Second Chance Girl
Page 12

Mathias wanted to writhe in his chair. He wanted to stand up and say there was no way in hell. “Why not ask Nick?”
“Because he and Pallas are a couple and he won’t tell her if I don’t like something. Mathias, please? I’ve seen your work and I like how you create. Your pieces make me feel really good inside. I want that for my wedding.”
Was there a conspiracy? First his mother and now his future sister-in-law, both wanting something from him. Something he didn’t want to give. Something he should absolutely refuse.
“Please,” Maya said quietly. “I need you, Mathias. I need your help to make this happen.”
He swore under his breath before glaring at her. “You’re going to owe me, Maya.”
She laughed and clapped her hands together. “Forever, I swear. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I have the first meeting set up already. I’ll email you the information. You’re the best.”
“Yeah, yeah. Sell it somewhere else. I meant what I said—you owe me.”
She blew him a kiss and hung up. Mathias stared at the screen before closing the program and reaching for his cell phone.
“Hello?”
Some people’s voices were distorted over the phone, but not Carol’s. That combination of slightly sexy, slightly sweet came through perfectly. Mathias told himself to ignore the automatic tightening in his gut.
“It’s Mathias. I need your help.”
“Don’t you want to start by asking about my day? Or commenting on the weather?”
“Not really.”
“You’re such a guy. Fine. What’s wrong? And if it’s about Sophie, I’m going to tell you to suck it up. She’s a sweet little girl and you are more than capable of taking care of her.”
“Thanks for your undying emotional support,” he said drily. “I’m calling because my future sister-in-law wants me to help plan her wedding. I don’t know what she’s thinking, but I would be a disaster and I need you to help me.”
“Shouldn’t you call Violet? She’s the one with the style sense.”
“I don’t want Violet.”
He spoke without thinking and then was stuck with the truth hanging out there—flapping in the breeze. He wanted Carol, he had for a long time. Things being what they were, he wasn’t going to do anything about the wanting, but helping him with the wedding wasn’t that. It was...
He realized he’d called Carol without a second thought, without considering who would be better. Why was that? Maybe because of the dreams, or maybe because...
“My sister will be heartbroken.” Carol sounded more cheerful than upset, then she laughed. “Well, crap. I just realized you’re asking me because I’m a woman. Just to be clear, being female doesn’t mean we’re all born with an innate ability to plan a wedding.”
“Sure you are. It comes with having breasts.”
“You’re the most annoying man on the planet.”
“So that’s a yes?”
She sighed. “Yes, Mathias, I will help you plan the wedding. I assume it’s in town?”
“At Weddings Out of the Box.”
“Perfect! Pallas will make sure we don’t mess up.”
“I’ll let you know when we have our first meeting. And thanks, Carol.”
“You’re welcome.”
She hung up. He did the same and left his phone on the desk before walking back to the glass piece he’d been working on. The small giraffe was maybe eight inches tall. The features were all there, but the little statue was static. He wanted movement and didn’t know how to make that happen.
Nick walked into the studio. “Hey. Didn’t you have a call with Maya?”
“She wants me to help with her wedding.”
Nick grinned. “Better you than me.”
“Apparently. Obviously I’m the one she trusts.”
“Or she figures you’re the soft touch.”
“Either way, I’m the good brother.”
Mathias studied the giraffe before tossing it into the recycling bin where it shattered into dozens of pieces.
“You gotta stop doing that,” Nick told him. “It was good.”
“Not good enough. If it’s not perfect, it can’t live.”
“Can’t or won’t?” Nick asked.
Mathias ignored the question.
“What about those?” His brother pointed to the shelves filled with imperfect pieces. Plates that weren’t exactly round or vases that sloped on one side. “They’re still alive.”
“Not alive, just not worth destroying.” They were pedestrian and didn’t matter. The everyday stuff was simply how he made his living. It wasn’t art.
Natalie came into the studio with Sophie on her leash. “I have to go run some errands,” she said, crossing to him. “You’re going to have to deal with your dog.”
“She’s not my dog,” Mathias muttered, only to have Sophie shoot him a wounded look. As if she’d understood what he was saying.
He took the leash. Sophie turned her back to him. He sighed. Why was this happening to him? First the dog and now a wedding. It wasn’t fair.
“Fine,” he grumbled. “I’m sorry. You’re a good girl.”
Sophie still kept her back to him.
Giving in to the inevitable, Mathias opened one of his desk drawers and pulled out a bag of dog treats. Sophie spun to face him, her ears forward, her tail going about eighty miles an hour.
“Apparently you’re forgiven,” Nick pointed out. “It’s good to see you finally in a relationship.”
CHAPTER FIVE
THE SWEET DREAMS INN off of Eternal Drive was the stuff of nightmares—at least for Ulrich. His plan had been to leave Happily Inc after he concluded his business with Violet Lund—thief and swindler—return to Los Angeles and catch a flight back to England. Only nothing had gone according to plan.
His meeting with the surprisingly attractive and very animated woman had left him feeling both awkward and confused. She had been able to produce a bill of sale for the buttons his grandmother had sent, and buttons were not what had been stolen from the house. Was she not the thief and if not her, then who?
Ulrich had driven to LA only to reschedule his flight and return to Happily Inc. The Sweet Dreams Inn had been the first hotel he’d seen, so he’d pulled in. Too late he’d discovered it was a themed hotel with each of the rooms representing something ridiculous. For reasons not completely clear to him, he’d agreed to a couple of nights in the Drive-In Room, which was how he found himself with a mattress fit into a red, 1959 Cadillac convertible, a television the size of a movie screen and a sitting room decorated like a concession stand. Even he had to admit the car was beautiful—with big fins and white-walled tires. Still, it wasn’t where one expected to sleep. Regardless of the strange surroundings, the Wi-Fi was excellent and the kitchen delivered meals to his room.
Ulrich had spent nearly a day researching Violet Lund and antique buttons only to come to the conclusion that it was more than possible that she had been telling the truth. There was money to be made in the world of buttons. Even more troubling, it seemed Miss Violet Lund was nothing more than a very honest shopkeeper.
She had no criminal record, no trouble with the IRS, not even a ticket. He’d used several online sites to investigate her and she’d come back annoyingly normal and law-abiding. How could he have been so wrong?