Oh, how she needed something to breathe new life into her career. Maybe going back to old dreams was the way to the future.
* * *
Nick’s phone buzzed in his pocket again. Apparently, the trail wasn’t out of cell service range. He didn’t want to hear from anyone. Well, not entirely true. He still wanted to hear from one person, but with each day that passed, it seemed less and less likely. That Kat had completely ghosted him was a surprise. They’d been good together. For a while.
He blew out a long breath. He’d taken a rare Friday off. Hiking with his dad was supposed to take his mind off everything else. And Nick wanted to be present for his dad, to enjoy their time outside on the trail together. Not much of a hike, really. More like a nature walk, but that was okay. It was good exercise for them both.
Nick needed the fresh air. He’d been busy getting ready for summer events at the shop and he’d had probably a dozen calls from people who’d seen his work at the Andrews house on the Symphony tour. No matter what else he’d screwed up, that had been a success.
His dad dropped onto a boulder. “Here’s a fine place to stop for a drink.”
“Sure.” Nick stopped alongside his dad and handed him one of the bottles of water from his backpack. Then he grabbed his own and took a long drink. A cool mountain breeze floated across the path, and the aspen leaves shimmered around them. For a moment, it was just him and nature—and that was all he needed. Everything else would work itself out in its own time. He couldn’t slow things down. Or speed things up. He couldn’t force a relationship or stop feeling. All he could do was take life as it came and deal with it in an intelligent manner. Even the hits.
Two hours later, Nick pulled the SUV into the driveway. “You feeling all right?” he asked his dad.
“Sure am. That was good.” He climbed out of the car and waved. “See you later.”
Nick went inside and dumped his backpack on the worktable then grabbed a pad of paper and his phone. Seven messages. Emails were probably three times that.
He started listening and jotted a few notes, but nearly choked when Liza from HBTV came on the line. Call her? Damn, must be a big problem forherto contact him. Why not Charlie or Sherra? Nick rubbed a hand across his jaw then checked the time. Four o’clock on a Friday in New York. Too late? Probably not for Liza.
He placed the call and held his breath.
“Liza Mason’s office. How may I help you?”
“Hello, this is Nick Summers returning–”
“One moment, Mr. Summers. She’s expecting your call.”
“Nick. How are you?” Liza’s voice came on the line as if they were old friends.
He paused while he registered the friendly tone. Seemed like a good sign. “I’m great, thanks. How are you?”
“I’ll get right to business.”
That’d be good. He was beginning to feel warm around the collar. Nice that she couldn’t see it.
“The executive team has reviewed your videos. They’re impressive. Right on target. We think they’ll have wide appeal, and we’re offering you a contract for six additional episodes.”
Nick opened his mouth to speak but closed it again and flopped back in his chair, the breath whooshing out of him.Not what he expected at all. Offering more episodes before the earlier ones aired? He couldn’t help a satisfied grin.
“I’ll email you the details,” Liza went on. “But I wanted to touch base first. On the tapes, you look as if you were enjoying yourself. Were you? Are you interested in doing more?”
She’d caught him off guard, so it took a moment to catch up. She didn’t want to hear about the distraction of his sad love life. She just wanted to know he’d powered through in spite of it. “I…yes. I did enjoy it. And I’m glad you’re pleased with the results. I might need a little time to think about your offer.”
“Of course. We’ll need to hammer out the final details and compensation. I can–”
“Would we need to tape all the episodes in New York again? Or Connecticut?” Mixed emotions converged inside him. Did he want more time in New York City, especially if he didn’t have Kat? Being there might open some opportunities to see her. But he wasn’t going to pursue someone who didn’t want to be pursued.
“Is that a problem?” Liza asked after a moment of silence.
“Just curious if you have other wood shops or locations to feature. I have my own studio here in Colorado Springs.”
“We can probably negotiate locations. Perhaps we could feature your space in one or two. How about you send me some photos of your studio?
“Sure.”
“For now, I just need to know if this is something you’re interested in.” She resumed a more business-like tone.
