Page 57 of A Newport Christmess

I nearly snorted. “You are going to make a great dad. You’ve already got the jokes down.”

He chuckled and pulled his phone from his pocket, handing it to me. “I still have some battery. You can use my camera.”

“Thanks.” I snapped a couple of pictures.

“Want me to grab one of you?”

“I thought you’d sworn off taking pictures.” I glanced over at him, a teasing smile on my lips. “I’d hate to compromise you when you were so adamant about not taking a picture of Nikki and me at Bowen’s Wharf the other night.”

“It wasn’t my best moment.”

“So you typically aren’t opposed to taking pictures?”

“I’m opposed to social media.”

My smile wavered. “Oh. I didn’t realize—”

“I’m not opposed to all of it. I just ...” Landon released a long exhale. “After my divorce, I deleted my account. I was done with social media and anything to do with it, including getting sucked into photographing pictures for someone to post. Even for Nikki. It felt easier to draw a hard-and-fast line.”

I thought to ask him what had happened that left such a bad taste in his mouth, but I assumed if he’d wanted to tell me, he would. “How did you look through my feed, then?”

He chuckled. “Yeah ... I may have caved and signed up for an account again. It’s a different handle, though, and this one’s private.”

“Why’d you change your mind?”

A mischievous grin emerged. “I think it’s obvious.”

I stared at him until a stupid smile betrayed me. “I’m not sure how I feel about making you break your solemn oath against all things social media.”

“You look pretty amused by it.” He removed his glove and grabbed the phone from me. “Now, let me take your picture.”

“You might as well. I’ve already corrupted your integrity.” I took a step back to the sound of his laughter, held out my arms wide, and smiled.

He snapped a few pictures and then lowered the camera. “Speaking of corrupting my integrity, want to take a couple with me?”

My brows lifted until they were hidden beneath my beanie. “Selfies? Like the two of us together?”

He shrugged. “I was thinking about what you said the other day after we saw Eliza. About why you told her we were dating.”

“Because if the roles were reversed—”

“Exactly. And the roles are reversed, to some extent. It’s not like Cody’s here with his current girlfriend or anything, but you said he’s posting pictures of himself with other girls on his social media.”

Where was Landon going with this?

“I’d like to repay the favor. You wouldn’t need to say anything about who I am or that we’re together. Just post them to your account—if you wanted.”

I found myself staring at him, again, while trying to wrap my head around his offer. Not only because a minute ago he told me he’d sworn off social media completely and was now offering to let me post a picture of him, but because of the repercussions of posting that picture. It wasn’t only Cody who would see the pictures. My parents, my sisters, all my extended family, and friends. I’d get blasted with messages. Then, there were all my followers. What would they think if a random picture of some man—especially one as attractive as Landon—suddenly hit my feed? They’d expect to see more of him. And after next week, there would be no more. There was no logical reason to entertain the idea of a selfie shoot with Landon. So why did I want to say yes? “We could take a couple,” I said, trying to keep the nerves from my voice. “I can always decide later if I’m brave enough to post one.”

He held up his phone. “Do you want me to take them? Or do you want to?”

Without a tripod, I was no selfie expert, but it seemed less intimidating to be the one in control of the camera instead of the one thinking about how to pose. “I can.”

He moved to stand behind me, our backs to the water. “And just so you’re aware, I’m going to break the cardinal rule and touch you, but only for the sake of the picture.” His ungloved hands settled on my hips, and despite my multiple layers, the sensation sent a chill through me and made my breath catch. I had one job: to take the picture. Well, smile and take the picture. I held out the phone, trying not to get distracted by the image of us on the screen or the pressure of his hands on me. Just smile and click. Smile and click. I took a few, then scrolled back through them. With Landon right behind me and my large head in the foreground, I looked like the luckiest bobble-head alive. I quickly deleted them to try again.

“Confession.” I stretched out my arm a little farther to put more distance between my head and the lens. “I’m terrible at selfies.”

Landon scooted closer, his hands sliding lower along my upper thighs in a blissful distraction. “You’re a social media influencer. Isn’t selfie-taking in your blood?”