Free Love Makes the Difference (Sully Point Book 1) by Nicole Smith Page B

the
painting. Honestly, she didn't remember feeling all these things he described,
yet that is what came across to him.
    He stopped talking and looked at her face. "Let me
guess. You didn't have all this in mind when you painted it, right?"
    She gasped. "How did you know that?"
    He laughed ruefully. "Tell me something, what do you
like about my detective series? I noticed you have quite a few of them on your
bookshelves. What makes you keep buying new ones?"
    "They're so well-written. You take the reader into each
character, you show us how they think and feel without losing sight of the
story. You offer hope even when the situation is dire, even when Maurice is at
his lowest. It's that hope I think that brings people back time and again."
    "Would it surprise you to hear that when I sit down to
write my books, I don't think about giving hope to people? That all I think
about is telling a good story?"
    Her face lit up. "Ah, I get it. So it's not so strange that
you see more in my paintings than what I meant to paint."
    "That's right. Anna, with art, any kind of art, we put
ourselves into it but what comes out is more than the sum of all parts, more
than the brushstrokes or words. We put feelings and dreams into motion. We
transcend ourselves, if we are lucky. Then we give our art to the world, to
another person, and what they see in it, what they bring to it, what meaning
they find is a gift. To us and to them. The true artist brings more than
himself or herself into the work without even knowing it. The painting, the
book, is but a reflection, a tiny part of that magnificence we draw upon."
    Anna stared at him. "You are amazing, Sam Carter. I've
never heard it said like that before."
    He smiled at her. "I've never said it like that before.
So, do you approve of my selection?"
    "Yes, very much."
    "All right, do you have a figure in mind?" When
she looked at him questioningly he grinned. "Money, Anna, the paycheck at
the end of the rainbow."
    "Oh no, I hadn't thought...."
    "Okay, how about...twenty-five thousand?"
    "Dollars?" she squeaked.
    "Yes."
    "No!"
    "Too little?"
    "Way too much."
    "Okay how about twenty thousand."
    "Sam!"
    They haggled back and forth for a half hour while drinking
their coffee, laughing at each other and generally having a great time. By the
end of it, she agreed to take eight thousand dollars for the painting simply
because he refused to go any lower.
    "This is great. Now I can contribute more to the loft
renovation."
    Sam frowned. "Anna, won't you use it to buy yourself
anything?"
    "Like what?"
    "Hmm. I'm not sure how to say this without sounding
rude. Have you thought about buying some new clothes? Some makeup? Jewelry? Any
of that?"
    She felt hurt. All he'd said about liking who she was--had
that been a lie?
    "Whoa, whoa, Anna, hold on--I can tell from your face
that I've said this wrong. I didn't mean it as a criticism. I just meant that
you should do some things for yourself, not only your loft. It's about taking
care of yourself, that's all. I'll love you no matter what, but--"
    "You'll what? " Anna said, voice very quiet.
    "Man, did I just say that out loud?"
    She nodded, eyes opened wide staring at him.
    "I--hmm, I don't seem to know what to say." Sam
stood up from where he'd been sitting next to her and began pacing. Several
minutes went by in total silence. Finally he said, "I guess I've known for
a while that I was falling in love with you."
    "But--but--" she spluttered.
    "I know it seems like it's too fast to you. I get that.
The thing is I don't think I've ever felt this way before for anyone--not even
my first love in high school. Somehow between the cookies and the painting and
being around you, it crept up on me."
    "Wait!" Anna finally got the word out. "You
can't be in love with me! That's impossible, I mean, you're you and I'm me and
you're all gorgeous and smart and funny and I'm just a plain Jane who dabbles
in art and--"
    Sam strode across the room to her and raised her up off