“Not a bad idea,” I said. We’d all been to that bar with him before. It tended to bring a rough crowd. If you thought these guys were exclusive, you should meet that pack. They don’t appreciate fake enthusiasts, either.

“How about photographing buildings?” Nate said. He was studying to be a structural engineer and loved anything having to do with blueprints and construction.

Last summer, Nate had invited me to a concert at the Artisan Music Center with his cousin, Kai. We’d road-tripped there with Bennett and Avery, her roommate Ella, and Ella’s boyfriend, Quinn. On the way up, Nate would point out interesting structures and tell me cool facts about them. It had never occurred to me to photograph them, though.

“Not sure that’s my thing,” I said. “Sorry.”

“No sweat,” Nate said, his leg finally settling beneath the table.

Avery motioned for Bennett to move aside so she could slide out of her seat to use the restroom. Bennett leaned over and kissed the side of her head before allowing her to pass and she smiled endearingly at him. When she first got together with Bennett, I thought she might eat him alive. That girl was tough and I loved her take-no-shit attitude, but Bennett had softened her. I thought they complemented each other well.

“I just thought of something for your project, Jessie.” Bennett said, turning back to me. “Maybe Nate here can help you out.”

“Huh?” Nate’s head snapped up. “What the hell do you mean?”

“You have that cool internship where you get to go up on bridges and shit.”

“Seriously? I know you’re working for some firm this semester, but I never knew exactly what the hell you do for them,” I said, staring Nate down. “You’re allowed to climb on bridges?”

Nate nodded. “They have a contract with the city and my supervisor took me up on the Municipal Bridge—you know the big blue one that shines over the river downtown?”

“That is so rad,” I said, my mouth hanging open in awe.

“Yeah, you should see the view from up top. It was honestly one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done,” he said, his eyes slightly unfocused, as if he was recounting it in his head. “But no way I’d be allowed to take you up there.”

My mind started firing away, think of bridges.

“Still, that fits into my industrial idea,” I said and then snapped my fingers. “I bet I could take photos of different kinds of bridges.”

“I knew you’d think that was cool,” Bennett said.

“Great idea. But this city has got nothing on Bridgeway, over the state border,” Nate said. “It’s known as the city of bridges.”

“For real?” I said. “Never knew that. What kinds do they have?”

“They have a few smaller ones constructed like the bridges we have here downtown,” he said, his eyes lighting up. “But if you travel into the rural section, there are several covered bridges.”

“Covered bridges?” Cory said.

“Yeah, they’re timber truss bridges with a roof and siding. You see them in old movies sometimes,” Nate said. “One of them even extends over a river and it’s pretty damn cool.”

“Hmmm . . . maybe my project theme can be bridges over time,” I said, my mind already wandering off about the lighting and the settings I’d use on my dad’s camera. “Dude, you just gave me the greatest idea.”

“No problem,” Nate said, with a playful wink that made my stomach buzz.

Chapter Three

Jessie

My phone hummed with a text from a friend. I turned away, avoiding Dex’s nosy gaze. He probably thought the message was from some new guy and I preferred to keep it that way.

Dating other employees at the shop was discouraged but not strictly against the rules. Dex had pursued me for a long while last year. I’d admit I found him charming and liked the attention, but didn’t want to step on any toes.

There was one time when I finally gave in, went for a drink and let him kiss me, but I knew it was all wrong. Dex on the other hand, wanted more, and it’d been an awkward few weeks of letting him down easy. I vowed to never date anyone at the shop again.

Customers were a different story, but still a bit tricky. That’s how I’d met the last guy I’d been seeing. He was Lila’s customer and had been to the shop a few times to get a series of skulls inked on his chest. He’d stop at the counter and chat with me for longer than necessary and then finally asked me out.

I had kicked him to the curb though, because he always seemed to have one excuse or another for cancelling plans. Still, he had some rad tattoos and piercings and was sexy and cute, I’d give him that. Not cute in a Nate kind of way—Mr. Pretty Boy with his full lips and eyelashes that fanned across those damn sculpted cheeks.

But I didn’t need some screw-up in my life, not when I was putting myself through college, one or two classes at a time, and nearing the finish line. I needed to get my fine arts degree, if for no other reason than to make my dad proud. He would have loved to see me graduate. Mom’s been cheering me on too, of course, but she knew what college had signified to him, since he’d never finished university himself.

My dad’s old buddy who worked freelance for several magazines advised me to get my portfolio together to send his way when it was ready. Then he’d see about getting me a gig. If I was good enough, I might get some more work thrown my way or even a full-time grunt job, just to get my foot in the door somewhere.