Free Hope Breaks: A New Adult Romantic Comedy by Alice Bello, Stephanie T. Lott Page A

gets all hyper on caffeine.”
    “What are you, my father?”
    Drew gave her a hard look.  “That’s gross, baby… really gross.”  And then he reached over and rubbed his hand against her cheek, making her blush beautifully.  “We’re here to do a job, and this lady here won’t be able to snap any photos of you if your mouth is going a hundred eighty miles an hour.”
    She started to argue, but Drew leaned down and kissed her sweet, honeysuckle lips and quelled the words before they made it off her tongue.
    When he broke the lip lock they were both flushed, and their lips were a little pink.
    Nice…
    “You can have one after the shoot.  Then you can go all chipmunk on me if you want.”
    Okay, that was chauvinistic and condescending… but the sight of those two arguing was just adorable.
    “Okay,” I said and lead them to my big table of photographic junk.  “First thing we need to do is for you to sign some release forms, so I can use the images, and I’ll need to make photocopies of your driver’s licenses.”
    Darla went a little pale, and Drew puffed out his cheeks, obviously trying to fight back a laugh.
    “You are both eighteen, right?”
    Drew burst out laughing, and Darla and I both gave him icy glares. 
    “Sure, sure . We’re both nineteen,” Drew guffawed.  “But Darla here can’t pass—”
    Darla elbowed him hard right in the solar plexus and Drew fell silent, except for a couple of expletive laced groans. 
    She leveled a glare that would drop a tiger, and then turned and faced me.
    “I’ve taken the test nine times.  I’m not good with the parallel parking… or the cones… or—”
    “Or the driving part!” Drew crowed and jumped out of her reach.
    Darla looked at me and winced.  “I’m not good with tests is all.”  She jerked her head back toward her boyfriend.  “And this one is no help at all.  Every time he takes me out on the road in his precious truck we end up breaking up for a week.”
    “Overbearing jackass?”  I asked.
    “Precisely.”
    “Hey!  That’s not fair… I try to just let her go, but I don’t want my truck demolished.”
    I put up my hands to ward off a full on fight.  “Why don’t we try this?  I’ll have some free time in few days.  So why don’t I take her out in my car and she can get some practice just driving around.  Then we can try the whole cones and parallel driving thing later.”
    “Really?” Darla’s spring bright eyes lit up and her dimples flared into lovely fruition.
    “Really.  Now… do you have a state ID?”
    “Sure,” she said and rummaged through her little black leather purse until she pulled it out and handed it to me.
    Then I held my hand out to Drew.  He pulled out his wallet and hesitated when he was about to hand his ID over.  It was Darla’s turn to giggle in the background. 
    I took it and gave it cursory glance.  Drew automatically started to look tense.  And then I saw it.
    “Bartholomew Andrew Lands?”
    Drew turned ten shades of red, and Darla came up and pinched his cheeks. 
    “Aren’t those the cutest names any mother ever gave her son?”
    “It’s got… character.” I gave Darla a wink as I turned and headed into the little cubbyhole of an office I had connected to the studio.   A few seconds later and I emerged with the photocopies, Drew and Darla had signed their release forms, and I stapled them together.
    “Okay, we’re all set.” And I ushered them both toward the couch and the green screen.
     
    ***
     
    This can’t be happening…
    Not again…
    Drew and Darla had that deer in headlights look on their faces.  And even though they were in each other’s arms, there was zero chemistry happening.  And the pictures were even worse.  They looked like surprised robots… or like I was holding a sawed-off shotgun to their heads instead of a camera.
    I was tempted to give Darla that Pepsi and try and start a fight between them.  At least then there would be some