A Discovery of Hope (A Coming Home Again Novel Book 3) (6 page)

“What are you doing here and how’d you get in?”

“I live in the apartment out back. And I have a key to the gallery.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you knew JP?” I pop him one more time for good measure.

He shrugs his shoulders. “I didn’t think you would accept the internship if you thought I did it as a handout.”

A handout for me? Now that’s a new concept. “
You
put this internship together?”

He shrugs again, and that shrug tells me he did in fact orchestrate it. “Savannah handled all of the legal junk. All I had to do was get you to fill the forms out. I’m honored you included a photo of me.” He winks, and then quickly turns thoughtful. “JP seriously needs some help. He’s too stubborn to admit it.”

“So you thought it was a good idea to offer me as free help for the summer?”

“Look, Willow, JP is the best when it comes to photography. You won’t learn better from anyone else. You’ve seen his work.” Duke motions around the gallery at all of the breathtaking art adorning the walls. He’s absolutely right.

“Thank you for setting this up for me. And… Sorry for punching you.”

Duke smirks as he rubs his chest. “Someone taught you to fight for sure.”

“My dad,” I say proudly. “He took me to self-defense classes when I was eleven. He said no man was ever allowed to touch me without my permission. He wanted me to know how to properly relay that message to any guy who thought otherwise.”

“I should probably warn JP to keep his hands to himself.” He chuckles.

“Does he have trouble keeping his hands to himself?” I ask, concerned.

“Not after I warn him, he won’t.”

Well, this doesn’t make me feel any better. Maybe I should have taken my dad up on his offer for a self-defense refresher. Dad… Thinking about my dad is seriously making me homesick.

Duke picks up on this and steps closer. “You okay?”

“Sure,” I mumble while taking a closer look at him. “Are you wearing eyeliner?” He rubs his fingers under his eye and I see he is wearing black nail polish as well. “And nail polish?”

“I had a hot date last night?”

“And your hot date, she liked all this?” I wave my hand in front of him.

“Oh yeah,” he says with much satisfaction. “We went to a concert and didn’t get back in ‘til four this morning. I just woke up.”

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you to never sleep in your makeup?” I tease.

He rubs at his eyes again, making the smudges worse. “I can’t get this junk off.”

I head to the stairs and wave for him to follow. “Come on. I think I have something that’ll clean it off.” We walk into my room and I motion for him to sit in a dining chair. I head over to my toiletry bag and rummage around until I find a tube of makeup remover and a Q-tip.

I angle Duke’s head and rub the Q-tip underneath his eye. The makeup remover on it easily removes the dark smudges.

“You don’t even wear makeup,” Duke comments as he eyes the tube of makeup remover.

“I thought I tossed it with my makeup, but it somehow ended up with my stuff.” I’m guessing that is another interference by my angel. Once I’m done, I look over his handsome face. I touch my fingertip to the studs in his eyebrow and then the lip ring. “Why all of this?”

“I’m trying to discover myself. Does it bother you?” His dark eyebrows pinch together, with what I worry is hurt.

“Of course not. I’m just trying to understand it. Ten years down the road, what happens when the person you find yourself being doesn’t want this anymore?” I touch the tattoo on his neck and he captures my hand to keep it there.

“This tattoo is the reason why I’m not worrying about tomorrow. Tomorrow is not a promise.” He releases my hand.

I sit in the chair next to him as we both ingest the significance of his words. He is absolutely right. I do understand, more than he realizes, and I feel close to tears. We sit in silence for a while until Duke tries to make a poorly-timed joke.

“Well…” He begins, causing me to look up. He is crossing his legs and taking on a prissy demeanor full of dramatic uppity sass. “I just don’t get you weird peoples.” Duke
tsks
as he sticks his nose in the air. “Tattoos, piercings, and colored hair.” He’s mocking me and I’m not taking too kindly to it. “Some of us more privileged society folks already know who we are as soon as we are weaned from our silver spoons.”

The tears slip down my face quietly. “I wasn’t judging you, Duke.”

“But you did before we got to know each other.”

“You judged me just as well.” I swipe the tears away as anger washes over me. “You don’t know me. I was so lost this time last year that I didn’t even know I was in the world.” I stand up, getting more defensive. “Since then, I’ve thrown my makeup away, tossed my wardrobe and started over. I’ve thrown away college years just to change my major, and now I’ve moved out on my own for the first time.” The quiet tears have now become an outright bout of sobs. “I’m trying to find myself too and I’m scared!”

