“Yes, you.”
I drew in a deep breath and waited for the impossible.
He removed his hand, and the playful look in his eyes went away as he glanced toward my apartment. “Don’t forget to let me know about doing my house.”
Everything that had been building up tonight vanished, but I knew it was for the best.
I nodded and opened the car door, letting myself out.
“Thanks for dinner and the stimulating conversation.” I tried not to show any of the disappointment that was zipping through me.
“I enjoyed it like I knew I would. Now get inside before we both do something we shouldn’t.” He flashed an irresistible smile and I obeyed, quickly shutting the door and making my way into the place I called home, where I finally let myself breathe again.
“I was worried you might not ever talk to me again,” Natalie said, giving me a quick hug in front of our library.
“Why wouldn’t I?” I dropped two library books back into the bin and pulled on the mammoth wooden doors leading to our book oasis.
“You know why. Don’t make me say it. I’ve felt so guilty for the last two days.”
I glanced behind my shoulder and saw the worried look in her eyes. Natalie’s hair was twisted into a loose bun, and several pieces of hair framed her face along with a red wool scarf. She looked so happy. Well, she always seemed happy, but since Cole returned in her life, there was something about her that almost glowed. But at this particular moment, worry lodged behind her gaze, and I reveled in it slightly.
“Well, you should. He showed up on my doorstep with a bouquet while I stood in bunny slippers and my ratty pajamas because I was expecting YOU to be behind that swinging door. I even had your favorite cheese ready for our girl talk.”
“I know, and I’m so sorry,” she repeated, glancing at the magazine rack.
“Looks like it. You know, you should at least finish your apology with full eye contact before getting distracted. Makes it more believable.” I grinned.
“I so rarely have to apologize.” She giggled and took the latest copy of People off the metal shelf. “I don’t know the ins and outs.”
“Well, I’ve recovered. Sort of.” I picked up a copy of Cottage Living and glanced at a few pages before bringing my eyes back to Natalie’s.
“He seemed to have a great time,” Natalie said, her brows wiggling.
“You’ve talked to him?” I motioned to the sitting area with the fireplace.
Our library had been remodeled recently, and it was gorgeous. The annual book drive and summer festival definitely had paid off over the last twenty years. Between the slate floors and exposed timbers, it was more like a mountain getaway than a library. I could stay here forever.
“Well, I haven’t, but Cole seemed to think that his brother had lost his mind.”
I took a seat in one of the leather chairs and Natalie sat in the other one.
“What do you mean?” I asked, setting the magazine on my lap before unwrapping my green scarf from my neck and tucking it into my bag. I honestly didn’t think Anthony had given me much thought since he dropped me off a couple of nights ago. I hadn’t heard a word from him since.
“He said he’d never heard his brother quite that excited about much of anything beyond his music, but when Cole tried to ask for details, Anthony would stop and start each sentence with bits and pieces that never led to a complete thought.”
“What?”
“To Cole, it sounded like Anthony didn’t want to betray your confidence, so he wound up not saying much of anything . . . which makes me wonder.”
My brow arched.
“What have you told Anthony that you haven’t told me?”
“That’s what you got out of this whole thing?” I shook my head and opened the magazine. “I doubt I’ve told him anything I haven’t told you.”
Natalie didn’t believe me, and I didn’t blame her. I was a horrible liar.
“He’s leaving for LA tonight,” Natalie informed me.
I nodded. “I thought that was coming up soon.”
And I still hadn’t made my decision about staging his house. I looked up at Natalie and mulled over if I should tell her or not. Why was I so afraid to talk with her about what I wanted to do? She’d always been nothing but supportive and certainly knew a lot about how to run a small business. She was the perfect resource, and yet I never once told her what I’d been up to.
“I feel like you’re hiding something from me.” She set her magazine on the table in front of us.
“I kind of have been.” I reached into my bag and pulled out my phone.
She glanced around the sitting room. It was empty.
“Did you sleep with Anthony?” she whispered.
“No way.” I shook my head. Not that I would necessarily tell her if I had. I clicked on my Etsy store on my phone and leaned over, handing her the phone.
“What’s this?”
“My Etsy store.”
“You have an Etsy store? For how long?”
“I’ve had it for a few months, but it was called something different than what it is today.”
“Wow, Sophie. These are beautiful. Where are you sourcing these wooden signs?”
“I make them.”
Natalie’s eyes darted to mine. “You make these?”
I nodded. “I do custom orders too.”
“You have twenty-five reviews, and very few people leave reviews, so that tells me you’ve sold a lot more than twenty-five items, and it hasn’t been just a few months.”
I took in a deep breath and puckered my lips, debating what all to tell her.
“I’ve had the shop for almost a year. The reason I have so many reviews is because when I first opened my store, I sold a lot of four-inch signs with cutesy sayings. They sold well, but between the shipping and time it took me to make them, it wasn’t worth it.”
