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Harper stepped back to examine her display. The sun was shining and spring was definitely in the air, yet Harper couldn’t seem to enjoy it. She was restless, jumpy, and truthfully, she wanted to walk out of the market and head straight back to Mason’s house.
She missed Mason...and Layla... Somehow the little tot had wormed her way into Harper’s heart all too quickly. Those large eyes and silky curls were a constant in the back of Harper’s mind.
“It’s only been two days,” she reminded herself. “Give it time.” That had been her mantra for the last forty eight hours. Give it time. She’d done a good deed in helping Mason, and now she needed to put her focus back where it belonged.
The fact that he hadn’t called or texted for help since she left only attested to his ability to grow and adapt, but would Harper be okay? With the way her heart was hurting, she wasn’t so sure.
Once she had taught him a few basics, Harper had forced herself to go home and focus on her career. But her heart wasn’t in it. The painting for the competition wasn’t going well, and for the first time that she could ever remember, Harper didn’t want to be a vendor, selling paintings and interacting with customers. She had always loved this aspect of her job, but not today.
Unfortunately, her heart was two hours south, locked up in a cabin with a man and a baby, and neither of them had any clue.
“It looks great.”
Harper gasped and spun. “Oh my gosh, Mason. What are you doing here?” Harper had been positive Mason wouldn’t attend any more live exhibitions that summer, which was part of why she’d been brave enough to come. It was taking all her willpower to stay away from him and she knew that seeing him in person would ruin her.
He adjusted Layla, who was grinning wildly, and looked around. “I, uh, I’m carving today.”
Harper frowned. “With Layla?” She reached out and took the girl without thinking. Those little arms were reaching for her and Harper was far from immune to the cuteness. “You’re going to try and work while watching her?” Harper snorted. Mason still had a lot to learn, apparently.
“Yeah, well...I figure it’ll all work out.” Mason squished his lips to the side where they nearly disappeared into his beard. “I know I don’t really have any right to ask, but we were wondering if you would help us.”
Harper automatically swayed Layla on her hip. “Oh?” She couldn’t explain how her heart skipped a beat and her ears perked up. Okay...that was a lie. Harper knew exactly why her body was responding that way, but she was trying not to think about it. Wanting things to be different just made it harder.
He reached out and caressed Layla’s cheek.
A corresponding sensation ran down Harper’s face and she held back a shiver.
“Both Layla and I have missed you,” he said softly.
“Has there been trouble with your schedule?” Please say no, please say no. Once again, Harper’s heart was yo-yo-ing. She felt as if she had no control of the organ. Mason had been a point of joy and pain and yet this tiny bit of hope had it speeding up like a runaway freight train with only one destination in mind, and her career completely forgotten in the rearview mirror.
His head shake was slower this time and he took another half step closer. “It’s not the schedule.”
Harper waited, that freight train nearly bursting through her chest.
“Layla keeps looking for you and wandering the house like she’s lost,” he explained. “And we’ve had a couple of close run-ins when I had no idea what she wanted.” He huffed. “She’s still not speaking and I don’t read minds very well.”
Harper blinked and stopped bouncing Layla. That runaway train had come to a screeching halt. “What?” she whispered hoarsely. This was not where her hormones had thought this conversation was going. Her cheeks were flushed and Harper felt too warm. She hoped Mason would attribute it to the glorious sunshine, because she certainly wasn’t going to explain her overactive imagination.
“I guess I just wanted to ask, if you’re not too busy, if you wouldn’t mind stopping by once in a while.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “You know, show me what I’m doing wrong and help me make sure I’m giving her everything she needs.” He raised his eyebrows, those golden eyes pleading. “What do you think?”
Harper had no words. Her mind went through every reason why she should turn him down. She was on a deadline. She needed to spend more time trying to advertise her business. Her social media accounts were lagging. She had a competition to enter. Her mother was threatening to take away her income. She was sending out paintings to new art houses, hoping to be included in their exhibits.
“Sure.”
Wait, what? That was not what she had planned to have come out of her mouth.
