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Her eyebrow arched, she peered over at him. Reaching for her hand, Kellan smirked and kissed it, before holding it on his thigh.
He turned into the Tetons.
“Oh, wow.”
Arien took the camera out of her bag and let the bag drop to the ground. Kellan sat beneath a tree, just watching her do the thing she loved most. She peeked back at him. Sunbeams catching in her hair. Joy lighting up her face. This is all he ever wanted her to be. Happy.
He tipped his chin at the wide, pristine lake in front of them. “It’s called Jenny Lake.”
Tears filled her pretty green eyes at the mention of her mama’s name.
“Photographers come from all over to take pictures here.” Kellan pulled her to sit down beside him. “I guess ’cause of the mirror-like reflection of the Tetons on the water. The visitor center we passed was a photography studio back in the 1920s.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. We can go see it, if you want.”
She smiled up at him. “I’d like that.”
“Thought you might.” He put his arm around her, holding her to his side. “Next time, we can hike and explore a little. Hidden Falls and Inspiration Point’s just a few miles from here. You can take lots of pretty pictures from there.”
“Okay.” Her head fell to his shoulder.
Dragging his fingers through the silky strands, Kellan kissed her hair. “I’m sorry.”
“What happened?”
Slowly, he blew out a breath, because God, wasn’t he a doofus? “I got it in my head you only stayed ’cause of Benjamin and Tanner. Not for me.”
“Jesus, Kellan. Why would you ever think that?”
Chewing on the inside of his cheek, he shrugged noncommittally. “You don’t love me the same as him, but that’s okay—”
“Shut. Up.” Straddling his lap, Arien flicked the hat off his head. “Just shut up. I’ll have you know, I made the decision to stay before Benjie was even born. Tossed my award letter in the trash.”
“But Dad gave it back to you.”
“He did.” Smirking, she palmed his cheek. “The deadline to accept had already come and gone, but your dad called UC and told them about Mom. They granted an extension and gave me the option to register for online classes. I took them up on the offer.”
“We can pay your tuition, Arien. You don’t need their money.”
“I know, but see, I earned it.”
His fingers gliding over her arms, he nodded.
“I have a vision of my own. My YouTube channel keeps growing and I started a website. I want to put a studio in the house and I’m thinking about putting all the recipes from my blog into a book.”
I’ll build you one.
Plans for her studio running through his head, Kellan grinned. He’d do anything to keep that smile on her face. “Gonna give that preppy chef dude a run for his money, huh?”
“Maybe.” She giggled.
“I’m really proud of you, you know that?” His lips skimmed hers. “But I have one request, baby cakes.”
“What’s that?”
“Chocolate.” He winked. “I’m into it.”
