Made to Love (3 page)

Lex and Aspen nodded and began gathering her sculptures and carrying them across the alley to the garage. Aspen was careful not to pick any of the larger pieces or tug too hard to get the smaller ones out of the ground.

Mason slipped on her work gloves and bent over to pull out the base to one of her larger sculptures, a large green geode that was suspended in a circle by thin pieces of metal, giving it the look of a floating orb. She didn’t hear Mrs. Cabot’s door open or notice the footsteps on the porch.

“Can I help you?”

The words startled Mason and she fell backwards, landing on her butt in the soft grass. “Son-of-a-bitch. You scared the bejesus out of me.”

“I’m sorry.”

Mason pushed herself up and met the woman’s questioning eyes. “I’m Mason. Who are you?”

“Marly Cabot. And I’ll ask again…can I help you?”

“Sure.” Mason shot her a smile. “Grab those pieces over there and follow me.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Marly pushed her hand through her
shoulder-length brown hair and her brown eyes flashed impatiently. “What are you doing in my yard?”

Mason bristled at her curtness. “Your yard? This is Anne’s house. Who are you?”

“I’m Anne’s daughter.” Marly came down the steps and stopped in front of Mason. “May I ask why you are taking my mother’s things?”

Marly was now close enough that Mason could see her eyes were red-rimmed and knew she had been crying. “I’m sorry about your mother. She and I were quite close.”

“Thank you.” Marly’s tight-lipped stare remained despite Mason’s attempt at being nice. “Now, about the sculptures?”

Mason stared at the smaller woman, dumbfounded. She wasn’t sure what the woman had against
her, or if she was just that surly to everyone who came along. Either way, it hit a raw nerve. “Listen, there’s no need to get uptight. Your mom and I had an arrangement. She let me display my pieces in her yard. Now that she’s…” Mason fumbled for the words and pushed back the tears that threatened to fall. “…I can’t keep them here anymore.”

“You’re the artist?” Marly’s face softened slightly, but she kept her distance. “My mother mentioned you. Can you just leave it for now? I’ll let you deal with it later. Right now, I’d appreciate it if you just left me alone.”

“Uh…yeah, sure.” Mason hesitated, unsure if she should push further on the matter. It was her art after all, not Anne’s, and certainly not Marly’s. “I’ll come back later.”

“I’ll let you know when you may come over.” Marly turned to leave then spun back around and faced Mason, pinning her with a hard gaze. “You live in the house with the junk in the backyard, right?”

Mason nodded, unable to speak. Not one to react so drastically, Marly had pushed all her buttons and then some and Mason was ticked off. First, Marly all but accused her of stealing then forbade her from taking
her own
art, and now she called Mason’s yard a junkyard. “It’s not junk. It’s scrap metal…for my art…it’s my job. Oh, the hell with it.” Mason glowered at Marly’s retreating form and pounded her fist into her palm angrily. “Damn woman!”

“Hey, I’m right here. I can hear you.” Lex shot Mason a perplexed smile. “That aside, who are you talking to?”

“Anne’s daughter, Marly something or other. She just kicked me out of her yard. Said
she
would let me know when I could pick up my stuff.”

“Mrs. Cabot had a daughter?” Lex cocked an eyebrow and let out a low whistle. “She ever mention her?”

“Only briefly. She hadn’t seen her in years.” Mason removed her gloves and hit them against her thigh. “I probably wouldn’t say much about her either. She’s not exactly the nicest person I’ve ever met.”

“Oh.” Lex’s eyes went back and forth between Mason and Mrs. Cabot’s house. “Maybe she isn’t here for too long.”

“I don’t know.” Mason shrugged and started walking back to her house. “It’s her house now, apparently. God help us if she stays. She already referred to my house as a junkyard. She will probably call Burlington’s finest next and report me.”

Lex fell in step beside Mason and squeezed her arm reassuringly. “We’ll bail you out
. This is, as long as I can pull Aspen away from the cream cheese.”

