Second Chance Girl--A Modern Fairy Tale Romance

by Susan Mallery

  He turned to Nick. “What about you?”

  Nick glanced at Mathias and winked, then turned back to their father. “I’m doing some things with paper.”

  “Paper!” Ceallach’s voice was a roar. “No son of mine is working with paper. The wood was bad enough. How could you?”

  Nick shrugged. “You know what, Dad? It’s not that hard. I could probably show you a few techniques.”

  Elaine shot him a warning glance, then stepped between her husband and her sons. “Mathias, why don’t you show us our room so we can get settled. Maya said we were eating in tonight. That’s so nice. I’ll unpack, then help in the kitchen. How’s that?”

  Always the peacemaker, Mathias thought. Always making sure their father was fine. While she would get between Ceallach and his sons, she wouldn’t stand up for her children. Not against the great and gifted artist.

  Nothing had changed. He supposed at this point, it never would. His parents had a relationship that seemed to work for them. As for what he felt about his father, well, those were words he wouldn’t say aloud.

  He showed them to the master suite. He’d already cleared out most of his stuff. He would use the futon in his home office, then find out if he could get his mattress fumigated after they left. Or maybe he should simply replace it. There was no way he could sleep in it after his father had.

  When he stepped back into the hall, Maya was waiting for him. She hugged him tight, then led him back to the living room.

  “Are you okay?” she asked when they were out of earshot of the master bedroom. “I can’t believe how awful that was. Del always tries to tell me what it was like, but I guess I didn’t believe him.” She worried her bottom lip. “Elaine should have stood up to him.” She held up her hand. “I know, I know. She doesn’t. She’s my friend and sweet to me, but jeez. This is horrible.”

  Mathias hugged her, then kissed the top of her head. “Don’t worry. We’re all used to it. He’ll be gone soon and you’re going to be married to my brother.” He glanced at Del and Nick. “Hey, we’re getting another sister and when you marry Pallas, that will make three.”

  “Pressure’s on, bro,” Nick drawled.

  Mathias shook his head. He wasn’t getting married. He knew the danger of that—of loving someone. People who were supposed to love you betrayed you. Something he’d always believed, only lately he was having trouble summoning the same energy. Maybe it was because he was getting older. Maybe it was Carol.

  Carol? What did she have to do with anything? Before he could decide, Ceallach and Elaine joined them.

  Maya took charge of the evening. She moved everyone outside. She and Elaine brought out trays of appetizers while Del mixed drinks and Sophie claimed her favorite chaise.

  They all settled on the patio and watched Millie and the other animals make their way back to the barns. The giraffe paused and turned toward them, the sinking sun behind her.

  The moment was perfectly framed in reds and oranges, the trees nearly black by contrast. Mathias felt the familiar itch to work. Some of it was that Millie inspired him and some was the need to escape his father. Whatever the reason, he rose.

  “I have to get to the studio.”

  “No!” his mother protested. “We’re all having dinner together.”

  “A dish crisis?” his father asked.

  “Go,” Nick told him.

  “I don’t know when I’ll be back,” Mathias said, then walked through the house, to his car.

  He entered the studio just as the sun set and crossed to his desk. After sketching for a few minutes, he walked over to study the latest version of the glass statue of Carol, then went to work.

  Eleven hours later, he stared at what he’d created and knew he’d finally gotten it right. The clear glass piece seemed to breathe. The woman looked up, one hand raised. He put the Millie piece in front of it, with the giraffe bending toward her.

  “Damn. I wish I’d made that.”

  He turned and saw Ronan standing in the studio. Mathias accepted the high praise with a simple “Thanks.”

  “You work all night?”

  “Yeah.”

  “The folks arrive?”

  “Yesterday afternoon.”

  Ronan walked around the two pieces. “Hell of a thing, Mathias. Don’t let Dad destroy this one.”

  “I won’t.”

  * * *

  CAROL CARRIED HER to-go cup of coffee out to her Jeep. She’d barely opened the driver’s door when Mathias pulled up in the driveway next to her.

  As always, just knowing he was close made her heart beat a little faster. It didn’t matter that it was barely after six in the morning and that she had to get to work to feed her animals. For a couple of seconds, she needed to simply know that he was there.

  He got out of his car and smiled at her. “Morning.”

  He looked exhausted. His skin was pale and there were dark circles under his eyes.

  “Were you out all night?”

  “At the studio. Working.”

  “Did you have to or was it because your father arrived yesterday?”

  He winced. “It’s early, Carol. Or late, depending on how you want to look at it. Maybe you could be a bit less direct.”

  “Do you really think that’s going to happen?”

  “Not for a second.”

  She put her coffee in the cup holder and set her bag on the passenger seat before straightening. “Come on. You can stay here.”

  He grinned. “You’re finally going to sleep with me?”

  Her stomach clenched and a few key parts of her body tingled in anticipation.

  “No,” she said firmly. “You’re going to sleep here alone. My house is small but I have a guest room.”

  He followed her inside. “I’d sleep better in your bed.”

  “I doubt that.”

  She got him clean sheets and towels, then pushed him gently toward the guest room. “Text someone at your house and tell them where you are, then get some sleep.”