Duke falls to the floor and lunges for my legs. He wraps his arms around them and wails out theatrically. “
Please
, Willow!
Please
, don’t cry. I can’t take it!” He sobs dramatically, causing my tears to cease immediately.

I pop him upside his purple head, but this is why I love this strange dude so much. His wisdom slaps me in the face in one beat, and then the next, his wicked sense of humor comforts the sting.

We are both laughing as he stands up and gives me a big hug. The subject is quickly dropped and we move on. I like how Duke doesn’t dwell too long on something either. Maybe that goes back to the unsureness of tomorrow.

He begins guiding me back down the stairs. “Come on. Let me show you where my place is so you’ll know where to find me when JP gets to be too much of a pain.”

“So the two of you are family?”

“Yep,” he answers before leading me out the back door.

I don’t ask for any further explanation. There’s a story for sure, but I won’t pull it out of him. I know he has a younger brother in Bay Creek, but he doesn’t like to talk about personal matters. And I can’t blame him, since I don’t either. My parents are divorcing because my mom ran off with the plumber—enough said. I’m glad he doesn’t want to do the whole family sharing.

This is the first time I’ve seen the back lot of the gallery. It’s a pretty spacious layout with four parking spaces and a basketball goal. “Can I start parking back here? Parking out front is a pain.”

“I don’t see why not.” Duke opens the door to what I’m guessing used to be a garage that has been turned into a studio apartment. He flips on the lights and I’m surprised at the neat orderly space, but what blows me completely away are the concrete walls. They are completely covered in vivid murals. There are several different scenes weaving into one another—a beach, mountains, a night sky, a forest, some random swirls and patterns…

“Oh wow…” I walk around the room in an art trance as I try to take it all in. I’m overwhelmed. This is complete sensory overload. I’ve made it halfway around the space, when I look back at Duke. He’s still standing by the door watching me. “Your gift is just so incredible, Duke.”

He shrugs his shoulders shyly as though he’s not sure of himself. “So you like it?”

“No.
Like
doesn’t do any justice to how in love I am with these murals.” I smile over at him and he returns it with relief. How can this guy not see how amazing this is?

Duke plops down on his black leather couch and I eventually go over and join him. I will definitely be back another day with my camera. “What’s your summer plans?” I ask, hoping he will be around.

“I start two classes on Monday. That’s about it.”

“My class is Tuesday and Thursday,” I comment. This disappoints me.

“You’ll see me enough around here.” He bumps into my shoulder with his.

“I’m really glad. Thanks again for setting the internship up.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I just don’t think JP likes me too much,” I admit as I study the wall in front of us that resembles a mysterious forest.

“He’ll warm up to you. Just give him some time.” Duke tries to reassure me, but I’m not so sure…

Chapter Ten

The weekend wasn’t so bad. I spent most of Sunday with my dad. First we attended church and then we went out to eat at the Beach Club for a late brunch. Before we parted ways, he briefly mentioned the divorce proceedings were being handled. I could see the hurt in his eyes, but he played it off as best he could. I made it back to the gallery well before dark and immediately headed over to Duke’s apartment. We spent a chunk of the night watching movies and really bad reality TV.

I’m not sure when JP got in, but he is here this morning. He has been busy in his office for the last hour now and still hasn’t acknowledged my presence. I know he knows I’m here. I keep walking past his door, asking if he needs anything, but he seems distracted.

I’ve reached my patience limit and am now sitting in his office in the spare chair in front of his desk. The phone hasn’t stopped ringing since he walked in here and his cellphone keeps dinging with new messages over and over. I’m thinking he is in dire need of a secretary and not a student intern. He keeps the doors to the gallery closed on Mondays, but that doesn’t mean he’s not at work.

I clear my throat and ask, “You decided what to do with me yet?” He looks up abruptly and peers at me from underneath the ball cap pushed low over his eyes. I think my question came out sharper than I had meant so I smile weakly, trying to soften it.

JP motions over his piled-up desk. “I got a lot of work to catch up on this morning. I don’t have time to figure out what to do with
you
.”

“Well, I’m sick of staring at
you
, so how about giving me something to do that will be more productive than that.” I cross my arms in agitation.

He lets out a long sigh of frustration and eyes a stack of storage containers. He considers them for a few more beats as he rubs the side of his neck. “Those pictures need to be filed. I’ve been too busy taking them to do any of this stuff. File them or not. I really don’t care.” He turns back to his gigantic computer screen and goes back to editing a photo of an erupting volcano.

