As the string and paper fell to the floor, he held out the painting. Unable to appreciate the picture properly, he brought it to a wall where several still lifes hung. He took one down and replaced it with Didi’s work, then stepped back. His heart squeezed like a fist had closed around it.
It was their first kiss. Fourth of July fireworks exploded above them, glittering gold in the night sky of dark indigo and blue. The lake glimmered, reflecting the light show above. It seemed as if the water actually moved. They stood, a little off to the side, in each other’s arms. Didi’s red, blue, and white dress was a pop of color in the twilight surrounding them. Her face was tilted up toward his, and his hand was on her cheek. He could almost recall the softness of her lips and the sweetness of her taste just by looking at her creation. The brushstrokes were so fine the painting came alive. She had captured the moment perfectly. It showed so much love and emotion.
His eyes welled as he crossed his arms and rubbed his lips. She had given him this. For his birthday. The magical moment they had shared when he finally realized he had let love in. After seeing this, he couldn’t just disappear from her life. Not now.
Caleb got into his Mustang and drove straight to her house. This situation between them would get settled once and for all. He had a few things he wanted to say to the girl he loved.
Parking at the curb, he didn’t bother locking the car when he stepped out. He strode to her front door and rang the bell. No one answered. Surely her mother wouldn’t have left her alone already? He had checked with the hospital. They had gone home. But maybe she’d needed to work. Maybe she’d had no other choice than to leave Didi alone. His heart ached for them. All their money must have been going to filling prescriptions.
No wonder Didi didn’t bother thinking about college. And, for the first time, he thanked his father for paying her medical bills after the accident. He wasn’t sure if they had insurance. Probably not, considering her mother juggled multiple jobs.
He tried the knob. When it didn’t budge, he felt around the sill for the spare key. Didi had forgotten her keys once and mentioned something about a Hide-a-Key. At the right-side corner, his fingers skimmed over a rectangular box. Triumph washed over him. When he slid the container open . . .
No key.
Cursing, he returned the Hide-a-Key to the sill and backed away from the front door.
There must be another way in, he thought as he skirted around the house.
The back door to the kitchen was locked too when he tried it. Why had Didi and her mother chosen that day to be responsible by locking all their doors? He shook his head and continued his search for access into the house. This was his first attempt at breaking and entering, and as much as possible he wanted to minimize the breaking part of the entering. The Alexanders might not appreciate the extra expense of repairing a window.
When he reached the glass wall of Didi’s painting room, he paused. He remembered the sliding door. Why hadn’t he thought of it earlier?
He approached, hunching like some sort of burglar. He sent up a silent prayer that their neighbors weren’t watching. He certainly looked like the suspicious sort at the moment.
At the door, he curled his fingers into the slot and pushed. The glass slid open effortlessly. The soft whoosh seemed so loud. He half expected an alarm to go off. His eyes flicked to the heavens. Thank you, Didi, for not locking this thing.
Easing the door open just a little more, he slipped inside, then slid it shut carefully behind him. When he turned around, his eyes widened. He swallowed, unable to believe what he was looking at.
Every available space in her painting room was filled with painted canvases.
There must have been at least fifty leaning against the walls, stacked five deep. The easel had a canvas too. And the floors. Everywhere. Canvases upon canvases. From the looks of things, she must have burned through the two grand’s worth of art supplies they had bought with his bet winnings. It blew his mind. Didi mustn’t have been sleeping at all to amass this much art in such a short time.
What kept him from moving farther into the house were the subjects of the paintings. His eyes darted from each one in quick succession, trying to make sense of it all. Some he even had to move aside just so he could see the treasures hidden underneath. The more he saw, the more his feelings for her solidified in his chest.
There were a couple portraits of him. One while he rested on his elbows on the dock as she walked away. There was one from the garden party while he leaned against a tree with her in his arms. The yellow dress stood out among all the green. Another one was of the Summer Swing. The moment when they were on the dance floor. Didi’s first slow dance. Then there was one of their picnic blanket laden with an abundance of food. Several from the Fourth of July party. There were even paintings of his friends. The one of Nathan and Preston smiling at each other was particularly enthralling. She’d even captured Natasha sitting in front of her vanity leaning forward while she carefully applied eye makeup. So much talent. So much creativity in such a short span.
“What are you doing here?”