Artist's Dream (3 page)

“You are Cassandra Parker, right?” the woman prompted.

“Cassie, yes.” Cassie paused only briefly before taking the woman’s offered hand, daring to meet her dark eyes for only a moment.

“Luke Winston.” The woman released Cassie’s hand much too slowly.

Cassie frowned slightly, and the woman paused, as if waiting for Cassie to question the unusual name. She pressed her lips together, refusing to ask the obligatory question. It wasn’t any of her conŹcern, she told herself.

“I’m looking for a couple of pieces for a client,” Luke explained. “One outdoors, one in.”

Cassie motioned to the remaining six that she had. “Only the two largest eagles have been finished for the outdoors, I’m afraid. And the totem. I can put a finish on one of the others, though, if there’s one you like.”

“No,” the woman said, moving away from Cassie, again circling the smaller eagle. “This one belongs inside, anyway.”

“I’m working on another eagle,” Cassie said unexpectedly. “In flight, six foot wing span,” she explained. At the woman’s expresŹsion, Cassie smiled. “It just sort of happened, and I have no idea how I’ll transport it, if I even want to sell it.”

“That may be more of what they’re looking for,” she said, again

turning toward the golden. “This one is beautiful, really.” She looked up and caught Cassie’s eyes and her voice softened. “I want it. I have the perfect spot for it.”

“For you? Or your client?” The thought of this woman having one of her pieces was causing all sorts of emotions to sift through her body.

“I feel drawn to this one. Like it was meant for me,” she said quietly. “Do you ever get that feeling?”

Cassie nodded, her eyes locked with this stranger. She opened her mouth, hoping her voice would follow. “Most of my work is from driftwood, small and large. I see a piece and it pulls me, tells me exactly what it needs to be.” Cassie’s voice was equally as quiet.

The woman was staring at her, as if she wanted to say someŹthing, and Cassie raised her eyebrows.

“What?”

The woman looked away and shook her head. “Nothing,” she said, almost to herself. Then she looked back and their eyes held, and Cassie was powerless to look away as they stared at each other.

“Hey, girl,” Kim called, breaking the spell. “Oh, I didn’t know … oh,” she said again, seeing the woman. “Well… I’ll let you finish with … whatever you’re doing,” she said and grinned wickedly at Cass
ie.

Cassie glared at Kim, although she was thankful for the interŹruption, and she moved away from the stranger. She watched as Kim shoved her hand toward the woman.

“I’m Kim Monroe. Just a friend,” she said pointedly and Cassie winced.

“Luke Winston.”

“Luke? Parents wanted a boy?” Kim asked the question that Cassie had not.

Luke smiled at Cassie before answering. “My mother wanted a Lucinda.” She opened her waist pack and pulled out her checkŹbook. “You do take out-of-town checks?” she asked.

“Yes, of course,” Cassie said.

“With all proper identification,” Kim added.

“Don’t you have your own booth to run?” Cassie asked under her breath.

“Lisa’s got it under control.”

“I guess I should ask how much it is,” Luke said.

“Two thousand,” Cassie said confidently.

Luke smiled and met her eyes again. “I would have paid at least

four.”

Cassie gave a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. Four?

After boxing it up carefully, Cassie offered to get help to carry it, thinking of Paul.

“No, not necessary,” Luke said. “I think two of us can manage. I’m parked fairly close,” she said.

Cassie looked at Kim with pleading eyes, but Kim smiled and rubbed her lower back before sitting down.

“I’ll hold down the fort. You run along,” she said to Cass
ie.

“Thanks a lot,” Cassie murmured, then bent to take one end of the box.

“I hope you put one of your cards in there,” Luke said as they made their way through the crowd. “I think I can get you a sale on that eagle. Money is no problem, by the way.”

“That’s nice to know. Maybe I should let you price it then,” Cassie said lightly. “I have no idea what to ask for it.”

“They’ve just built a home over on Russian River. Logs, totally natural. They have this enormous deck that reaches nearly to the water’s edge. They’ll love your stuff,” she said. “There’s a perfect spot for one of your large eagles.”

Luke was watching Cassie, so she tried not to labor as she helped carry the cumbersome box. Finally Luke grinned.

“Do you need to take a break?”

“Please,” Cassie panted.

“Sorry about that.”

They sat the box down, and Cassie rested her hands on her hips, trying to catch her breath, noticing Luke didn’t seem winded in the least.