Lex’s attempt at humor worked enough to elicit a quick laugh from Mason. “Speaking of, is she okay?”

“Yeah, she looked a little tired, so I made her sit down and rest.” They rounded the front of the house seconds later and found Aspen on the porch swing, swaying gently, her eyes closed.

Lex and Mason tiptoed up the steps, trying not to wake her.

“I’m not asleep.” Aspen looked at Lex and Mason and crinkled her brow. “That was fast. You get everything moved?”

“No.” Mason sunk down on the step and leaned against the porch railing. “Anne’s daughter kicked us off the property.”

“Daughter?” Aspen leaned forward and rested her hands on her knees. “I didn’t know she had a daughter.”

“I knew she had a daughter. I just didn’t know much about her. But Anne was quiet that way sometimes. Anyway, Marly is holding my stuff hostage until she’s ready for me to get it.”

Aspen paused at the way Mason’s voice slid over Marly’s name. She said it with slow deliberateness as if memorizing her face as she said it. Had the comment not been made with a look of disgust, Aspen might have believed that Mason was taken with her new neighbor. As it stood, Marly made quite an impression on Mason, just not a good one. “That’s not right. You had an arrangement with Mrs. Cabot. She should honor that.”

Mason shrugged. “She doesn’t see it that way. So I guess I will just wait until
Marly
is ready.” Mason groaned and stood up. “I’m sorry I dragged you over here for nothing.”

“Nonsense.” Aspen held her hand out to Lex, pulling herself out of the swing. She wrapped her arms around Mason and hugged her tightly. “Come by tomorrow night. I’ll make your favorite. We’ll get your mind off of the neighbor from hell.”

Mason’s mouth watered at the mere mention of meatloaf. It had been a favorite of hers, for as long as she could remember. “How can I turn that down?” Mason pulled away from Aspen. “Thank you again, both of you.”

“What are friends for?” Lex pulled Aspen’s arm through hers and smiled. “Five okay?”

“Yeah. I’ll be there.” Mason watched Lex help Aspen down the steps and couldn’t help smiling. Everything took her three times as long as normal, but anyone could see that Aspen was overjoyed at being pregnant. She waved as Lex pulled away then watched the road long after they’d gone. The ache in Mason’s stomach hadn’t lessoned, but at least she had someone to talk to about the pain. She and Aspen met at the small studio in town where Aspen’s art was on display. They had become fast friends, and before long Aspen and Lex had adopted Mason as a surrogate sister. Mason was the older of two girls by quite a few years, so she and her real sister were never close and having them as family helped fill the void that had been left by her less than normal family. That’s why she felt so close to Aspen and Lex and why Anne Cabot had been like a mother to her. Anne was the woman who had finally given Mason the feeling of having a home. She loved her as her own, which is why it bothered her so much to butt heads with Marly.

Mason opened the screen door and went back inside. She started for the chair she had abandoned shortly before then decided she should at least shower and change clothes. She’d lived in what she had on for the last three days and knew she must reek by now. Fortunately, Aspen and Lex
were kind enough not to mention it. Mason undid her overalls and stripped off her T-shirt. Her muscles rippled beneath her tanned skin, and she flexed almost instinctively. Hours of working with metal and steel had toned her upper body, giving her the look of someone who worked out religiously. She stopped in front of the mirror, and her eyes flicked up and down the length of her body. She looked thinner. Grief was a horrible way to lose weight, but eating hadn’t been at the top of her list since Anne died.

Mason met her reflection in the
mirror, and she ran a finger over the dark circles under her eyes, surprised at just how gaunt she looked. She exhaled loudly and started the water in the shower, turning it just hot enough to steam. Moments later, she stepped under the spray and prayed it would wash away the ache she felt deep inside.

