But what saddened me more than the relationship ending was the way my fantasy of love died right along with it. Tanner Smoler basically ruined my happily ever after before I even got to have one.
And the worst part of all was that I had really low expectations to begin with. I knew Tanner was no Prince Charming, and I was okay with that because he made me feel good.
Most of the time.
“I was engaged to a man my dad couldn’t stand and he hadn’t even met him.” I tried to smile, but my lips froze in a straight line. “It ended a few months ago. It’s definitely for the better. And I’m almost over the entire fiasco. Today after class, I even noticed someone. A very hot someone. I haven’t paid attention to men since I started dating Tanner so I’ll take it as a sign of progress. Anyway, there was some guy at school today who had a body that should be illegal and the most adorable grin just to cinch the deal. Plus, he came equipped with a completely corny joke that was meant to be a motivational speech… so baby steps, I suppose. Aren’t you happy you asked?”
Gabby’s gaze held an excitement that worried me as my words settled over her. Nodding, she was unable to hide her mischievous grin. “Corny jokes? Interesting.”
“What’s interesting?”
“Do you enjoy hiking?”
“Yeah. What does that have to do with anything?”
“Strolls on the beach? Jet skiing, paddle boarding, or canoeing? How about trips to a lake house?” Her eyes glinted with a playfulness that couldn’t be contained. This girl had found herself a mission—a project—and somehow it was me. I wanted to slink deep into the cushions and comfort myself with her scones in private. I had no intention of coming back to the island to get involved with someone I’d leave behind at the end of the summer.
“What are you up to? It seems like nothing good,” I countered, refusing to take the bait.
“Oh, it’s good, alright… So you noticed someone at school?” She narrowed her eyes and her grin stayed firmly plastered in place.
“Well, I mean all the teachers noticed him. Apparently he’s the main attraction at the school or so I’m told.”
“Who’s the main attraction at school?” A man’s booming voice asked from down the hall.
I almost jumped out of my skin, and Gabby started laughing as I sprang from the couch. There was no way it could be him.
“This sounds like quite the topic I fell into.” His voice did nothing but create a war zone of butterflies inside me, which was completely unlike me. In fact, the very thought of a flitter or a flutter had never ever—EVER—entered my mind with anyone I’d dated or almost married.
Maybe that was the problem.
“A main attraction at summer school….hmmm. I’m guessing I landed at the right house to find Victoria…Aickens was it? I think that’s the last name Gabby gave me.”
Gabby looked completely amused, and I realized this must be the infamous Mason: The man on the ladder and the man who Gabby recommended to work on my house. Not that this was awkward or anything.
I got my bearings and took a deep breath in preparation to keep him far away.
“There’s no main attraction that’s a who. I was just talking about the—” I stuttered, glancing at Gabby.
Crap. Double crap.
“This I’ve got to hear,” he said, rounding the corner. His blue eyes connected with mine and his smile warmed my entire body. My gaze unexpectedly skated along his body at the same time my cheeks went three shades pinker. There was a definite ruggedness about him that drew me in. His broad shoulders and forearms were created because of work, not a gym, and I was enamored with the idea of working on the house with him.
And I shouldn’t be.
I turned toward Gabby and scowled as she hopped up from the couch. She looked absolutely delighted.
“Victoria meet Mason. Mason meet Tori. Although, I have a hunch you two have already met.” Gabby wiggled her brows, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
Mason’s smile stretched from ear to ear as he watched me dance around the topic of him and anything to do with—him.
“So you knew at the school you were coming here?” I asked, crossing my arms.
“Once you told me your name, I had a hunch. Yes. Sorry for barging in. I did try the doorbell, but it didn’t work, and I knocked but you guys must not have heard.”
“Another couple things to add to the endless list,” I sighed and glanced at Gabby. “See?”
“It’ll be fine. Won’t it?” She looked over at Mason and he nodded.
“It’s a great home and the view is pretty magnificent.” His eyes locked on mine, and I wanted to fall over, but I managed to stay perfectly upright and frozen.
His gaze fell to the wad of paper towels taped to my ankle.
“What happened?”
I stared at Mason and I planned on answering, but for some reason I was purely in awe. Of what, I didn’t know.
Maybe that he paid attention to me?
“She fell through the front porch,” Gabby answered for me.
“I saw that hole when I came in. I just didn’t think it was a person who did that.”
My head tilted as I tried to figure out what he thought might have made the hole in the porch, but I didn’t dare ask and open up the can of worms.
“I’m pretty petrified at what the cost of everything might be to get the house ready to sell. That’s my goal. Fix it up and sell it so I can get back home.”
“And where’s home?” he asked.
“Upstate New York.”
I swore I saw a dash of disappointment glide across his features, but as quick as it came, it left. I probably imagined it.
“I’m sure we can help you with that. If you want to walk me through the house and show me all of your concerns, we can come up with the most cost-effective way to go about the fixes. If you don’t mind getting your hands dirty, we can shave some off the cost by employing some DIY talent.”
