Camera Wars

by Chelsea Hale

  “Change isn’t a bad thing,” Mandy offered.

  “No. No it’s not.” It was time for a change.

  After massages, Coco went with her roommates for matching pedicures. Their shoe picture would be well coordinated. Jenny and Liz picked out the polish color and design.

  Mandy leaned over to Coco and whispered, “Spill it.”

  Coco tilted her head.

  “Don’t pretend you don’t know what I mean. You’ve been off lately. I can’t put my finger on it, but something is going on. Are you having second thoughts—about Jeffrey?”

  A stinging sensation pricked at her eyes. I will not cry. She’d wanted to at least talk a little with Peter before Liz’s wedding. Confronting him again only to hear that their kiss was a mistake, even knowing she was available would be too much on her friend’s wedding day. Her composure would be flying away higher than Liz could toss her bouquet.

  “Not Jeffrey. Can you keep a secret?” She didn’t want Liz to worry about it this week. It’d be unfair to drop the drama on her. It’s why she hadn’t said anything when they went back to pick out the bridals.

  “We all can,” Jenny said. “What’s going on?”

  They took their seats in the overly plush chairs, and Coco told them all about Peter. She chewed on her lip, watching her friends’ expressions, and hoping that the news didn’t add stress to Liz. They’d be professional.

  “So, when you wanted to work with him doing his videography services…” Liz left the question hanging in the air.

  “That was only part of it.”

  Liz nodded. “Sounds like he needs to know that you are for sure available before you spring anything on him.”

  “I left him a voicemail telling him Jeffrey and I were done, and he never called me back.”

  “Yes, but maybe he wanted to respond in person,” Jenny responded.

  “I guess I don’t remember.”

  “Ask him if he got your voicemail. Then you’ll know he knows, and then you’ll know,” Mandy chimed in.

  Maybe he hadn’t gotten her message, or wanted to respond in person like Jenny suggested. She’d wait to ask him before she jumped to any more conclusions. Coco nodded. “Thanks, girls.”

  Liz put an arm around her. “That’s what we’re here for.”

  They spent the rest of the day at the spa, talking and laughing, and hope bubbled up inside of Coco. Maybe it was going to be okay. And she’d spend the next two days focused on Tyler and Liz.

  The next day, Coco surveyed the entire preparations, watching Liz’s mom and sisters-in-law busy themselves in the grand ballroom as Liz’s niece and nephews ran around the room.

  “Everything looks beautiful,” Coco said, noting the flower arrangements set on every table.

  “This is just for the wedding rehearsal,” Helen said. “They’ll finish decorating for the ceremony tomorrow morning.”

  Liz’s wedding would be the height of success. Coco was still surprised that she didn’t hire a team of photographers and videographers to capture every moment of the elaborate three-day event.

  The wedding rehearsal started. Coco walked around the room with her camera, making sure she’d get the angles she wanted and studying the best places to stand. She had her bearings in the room. She’d set up her camera on a tripod to capture the ceremony so she could take her place with the rest of the bridesmaids.

  The dinner before was casual compared to the plans for after the ceremony. Tyler and Liz still sat at the head table, but the toasts would take place tomorrow. Coco looked around and there was still no sign of Peter. She understood he wouldn’t be there for the spa day, but he should have shown up for the wedding rehearsal and dinner.

  Of course, she wasn’t filming for it, but he should have been taking pictures. There were several adorable things happening with nephews and nieces and cousins that should be captured. Thankfully, she had her camera for just such a moment.

  Coco gazed through the room again, looking for something else to capture. She felt restless just sitting at a table.

  She stood up and walked the perimeter, getting shots of every table and candid shots of Liz and Tyler together from across the room. With her zoom lens she could keep to the unobtrusive sides of the room.

  Jenny came over, her dress swishing as she walked. “Come, sit, and enjoy for a little bit.”

  “I’m working.”

  “Not right now you’re not. Liz asked me to make sure you weren’t behind your viewfinder all night.” She pulled on Coco’s elbow slightly.

