Page 21 of What We Keep
“You can pick whatever colors you want, Elsa,” Jude replied.
I stopped in the doorway to see her standing there. She wore an oversized T-shirt and leggings with paint smeared on her cheek. Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun with what appeared to be a broken pen stuck through it.
“What do you think?” she asked, glancing over at me.
I was too distracted by how cute she looked to say a word.
“Haven?” Jude prompted.
Giving myself a mental shake, I glanced at the wall in question. “It looks great.”
Elsa rested one hand on her hip, her arms and hands covered in paint. “I’m going with mostly neutral colors, but every room has an accent wall.” She gestured with the paint roller toward what I presumed was the accent wall.
“Awesome.”
“Really?” Her brow arched up in skepticism.
“Totally awesome,” Jude chimed in.
“I mean it,” I insisted.
“You guys are no help.”
I chuckled. “We’re just happy you’re helping, Elsa.”
“I should be done by the end of the week. I decided to keep it simple and pick the accent wall for every room first, then go through the rest. I’m under budget, according to your mom,” she said.
Jude flashed me a grin before clapping Elsa on the shoulder as he walked past her. “It looks great.” He left the room, tossing over his shoulder, “I’m headed over to the rescue program. They called me about needing some help with a new fence, so I’m going to help put that up. I’ll be back in a while.”
That left me alone with Elsa, who had already started rolling paint onto the wall again. I watched as she systematically made her way up and down.
“Thank you for asking me to do this. I forgot that I actually love painting. It’s very soothing.”
“Yeah?”
She cast a quick smile over her shoulder. “Yes. It’s almost meditative. I used to do it in college. Side job. That and waiting tables. Painting didn’t give me tips, but it was more relaxing. Peace and quiet. Nobody bothers you. But waiting tables brought home the bacon, so to speak.”
“Where did you go to college?” I was way too curious about her.
“University of Washington. That’s where I got my marine biology degree and then my master’s. They have a great program there.”
“I would imagine. There are lots of orcas there.”
Her smile turned wistful. “And here too. As I mentioned, whales are my specialty.”
“Well, there are plenty of those in Alaska.”
“There are.” She kept rolling paint and sighed.
“Didn’t you mention you have an interview?”
“I do. It’s tomorrow, so I won’t be able to paint in the morning.”
“You’re going to ace it.”
She finished one wall and glanced over at me. “That’s nice of you to say, but I don’t know.”
“I do,” I said with confidence because I meant it.