Relief flooded through my veins. Gabby was right. He was the right guy to call.
For many reasons.
“Do you want me to stick around?” Gabby asked.
“Sure.” I shook my head and Gabby chuckled.
“Am I supposed to go with verbal or nonverbal cues on that one?” she questioned.
Mason smiled. “I vote for nonverbal, but generally Gabby just ignores what I say so—”
“So not true. I only ignore what you say when Brandy tells me to.”
My stomach sank. It felt like I just jumped out of a plane and I was in free fall. Getting my hopes up over a guy was really too much trouble. Of course he had a girlfriend. Why wouldn’t he have a girlfriend?
“And that must be all the time,” he chided.
“Not all the time. Just most of the time.” Gabby caught my gaze and her lip turned up slightly when the realization set in. “Brandy is one of my best friends and she so happens to be Mason’s sister.”
It felt like the ripcord had just been pulled and the chute had opened as the adrenaline coursed through my body. I glanced at Mason and noticed him watching me. My pulse quickened at the thought and pure enchantment filled my veins.
“Well, if you need anything, give me a call. If he tries any really lame jokes, don’t laugh. It’ll only fuel the fire and then there is no end in sight.” She smiled. “I mean it. It can get bad.”
“I’m offended,” Mason replied.
“You should be. We always are.” She leaned into Mason and whispered. “And you may have found someone who actually likes your jokes so be nice.”
His brow arched and he smiled. “That might be a first.”
I chuckled and shook my head at how easily I fell into his trap. This guy was pure trouble.
“Okay, well enjoy the scones and I’ll see ya soon,” Gabby said, waving as she walked down the hall.
I heard the storm door slam shut, and my nerves ignited with the thought of being alone with Mason.
I glanced over at him and saw him staring at my
ankle so I looked down. The towels were completely soaked in a matter of minutes.
“I don’t know how you two go about wound care, but I’d say stick to your day jobs. Sit on the couch and let me take a look.”
I shook my head and took a step back.
“I grew up on a construction site. Just let me take a look. That’s a lot of blood for a short period of time.”
“It was barely bleeding before you got here.”
“That’s even more reason to let me check it out…” A smirk formed behind his gaze. “So maybe I got your blood pumping.”
I let out a chuckle and shook my head. “Fine. I’ll let you look at it and Gabby was right. You’re relentless with the jokes.” I took a seat on the couch and propped my leg on the coffee table when a jolt ran through me.
Did I shave my legs today? Oh dear Lord, I hope I shaved them this morning. I couldn’t for the life of me remember. All the mornings here somehow blended into one another, and now I was about to show off a possibly sketchy ankle to my sexy contractor.
“You okay? You’re looking really pale all of a sudden,” Mason said, rushing to my side. “Prop your leg up.”
Before I had any time to object, he pushed two pillows under my foot and unwrapped my ankle.
“I hate to tell you this, but I think you need stitches,” he said, biting his lip as he examined the wound.
His lips looked delicious.
“When was the last time you had a tetanus shot?”
I shook my head. “I can’t remember.”
That was a fib.
“I’d try to remember or you’ll wind up getting one with this sucker. I’ve got a first aid kit in the truck I’m gonna go grab. I’ll wrap your ankle up and take you to the urgent care.” His hand graced my leg as he stood up and my heart fluttered this time.
I really needed to live a little. If wound care was the highlight of my dating life, things were even more dismal than I realized.
I shook my head. “My best friend, Bethany, is a nurse practitioner. If you think it’s that bad, I can have her come over. I hate waiting for hours at those places.”
“She lives on the island?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Well, I think the house tour should wait until after you’re fixed up.”
My heart sank at the thought of him leaving, which was completely unexpected.
“I’m totally fine.”
Mason let out a sigh. “Where’s your phone? I’ll grab it and bring it to you so you can call her.”
“You don’t give up easily do you?”
“Not when it comes to life and death situations.”
“This isn’t life and death. It’s a scratch.”
“Where’s the phone?”
“Outside pocket of my purse on the kitchen counter.”
He walked out of the room and came right back in, but this time he had the cellphone on speaker and it was ringing.
“What are you doing?” I asked, about to hop off the couch, but Bethany answered.
“What’s up?”
“My foot pushed through the porch and I got scraped. The contractor thought I should go get stitches, and I told him I had you. Would you mind checking out the small scrape?”
“Is he as hot as the guy from school you told me about?” Bethany asked, ignoring my injury completely as I bowed my head in defeat. “The main attraction for the teachers of summer school I think is how you phrased it.”
“You’re on speaker and he’s standing right next to me with a huge grin.”
“Well, since you brought it up, Bethany, I’m actually that guy. It’s a small, small world.”
Bethany’s laughter was so loud it made the cellphone buzz, and I just glared at my ankle, happy to see that at least there was a silver lining. I had shaved.
“I’ll be right over, doll.”
“Do you happen to know when she last got her tetanus shot?” Mason asked.