  “A few more shots.”

  Liz’s blonde niece, Linny, walked around holding a bouquet of flowers. Coco had to capture it. She took a few pictures, but then switched to taking videos when Linny’s curly hair bounced up and down. It was a perfect candid moment.

  She looked up from her camera and froze. Peter stood in the doorway, in his gray suit. Tomorrow he’d be in his wedding tux as part of the wedding party, but she doubted he could look better than he did right now. She smiled, her heart skipping a beat. He walked toward her, and her breath caught.

  He’d gotten her voicemail and had wanted to talk to her in person. She smiled wider, and he only nodded at her general direction before changing course and capturing a moment on the other side of the room. She rolled her neck. They both had a job to do at this wedding, but then why did the nod feel like goodbye?

  She moved in his direction, determined to talk and figure it out. Putting herself out there one last time she asked, “Peter, can we talk?”

  “I’m late in getting the candid shots today. I had … to stop and see Randy before coming,” he said.

  “Car trouble?” Mentioning Randy brought up the first day they met. Heat rose in her cheeks at the memory. She could see herself and Peter at more engagement shoots, with or without their cameras. She popped the happy bubbles floating through her. “Randy is one of my favorite people,” she said.

  “Coincidently, he said the same about you.” He tilted his head, but his eyes took on a clouded blue color, not the clear look she was used to.

  Randy said she was a favorite, but Peter didn’t follow it up with any other information. Did Peter categorize her as a favorite in his mind? She pushed through to her question. She needed to know how he felt about the message she’d left him. But Peter began talking before she could.

  “We need to talk,” Peter said to Coco.

  Her smile brightened. It was the perfect opening. “I was hoping we could catch a few minutes to do that.”

  Peter hesitated. It was the way Coco looked at him—her face bright with a happiness that he hadn’t seen before that said she was happy beyond measure. It made him pause. He’d seen that sparkly look in brides and grooms too many times to dismiss it a fleeting emotion. It was the realization that her happily ever after was around the corner. She was definitely in love—which meant Jeffrey had popped the question, finally. He couldn’t smile back, she was engaged. And he needed to officially move on. He wouldn’t tangle up her engagement. He wouldn’t smile back. Tyler and Liz’s wedding would be a success.

  Peter looked around the room, wondering if Jeffrey was around. Maybe he could talk Jeffrey out of using him as a photographer for their wedding. If the opportunity came up, he’d take it. He’d rather ask Jeffrey, but maybe he’d bring it up to Coco.

  “I was wondering—”

  “Yes?”

  “Peter, there you are,” Helen said. “We have a group shot we’d like to get. And we’d like to have all the family groups taken tonight and tomorrow.”

  “Of course.” Peter smiled warmly at Helen, then turned to Coco. When he realized he still had a smile on his face, he dropped it, his brows furrowing. He couldn’t smile at her. Not now.

  “We’ll have that talk later?” Her cheeks pushed into her eyes, her smile almost too big for her face.

  Those eyes would continue to haunt him. The beautiful yellow specks and dark rings around those emerald jewels. He cleared his throat. He’d d
efinitely talk to Jeffrey about canceling, not Coco. “All I was going to ask was for your help tomorrow when we take pictures of the bridal party. When we are doing the groomsmen shots, I’d rather not use my remote. We can talk through the details later.”

  For a minute, he wondered if she was going to turn him down and not help, but then she said, “Of course. It will be a challenge with both of us in the wedding party. But we’ll pull it off. We make a great team.”

  He nodded, following in the direction Helen went.

  “Peter, did you get the message I left you?”

  The one she’d left with Becca about the wedding videographer position. He’d hoped when she got engaged she could understand why he wouldn’t sign her up for a summer on the idea only to have her leave. “I did.”

  Coco’s brows sunk into her eyes, creasing every part of her face. “Oh. Okay. Great.”

