“That’s a good girl.”He leaned forward.
As Nellie raced back to the stables, he felt lighter.As Cooper had suggested, he was going to the damn opening.
Chapter Fourteen
Late Thursday afternoonas Willow stepped into the gallery to see where Greg had put the last four paintings, her phone rang.It was Cooper.Again.
How Greg had done it, she had no idea, but apparently the four paintings he’d sent for had been delivered and were already up on the walls.
She walked toward the big window before she answered.“Hi, Coop.”
“You could’ve returned my calls.”
“You’re here tomorrow.”
“You know why I’m calling.I saw the two portraits you made of Hunter.Even the cowboy on the horse is him.They’re good.Really, really good, and it’s clear to me you’re in love with him.Aren’t you?”
“Oh, Coop, it doesn’t matter…”
“Of course it does.Tell him how you feel.”
Before she could answer him, he’d ended the call—in typical Cooper style.
Tell Hunter how she felt.Easier said than done.
Sighing, she put her phone away.If it were that easy, she’d never have left Hunter on Sunday morning.Even if she’d told him she loved him, she didn’t know how he felt.
Images of his indigo blue eyes, dark with need, flashed through her mind.This wasn’t helping, damn it.He wanted her, he’d made no secret about that but wanting her wasn’t love.And then there was the other big problem—they lived in different states.
Grimacing, she walked to Greg’s office.The irony.She hadn’t wanted to get married because she didn’t want to deal with anyone else’s drama.Now she’d fallen in love with someone whose feelings she couldn’t read, but they couldn’t be together anyway.
She found Greg and Eden in front of the last painting she’d done of Hunter.
Eden noticed her first.Her eyes were bright with tears.“Willow, I don’t know what to say—the portraits you’ve done are simply breathtaking.This one is remarkable.The simple title of ‘Spring’ is spot on.The sparkle in his eyes and the emotion conveyed with the tilt of his head, indeed promises eternal spring.”She grinned.“He’s a gorgeous specimen of a man, of course, but that’s not what makes this painting so extraordinary.It’s looking at him through your eyes that does that.”
Willow turned her eyes to the portrait.Just looking at it left her short of breath.This was the one she’d painted after the Christmas Stroll, after their first kiss.Although… she frowned, now that she thought about it, this was actually how she remembered him from her dreams, way before their lips had actually met.Which meant she’d fallen for him way before.Probably a year ago on the night he’d taken her home and cleaned her up.How could she not fall in love with someone like that?
“And this one,” Eden sighed.“The one you titled ‘Summer’ is clearly a very deeply personal one.”Eden pointed to the painting of Hunter without his hat, the one Willow had made the previous Friday after Hunter had found her in just a towel and had taken her to heights she hadn’t known existed.“One can get lost in the depth of those eyes,” Eden continued.“Both of these are the ex-fiancé, I presume?”
Willow nodded.“Yes, it’s Hunter.”
“Well, Willow,” Greg interrupted her thoughts, “you were right.This is very different to your usual work, but as we were unwrapping the paintings earlier, my first look at what you’ve done literally took my breath away.It’s a pity you don’t want to sell them; portraits are very sought after at the moment.”
Willow shook her head adamantly.“Nope, not for all the money in the world.”
“And what about this one?”Greg asked as he walked toward the painting she’d done of Hunter on his horse.“I noticed you simply called it ‘Untitled.’Let me know if you want to change it.”
Willow joined him in front of the painting.Her heart sighed.When she’d finished this one, her heart had already known what she hadn’t had figured out at that point yet—she’d already fallen in love with the cowboy The discerning eye would pick it up—her love for her subject was in every stroke of the brush.
“Leave it like that, I think,” Willow said.“I may consider selling it.Let’s see if anyone is interested.”Checking her watch, she turned to Greg.“Thanks for going the extra mile, Greg.I appreciate your help, but I have to go.I have one more interview.”She smiled.You’ve really kept me busy this week, thanks so much for all your help.”
Grinning, Greg rubbed his hands together.“You know we love you to bits, but I’m also in this business to make money and I can feel in my bones this exhibition will be sold out.Yes, the interviews help to spread the word, but social media is also a powerful tool.I’ve advertised on a few platforms.I see you have as well.”
Willow groaned out loud.“I’m so bad at that.I should do more, but there never seems to be time.”
“In the end these paintings will sell themselves, mark my words.There is just something very special about each and every one, you know?”
As Willow left the gallery, Greg’s words followed her.She’d been working on paintings for this exhibition for a long time.Halfway through, she’d been struggling, she still couldn’t decide on a specific theme.The idea ofseasonsas a theme had only begun simmering in her subconscious earlier this year.That had been when magic finally happened—ideas had simply flooded her mind.
