Page 77 of Artfully Wild
“Ah, you’re staying,” I hear Avery yell as she also runs over.
And before I can react, I’m surrounded by arms and bodies and am encased in the middle of a Waters family hug. I welcome it. There was a time I would have pushed my way out, yelling at them to get off of me and fought with my elbows and nails until I was free.
This isn’t one of those times.
This is going to work.
“This is going to work,” Jacob echoes my thoughts. He’s standing next to me, looking at the paintings showcased on the stage Hudson built for us. “Seriously, these look incredible. If all of these aren’t sold by the end of the night, every single person here is a moron.”
I hear awhackas Fran comes to Jacob’s side with a rolled uppamphlet in hand, featuring all of the booths set up at the festival in hand. “Watch your manners, young man,” she jokes. “Just because you were in the hospital for a day doesn’t mean you get to talk any way you want to.”
“I was just speaking the truth, Fran.”
A clap sounds from the other side of Jacob as Frank pats his shoulder. “Ah, go easy on him, Fran.”
“Behave Frank, and keep that bird in line, or I’ll swat you too,” she warns, giving both of them a death glare.
Fran levels Jacob with a stare I would even shrink away from before she walks away to the stage, looking at the paintings.
Bird Frank is perched on Human Frank’s shoulder and I don’t think there are any plans for him to be returned. He’s home exactly where he is.
“And I knew exactly what to do. But in a much more real sense, I had no idea what to do,” the parrot squawks.
“I’ll hand it to you, Sky, you teaching him nothing but Michael Scott quotes has been a hit at the bar the past few days,” Frank chuckles.
“That’swhat those were?” Jacob exclaims like he’s annoyed he couldn’t figure it out himself.
“You didn’t realize that? I figured it out after he said ‘that’s what she said’ at least five times.”
Out of all the people in my life, it’s Frank who gets my humor. The two Franks head towards Fran’s booth along with everyone else, leaving Jacob and I alone once again, or, as alone as we can be in the middle of a crowded town festival.
Jacob turns to me and frames my face with his hands. “Iwasspeaking the truth. Your paintings are incredible.You’reincredible.” And he kisses me. Right there in front of the whole town and a whole load of strangers. He smiles against my lips and I find myself smiling along with him.
“Get a room!” comes Hudson’s voice from a few feet overfrom his own booth. I hear Avery tell him to shut up followed by a squeal and I ignore them, hugging Jacob closer.
“Let’s go get you a new shelter.”
Every single painting sold.
Not only that, they sold for way more than either of us expected and the money we raised could build Jacob a whole new shelter if he wanted to. I have no idea what kind of crowd Charlotte drew in or how she did it, but it was a crowd with money. And a crowd who loved animals as much as Jacob did. Not only did we sell the paintings, but a majority of the animals were adopted. The people wanting to adopt are planning on coming to the shelter tomorrow to meet the animals to make sure they are a good fit and we go from there. I know Jacob has a lot of mixed feelings about them being adopted, but overall, it couldn’t have gone better.
“So this one is okay with other animals?” A dark-haired, middle-aged woman asks about the tabby in her arms. Gus was the first one to catch her eye and has been curled up against her ever since.
“Yes,” Jacob answers, giving Gus one last scratch under his chin that he welcomes with closed eyes and a contented purr. “He loves playing with other cats and is really good with dogs too. And parrots.”
“Parrots?”
“We had one at the shelter and they were buddies,” he explains.
She doesn’t bother asking more questions, which is weird because if it were me, that’s all I would be doing. “Well, thank you for taking care of him until I could find him.”
“You’re welcome.”
With Gus in one arm—he’s the only one that is docile enough to be out of a carrier—and the portrait of him in the other, she carries them to her car, toward their new home.
And now it’s time to go find mine.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
