Cold Hearted Bachelor by Logan Chance
Twenty-One
Paisley
I’ve never been happierin all my life.
The house is coming together.
And more importantly, I have Vaughn James by my side.
It’s been a happy kind of week. Minus the stalker, who for the most part has remained quiet for the past few days.
True to their words, my brother and Vaughn have been keeping a close watch on me. I can’t go anywhere alone. Even my father wants in on the action.
I had another meeting with Colby and had to have my father sit close by. Talk about not conveying a professional image.
Hello, thanks for the meeting. Can my dad tag along?
See what I mean?
It all worked out in the end though, and now I’m once again getting everything set up with the tripod and camera while Vaughn gets to work on the project for today. Painting.
“I love this space,” I tell him. “But, I love transforming it into my own so much more.”
“You’re so good at it.” Vaughn wraps his arms around me and kisses the top of my head. And this moment feels right all of a sudden, like this is every day life between us now.
“Thank you.”
“I brought you this.” He holds up a white jumpsuit for me with different colored paint splatters all over it. “For when we’re ready to paint.”
I smile. “Well, I thought it would be more of me videotaping you doing all the work.”
He shakes his head. “Nope, not on my watch. Now get over here and put this on.”
The camera is rolling as I throw the jumpsuit over my clothes. Vaughn wears old jeans and a white t-shirt, and I try not to stare too long at him as he sets up the dining room with a drop cloth and ladder.
“Now,” he stares at the camera, “when you start painting you’ll want to dip your roller, get it all wet, and roll it up and down the wall. Don’t worry about getting too close to the floor or ceiling. Those areas will be painted with a brush.”
“Yes, and remember to tape off the baseboards.” I point to the blue tape lining the room.
“Ready?” he asks me.
“You bet.”
He hands me the roller and I demonstrate slowly for the camera how to dip the roller into the paint. This isn’t my first time painting a room.
I’ve done many little projects on old apartments, friends’ apartments, and my parents’ place. Heck, anywhere and everywhere someone would let me do home renovations, I was there.
I love it.
Remember, I grew up with a father who worked in construction all his life. Sometimes I think I could build a whole house by myself too, like Vaughn.
Maybe not build, but design. I’ve been designing homes my whole life. It’s a passion.
I bring the roller to the wall, and do as Vaughn describes into the camera.
“See how she’s steady. Not trying to rush through the work.”
I smile at him. “Yes, no rushing.”
“Believe me, this girl knows how to take her time.”
My cheeks are on fire, and I glance down and accidentally drop my roller brush. It bounces across the drop cloth, splattering beige paint all over the two of us.
Vaughn laughs. “I can’t believe you just did that.”
“Me?” I laugh as I watch paint drip from the top of his hair onto his forehead. “I’m sorry.” But, I can’t stop laughing.
He races toward me, smearing the paint from his forehead with his hand. “This is for you.” He wipes the paint across my cheeks.
“Vaughn,” I scream as the cold paint touches my skin. “I can’t believe you.”
I won’t let this go any further because we are still rolling, and I want to keep the videos professional for my social media.
Vaughn steps closer, reaching his hand out. “I didn’t mean to get so much on your face.”
I just stare at him, hoping more than anything he kisses me, but know he won’t while the camera is on. “It’s fine.” I turn away from him, stepping closer to the counter. “Ok, let’s get for real here.” I pick up the roller, and continue painting the rest of the wall I was working on.
Vaughn follows suit, slipping back into professional mode, talking to the camera with ease, even though he has paint dripping from his hair onto his white shirt. It’s quite possibly the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.
It’s almost like he was made for this. He explains every step he’s making, like speaking to a novice, and it makes me happy with how easily this is coming to him.
I’m just his worker bee. I’m the background, not really out for the limelight, making him look good with my ability to follow directions.
As soon as we’re ready to take a break, I smile at the camera and thank them for viewing before shutting off the record button. “Wait,” I say, checking my phone. Oops. “This taping went to my live feed.”
“Wait what?” Vaughn wipes the paint off his face with a towel. “What are you talking about?”
I check the views. “Umm, this whole time we were streaming live.”
He steps up behind me. “Is that ok?”
I shrug. “I guess so. Not too many people viewed it.” It’s not like I have a rabid fanbase, or a huge following. “Yeah, it’s fine. It was just for fun.”
Vaughn paces the kitchen. “I don’t like this idea. Your stalker could have watched it, and now it’s just one more way for him to know where you are.”
My phone chimes with an incoming text. “Hey, just saw the video and I have a friend who wants to meet with you for your services.” It’s from Colby.
Services?
I show Vaughn my phone and I swear he audibly growls. “What does he mean? What kind of services?”
I shrug and shoot off a text back. “What do you mean?”
He sends me three rapid-fire texts back. “People love the video.”
“They want you to do their homes.”
“People want your interior design skills.”
I laugh as I read each one. “Hire us,” I whisper.
“We’re not painting people’s homes.”
I face Vaughn, setting my phone on the counter. “I think they want interior design ideas.”
“I don’t trust him.”
I smile. “I think you’re jealous.”
“It’s not jealousy, Pea. The guy just wants something he’ll never get from you.”
My eyes meet his. “And what’s that?”
“Sex, Paisley. The asshole wants to have sex with you.” He steps closer, wrapping his arms around my waist. “And he’s never gonna get it.” And then, he kisses me.