  Mathias turned to face her. Before she could stop him, he’d leaned in and lightly kissed her.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  “You’re good to me.”

  I can’t help it. Luck was on her side and she only thought the words instead of saying them. Taking care of Mathias couldn’t possibly be healthy—at least not for her. But she couldn’t help herself. There was something about him. Reminding herself about their disastrous sexual encounter didn’t seem to make a damn bit of difference. It was as if he had a firm grip on her heart and she couldn’t get him to let go. Or she didn’t want him to.

  As either scenario was dangerous, she backed up a few feet and did her best to smile.

  “Go get some sleep. I’ll be at work all day. If you wake up before I’m back, let yourself out.”

  His dark gaze met hers. “Thank you.”

  “Anytime.”

  She wanted to say so much more, much of it along the lines of take me, take me now. So she did the only sensible thing she could think of. She ran.

  * * *

  VIOLET SLID THE omelets onto two plates. It was day two of their little domestic arrangement and she was enjoying herself way too much. Yesterday, after a night of incredible lovemaking, she and Ulrich had spent the day together. They’d walked around town, done some grocery shopping and spent the afternoon in bed. Last night had been just as magical.

  It was more than what he was doing to her body, she thought with a sigh. It was what he was doing to her emotions.

  What a silly thing—a shopgirl in Happily Inc, California, falling for an English duke. Not that falling for a duke from anywhere else would be all that sensible.

  She carried the plates to her small table.
Ulrich had already squeezed fresh orange juice and made toast. They were both on their second cup of coffee.

  “This is a lot of food,” she said as she sat across from him.

  “We need to keep up our strength.”

  She laughed. “I suppose that’s true.” They both picked up their forks.

  She found herself watching him. In part to memorize everything about being with him, but also because she enjoyed looking at him. This morning he wore a T-shirt and sweatpants. His hair was mussed, his jaw shadowed. He looked sexy and faintly dangerous—nothing like the elegant man she’d first met.

  “You were so pissed at me when you first got to town,” she said conversationally.

  He grimaced. “I believe I have apologized for that.”

  “You should do it again.”

  He smiled. “I’m very sorry that I misjudged you.”

  “You assumed really bad things about me.”

  “I did and it was wrong.” He studied her. “Is this your way of saying you’re into spanking and you want to punish me?”

  “What? No. Never. Ick. Why would you ask that?”

  He grinned. “Just checking. One never knows what others find erotic.”

  “Not that.” She narrowed her gaze. “You’re not spanking me, by the way. Just so we’re clear.”

  “Good to know.”

  “You totally messed with my train of thought,” she complained.

  “Then my work here is done.”

  She smiled. Ulrich had a surprising sense of humor. He was smart and loyal, caring, determined and sexy. Falling for him was not her fault. How could anyone not want to be with him? Okay, maybe his lifestyle wasn’t for everyone—there would be a lot of expectations and it wasn’t as if his wife would ever inherit the house, but still. That was okay. Any children would be the ones—

  She stared at him. “You have to have children.”

  Ulrich nearly choked on his juice. “Excuse me?”

  “Children. You need heirs. You have to get married and get on that, Ulrich. You have a duty to your family and the estate.”

  “Volunteering?”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m serious. What are you going to do?” She sighed. “You’re going to be sensible, aren’t you? Find someone who understands your situation and wants the same things you do. Won’t that be difficult? Not to love her? Or do you think you’ll grow to love her?” Not that she wanted to think about Ulrich loving anyone, but this was bigger than them. She had to be realistic.

  “You seem to have all the answers,” he said drily. “What do you think I should do?”

  “I can’t decide for you. Plus, I’ll admit I’m not wild about the idea of you falling madly in love with someone else at this exact moment.” She realized what she’d said and flushed. “Not that I’m implying that you, um, are more than smitten with me. I was just making, you know, a point.”

  He leaned toward her and took her hand. “I know exactly what you meant. For what it’s worth, as you Americans say, I have no interest in falling for anyone else, Violet. I will at some point have to do my duty to God and my country but that is not for today. Today is about us. Agreed?”

  She nodded, then wondered how he defined smitten. Did he like her a lot? Did he like her really a lot? Or was he possibly in love with her?

  She knew there was no way she would ask, which made her pathetic, but better to wonder than find out the answer wasn’t what she wanted to hear.

  “I’m glad you danced with me all those summers ago,” she said instead.

  “As am I.”

  She laughed. “You don’t even remember me. I was simply one in a series of duty dances. I, on the other hand, will treasure the memory forever.”

  “In that, sweet Violet, you are far more fortunate than I.”

  * * *

  MATHIAS PULLED THE small statue of a glass bird out of an Amazon box. “You drove down the mountain like this?”

  Ronan shrugged. “I used tissue paper.”

  “Not very much.”

  Ronan had shown up at the studio with several boxes, all filled with his artwork. He’d decided to use the fund-raiser to showcase a few more of his bird pieces. Or as Nick put it, yard sale a few dusty leftovers.