Chapter 4

Mason pulled her welding mask down and ignited her blowtorch, opening the oxygen valve on the torch head to match the acetylene. The hiss of the flame filled the small garage. Mason felt herself smile, at least briefly. She felt most at home in her tiny workshop. It was her safe haven, the place where she escaped from the harsh reality of the outside world. She could get lost in there for hours on end, creating, designing, crafting works of art.

Mason grabbed a piece of flat metal about a foot long and two inches in diameter. She held the flame about a quarter of the way down the metal strip, allowing the heat to soften the metal. She moved the torch down the metal, allowing each section to heat up before moving further down. When it was pliable enough, she set the blowtorch down and grabbed a pair of pliers, twisting the end of the metal strip until it resembled a blade of grass. She held it out for several more seconds as it cooled then set it next to a stack of petals she made earlier.

She was working on a piece for Mrs. Cabot. Anne had loved orchids and Mason was working on a new design, meant as a surprise for Anne. Even though she had passed away, Mason decided she would continue the piece and place it next to Anne’s headstone. It was the least she could do for the woman who had taken her in and loved her as her own. Mason sighed behind her mask and blinked back the tears. She grabbed an identical strip of metal and centered the flame on the same spot, duplicating her last movements.

“Hello?” Marly stopped at the open door and watched Mason at work. She could see the skill with which she worked, despite not knowing the first thing about welding. She leaned against the doorjamb, knowing that Mason wouldn’t hear her with all the noise.

It was a good five minutes before Mason sensed company and caught
sight of Marly at the door. She held up her finger before she closed the acetylene and oxygen valves then opened the needles on the blowtorch head to release the gas inside the hose. She set the torch down and pushed her mask off her face. “Marly.”

“It’s Mason, right?” Marly shoved off the doorframe and stepped inside Mason’s workshop. She forced a smile at Mason’s nod, trying not to laugh at the giant mask that bounced with Mason’s movements. She met her questioning eyes and smiled apologetically, but this time it was genuine. Marly handed Mason a foil-covered plate. “I came to apologize. I wasn’t very nice earlier.”

Mason grabbed the plate and set it on a bench. “No, you weren’t exactly cordial.”

“That’s why I’m here.” Marly flexed her fists and eyed Mason warily. She felt bad enough for being so mean earlier, but one look at Mason’s face and Marly knew she wasn’t planning on letting her off the hook too easily.

“Well?” Mason eyed her impatiently.

“Well…I just told you. I came here to say I’m sorry.” Marly put her hands on her hips. “Are you always this hard to get along with?”

“No, but you seem to bring out the worst in me.” Mason pinned Marly with an impatient glare. “So?”

“So what?” Marly threw her hands up in exasperation. “This is where you forgive me.”

“You haven’t said I’m sorry yet.” Mason swallowed a smirk. Despite their earlier kerfuffle, she found Marly to be somewhat enchanting. Her short, brown hair accentuated the deep brown of her wide-set eyes and framed her face perfectly. Her small nose curved slightly upwards and her full lips, pursed in a slight pout, gave Marly a very inviting look, despite her surly attitude. If Marly kept her mouth shut, Mason might almost find her attractive.

“Yes, I did.” Marly stamped her foot impatiently. “Didn’t you hear me?”

“I heard you just fine.” Mason took off her gloves and chucked them onto her work table. “You said you were here to apologize. You didn’t actually say I’m sorry.”

“Are you always this literal?”

Mason cocked an eyebrow and looked at Marly askance. “Are you always so obtuse?”

“I…” Marly shut her mouth quickly. She would have taken offense if it weren’t for the fact that more than one person had called her insensitive before. She didn’t mean to be. She just didn’t have the time or the patience for unnecessary gestures. She was very efficient in everything she did and her behavior was often misconstrued as cruel. “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to be unkind.”

“Thank you.” Mason slipped her gloves back on. “Are we done?”

“I guess so. I wanted to let you know that it’s okay to pick up your stuff anytime, or leave it. I’m not sure what you and my mother worked out, but I will honor the arrangement. She was very fond of
you, and I owe her that much.”