Layla began tugging on a piece of Harper’s hair and Harper leaned her head down, resting it on the child’s silky crown. She wanted to sigh in contentment. She had missed this. Something about having a tiny person rely on her made Harper feel...needed...and wanted. Two things that always seemed to be missing from her life. Her mother only wanted her to change careers. Her customers wanted the paintings. Even Mason only wanted her help. But Layla? Layla seemed to simply enjoy Harper. It was a heady sensation.
“Great!” Mason said with a wide smile. “Uh, I mean...great.” He nodded, looking slightly embarrassed. They stood staring at each other for the next few seconds.
Layla was still pulling on Harper’s hair, but Harper barely noticed. She was caught in a golden gaze that was drawing her in like a bee to honey. The air began to grow thick and heavy, like maple syrup, and Harper found her body leaning forward ever so slightly.
Mason blinked. “Yeah. Let me grab her from you.” He reached out and took Layla, lifting her off Harper’s hip.
“Oh, yeah...thanks.” Harper cleared her throat. Oh my gosh, can I get any more pathetic? She mentally face-palmed herself. If she got out of this conversation with any pride still intact, it would be an absolute miracle.
“I gotta run do my stuff, but...see you around?” Mason asked, looking slightly worried, like she had changed her mind in the last two minutes.
Harper nodded. “Yep. I’ll be around.”
“Great.” That heart-stoppingly wide smile was back. Really, if she was going to be stupid enough to spend time around him, the least Mason could do was have a crooked tooth or something. Anything that would take away from his attractiveness.
Harper gave a little wave as Mason walked away, Layla hanging on around his neck. Her heart lurched and Harper admitted, once again to herself, that her heart was no longer hers. She had thought it was back at Mason’s log cabin, but now she knew better. It was here at the festival, but it was walking around, handsome and cute as sin, doing whatever it pleased.
“Excuse me, miss,” a voice called.
Harper spun, grateful for the interruption. “Good morning! How can I help you today?”
“I was curious about that painting in the back,” the woman said, pointing with a gnarled finger. “The one with the pine trees?”
Harper smiled, but there was a distinct lack of joy behind the effort. This was her life. Pleasing patrons and talking about painting....all by herself. Somehow, the realization hurt more than it usually did. Her bright, career driven future had suddenly turned very dreary and lonely.
*****
MASON WALKED AWAY FROM Harper feeling excited, but also idiotic. He’d been honest when he said he wanted her to visit, but his reasons had nothing to do with more help. Not that he considered himself an expert on parenting now, but using the schedule and tips that Harper had given him a few days ago, he and Layla were doing alright.
But Harper was missing. She had only been around a few days, but with her gone, the house seemed quieter, if that was possible, and Mason was struggling to control his desire to have her close. The idea of being something more than friends just wasn’t going away any time soon, even though logically he knew it was a bad idea. He really should be using this time to continue getting to know Layla and becoming more comfortable with his new role as surrogate dad.
Just this morning, he’d realized how much he was going to have to adjust his time in the mornings when leaving the house. It had taken three times longer than usual to pack up Layla and her gear just to get to the car, instead of just being able to grab his coat and go. And then, as he began to buckle her up, she’d filled her diaper and he’d had to go back inside and start all over.
Now he was going to have to start planning in advance just for him to be able to work. He’d probably need a babysitter or nanny eventually, but Mason wasn’t even sure where to start with something like that. He worked from home most of the time. Could he simply watch Layla on his own? Or was he going to have to adjust to having a stranger plus the baby running around?
Mason felt himself pale and he swallowed hard before looking at his niece. Her wide eyes, so reminiscent of his sister, looked straight back. Without conscious thought, Mason reached up and tucked a piece of her thin hair behind her ear. He’d tried combing it this morning, but...
“We can do this. Right, Tiny?” he whispered.
Layla stuck two fingers in her mouth and looked around at all the hustling happening at the event.
Mason chuckled softly. “Yeah. We can do this.” He strode back to his vendor area and spent the next hour trying to keep Layla from touching sharp objects and talking to potential customers as they walked by. It should have been a disaster. He was constantly darting around, scooping her up before she killed herself or broke something and Mason soon realized exactly why Harper had been so amused that he thought Layla could entertain herself while he worked.