I get up and go over to inspect the top container and sure enough, it is loaded with photos. Overwhelmed, I pull open the filing cabinet drawer and find it empty except for a box of new folders. “Just how am I supposed to make enough sense of this mess to even begin to file it?”

I jump as JP slams his fists on the desk and storms over to the boxes. “I should really kick Duke’s a…ace for this,” he mutters.

“Ace?” I ask with raised eyebrows.

He starts unstacking the boxes. “Ace is my substitute word for when I almost slip and say something I shouldn’t. I’m trying to break a cussing habit. Savannah demands I do or I can’t hang out with my nephews. It’s a dumb habit that needs to be broken anyway.”

I try not to laugh, but end up snickering. That sister of his is definitely the momma hen.

“It ain’t funny.” He glares over at me. He points at the three boxes now lined up against the wall. “They are in order by year. The photos are labeled on the back. They need to be filed by month, year, and captioned.” This is all the instructions I get before he stomps back to his desk.

I grab a pen and the file folders and have a seat on the floor in front of the first box. I have no doubt this task will take all summer. Ugh. Flipping open the lid, I change my sour attitude quickly. I get to sort through gorgeous unique photographs taken by a photo genius all summer—even if the genius is a jerk.

Hours pass and I’ve not even made a dent in the first container, but I don’t mind. In these hours, I have gone all over the world and experienced it through his talented eyes. While I’ve been in my photo world, JP has been slammed with phone calls, emails and constant incoming text messages. He has just wrapped a phone conference with a magazine editor from Hawaii. The magazine is featuring his photo journey of the islands. It sounds pretty neat. He took the trip in the spring and is now editing and finalizing matters with the magazine.

We stop long enough to scarf down sandwiches before going back to work. JP just finished up the volcano pictures and is now emailing them to the editor of the magazine. I didn’t realize until now those were also taken in Hawaii.

I’m almost out of folders by the time this day wraps up and I’ve not even put a dent in the first container. I’m making a list of more supplies needed for the filing when JP’s phone goes off for the millionth time of the day.

“Yo,” he answers as he clicks open his emails and those suckers are in the hundreds. I’m on the floor behind him, so I sort of get a glimpse at everything he does all day. No, I’m not being nosy. I’m just being observant.

I focus back on my list and can’t help but listen to the conversation. “I would totally be into playing with her. I’ve got to finish up a few emails first.” Pause. “I know… Yeah, she’s way too sweet to pass up.” Pause. “Okay, bro, set it up and I’ll be there. I desperately need to get lost in that sweet thang for a while.” Pause. “You have no idea the shi…mess Savannah has pulled this time.” He eases his gaze over to me, but I quickly look away and try to pretend I’m not listening. “Cool. Set it up. I’ll be there.”

As he ends the call, I mutter under my breath, “Pig.”

“You say something?” JP asks as he gets busy with the emails.

“Nope.” I hand him the list. “I need this stuff. If you care to know, I have classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I should be back each day by early afternoon.” I slide my flip flops on and head towards the door.

“You have any idea how much I’m supposed to pay you?”

I turn back around and eye him. This guy has no clue. “You didn’t take the time to clear any of this up with your sister over the weekend? Or at least read the paperwork for the internship I gave you?”

“I didn’t have time. Look, sweetheart, you’re not the only one in this universe.”

“No. I’m well aware of that. However, I’m stuck being a part of yours for the summer, so it would make perfect sense for you to take the time to clear this mess up.”

He waves his hands around the office. “We don’t have to do this. Just pack up and go back to whatever sorority house you wandered off from.”

Oh… Now I’m ticked completely off. “This isn’t about playing summer camp with you. This is me trying to earn college credit through an internship. You pay me nothing. You get to have free help. If you would stop being a jerk long enough, you might see how helpful I could be to you. Don’t stare this gift horse in the mouth!” With this, I storm out of his office and up the stairs.

I have some daylight left, so I swap my jeans for a pair of shorts and pull my camera out of its case.

“You need to calm down or you will bring on a nasty headache.” I look over to find Hope sitting on my bed with her legs crossed. She looks like she is practicing a yoga position.

“This isn’t going to work.” I rummage around my bag for a pair of sunglasses.

“Yes, it will.”

“No, it won’t. This guy doesn’t have time to deal with me, nor does he want me here.”