Marly turned to leave but Mason stopped her. “It’s funny. She rarely mentioned you at all.”

A look of pain flashed across Marly’s face before she replaced it with a perfunctory smile. “No, she wouldn’t have. My mother and I have never been close. We had a falling out a long time ago, and I suppose I never forgave her for it.”

“Figures.” Mason immediately regretted saying it. She had no idea of the type of relationship that Anne and Marly had. Nor was it her place to pass judgment. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.” Marly shrugged. “I deserve it. Mom was different back then. I left and never looked back. I can see with you that she wasn’t the person I ran away from all those years ago.”

“All those years ago? You can’t be much more than thirty. When did you leave?” Mason studied Marly’s face closely. She appeared younger than Mason’s thirty-eight years, but not by much.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m thirty-nine. I left during college.” Marly ran a hand through her hair impatiently. “It’s been a long time.”

“I don’t know what she was like with you, but Anne…
well, she was the closest thing I had to a mother. She took me in and treated me like family.” Mason’s tone was defensive, though she didn’t necessarily mean for it to be. “That’s how I will remember her.”

Marly swallowed guiltily. Truth be told, she hadn’t given her mom the chance to prove herself otherwise. She almost couldn’t remember the reason she left in the first place. Her mind searched for the exact
conversation, and she could hear bits and pieces as the pictures slowly faded into view. It had to do with Marly’s decision to drop out of school. Anne insisted she finish college, but Marly wanted to travel. The disagreement ended with Marly’s leaving home and not looking back. Now, twenty years later, she was back in the house she grew up in, but this time it was to say the good-bye she didn’t say the first time around. Marly felt a lump starting to swell in her throat, and she looked for a distraction. "What are you, some kind of welder?”

“Something like that.” Mason tried hard to extend the type of courtesy she knew Anne would exemplify. “I am an artist. My medium is metal. The sculptures in your mom’s
, I mean
your
yard are my work.”

Marly admitted to herself that Mason did have talent. “What are you working on?”

“An orchid, for Anne.” Mason slipped her gloves back on. “Listen, thanks for the coming by and for the apology. I’ll work on gathering the stuff from your yard over the next couple of days. I’ll try not to bother you.”

Marly watched Mason start to
withdraw, and she reached out and touched her arm before she could slip her mask back over her face. “We got off on the wrong foot. That’s my fault.” She nodded at the plate. “Cookies. That’s my attempt at a peace offering. I don’t know anyone here anymore, and I’m going to be around a while getting everything settled. Can we at least pretend to get along, for my mom’s sake? I think she would have wanted us to be friends.”

Mason almost shot her down, but Anne’s face flashed in her
mind, and she could picture Anne scolding her for being so unwelcoming. Mason chuckled at the mental image of Anne’s finger wagging at her disapprovingly. “I suppose I owe her at least that much.”

“Good.” Marly nodded matter-of-fact, content to have the subject settled in her mind. “How will you make the orchid? It seems very intricate.”

“It is.” Mason pulled her mask off and set it on a bench next to her blowtorch. “Come here, I’ll show you what I’m doing right now. This is an English wheel. What I’m doing now is wheeling.” She stepped over to a machine that was attached to a thick work table. It had an arm extending from the top that held a large, inch-wide wheel suspended over a smaller wheel that was connected to its own metal arm. She laid a piece of the thin metal on the smaller of the two wheels and used the tightening arm, twisting the bottom wheel until it butted up against the bigger wheel, pressing the metal sheet between them. She flipped a switch, and the wheels started to whir.

With skilled dexterity, Mason slid the metal between the two wheels. It took several passes before Marly noticed a difference, but she saw the gentle curve of the metal begin to resemble a petal. “You do that for each and every piece?”

