“Oh, crap. What’d you do that for?” April rushed over and stared at him, a look of disbelief on her face. Anyone would think he’d done it on purpose.
The paint oozed over the top his shoe and trickled down inside, soaking his sock. His mouth twitched, the pressure he put on his lips the only thing stopping the swear words erupting from his mouth.
“Don’t you ever look where you’re going?”
She had the nerve to blame him? She was the one who invaded his space and caused this upset, not him. April wasn’t about to let go. “That paint cost me a bomb. It’s going to be full of dirt now.” She looked pained. “I’ll have to tip out the whole tray and start again.”
He felt like yelling at her, “I wish you wouldn’t.” Sadly, it wasn’t his place to do so.
“Would you mind getting me a rag so I can lift my foot out of here? I have patients to see to.”
*
Talk about cranky. It wasn’t her fault he didn’t look where he was going. She had a job to do here and he waltzed in and made it her problem! She dragged one of the drop sheets over, tucked it around the paint tray and pulled the rag from the back of her denim paint shorts, holding it out to him.
He snatched it from her with a scowl on his face. “Thank you.”
“Welcome. Is there anything I can do to help you, David?” Like pour the rest of the tin over your head maybe?
“Apart from leaving your painting until the weekend, so we don’t get in each other’s way, no.” He pried off his shoe. It was totally ruined and so was his sock. The trousers he wore now sported a bright band around the cuff. She doubted he would appreciate her commenting on how much nicer they looked either.
Shame washed over her in a swift wave of heat as his words sunk in. Embarrassing heat. “Oh. I hadn’t thought of that.” She’d been so focused on fulfilling her part of the lease agreement, it hadn’t occurred to her to do it when his business was closed and avoid upsetting anyone. “I’m so sorry. How silly of me. I thought I’d be able to paint around you but maybe not.” April tried hard to work on honing back her impulsiveness but, more often than not, she forgot. It was one of her failings and probably the one she needed to focus on the most.
“If you could see your way clear to do so, I’d appreciate it.” He slipped off the sock using the rag to cover his fingers and avoid the paint. “A good pair of trousers, ruined along with my favorite shoes.”
She pulled a face. “You could always…” No, don’t go there. “Forget that. I’m sorry.”
He rolled the hem up so the paint didn’t drip and ruin anything else. “I’m already running behind. My first patient is probably sitting waiting for me.”
The door opened and Helen came in, stopped when she saw them and her mouth dropped open. “What the heck?”
“Don’t say it. Just, don’t.” David walked back into the bathroom and slammed the door.
“He stood in my paint tray. I don’t think he’s very happy about it either.” April picked up the offending tray and headed over to the connecting door. “This has to go out and I’ll start again.” She went into her side of the shop and over to the array of paints she’d lined up. There had to be an empty can amongst this lot to pour the contaminated paint into so she could dispose of it.
What a way to meet the neighbor. That was twice now they’d come to blows. The coffee and now the paint incident. He was going to think she was such a scatterbrain. And for a moment she’d thought he was cute. Maybe without the scowl on his face he still was, but if he couldn’t chill out a bit more, things wouldn’t go well between them and that would be a shame. A five-year lease meant they would be seeing a whole lot of each other.
As she cleaned up the mess, April kept an eye out for the doctor but she never saw him. He was probably hard at work already soothing the ills of the Cherry Lake locals. For the rest of the day, she concentrated on getting her shop ready, choosing colors and deciding on what part of the shop would advertise what part of the business.
The thing that kept popping into her brain though was the expanse of white paint she’d noticed in his office. Surely he’d appreciate her talents? Nobody liked cold sterile white. Studies had shown that soothing colors, bright colors, rainbows even, made people feel better. Did he know that?
Chapter Five
The eye popping bright pink at the top of the wall faded through a myriad of shades to white by the time it reached the floor. Ombre was April’s newest paint craze and she loved it.
“Wow. That’s amazing. I love what you’ve done with that.”
April turned to look at her sister walking in the door. “I’m kind of in love with the way it looks when it’s finished. It would have to be the most subdued rainbow I’ve ever done.”
“I love it. A bit tamer than what I’m used to seeing from you, too.”
“I figured that I should probably tone down the wild colors until the locals get to know me. Besides, if I have milder colors, I can then add pops of brightness with my for-sale items.” She wiped her hands on a rag. “What brings you here this late in the day? Landlord checking on a new client?”
Mari waved her hand in dismissal. “Nah. Got an invite to a cookout for you. Thought it would be easier to deliver it in person and that way I could sneak a peek at what you’ve done so far.”
“A