“Then show him what you’re capable of. You’ve already been useful with sorting all of those photos. He will be grateful to see all of that taken care of. Just keep at it.”

I scoop up my camera and am heading for the door when Hope speaks again. “And Willow. Please remember not to be so quick to judge.”

This is like a slap in the face. What’s with everyone always wanting to point that out to me? Do I judge? I head downstairs but have to quickly backtrack due to forgetting my keys—I’m always forgetting things. It’s a pain-in-the-butt side effect. Casanova is heading out too and I don’t want to chance being locked out all night. Duke has been MIA all day, so who knows where he’s at.

I snatch the keys off the table without acknowledging the angel still perched on my bed and head back out. I come close to plowing into JP as I reach the small hallway. He has changed into board shorts and is carrying a well-used surfboard. “I thought you had a date?” I blurt out, like it’s any of my business. Short-term memory loss and no stop sign with my thoughts. I feel like a jumbled mess!

He smirks at this. “I do. A date with tropical storm Becca. She’s sweeping in some gnarly waves along the coast, and I can’t miss out.”

Okay. So… I do judge. Sue me. “I didn’t realize there was a storm.” I rub the scar absently, but catch myself and drop my hand.

“They’re predicting it to do much of nothing. Just dump some rain and fizzle out.” He looks at the camera around my neck. “You heading out?”

“Yeah. I thought I would do a picture-walk around the neighborhood.” I eye the board. “So you’re a surfer?”

JP shrugs his shoulders. “I can hold my own.” He guides me back downstairs along with him. “Hold up a sec.” He sits his surfboard down and heads for the back room. Moments later, he reappears, carrying two photo-canvases. He hands one of them over.

“Cool picture. This is you?” I motion to the guy riding a massive wave.

“Yep. My buddy took it while we were in Fiji for a surf competition. Those were some sweet rides.” He hands me the other photo. “I took this one earlier in the day of my buddy. Your homework is to compare and contrast.”

The differences are very clear. The picture of JP is nice, but the other one is so focused and crisp. The sprays of water feel as though they are leaping off the photo. “That’s easy enough,” I comment as I hold them side by side.

JP seems pleased with this. “Cool. See you in the morning.”

“
Afternoon
. I have class, remember?”

“Yeah. Okay.” He waves over his shoulder dismissively as he grabs up his board and heads out the back door.

I set the photos down by the stairs for later and head out the front. I need some fresh air and it feels really nice out. I guess the storm moving in has cut the humidity down a notch or two. I take a deep breath and head down the sidewalk.

~~~~~

The tropical storm barreled through late last night, howling and dumping a forceful allotment of rain. I heard JP get in a little before midnight. I hate to think the guy actually surfed in the dark while in the midst of that storm.
To be sure not…

I beat him downstairs this morning and place the pictures along with my notes on his desk before heading to class. I did my homework while the storm kept me company last night, making a detailed list of comparisons and contrasts between the pictures. It’s obvious JP’s buddy is not a professional photographer, but I still caught myself staring at the image of JP one much longer than the other.

JP looked enigmatic on his board with the teal ocean whirling around him, and he absolutely owned that wave. I think the guy was being modest yesterday. He can definitely hold more than just his own.

I walk into my Photo Appreciation class and find only a dozen or so students in attendance. I guess summer course attendance is smaller. I sit near the middle and open my notebook. Hope appears. Of course. “What are you up to now?” I mutter under my breath.

“Oh nothing,” she says too excitedly. We watch on as a young guy is escorted in by another guy. It’s clear the younger one has special needs. He is rambling off about there being two thousand seven hundred seconds of the class and is giggling every so often. He has a small frame and has a whimsical smile on his face as though he is permanently daydreaming about something wonderful. His brown hair is having a severe case of bedhead and his thin framed glasses are sitting slightly askew on his small nose.

I look away as a gray-haired woman in a long sundress stands before the class. “Welcome to Photo Appreciation. I’m Professor Brooks. This is a five week course and we will be covering a lot of ground. I have all of this outlined in the class syllabus.” She holds up a stack of papers before handing them out along with an attendance sign-in sheet. “We will be studying various images and critiquing them.” She continues on and pulls up several slides on a projector screen. The rest of the class flies by with photo after photo. The young boy sits just off to my right and I can’t help but notice he has slept the entire class away. I notice Hope watching him too and I have a bad feeling about that.