CHAPTER 3
Harper shivered slightly, holding her brush up so the movement didn’t affect her stroke. It was still a little chilly in the evenings, and she should have brought a jacket with her, but the sun had been out when Harper had left her house and she stubbornly refused to act as if it was still winter.
“Idiot,” she mumbled to herself as she stiffened her hand and continued adding another layer of color to her canvas. She was going to have to call it quits. Stupid weather.
With a soft sigh, she dipped her brush into the cleanser and began to get ready to pull everything down. She was sooo ready for summer. Even spring wasn’t cutting it anymore, though she was grateful for the markets. They helped keep the winter blues away.
She smiled to herself as she packed up.The first market of the year had been a dream come true. The customers had been happy to buy and Mason had spent an entire meal at her side. It had been lovely, but she knew better than to try and encourage anything. She still had so far to go with her business and despite bringing her dinner, Mason hadn’t spoken to her since that day last week.
For a bit she had thought that maybe her crush had been returned, but if that was the case, then why hadn’t he spoken to her since? Why hadn’t he texted? Or at least stopped by to say hi? It’s not like she was a world traveler or something. It wasn’t hard to get a hold of her.
“Maybe he’s been busy?” she asked the evening air. The excuse sounded lame even to her. If Mason wanted to speak with her...he would.
She sighed. Apparently, their little connection had been completely in her head. Nothing had really changed and nothing should change. Imagined connection or not, Harper just wasn’t in a position to date.
“It’s a little chilly out here, don’t you think?”
Harper jerked upright. She recognized the voice, but hadn’t been expecting to hear it. Spinning, she put her hands on her hips and did her best to fight the flood of pleasure pouring into her system. “I do believe that’s twice you nearly scared the living daylights out of me,” she scolded, though there was no real bite in her tone.
Mason chuckled. The low rumbly sound was glorious to Harper’s ears. “I’m sorry.” He put his hands in the air. “I really don’t know how you don’t hear me coming. I’m huge.”
Harper looked him up and down. “True enough, but geez.” She shook her head. “You’re going to give me a heart attack.”
“I’ll stomp extra loud next time,” he teased.
Harper laughed. It was then she noticed that his hands were full. “Taking a walk?” she asked. He held two steaming cups and Harper realized he was probably meeting someone. She had parked herself at the beach today in order to paint in real time, but there were several walking paths along the wild grass border, and a little closer to town was the boardwalk, which couples strolled all the time.
The pain of the revelation hurt more than she would have expected it to, since she held no true expectations in regards to a relationship with him.
Mason held up one cup. “I happened to see your car parked along the boardwalk while I was heading home from dinner and a little birdie told me you like hot chocolate.” He smirked. “Unless you’re different from every woman I’ve ever met, then you’re probably freezing right about now.” He offered the drink.
It was amazing how the human body could go from the depths of despair to the soaring freedom of the sky in less than a second, and Harper was shocked she didn’t have whiplash from the swift turnaround.
Slowly, she reached out to take the offering. The cup was warm and felt nice on her chilled digits, but it was the brush against his fingers against her own that sent enough heat to light a fire rushing through her veins. She just hoped that in the waning light, he couldn’t see it on her face. “Thank you.” She inhaled the scent of sweet chocolate and moaned. “Oh my gosh, I love hot chocolate.” Just friends, just friends...career, career, career.
Mason chuckled again. His eyes went to her canvas. “Is it alright if I look?”
Harper nodded. She used to be shy about anyone seeing an unfinished project, but she’d gotten over that. She might not be Rembrandt, but she was proud of her work, even if that meant it had to look chaotic before it looked finished. As an artist himself, surely Mason understood that.
Mason tilted his head, studying the painting. “It’s beautiful. Are you done?”
She shook her head. “No. I’d like to add a few waves in the water and some clouds over the moon.”
He nodded. “It’ll give it a deep and mysterious look. I like it.”
Harper smiled, pleased with his kindness. “Thanks.”
Mason sucked in a deep breath. “Can I help you carry things to your car? You looked like you were putting things away...” He trailed off as if unsure.
“That’d be great!” Harper chirped. Geez. She really needed to get a hold of her emotions. Just because Mason was being nice didn’t mean he wanted more than friendship with her. Right? Even as she thought it, the words felt false. She wasn’t the only one to feel this pull between them. What was she going to do?
Ten minutes later, they were trudging through the sand toward the parking lot, each holding something under one arm and a cup of cocoa in the other. “I’m starting to think I need to invest in a cart or wagon,” Harper said breathlessly. The loose sand was difficult to walk in at best. When she’d arrived earlier, she had made three trips to get her stuff out into a good spot. Hauling it all at the same time was a much heavier load and she was one-handed this time around. Oh well. This should help me have nice-looking calves, right? Maybe I’ll burn off a few of the calories from the hot chocolate.
“I’m not sure the wheels could handle the sand,” Mason said as he waited for her at the top of a small hill. Now that they had reached the grassy areas, it was much easier going.
“True enough.” Harper sighed. “I guess I’ll just keep getting decent workouts, huh?”
Mason’s smile could be seen even in the semi-dark. “Let’s look on the bright side. By the time we get to your car, the hot chocolate will be cool enough to drink.”
“Thank heaven for small mercies,” Harper agreed. Mason was right. After loading everything in her trunk and backseat, the hot chocolate was at the perfect sipping temperature.
“Mmm...” she murmured, letting the sweet drink slide down her throat. “This was really thoughtful of you. Thank you.”
Mason looked at the ground, shrugging. “It wasn’t that big of a deal. Just being friendly.”
The warm drink forgotten, the words were like a splash of cold ocean water to the face. Why? she scolded herself. Why should that hurt? You CAN’T have him. It’s as simple as that. A guy is a distraction that will only take you farther from your goals, not closer. “Well, it was really nice of you. Thanks.” Harper had the sudden desire to wash her own mouth out with soap to get rid of the bitter taste of the lies.
“Want to walk down the boardwalk?” Mason asked. He held up his cup. “So you don’t have to drink and drive?”
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