“You work out,” Cassie stated unnecessarily. Her eyes moved

over Luke’s upper body, resting on her biceps. Luke shifted her weight and casually crossed her arms, watching Cassie watch her. “The most exercise I get is carrying driftwood back to the house,” Cassie admitted to this stranger.

“It started out as a relief to … my life, I guess. It became addicting,” she said. “But then, it beat the alternative.”

Cassie waited for her to explain but Luke didn’t and Cassie was polite enough not to ask.

“You’re really very talented,” Luke said unexpectedly. “I’m sure you hear that all the time.”

“Mostly from people who can’t afford to buy my work.” Cassie shifted from one foot to the other nervously, making a pretense of scanning the crowd. “But I do okay here.”

“Surely you’ve tried the city,” Luke said, casually resting her hands on her hips, her shirt straining across her chest.

“Yes,” Cassie said, pulling her eyes away from Luke’s shirt. Her breasts. “I started out in San Francisco. I still have several shops that carry my carvings and they do quite well there, but I find I work much better out here,” Cassie managed. “It’s peaceful. I don’t feel like I’m always in a hurry anymore.”

“Yes, I know what you mean. It’s nice out here. Hard to believe we’re only an hour or so from the city.”

Cassie nodded, again looking into the crowd to avoid having to look at Luke Winston. It wasn’t fair, she thought. No one, espeŹcially a woman, should have the power to affect her so. She took a step back, suddenly feeling crowded by this woman’s nearness.

“I’m ready if you are,” Cassie said, wanting nothing but for this encounter to be over and done with.

“Okay. On three.” Luke bent easily and grasped her corner, waiting for Cassie to do the same.

Cassie watched as Luke bent. Against her will, her eyes were drawn to those tan legs and she completely forgot their task as her eyes ventured higher.

“Cassie?”

Cassie jerked her head away and met dark eyes that held just a hint of amusement. She blushed crimson.

“Sorry,” she murmured and hurried to pick up her end, silently cursing herself.

Luke smiled, flashing even, white teeth. “It’s okay,” she said lightly.

Cassie kept her eyes averted as they made their way to the parkŹing lot, and Luke was true to her word. She paused beside what appeared to be a new Lexus SUV, as black as the woman’s hair. With a push of the remote, the back opened while they waited.

“I appreciate you helping me.” Luke slid the box carefully inside, then slammed the door shut.

“No problem. It was worked into the price,” Cassie said as lightly as she could manage.

Luke flashed her a grin. “Well, I’ll let you get back. Your friend is probably waiting.”

Again she placed her hands casually on her hips and again Cassie had to drag her eyes away. She raised them to meet Luke’s and forced a smile, which faltered only slightly when Luke extended her hand.

“It was nice meeting you, Cass
ie.
I feel like we’ve met someŹwhere before though. You look so familiar.”

“No. I don’t think so.” Cassie took her hand briefly, then pulled away. “I would have remembered. And thank you. I hope you enjoy the eagle.”

“Oh, I will. It’s very beautiful.” Luke’s voice softened to nearly a purr, her eyes never leaving Cassie’s. “I hope we run into each other again.”

Suddenly Cassie didn’t want to leave, and she hesitated as the woman’s voice enveloped her. She swallowed, willing her feet to move, willing her eyes to pull away. Do something!

“Well… good-bye, then.” She turned and made herself walk, not run, her back positively burning where she assumed dark eyes were looking.

She ran both hands through her hair in frustration as she faded into the crowd. Why was Luke Winston able to make a mockery out of her life without even trying?

Luke Winston. Such an odd name for a woman so beautiful. She

closed her eyes tightly. Not beautiful. Just an attractive woman. Just a stranger that she would never see again. With any luck.

“Hey, about time,” Kim called. “I’ll need commission, I think.” She pointed to the empty spot where the small totem had been.

“You sold the totem?” Cassie asked, her eyes wide. She had been trying to get rid of it for three years. “How did you know what to-ask?”

Kim bit her lower lip. “How much did you want for it?”

“A thousand,” Cassie said.

Kim broke into a smile. “Good. I got fifteen hundred.”

“Jesus Christ! How?”

“Well, I knew to ask less than the eagle.”

“The eagle took me twice as long to make,” Cassie explained. “I dropped the price to eight hundred last year, just in hope of getting rid of it. It takes up space in my shop.”