“I do. It was two years ago when she fell out of a canoe and hit her head on a pier.”
Mason’s bemused expression was impossible to hide. “Well, that’s good news.”
After two glasses of wine, three stitches, and a promise to have dinner with Bethany tonight, last night turned out well. Mason left pretty quickly after Bethany arrived.
It was early afternoon as I looked around the classroom at the countless bored expressions staring back at me, and I knew I needed to scrap today’s lesson plan. I’d just handed out the permission forms to all the students so we could take some field trips. I waited until the last person stuffed the piece of paper in their folder before I began.
“Okay, we have the summer to discuss and dissect historical events that have shaped where we are today. By the end of the summer we need to have covered the historical chronology of world events. We need to be able to critically analyze global expansion, revolutions, emergence of new nations and the challenges to democracy and human rights. Those seem like pretty lofty goals, and I think the only way we’ll get through it is if you guys tell me what you’re interested in.”
A hand shot up in the front row.
It was Brendan. He had failed several subjects in the last half of the school year. He went from a B student in September to not even showing up in class by May. Brendan hadn’t opened up to any of the teachers and his parents weren’t cooperative. The learning plan that was developed at the mid-year point was never executed at home, but now his hand was in the air. Maybe there was hope.
“Brendan.” I smiled and waited for his response.
“Indie Rock and Death Metal,” he announced, as if a victory had been gained. The class laughed, and I couldn’t hold my smile back.
“Okay. So maybe a trip to EMP is in order for the class. Anyone else who’s interested in the history of music? I’ve never been to the Experience Music Project, but I’ve heard it’s a fantastic museum. I think we can definitely fit that in as long as you all bring me your signed slips by the end of the week. Okay. Anyone else?”
The room fell silent as confusion settled over the class.
“How’s that related to history?” Sarah asked. She was a student sitting in the back of the class, looking somewhat amused. History and English were the only classes she didn’t do well in. Her strengths all year had been math and science. Her mind was more analytical, and it was my job to tap into that as well. Make her world not so black and white.
“How is it not? Do you realize that if it weren’t for living in a democratic nation where free speech is upheld, you might not get to listen to Death Metal? Imagine your favorite bands being thrown in jail because they used profanity in a song. Would we have any bands left?” I asked.
The students laughed and immediately relaxed in their chairs.
“There are many countries that not only decide what kind of music their citizens will listen to, they will throw musicians who don’t conform to the government’s rules in prison. Sometimes those musicians and artists are even executed.”
“Seriously?” Brendan asked, sitting up in his seat.
“Very. Have you heard of Pussy Riot?” I asked.
His cheeks turned red and he shook his head.
“I have,” Delilah replied. She was sitting next to Brendan and seemed very shy.
“Do you mind telling us who they are?”
She smiled and nodded, sitting up in her chair a little straighter. “They’re a feminist punk rock group in Moscow who were labeled anti-Putin and morally corrupt by the Russian government.”
“Oh, I remember hearing about them,” another student said. “Didn’t they get put in jail?”
I nodded. “We tend to take for granted what we have here, and it’s good to learn the history of our country and how our freedoms came to be so that we can better understand how lucky we are. Wouldn’t you be horrified if your favorite musician got thrown in jail or worse for what he sang?”
“That would suck,” Brendan agreed.
“Yes, it would. We’
ve had our own struggles with censorship too,” I continued. “So tell me, what makes this country so special? Is there something in particular that allows us a sense of freedom?”
“The First Amendment,” Delilah answered.
“Which is?”
“It’s the one about free speech.”
“That it is. So music’s history is a very important component to understanding what the First Amendment means to us individually. It may not be music to everyone. It might be books, magazines, religious scriptures… But I think for the first assignment, I’d like each of you to analyze the First Amendment and write a one-page paper about how it has shaped your life. Before you know it, we will have marked off studying about the challenges to democracy and human rights.”
I waited for the chorus of groans but none came.
“And we will see about scheduling a trip to the EMP in Seattle. How about each of you take out a piece of paper and write down what interests you? Brendan said music and we’ve got that on the potential calendar now so let’s keep it going. It can be completely anonymous. Once you’re finished with that, I’d like you to get into small groups and write down your favorite bands. We’ll take the rest of class researching your artists, and we’ll see if any of them have talked about the subject of free speech or if any of the musicians have encountered problems in other countries.”
I heard the shredding of paper as students began ripping out pieces to write on when my gaze landed on a very handsome man standing out in the hallway, listening to me teach my class. Mason’s arms were folded in front of him, exposing his muscular forearm.
He smiled, and I glanced at the class that was busy working away on the assignments.
Mason was only a few steps outside the door, and it took everything I had not to go running into the hall to say hi. So instead, I slowly walked over to the door and shut it right in his face. I smiled through the glass and his grin deepened as he shook his head. I looked back at the students who had now broken into small groups, their chatter quite lively, as they discussed which bands to look up.
Finding Love in Forgotten Cove (Island County Series Book 1) Page 3
