Love for Beginners: An Under the Hood Novella by Sally Clements Page B

name,” Mel suggested. “Mark’s family has been here for generations—maybe his parents or grandmother know more about her.”
    Heath turned. “These photographs are going to make a wonderful addition to my submission to the magazine.” He strode to her and cupped her face in his hands. “Thank you.” He brought his mouth down to hers in a quick, brief kiss.
    She closed her eyes and gripped the front of his shirt.
    “Mel?”
    “I thought you weren’t going to kiss me again.” Her voice sounded husky. When she opened her eyes he was staring at her with indecision in his eyes.
    “Friends kiss.”
    She pulled in her bottom lip, and watched his gaze flicker to her mouth. Slid her hand up his chest and over the stubble of his jaw. “Yes, friends kiss.” She kissed him back, then took a step back. “You know, I was thinking—you’re going to be out here for hours. It’s only a half hour walk back to the pickup. It makes sense for me to leave you here and come back for you later.”
    “Now that I know where it is, I can walk you back,” Heath said.
    She shook her head. “No need. It’s an easy run.” She shoved her hands in the pockets of her jacket. “Walk down to where we left the truck at seven. I’ll pack up our stuff and pick you up there.”
    Heath brought the camera to his eye and took a shot as she walked from the shack and disappeared from view. He’d been so entranced by the paintings in the shack, so grateful to Mel for finding them for him, that he’d been compelled to touch her. To kiss her.
    Not as a friend, but as a lover would.
    She hadn’t called him on it, but his actions had been totally at odds with his words earlier. And damn, just like last night, the urge to follow her out into the light was strong. I really have to concentrate. His photographs couldn’t just be good, they had to be brilliant. His friend Chris was a talented writer who’d worked for months on a project to submit to National Geographic . Heath had an editor’s interest, but needed to knock it out of the ballpark if he had any hope of being the photographer accompanying Chris into the Amazon.
    He forced thoughts of Mel from his mind, set up his camera on a tripod, and crouched behind the viewfinder again.
    …
    The sun was setting when he met Mel on the path, hours later. The pickup was stacked with their belongings and she leaned over and pushed open the door when she saw his flashlight’s beam cut through the half light.
    “Good day?” she asked as he climbed into the truck.
    “Great.” He reached into the back and stowed his kit carefully behind his seat. “There should be a picture or two I can use out of the thousands I took. You drove here—do you want to switch places, and I’ll drive back?”
    Even though she’d done nothing all afternoon but lounge around, the prospect of being driven was attractive. “Are you sure?”
    “Yeah. Switch.” He climbed out and walked around the truck.
    Heath turned the pickup around and drove down the path again to the main road.
    “You’re going to have to tell your family, you know,” Mel said. “About this project.”
    “I know.” He’d been thinking about it all day. He needed to come back out to the cabin again and try to capture some wildlife shots, and couldn’t keep hiding his intentions from Alice and Mark. Being a professional photographer was all he’d ever wanted, and there was no putting it off any longer. “If you guys can spare me, I’ll fly back in a couple of weeks and tell them.”
    She covered a yawn with her hand. “Sorry, I’m exhausted. Must be the night air. That’s fine, we’ll be able to manage without you for a couple of days.” She’d have to get used to the fact that he was going to leave anyway. Next week could act as a trial run.
    Mel’s eyes drooped closed as the steady hum of the engine lulled her into sleep.
    …
    “We’re here.”
    Mel floated up from sleep at the sound of Heath’s voice. She’d been dreaming