Total pages in book: 113
Estimated words: 104820 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 349(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104820 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 349(@300wpm)
His hope was that if he could convince her to let him spend ten bucks on a handbag, he had a better chance of foisting a dress that cost five grand on her. Many of the women attending the event would be wearing gowns that cost ten or twenty times that. Nonetheless, he had to move carefully. He’d start with a ten-dollar bag.
As they headed toward a coffee shop, Arch realized he’d never been this relaxed with a woman—ever. Even at the aquarium, he’d been focused on how to impress Tessa and make sure she had an amazing day. But now he was just having fun, pure fun, and she was too.
“I love getting to know you better. Thank you for taking me shopping and letting me see more of your world.” He paused as they entered the coffee shop. “And I want to see more of your life. When you go to the beach to paint later, is there any chance you’d let me come with you? I won’t bother you. Maybe I could bring my script, and we could work side by side. What do you say?”
She turned to him, and for a moment, he thought she’d turn him down, keep him locked out of the work she was so passionate about. But then—thankfully—pleasure suffused her face.
And when she said, “I’d love that,” he felt like he’d just won an Oscar.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
At the beach, Tessa set up her easel slowly, with more care than usual. She couldn’t shake the sensation of eyes on her, even though Arch was already settled on a nearby bench, buried in his script. He wasn’t even looking in her direction.
When he’d first suggested coming along, her first instinctive thought had been, No way. Not a chance. Arch might be the only living person who knew about her painting, but she truly did consider it a private, personal pursuit. It was a fanciful dream, painting. Her escape from reality and a way to process her feelings.
It was not a group activity. Especially with a man whose body made her wild with desire. How would she be able to concentrate?
But then she recalled meeting Mylene Fraser, who’d seen her work in this very spot, and had told Tessa that it was good enough to enter the Carmel-by-the-Sea plein air competition. Tessa had put the moment out of her mind, banishing it to some far-off place inside her. But what if Mylene had a point? She was a renowned artist after all. And hadn’t Arch echoed her praise, displaying one of her paintings in the same room as a Picasso?
When Tessa had let his request to come with her sink in, even though it felt fraught with risk, at the same time there was nothing she wanted more than for him to share this space with her, to be part of her world.
Every inch of it.
Yes, the idea scared her to bits, but in a secret part of her heart, it thrilled her too.
Frankly, she didn’t want to be alone this afternoon. Or, more accurately, she was having too much fun with Arch to leave him alone at home while she painted, also alone.
She’d spent so long keeping her true self hidden. She never could have imagined how beautiful it was to fully open up to another person, let alone her teenage crush.
But every step of the way, Arch had shown her that she could depend on him. Nothing about her or her life story had shocked him. Instead, he’d given her such beautiful things—kindness and understanding.
So even if they could never be a forever couple, at least he was hers for now.
And now was absolutely amazing.
What’s more, given that she trusted him enough to be intimate physically, it made sense to her that she should trust him with her art.
Arch was engrossed in his script, a pencil in his mouth, ready to make notes in the margins. She smiled out of the pure happiness being near him brought her, then threw herself into her work.
As always, the physics of time changed as she painted. She was able to achieve a focus so complete, so absolute, that she had no idea whether fifteen minutes or two hours had passed before she was brought back to the present by the sound of a dog happily barking. She blinked several times, then saw Arch on the beach, playing with a chocolate Labrador puppy.
The dog bounded across the sand, chasing an old tennis ball, and then dropped it at Arch’s feet. He picked it up obligingly and threw it again. And again.
Watching him, Tessa was filled with warmth. Arch really would love having a dog. It was clear that he fed off their positive energy, and vice versa. She could easily see him with his own dog at home, curled up on the couch or bounding along the beach, ball in its mouth. A gray-haired couple, no doubt the dog’s owners, approached Arch, and she watched as they talked with one another. From where Tessa was standing, it seemed that if they knew he was a famous movie star, they didn’t let on. He was easy to chat with, and the locals responded to his down-to-earth nature.