  Mathias turned the smallest of the birds so it was directly under the light. He could practically feel the wind ruffling feathers as the creature took flight. Damn, his brother was good.

  Nick had also set out a few of his wood carvings. There was a three-foot-tall giraffe that was a surprise to everyone.

  “I worked at home,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders.

  “Pallas’s neighbors had to love the sound of a chain saw going at all hours.” Ronan crossed to the elegant carving and ran his hands down the smooth neck. “I don’t know how you do this.”

  “I didn’t plan on a giraffe, but that’s what it wanted to be.”

  Nick had also set out a couple of plant carvings, along with a crouching cheetah.

  “I sense a theme here,” Ronan said. “And we’ll all be represented.”

  Mathias glanced at his own work. The two pieces stood on a thick pedestal in the back of the studio. He hadn’t yet decided whether he would show them or not. When he’d finished, he’d been sure, now he wasn’t. He figured he would wait until Thursday night and make his final decision then.

  The studio doors opened. In the second before the visitors appeared, Mathias felt something cold slip across the back of his neck. When Ceallach and Elaine walked in, he couldn’t help thinking of the late, great Obi Wan Kenobi. There has been a great disturbance in the Force. Only when compared with Ceallach Mitchell ready to assess his sons’ work, Darth Vader seemed kind and gentle.

  “I just had to see where you worked,” Elaine said cheerfully, hurrying over and hugging each of them. “So I can picture it later.”

  Mathias thought about pointing out that she’d been to the office to drop off Sophie and she hadn’t been all that interested in touring it back then. Then he told himself not to be an asshole. His mother would do what she always did in situations like this. Dance around her husband, trying to keep the peace without actually siding with any of her children. Funny how that had always pissed him off before, yet right now he couldn’t summon much beyond sympathy. She’d picked a difficult road when she’d married Ceallach. He wondered if she questioned whether or not it had been worth it.

  Ceallach walked directly to Ronan’s bird pieces and studied each of them. The room went quiet. It was more than the principal showing up in a classroom. This was a god come down from on high. Mere mortals who wanted to keep their lives knew to be quiet and await judgment. Only when it came to his father, Mathias had never been very good at following the rules.

  “Pretty rad, huh, Dad?” he said.

  Nick and Ronan both shot him a look, warning him to shut up. He ignored them.

  “The way the feathers seem to flutter. You can feel the breeze. Ronan has some talent.”

  Ceallach walked around the pieces. Elaine hovered by Ronan, lightly touching his arm, as if wanting to reassure herself he was real. Mathias wondered if this was the first time she’d seen him since she’d arrived for the wedding. Ronan, being a total jerk, took a step away from her.

  “There’s too much movement,” Ceallach said at last. “It’s distracting.”

  Nick snorted. “It’s glass, Dad. How can there be too much movement? Movement is life. That’s what we’re trying to re-create.”

  “Think what you want and be wrong,” their father said as he crossed to Nick’s carvings. “I see you’re still wasting your time with wood.”

  “Every single day.”

  Ceallach circled the giraffe. “I’ve seen worse.”

  Nick put his hand to his chest. “Was that a com
pliment? I might faint.”

  Elaine’s hands began to flutter, as if she wasn’t sure what to do. “It is nice, isn’t it? There’s going to be a special event on Thursday night. To raise money for Millie.” She frowned. “Or is it to get Millie a mate?”

  Mathias took pity on her. “It’s to buy Millie a herd, Mom. Male giraffes are solitary, but the females stay together in a loose herd. Millie’s lonely, so we’re raising money to buy three giraffes and have them transported to the animal preserve.” He thought about mentioning the plans to hire a vet, but figured no one was that interested in the details.

  “Ronan donated the large bird piece to be auctioned off,” he continued. “The rest of our work is going to be on display, as well.”

  Elaine’s gaze settled on Ronan. “That was very generous of you.”

  “It was Mathias’s idea.”

  “Someone had to do something,” Mathias said.

  “Yes, and it’s not as if you could have donated a set of dishes and raised more than a few dollars,” Ceallach said, still studying Nick’s work.

  Elaine’s gaze darted around the studio. Mathias wondered if she was looking for a distraction or an escape. She spotted his piece in the back and hurried toward it.

  “Ceallach, look. This is wonderful.” She paused. “Nick, you didn’t make this, did you? You don’t work with glass anymore and it’s not Ronan’s style.” She turned back to Mathias. “You made this! Ceallach, you have to see this. The way the woman is looking up and the giraffe is gazing down... It’s beautiful.”

  Mathias felt both proud and annoyed. He wasn’t ready for his father’s assessment—whatever Ceallach had to say, it would be biting. Telling himself he was the bigger man didn’t make him feel any more comfortable with the situation.

  But his father being his father didn’t even glance in that direction. He explored the rest of the studio, carefully avoiding the pedestal with Mathias’s statue.

  Nick stepped close to Mathias. “He’s jealous as hell. That’s why he can’t say anything.”

  Mathias nodded even though he wasn’t sure his brother was right. Maybe he’d been fooling himself into thinking he had something. Maybe he should stick to dishes and vases. Ordinary pieces people used in their everyday lives.