“I can’t believe you haven’t told me about this.” She kept sliding images, browsing through my store, and my heart beat wildly. “I love the name, Sophie Bristol Designs. It just sounds so upscale.”
“You should have seen my original shop name. It wasn’t until I told Anthony my shop name that I realized it could have sexual connotations, which explained the creepy emails I kept getting. Anyway, Anthony came up with the new one.”
Natalie narrowed her eyes as she studied me, handing back the phone. “You’ve fallen for him.”
“No way. I’m smarter than that. He lives in LA and I live on Fireweed. He’s a rock star, and I’m a housekeeper- server- floral assistant—.”
“Shop owner,” Natalie supplied. “I’m so proud of you. And I have got to place an order. I would love to offer these in my flower shop. I’m always looking for special handmade items, and I bet brides would love to order the custom signs you have.”
My palms turned sweaty at the thought.
“Really? You’re not just saying that because you’re my friend?”
“That’s not how I run a business.” She winked. “I wouldn’t offer customers something I didn’t think would sell or they wouldn’t like.”
“Wow. Are you serious?”
“Deadly. In fact, I have a newly engaged couple coming in for a wedding consultation on Saturday. I’d love to have an example to show them.”
My mind flashed to the lack of cash I had on hand to make any samples for her. I still hadn’t recovered from buying groceries for my dad and covering my stepmom’s bar tab. Not really, but close enough.
I let out a sigh and shook my head.
“I’m a little strapped with my dad’s latest bills, but I’d love to provide samples. I just won’t be able to make this deadline.”
“It is short notice.” Natalie sat back in the chair and tucked a leg under. “But I know they’d love what you have to offer. They’re going for that rustic charm. You know what I bet they’d love?”
I shook my head.
“This couple is sparing no expense. They’ve been
trying to come up with a favor for their guests that’s unique, and I think what you have to offer would be perfect. Do you think you could do something like a black, wooden, two-inch square with gold writing that’s a magnet? And maybe on each one, the guest’s last name?”
“That would be easy, but it’s the little projects that are killers on time. They might not like what I’d have to charge to make it worthwhile.”
“Let me worry about that part. Come up with what you would need to make a profit, and I’ll talk to them.”
Excitement pulsed through me, and I wondered why in the world I didn’t tell her sooner.
“I’ll just show them some examples from your site, and we’ll go from there,” she continued.
“That’s so sweet of you.”
“Not sweet. Practical. This could be a match made in heaven.”
I held up my magazine and smiled. “So the other part of my maybe-someday dream is this.”
Her eyes ran over the cover and landed back on me.
“And Anthony asked me to stage his house,” I told her. The warmth from the fireplace was already making me overheat. Or maybe it was my nerves going crazy with worry. I’d done such a fabulous job keeping this part of my life secret that the thought of letting it all hang out there was terrifying. I wasn’t fond of the idea of failure, and on a public scale, it seemed even worse.
“Are you serious? That is huge, and it makes so much more sense than what Cole and I tried to come up with about his brother.”
“What do you mean?”
“Like I told you, Anthony was only coming up with half-sentences, and he kept bringing up his house and you in the same breath and then he’d stop himself.”
My heart dropped. Maybe the offer wasn’t still on the table. He probably came to his senses and realized I had absolutely no experience doing a project of this size and absolutely no means to complete it. That would be the sensible conclusion. I wouldn’t blame him.
“Well, I haven’t made up my mind yet. I think jumping into something that large might be a problem.”
“You’ve got to do it. What an opportunity.” Natalie seemed more excited than I was, but she wasn’t the one with the stack of bills waiting to be paid.
“If this had come up last year, I would’ve gladly hopped on it, but with helping my dad and stepmom out, I’m kind of strapped.” I felt my cheeks turn red. I hated talking about money or the lack thereof. “It’s been a rough few months, Natty.”
“How rough?” Natalie’s voice was full of concern, but it was nothing compared to the look in her eyes.
“Really rough.”
“That’s even more reason you should be doing this,” Natalie insisted. “Opportunities like this don’t exist on Fireweed.”
“I recognize that, but I’m not sure it’s in the cards.”
Natalie shook her head. “We’ll come up with a plan. Text him right now and tell him you’ll do it.”
I shook my head and Natalie grunted.
“Do it.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I told you there are issues, and I’m not in a position to blindly jump into something like this.”
“And I’m telling you we can figure this out.”
“I won’t take money from you, Natty.”
“You’d pay me back.”
“Doesn’t matter. That’s not how I operate. If something goes wrong and I can’t pay it back, I wouldn’t want that to come between us.”
“It never would.”
I shrugged. “I’m not willing to risk it.”
“Well, what if I told you that one of the vendors I use for weddings would be willing to cut a great deal on rental furniture?”
“What do you mean?” I studied her, my pulse starting to climb at this bit of news.
“I use this fabulous company all the time, and they have everything under the sun to rent, from couches to coffee tables and even chandeliers.”
“There’s no way I can afford it.”
