhaled and they just stood like that until she finally found the courage to speak again. He made it sound so simple, but she knew it wasn’t so easy as just falling in love.
‘Do you want to move?’ she whispered.
Joe pulled her tight against him and pressed a kiss to her forehead. ‘I want to be with you, and that’s all that matters. I don’t care about how we make that happen, and I need you to know that it was never a charade, Mia. Not from the moment I saw you walk into the restaurant the night of the party.’
Those words warmed her heart, but it still didn’t change all the obstacles that stood in their way. ‘But your bar, your family, my life here—’ She paused to breathe. ‘We barely know each other.’
He leaned down and kissed her, stealing her words and making her forget all about her worries. ‘We have the rest of our lives to get to know each other. Now show me the photographs,’ he said, letting her go and taking her hand. ‘Just show me thecollection, talk me through it, and we can figure everything else out later.’
She knew what collection he was referring to. He already knew about the women displayed in the foyer; he wanted to see her Canadian photographs. He wanted to see the photos she’d taken with Ethan, the photos she’d told him still haunted her.
And there was one that she was more scared of showing him than any other, but if they were going to do this, then it was time to show him everything about who she was and where she’d come from.
But instead of worrying, Mia bravely took his hand and walked him silently through the room, past endless photographs with tiny gold stickers to indicate they were sold, until they reached the final one. It was a self-portrait of her with Ethan, of them smiling, with the rugged beauty of the landscape they were there to discover behind them. It was her favourite photograph of all, and she imagined that, no matter what else came next, it always would be.
‘It’s the only one that hasn’t sold,’ she said, as much to herself as to Joe.
‘It hasn’t sold because it’s supposed to stay with you,’ he said, gently, turning her to face the photo and wrapping his arms around her from behind. ‘This photo belongs to you, Mia.’
