Page 17 of Stuck with You
7
Alex’s studio is pretty cool. It sits at the back of his cottage, in a separate building, and it’s huge. Planks of old worn wood are piled against the walls. Scary looking tools and contraptions are everywhere. Heavy steel legs of all shapes and sizes are stacked in a corner. A gigantic fan sits in the other corner, oscillating. The lights on the ceiling are bright and harsh. A radio is playing, next to a small coffee station.
“Great place,” Jacob offers.
What catches my eye are the finished pieces. There’s a striking armoire — two stain-glass windows at the top, elaborate antique knobs, and a beautiful dark wood. The craftsmanship is flawless and detailed. I open the doors gently, surprised by the amount of space. Finally, I check the price tag, and I almost have a heart attack — it’s six thousand dollars. Thank you, next.
Alex shoots me a smile. “That’s my most expensive piece,” he tells me. “It’s walnut. A lot of work went into that one. I almost don’t want to sell it.”
There’s also a beautiful table to the right, a bench, a sideboard, a collection of coat hooks are hanging on the wall. The texture of patterns in the wood is beautiful and instantly makes me feel at one with nature. I want it all. Of course, I only need one piece, so I focus my attention on the table. I slide my palm against the wood. “This is gorgeous.”
Alex’s bright blue eyes fix me. “Thank you. You were looking for a dining table, right? I custom build them to client’s’ specifications,” he explains in full salesman mode. My heart sinks — maybe he’s just trying to sell, after all.
“I offer lots of choices for the bases,” he goes on as he rummages through an old rusty steel desk. “Here, I have a brochure. You can pick the base which suits you best.”
He hands me the small catalog, and I flip quickly through. “Cool.”
Jacob is busy studying the armoire I coveted. He seems to like it too.
“Isn’t it fabulous?” I say. “I love it.”
“One of a kind,” Alex chimes in.
I frown like a spoiled kid. “Too bad it’s not in my budget.”
“Yeah, a little pricey,” Jacob agrees and moves on.
“I really do like the table. I’ve never quite seen anything like it,” I say to Alex. “Do you think this would look good in the condo?” I ask Jacob.
He smiles. “You still haven’t bought yourself a table?”
I frown. “Been kind of busy,” I say, but really, I haven’t. I’ve just been avoiding the whole thing. To buy a new table is admitting to myself that Jacob and I are really over, that we are never moving back in together. For some reason, I’m not quite ready to face that yet.
“It’s gorgeous,” he says. “It’d look great. You just need to make sure you get the right size.”
I check the price tag. It’s twelve hundred dollars… doable. “The price varies according to size and base?” I ask.
Alex smirks. “Exactly. And also which wood I use,” he says. “You catch on quick, Corrie.”
“I do.”
Alex hands me a business card and urges me to contact him once I’ve taken the measurements. I sigh as I take the card — yes, he truly is only trying to make a buck. I don’t blame him — we all need to make a living. He’s probably been salivating, aching to charm me, drag me to his studio, and sell me something as soon as he spotted my Gucci boat shoes and my fancy dogs yesterday.
Well, might as well make the boy happy.
It’s a few hours later,and I’m still irked at Jacob for trying to cockblock me, for being so possessive and jealous. He had no business being at Alex’s studio. I happen to know for a fact that he’s not in the market for new furniture.
I’ve been reading on the porch, ignoring him all day, and he’s been doing God knows what.
He has an impish smile when he peers his head in. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Just reading.”
“I’m making spaghetti for dinner,” he tells me. “I know how you love it.”
I’m determined to keep the line between us drawn. I’m not about to blur it with an intimate dinner, no matter how much I do love his spaghetti. “No, I’m fine. Thank you.”
A small chuckle escapes him. “What’d you bring? Lean Cuisine frozen meals?”