“Sophie, we can pull this off. I’m sure of it. My payment terms with them are forty-five days. That gives us plenty of time to get the place staged and receive payment from Anthony. And Anthony’s good for it. I’ll make sure.”
I finally started to let myself believe that maybe there was a way.
“You think?”
“I know. Text him and tell him you’re in.”
I nodded, feeling light as air, and my fingers began automatically writing the words to Anthony that I’d been so afraid of. Natalie began flipping through People, and just as I hit send, she let out a gasp.
“What?” My eyes flashed to hers.
“You’re not going to believe this.”
“The way my life has been going, I’d believe just about anything.”
“You’re in People.”
“Who’s in People?”
“You’re in People.
“That’s impossible.”
“You’re right here.” She held up the magazine. “It’s not impossible.”
“I don’t understand.” I reached for the issue and stared at a picture of myself being held by Anthony as we walked to his car in the parking lot of Norma’s.
I sucked in a deep breath of air. Instead of feeling excitement about my fifteen minutes of fame, I felt completely violated . . . and horrified. Who in the world took this picture and where were they hiding?
I stared at myself, noticing that my oversized sweatshirt and pair of jeans looked horrible. I looked awful, especially next to Mr. Wonderful. I looked pale, my eyes weren’t even fully open, and it looked like I didn’t even own a pair of lips. I was a lipless blob being held by the sexiest man in the world. I’d never looked that bad in a picture in my life, and now I was forever memorialized in the pages of People.
“I can’t believe I look so bad. I’m not saying I’m Elizabeth Taylor, but I don’t usually look that pasty.”
“It’s the lighting. It was dark outside and the streetlamps made your features go away.” Natalie laughed just as my cellphone buzzed. I glanced down and saw the message from Anthony slide over my phone.
I look forward to working with you. I’ll send over the specs when I get back to LA.
I spun my phone around to Natalie. “Is it just me, or is that a completely formal and impersonal text from Anthony?”
Natalie studied my phone and brought her gaze back to mine.
“I wouldn’t say it’s overly friendly. No.”
“So how could this?” I pointed to the magazine. “Turn into this?” I shook my phone. “I haven’t wanted to say anything, but Anthony is really hard to read.”
“You don’t say.”
“Do you think he knows about the photo?”
“Beats me. He didn’t mention it to Cole.”
“I don’t even understand how they could get the picture printed that fast when the issue just came out today.”
“The miracle of email.”
I sent a quick text to Anthony with only the words,
Did you see our picture?
He immediately sent a text back.
Where?
I texted back.
People
I saw him start and stop typing a message back to me, and then nothing. No reply. I glanced back at Natalie, who was watching me with an amused look on her face.
“I’m certainly different from the arm candy he usually parades around with.”
Natalie chuckled. “Not true. You’re absolutely gorgeous and in the same league. So don’t ever get that twisted.”
“You are an amazing best friend.” I looked at my sweatshirt and tried to find some kind of silhouette from my body, but it wasn’t happening. I looked like a hot air balloon with two sticks for legs poking out of the bottom. There was nothing flattering about this picture. “They had to have been hiding in the bushes. I would have seen them if they were in plain sight.”
“It’s super grainy, so they were probably really far away, wh
ich would explain your missing lips.” I glanced at the caption and groaned. “Listen to this. Anthony Hill and a new mystery woman were spotted together while he vacationed with his brother in their home state of Washington.”
“Absolutely riveting.” Natalie smiled. “Did they mention the brother’s fiancée by any chance?”
My phone buzzed.
I just saw it online. I’m so sorry. I didn’t think anyone was around. I didn’t mean to drag you into my world like that.
My heart tugged slightly at his words. I hadn’t wanted to drag him into mine either.
No biggie. Lesson learned. No longer going to be sporting my comfy sweatshirt in your presence. And trust me, getting dragged into your world is a lot better than being dragged into mine.
He texted back quickly.
I doubt that very much. Can I see you?
My heart skipped a beat, and I glanced over at Natalie, who was back to looking at the magazine. I suddenly felt like I was on a covert mission.
I thought you had a flight tonight? I’m with Natty.
He wrote back.
I do, but can you sneak away for a few?
I felt a smile automatically spread across my lips.
Absolutely. I’m at the library.
He texted back.
A regular party animal on a Friday night.
I texted back.
Two different worlds, my friend.
“I’m overheating. I’m gonna go step outside for a second.” I grabbed my scarf and wrapped it around my neck.
Natalie looked up from her magazine, her brow arching in surprise.
“Do you wanna just move out front, over by the windows? It’s probably cooler there.”
“Nah. This is fine.”
“Anthony’s stopping by, isn’t he?” Natalie grinned. “You wrapped yourself up in a scarf, so you can’t be that hot. You can just tell me you know.”
I laughed and shook my head.
“It’s more fun this way. Watch my bag?”
Tangled Love on Pelican Point (Island County Series Book 3) Page 7