Luckily, most of the customers were understanding and even talked and laughed with Layla. She never spoke, but she smiled and giggled, charming everyone who said hello. When it was time for him to start up the chainsaw, however, Mason was definitely ready for a break. This parenting gig was no joke.
“Hey, sweetie,” Harper cooed, walking up like the angel she was and holding out her arms. “Let Daddy work his big chainsaw and you come help me, okay?”
Layla didn’t complain a bit at Harper’s invitation.
“Uh...” Mason felt his cheeks grow hot. “Don’t you have a booth to run?”
Harper nodded. “Yeah, but unless you’re asking for a trip to the ER, there’s no way you can run that saw and let her be loose.”
He frowned even while knowing Harper was right. His pride, however, demanded that he argue. “I brought stuff for her to play with.”
Harper grinned. “Do you really think she’ll stay in one spot? Has she done that at all this morning?”
He sighed, his shoulders lagging. “Are you sure this is going to be okay?” Mason asked under his breath. “She’s cute, but can be a terror for something so small.”
Harper smiled. “I’ll be fine. Just go and do what you need to do.”
Before he could talk himself out of it, Mason leaned down and kissed Harper’s head. “Thank you.” Spinning on his heel before he did something stupid like try to give her a real kiss, Mason marched to his work site. He needed to do something manly. Something that involved a lot of testosterone, like handling killer wood-carving machines. His life was being run by two females who had no idea just how wrapped around their little fingers he was. One of them couldn’t even speak yet, but she still demanded all his time and attention and Mason gave it all too willingly.
Jerking on the cord to start his chainsaw, he felt a thrum of satisfaction. His niece might be worming her way into his heart and Harper wasn’t too far behind, but geez...there was something so satisfactory about feeling the hum of that engine in his hands. Time to do some carving.
By the time he’d finished his demonstration, Mason was feeling much better. His burdens felt smaller and his energy greater. He was ready to grab lunch and take on being a dad again for the afternoon. He’d always heard men complain about their wives wanting “me time,” but after this...Mason got it. He’d only had Layla a little under two weeks and this hour for himself had done wonders.
Maybe hiring a nanny won’t be such a bad thing, he thought as he headed to the food area. He wanted to be the main adult in Layla’s life, but he still needed to put a roof over their head and food on the table. In time, hopefully he could figure out how to do both. Layla wasn’t going to end up like her mother, at least not if Mason could help it.
Deciding the least he could do was bring Harper lunch, he carried a couple of plates of food back to Harper’s booth and walked around back since she was with a customer. After setting everything down, he grabbed Layla so Harper could better concentrate and plopped her on his lap, handing her a french fry to gnaw on while he waited for Harper.
“Oh, my goodness.” Harper sighed as she came around back. “I’m starved.” She sat down and tucked her hair back. “Today has been crazy busy.”
“Is it too much with Layla? Do you need me to keep her?”
“Do you have another demonstration this afternoon?” Harper asked.
He nodded.
“I’ll be fine for that time, but we might want to consider bringing a sitter next time. She was darling and drew in customers, but it’s hard to answer questions when I’m trying to keep her from knocking everything over.”
Mason chuckled. “I had the same thought. It hadn’t even occurred to me to pass her off to someone else, but now I’m starting to understand.”
“That’s alright,” Harper assured him. “We’ll figure it out. Is this for me?” Harper pointed to the extra plate.
Mason nodded. “It’s my way of saying thanks.”
“Well, thank you,” she said with a grin, pulling the plate into her lap. “I’ll take free food anytime.”
Mason watched Harper from his peripheral vision, keeping most of his attention on the child in his lap. He had no idea if she realized how she had lumped them together as a team when it came to Layla. The words had flowed so easily that Mason was positive they were completely sincere, but also completely innocent.
He couldn’t deny how much he enjoyed them either. But how was he supposed to win Harper’s heart if he didn’t have enough time to date her? No. He shook his head. He couldn’t think like that. He couldn’t let himself hope...could he? Was there really a way to make this work? For him to have it all?
He was still debating with himself, but when Harper pulled Layla into her own lap and began to bounce the little girl until she laughed, Mason knew he would regret not giving it a try.