“Hey, so post signs next time,” Kim said. “It was an older genŹtleman with four teenagers in tow. He wanted it for a lodge or something. Now, the details.” She lowered her voice and grinned. “That woman is gorgeous, with a body to go with it. God! Her check says she’s from the city. What’s she doing here two weekends in a row?”

“How should I know,” Cassie said crossly, looking away from Kim.

“She didn’t offer and knowing you, you didn’t ask.”

“Why would I ask? It doesn’t concern me,” Cassie said.

Kim tilted her head and grinned. “In all the years I’ve been doing this with you, that was the first time you’ve ever offered to help carry one of those out of here,” she stated, waving at the remaining pieces.

“I’m sure you’re mistaken. I’ve done it … several times.” Damn!

But Kim only smiled. “Sure you have. Did she make a pass at you?”

“Of course not! Why would she?”

“Oh, come on. Surely you could see the way she was looking at you,” Kim teased.

Cassie turned cool blue eyes to Kim. “Don’t,” she said quietly. “I will not have this discussion with you here.”

“I’m just teasing.”

“Yes, well don’t.”

Kim placed her hands on her hips and stared at Cass
ie.
“Can’t you just let go for once? Must you always have this shield around you?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Cassie said, searching for her piece of wood, something, anything to appear busy.

Kim handed her the wood silently.

“You’re never going to enjoy life,” she said, raising her hands around her, “if you’re so goddamned afraid of having feelings.”

Cassie faced her squarely. “I don’t know how to have feelings,” she said quietly.

Kim shook her head. “Just let go for once, Cass. What are you afraid of?”

“I’m afraid of life. It comes from years of living with my father,” she said.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Kim said. “I didn’t mean…”

“No, I know I have a problem. I can’t seem to feel anything for anyone,” Cassie said. Her expression softened. “I don’t mean you. You’re my best friend. I feel that,” she said, touching her chest. “I just can’t seem to find anyone … for me. And yes, maybe I am afraid. I’m afraid of men because my father warned me about them my whole life, how they’re only after one thing. And I’m certainly afraid of women, because I’ll rot in hell from that kind of love for sure,” she finished, tears now brimming in her eyes.

“Hey, I’m sorry,” Kim said gently, giving her a quick hug. “I’m sorry.”

Cassie brushed an errant tear from her cheek and smiled slightly. “I need a good therapist, I know.”

“Maybe you just need a good lay,” Kim said, and Cassie laughed with her.

Cassie studied the two bottles of wine in her basket, then reached for one more. Another advantage of living in Sonoma County was the wine selection. And after spending two weeks of forced solitude in her workshop, she was ready to break loose a bit. She felt like cooking, too. She had barely taken time to eat, much less cook, and cooking was her one means of escape.

She had spent nearly every waking hour working on the eagle in flight. As she had told Luke Winston, it just happened. She and Kim had struggled with the huge chunk of driftwood for hours, finally getting their friend Carl to assist them. His truck had barely held the wood and the three of them had managed to carry it into her workshop where it laid for months. She knew it would be an eagle, it could have been nothing else. The eagle was her favorite subject. But it had grown and grown, until its magnificent wings stretched out six feet. Now, after two months of lovingly chiseling and carving, it was finished. And she hated to part with it. But she had worked painstakingly the past two weeks on the off chance

that Luke Winston would call, or at least the clients she had spoken of, and offer her an outrageous amount of money for it.

Now, she just wanted to relax. And the weather forecast seemed perfect. A storm was coming. Heavy rain was due by this evening, and it would linger through tomorrow. She planned to cook and curl up with a good book and read, something she had not taken the time to do in months.

But she was surprised at the dark clouds overhead as she loaded her groceries. The rain was not supposed to hit until later but already the first fat drops were wetting her face as she hurried inside her van. She rubbed her hands together quickly to warm them before pulling away, a smile breaking her face. The rain was as good an excuse as any to stay inside and avoid company. Mainly Kim. She had spoken to her only a few times in the last two weeks. Their conversation on the day of the festival still hung between them, and Cassie knew that Kim wanted to talk about it. But Cassie, however, did not. She had grown accustomed to hiding her feelings. A trait that caused many to call her cool and aloof. In realŹity, she was anything but that. But it was a facade that grew on her, and she had perfected it over the years. So much so, that she rarely shared her true feelings with anyone. In fact, she wasn’t sure she even knew what her true feelings were anymore.