Sophie Pembroke - Summer Of Love

‘Okay,’ he said, pulling out enough cash to cover their lunch and a decent tip. ‘Let’s go see if we can get your pal Max on board with the plan.’

* * * *

Pausing at the door to Max’s office, Lily glanced back at Alex. His expression remained blank, unconcerned, but she could see a tension to his shoulders, his jaw, that made Lily think this was a bigger deal to him than he wanted to let on. Who’d have thought it? Alex Harper, a photographer. And he’d given up that big career in the City that Cora’s parents were always boasting about just to pursue his dream.

Lily had to admire that sort of determination.

But then, Alex had always been good at proving people wrong. After a teenage phase of getting into trouble every Saturday night, being on first name terms with every policeman in Felinfach, and becoming a byword for every father’s worst nightmare when it came to dating their daughters, Alex had somehow managed to straighten up and fly right. While others – okay, she – still struggled every day with the reminders of the trouble they’d caused as children, Alex had escaped to London, made a fortune and his name, and been welcomed back by the town like the prodigal son.

Not that she wasn’t happy for him, of course. A bit jealous, maybe. But now he had to try and convince Max, and that was a whole different ballgame.

‘Ready?’ she asked, and Alex nodded. ‘Okay then.’

Max called them in almost before she’d knocked. Jess had probably phoned up to warn him, and you couldn’t walk up the creaking staircase at the centre of the old Mill building without Max hearing you coming. The look he gave her over his steepled fingers as he sat behind his desk like a Bond super villain confirmed what she’d already suspected. Jess had told him they were coming, filled him in on who Alex was, and now Max was going to use this opportunity to tease and embarrass Lily for his own amusement. Great.

‘Max? This is Alex Harper.’ Stepping into the office, she moved to one side to let Alex pass her and reach out a hand for Max to shake. Max hesitated just a moment too long before taking it. Lily bit her lip. This might be a hard sell.

‘I’ve heard about you,’ Max said, his gaze fixed to Alex’s face. Lily watched him too; Alex met Max’s eyes without hesitation, and his posture was loose and easy. ‘Prodigal son returns to hometown, right?’

Alex smiled. ‘Something like that. A lot’s changed since I was gone. This place, for instance. I’m impressed with how you’ve managed to save so much of the old place.’

The tension in Lily’s shoulders started to relax a little. That was the right thing to say. The Mill was Max’s baby, and with Max, a little flattery went a long way.

‘Lily had a lot to do with that,’ Max said, and Lily’s attention jumped back to him. It wasn’t a lie; she’d met Max almost his first day in town, when she’d been selling her jewellery at the market in the town square. He’d bought her a coffee and listened to her opinions about the town and the opportunities for almost an hour before he’d told her what he was planning. And once she’d heard his idea, there was no way she’d let him do it without her. The money was all Max’s, but a lot of the ideas, the dreams and the hard graft that made it happen were hers.

‘I’m not surprised.’ The smile Alex gave her was soft, caring, and surprised her even more than Max’s praise. ‘She’s always had great dreams.’

‘So you two go way back then?’ Max’s eyes glinted in an alarming way, and Lily realized she really should take some control of this conversation before they started dissecting her history.

‘Alex is Cora’s cousin,’ she said, leaning her hip against Max’s desk. ‘He’s a photographer, and he’s looking at renting our empty unit.’

‘A photographer? I thought he was an accountant.’

‘That too,’ Alex said, shrugging. ‘The photography’s a newer direction for me.’

‘You got a portfolio? Don’t know what Lily’s told you, but we’re a proper collective here. We vote on newcomers. They’ll want to see your stuff.’

‘Of course. I’m still building up my portfolio at the moment. Lily suggested that maybe a few of your artists would let me take some shots of their stock. For free, of course.’

That hadn’t been her suggestion; it had been his. But Alex had obviously noticed Max’s fondness for her, and was playing up to it. Clever man.

‘Maybe.’ Max glanced up at her and she knew he wasn’t fooled at all. Motioning towards the chair on the other side of the desk, he said, ‘Have a seat, Alex.’

Max’s office was tiny; it barely had room for the desk and two chairs already there, so Lily perched on the windowsill to watch the exchange.

‘So, you want to be a photographer?’

Alex nodded. ‘That’s the plan.’

‘I heard you were making good money in the City. Great money, even.’

‘Good enough, yes.’ Alex’s shoulders were looking stiffer, now, Lily realized, biting her lip.

‘So what happened?’ Max asked, eyebrows raised.

‘I decided it was time for a change in direction.’ The words came out clipped. Alex never had liked explaining himself to people. It was one of the things that had got him into so much trouble as a kid. But if he wanted to be part of the collective… Well, she was afraid he’d have to learn. There was nothing the collective liked to do more than talk about stuff.

‘Kind of a drastic change.’ Max leant back in his chair, eyes still fixed on Alex. ‘In my experience, that sort of change is usually preceded by some sort of disaster making it necessary.’

‘Not in my case. My father died. Makes a man re-evaluate things.’ Alex’s hands were clenched against his thighs as he spoke, and Lily realized she really needed to intervene if she didn’t want him to lose it with Max and blow his chance of a place at the Mill.

‘I’m sorry to hear that,’ Max said, but he didn’t look abashed. In fact, he looked like he thought he’d been proven right.

Was he? Was Alex just taking action to distract himself from his father’s death? Or even because he thought it was what his dad would have wanted? Would he give up and move back to London in a few months, once the grief started to fade?

Cora was worried he would, Lily knew. But then, Cora hadn’t heard him talking about his dream on becoming a photographer. Lily had.

‘Alex has been taking photography courses for the last couple of years,’ she said, pushing herself off the windowsill and closer to the desk. Maybe if she flung herself across the desk between them…

‘Is that so?’ Max said, eyeing Alex again. ‘So, you’ve been planning this move for a while?’ Since before your dad died went unspoken, but Lily knew she’d got her point across.

Alex nodded, and Lily let out a breath as his shoulders began to relax. ‘I knew I wanted to make a change, but it wasn’t until I found photography that I knew what I wanted that change to be.’

‘So you’re here looking for a whole new life?’

Alex’s smile was self-deprecating. Lily didn’t believe it. ‘I’m thirty now. I’m ready to move out of the City, ready to settle down.’

Max’s eyes flicked to Lily for one alarming moment. She tried to take a step back before realizing she was already up against the window frame. There was nowhere else to go.

‘Sounds like you’re looking for a wife, son,’ Max said.

‘Maybe.’ Alex grinned. ‘But I’ve got a new career to build up first.’

‘Well, we’ll have to see what we can do about that.’ Max turned to Lily. ‘You think he’d be a good fit?’

‘I do.’ Lily flashed a smile at Alex. ‘Besides, he’s fun to have around.’