  For the next hour, he took pictures of various groups. Coco circled and filmed. They locked eyes every minute or two, not that he was counting. Each time he kept his face stoic. Yes, he was attracted to her. Yes, he was near on his way to being completely in love with her. But, she was in love with someone else. Her countenance practically shouted how in love she was. And he couldn’t bear to see it anymore.

  Coco stared into the mirror. The bathroom counter in their suite was filled with toiletry bags, curling irons, and makeup brushes. She was not going to cry. She sniffed loudly, then blew her nose, but she wasn’t going to let a tear fall. She splashed water on her face. She only had one more day of seeing him to get through.

  She’d been crushed when he had told her that he’d received her message last night. It had all been in her imagination. The flirting, the sparks, the kiss … well the kiss had been real, but not what it meant. All it had meant was they got caught up in the moment, playing a part.

  “You okay?” Mandy asked, standing right next to Coco.

  Coco turned to her but couldn’t pretend. She shook her head. “He got my message. He doesn’t feel the same way.” Saying it out loud stung her eyes, and she sniffed hard. A single tear ran down her cheek.

  “Hey, you’re going to be okay.” Mandy hugged her. “He really said he doesn’t feel the same way? I could see the sparks flying between the two of you last night.”

  Mandy’s observation only made it worse. She picked up on Coco’s feelings, not Peter’s. She’d been an idiot. Coco gulped a few more breaths of air before she could answer. “You saw the one-way sparks then. I guess my availability wasn’t the reason for his lack of feelings. He didn’t have them to begin with. I just made it up in my head.”

  “Sh. That can’t be it.” Mandy’s eyes probed Coco’s, and Coco ran the washcloth under cool water.

  “Ugh. I can’t cry the morning of Liz’s wedding. My eyes will be puffy and red, and I’ll look like I’ve been crying.”

  Mandy pulled out a smoky eyeshadow palette, waving it in the air. “Not if I can help it. I’ll do your makeup. Your eyes will be stunning and no one will be able to tell. Besides, you’re actually a beautiful crier. Your eyes turn a bright jungle green. Look at that color, without contacts even!”

  Coco laughed through a sob. “I don’t want the others to know. I don’t want it to affect Liz’s day. She’s so happy. I don’t want her worried that I’m not.”

  “I’ve got you covered. Go lay down with the washcloth over your eyes for ten minutes, and then we’ll do your eyes.”

  Peter set his camera up on his tripod, next to Coco’s. The ceremony would be filmed the entire time and he programmed his camera to take pictures every ten seconds. Tyler insisted that all of his groomsmen be present at the front. Peter had told Tyler to hold their kiss for at least fifteen seconds to make sure the kiss was captured. He looked over at Coco. She was a vision in the aqua bridesmaid’s dress. Perhaps that was the reason her eyes stood out more than usual. He couldn’t help but notice her eyes—he was a photographer.

  The ceremony was flawless. Once it was over Peter moved swiftly to his camera, and Coco did the same. They both didn’t want to miss a moment. He took all the family photos, noticing that Coco chose different angles to film from as he worked the group, getting them to smile and pose.

  Once the family was excused, he set up all of the bridesmaids and groomsmen pictures. They did multiple shots, and varied the poses. He didn’t think through it well and paired himself up next to Coco when they joined in the shots. “Sorry I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” he said.

  She pursed her lips. “You’re not. It makes sense that we are both on the end since we need to jump out of line every other minute.”

  He called instructions to the group, to do a laughing picture.

  They went through the list of photos, capturing everything Tyler and Liz wanted with a group, and then Peter led them and Coco outside for pictures of just Tyler and Liz. They’d have enough time to get all the photos they needed before the luncheon.

  “Thanks for your help in there,” he said, ignoring the thought that they’d make more than just a great team.

  “Tyler and Liz’s wedding depends on us helping it run smoothly. It’s the least I could do.”

  Peter couldn’t believe how quickly they took photos of Tyler and Liz. Maybe it was because he and Coco had already done a wedding or maybe it was because Tyler and Liz knew what to expect since they’d done this for their engagement shoot. Either way, they finished in record time.

