She didn’t understand how Snow wasn’t better known, given the quality of her work. Amanda supposed that much of it depended on luck. She certainly wouldn’t be as successful as she was without a healthy dose of luck in her early days of running a business, when she was struggling to put herself on the map.
Amanda pressed dial. The phone rang eight times before Snow answered. “Hello?”
“Hello, Snow. This is Amanda Asher.”
There was silence on the other end of the line.
Amanda pressed onward. “I was hoping I could hire you for a consultation. I would like to discuss an idea I have for some photographs that I want taken for my Christmas cards.”
“I—yes. Of course! I’d love to do a consultation for you.” Snow sounded flustered, but not unenthusiastic. “How does tomorrow morning sound? I could come over at nine.”
“Tomorrow morning at nine is perfect. Thank you, Snow. I will see you then.”
“See you then, Amanda.”
Snow hung up, leaving Amanda with a silly smile on her face. She genuinely wanted Snow’s advice on her idea, but she also wanted to see Snow. This was the perfect excuse. She could gauge whether Snow was interested in doing something more than kissing her, or if she thought the whole thing had been a mistake and wanted nothing more than a professional relationship.
Amanda spent the rest of the day wondering how she was going to approach her meeting with Snow. Would she mention the kiss? No, it was probably best to take her cues from Snow. If Snow wanted to talk about it, they would, but Amanda didn’t want to drag the subject up if Snow would prefer to forget about it.
She went online and stated searching Christmas cards with family photos on them. Amanda had to admit, they looked amazing. She thought that she could create some great family shots among her Christmas trees with her fake snow machine.
She went to bed that night with her mind buzzing with ideas. Amanda couldn’t wait to discuss them with Snow the next day.
As to what the next day would bring for their relationship, Amanda could do nothing but wait and see.
10
Snow dressed carefully the next morning. She knew that it was probably stupid, but she wanted to look good when she saw Amanda. She even considered makeup, but in the end decided that it would be overkill. She knew that women like Amanda wore makeup every day, but that just wasn’t Snow’s style.
She ended up in a long-sleeved blue dress with little white snowflakes around the sleeves and bottom hem. It would match perfectly with Amanda’s snow machine. Not that Snow was going to be in the photos, but she hoped that Amanda would find her pretty.
“Snow, I’ve got to go. A client has just called. They’re interested in buying ten of my paintings!”
Daisy’s eyes were shining with enthusiasm, and Snow was happy for her, she truly was, but she still had to bite back a groan. “I’ve got my meeting with Amanda. Who’s going to watch Bluebell?”
Daisy bit her lip. “We could take her over to Mrs. Johnson?”
“I’m not leaving her with Mrs. Johnson. She smokes all the time, and that isn’t good for Bluebell’s lungs.”
“I could stay,” Daisy said slowly. “Maybe the client would be willing to reschedule the meeting.”
Snow knew that ten paintings was a huge sale that would make a big difference for their family. “No, you don’t want to jeopardize your sale. You go ahead. I’ll make a plan.”
“Are you sure?”
“I am. Good luck.”
“Thanks, Snow. I’ll see you later.”
Snow gave brief thought to postponing her meeting with Amanda, but was too eager to see her again to consider that for long.
“Bluebell, get dressed. We’re going out.”
Bluebell was soon dressed in a bright red coat and purple pants, with a purple knitted hat on her head. “Where are we going, Mom?”
“I’m taking you to work with me. We’re going to see a nice woman called Amanda who has a Christmas Tree farm.”
At least, Snow hoped Amanda was nice. She hadn’t been very nice so far, but Snow liked to think that things would be different after the kiss. She had checked, and Amanda had indeed credited her for her work. Snow hoped that the problems Amanda had had with her in the beginning were no longer an issue for Amanda.