Mason shook her head from side-to-side. “I will use it if I want a particular arc or curve. Normally, I’ll use the air-powered shaper. It’s much quicker. However, this piece is very personal to me, and I want to put myself in all the pieces.” Mason picked up another piece of metal and held it out toward Marly. “Wanna try?”

“Oh, no.” Marly shook her head no. “I wouldn’t want to mess it up.”

Mason reached out and pulled Marly toward the machine. She pointed to another pair of gloves. “Put those on. You won’t mess anything up badly enough that I can’t fix it. Besides, it’s art. Part of the beauty is in its flaws.”

“Like us?” Marly met Mason’s eyes and felt herself being pulled into their depths. She shivered nervously. Marly wasn’t one for personal connections. They scared her. She had tons of friends, but none she would consider a best friend. And her relationships, well that was a disaster she didn’t care to think about. Her lovers accused her repeatedly of keeping a wall between them, never letting anyone in. It wasn’t something Marly tried to
do; she just naturally protected herself. On the outside, she seemed friendly, insanely likeable, but if anyone got too close, she shut down immediately. Perhaps, that was why she was always on the move, never staying in one place too long. As a freelance advertiser, she could excuse the restlessness on her job. It was a lie that came easily and more often of late. She didn’t want a connection with Mason. But for some reason, Marly craved a friend and Mason fit the bill; however, temporary it would be. “I just meant our imperfections are what make us unique.”

“I know what you meant.” Mason wasn’t
certain what to make of the brief moment they shared or the fear she saw in Marly’s eyes. She didn’t know her well enough to ask, and she wasn’t all that sure she wanted to know. She waited until Marly donned the gloves then handed her another strip of metal.

“How should I do it?”

Mason pursed her lips, thinking of how to explain her method. “Imagine the petals on a flower then shape it like that.”

Marly bit her bottom lip and put the metal between the wheels, pulling it toward her. After several passes that she thought mimicked Mason’s, she was disappointed to see that the metal had changed very little. “What am I doing wrong?”

“Nothing, if you’re making a bookmark.” Mason switched the machine off and studied Marly’s face. “Where’s your heart? You have to feel what you are doing and pour those emotions into your work.”

“I don’t understand.” Marly stared blankly at Mason.

“Close your eyes.” Mason reached out to steady Marly and kept her hand on her arm. “Picture the curves of a woman’s body…”

Marly opened one eye and shot Mason a look.

“Okay, you’re not into chicks.”

“I didn’t say that.” Marly’s tone suggested
offense, and she smiled quickly to soften the harshness of her comment. “I’m a lesbian. I just don’t see how curves will help me.”

Mason sighed loudly. “Just bear with me. Close your eyes.”

Marly closed her eyes and opened her mind to Mason’s voice. “Picture the curves of your lover’s body. The way her breasts rise and fall as she breathes, the soft dip in her stomach as your hand traces her hips, the way her legs curve into her…”

“Okay, okay, I get it.” Marly took several deep breaths. Mason’s words and Marly’s mind were combining in
to one very erotic mental image. Marly hadn’t been with a woman in over a year and while her head was okay with that, parts of her body were quickly letting her know that they were not happy with being celibate.

Mason swallowed a smirk and tried to ignore the blush in Marly’s cheeks. “Now, imagine that the petals of the orchid are like the curves of a woman. Use that image to shape the metal.”

Marly nodded and flipped the machine on again. She pulled the metal between the wheels, slowly bending it into a beautiful piece of art. She switched the machine off when she was happy with the result and shot Mason a huge smile. “Like this?”

Mason took the piece of metal and turned it over in her hands, holding it up to the light, her practiced eye sizing up the lines. “It’s perfect. You are a natural.”

Marly blushed again. She shouldn’t like the attention, but she did. Mason was so innocent and sincere in her praise. There was no underlying motive, no hidden agenda or plan to get Marly into bed. “Your description helped. Thank you for letting me try it.”

“No problem. Ann
e would like it; I think.” Mason grabbed another piece of metal and held it towards Marly. “Wanna try another?”