‘Let him take your picture,’ he says. ‘He’s amazing at what he does, trust me. So I amdaringyou to do a quick shoot with him.’
‘When?Now?’
‘Yeah, now.’ He gestures around us. ‘We’re in a nice environment. Why not?’
My brain scrambles to make sense of this strange gesture.
‘Don’t you think you should check with Owen on this? He might not appreciate you signing him up for a shoot when he’s at a music festival.’
‘Oh yeah,’ he shrugs. ‘All good, he loves doing portraits. And I already mentioned it, he’s excited about it.’
I frown at the grass for a moment before stumbling my way around a family of four. The dare is simply… not what I imagined. What he’s suggesting is barely a dare at all?
‘Why?’ I ask, searching his face.
It tells me nothing, his expression perfectly guarded. ‘Because if I didn’t dare you then I don’t think you would agree to it otherwise. And I think you could use it.’
‘Use it?’ I stifle a laugh. ‘For what, exactly? My thriving modelling career?’
Visibly amused, he tilts his head at me. ‘Do you hate the idea so much? Owen will make it quick and painless.’
‘Oh yes, good. Like death.’
‘Hey.’ He draws us to a stop, and his voice is much quieter. ‘You don’t have to if you really don’t want to. But I think it might be good for you to push yourself into that kind of discomfort.’
My frown softens and the nervous pool in my belly begins to ebb. Oh God. The part of me that hates him for doing this weaves around the other part that understands exactly what it is he’s doing. And why.
‘Trust me on this.’ He speaks so tenderly that I think my breathing hitches. ‘Take ten minutes with him.’
I don’t know why, but my resolve crumbles and I find myself nodding. ‘Alright. Dare… accepted.’
His face lights up, and it’s already worth saying yes for. ‘Owen! Can we borrow you?’ he shouts ahead of us.
‘No one else is allowed to be present,’ I add, pointing at him sternly. ‘And no one else sees the photos. And it’s only ten minutes.’
‘Perfect,’ he says, grinning. And then Owen is at my side, rubbing his hands together like he’s just lucked out at a casino.
‘I’m looking forward to this,’ he says with a nudge. ‘The weather’s perfect, clouds are great for portraits. Wanna go now? Are you ready?’
Even the wordportraithas made me queasy. I look down at myself, unsure of what I’m looking for. ‘Sure?’
Hennie rushes back to us with a question mark on her face. ‘What’s up, dawdlers? What are you doing?’
I nod at Owen. ‘Photoshoot.’ Then I nod at Elliot. ‘Dare.’
‘Oh?’ For a second she actually looks impressed, before turning to Elliot with a mocking grin. ‘If you want to hang a photo of Nora on your wall, Walker, I’m sure you could just ask her.’
‘Oh, lovely. I’ll take one too, please,’ Josh says through a mouthful of apple crumble which I didn’t even notice him buying.
‘That’s very touching,’ I say with a glare in Hennie’s direction. ‘But sadly any photos taken will not be shared.’
‘What?’ she huffs. ‘They’re going to be the highest form of art. Owen is so good! Why do you deprive me so?’
I laugh her off before giving Owen a polite nod.
He grins from ear to ear. ‘Alright, let’s go find a spot.’
While the othersdecide to investigate a bar in Route 16 called Lenny’s Tavern, Owen and I wander towards the back of the site, where Pitstop 8 meets the enormous fence that encircles the festival. We chat easily as we walk around it, until we finally come to a patch of grass that backs onto some fenced off woods, and it fits my needs perfectly.