  At the luncheon all of the bridesmaids sat together. There was a space for Coco at the table, but she mostly filmed through the tables. Peter tried to find Jeffrey among the crowd. Surely, he’d have come for this. The luncheon room was packed, easily five times the size of a typical luncheon. With everyone wearing tuxes and having only met him once, he couldn’t easily pick him out of the crowd.

  Coco had stayed completely focused on her job, and hadn’t talked to any table particularly longer than another one, except for when she’d sit down to take a bite or two of her own food.

  He took pictures of each of the tables, trying to single out where Jeffrey might be, but when that didn’t work he thought of the next best thing.

  “Mandy?” Peter called to the blonde bridesmaid when the luncheon was over. “Where is Jeffrey?”

  Mandy frowned, glancing around the people leaving the room. “I don’t know everyone here yet. Is he related to Liz or Tyler? I can at least point you in the right direction.”

  Peter lowered his voice. “No … I mean … Jeffrey Harmon—Coco’s fiancé.” He needed to get out of filming their wedding. It would be better for both of them. He had friends in the business he could refer them to.

  Her eyes widened. “Jeffrey isn’t here. And he’s not Coco’s fiancé. Looks like you didn’t get Coco’s message, after all.”

  Peter’s mind reeled. “They aren’t engaged, but they will be soon.” Had Jeffrey really not asked yet?

  “Not in this lifetime. He asked her, but…” Mandy shrugged. “Coco ended things. I’m sure for a lot of reasons.”

  “She’s unattached,” he muttered under this breath, and their conversation from yesterday resurfaced. He needed to clear things up. Fast.

  Mandy rolled her eyes. “She wouldn’t be if you’d tell her you liked her.”

  “Do you know where she is?” Peter’s heart hammered.

  “She’s gone to help Liz. She’ll be down soon.”

  Coco’s head pounded. If she wasn’t simultaneously the videographer and a bridesmaid, she would have skipped the evening festivities and crawled into bed. Instead she rolled her neck and shoulders, and headed to the dinner and reception.

  Even before it officially started, the line was long to congratulate Tyler and Liz. It was the perfect opportunity to film people wishing the couple well. She panned across the line, and then started in the middle of the line, asking people for their names and any message they’d like to record for Tyler and Liz.

  “We need to talk,” Peter said from behind her.

 
; “I’ll help you with your photos, but I’m not dubbing over this with music so I can’t talk now.” They’d talk later. Or not. She recorded the same person again. As soon as she pushed the pause button, he spoke again.

  “This can’t wait.”

  Thinking it might be something adorable the nieces and nephews were doing, she agreed.

  They stopped next to the tiered cake. Coco raised her eyebrow. It wasn’t even close to the cake cutting time, and not a nephew or niece in sight of the cake or dance floor.

  “You’re not engaged?” His light blue eyes were locked on hers.

  “I told you as much in the message I left.” Tingles ran through her fingertips, but she kept her hope from sailing too high.

  “I didn’t get that message. Only the one you left with Becca about being interested in the job.”

  Her mouth went dry. Who cared about the job now? She wanted to be with Peter. Job or not. “Maybe that explains it.”

  “I hope it explains a lot. I thought you were engaged. I couldn’t … I couldn’t …”

  “Couldn’t what?” Please say it.

  The look in his eyes intensified, and she knew she’d melt even if he said nothing. “You were getting engaged. You were with someone else. I couldn’t say anything—Jeffrey had these plans to move to somewhere remote in South America. I couldn’t tell you why I couldn’t offer you the job when I knew you’d be leaving by the end of the summer.”

  She nodded her understanding. He’d been trapped. But he was still focusing on the job. “That’s one of the reasons we broke up.” She bit the inside of her cheek. “Is that all you wanted?” She hoped it wasn’t.

  “That kiss.”

  “I know.” She couldn’t go through this conversation about it being a mistake again.

  He took her hand, squeezing the ends of her fingertips. “I’ve thought about that kiss every day since it happened. It wasn’t a mistake—it was just bad timing.”