Page 2 of Sparrow

"Do you have any gold pieces I could look at now? My mom has a birthday coming up."

"We do have some of our gold pieces already prepped, the bestsellers, anyway. But I can cast any of our pieces in gold. I actually have a printed menu somewhere around here. It's got most of our designs on one sheet, if you want to look at that."

Owen watched as Corey set down whatever small piece of jewelry she had been holding. She leaned over and retrieved a towel before wiping her hands.

"There's method to all this madness, believe it or not. I get very little local business, though. I do need to get it organized, but I've been too busy with orders, honestly."

"That's a good thing," Owen said.

"Yeah, kind of. I need a second set of hands. I was used to having my mom around. She's been out with her back for ten months. She hurt it when we moved into this place. She had surgery, but she's still recovering."

"Oh, I hate to hear that."

"No, it's okay. I’m making it. I'm just trying to explain why it's a mess in here."

"I don't think it's a mess," he said.

She smiled and handed him a thick piece of paper. It was oversized like a restaurant menu with small photos of various pendants.

"The back has earrings and cuff bracelets. And we have quite a few designs that aren't on this," she said. "I didn't realize howold it was. I can actually show you some others while you're here, if you think you'd be interested."

"I do, I am," he said, handing her back the menu. "Do you have anything already made in gold that I could see?"

"Sure. I'll grab a few things."

She turned to go into the back room. He was so captivated by her face that he didn't see that she was carrying a pistol. People in Montana were different, but he hadn't seen it coming with this woman. She was delicate with a pistol strapped to her back. She disappeared for a second and then came back, carrying a small box.

"We don't keep much gold in stock. Most of it's made to order. Ninety percent of our sales are silver and bronze."

She opened the box and began setting some things on the small counter space that was near a cash register.

"Is it normal to carry a gun in Montana?" Owen instantly regretted asking the question and he began backpedaling. "I mean, I assumed with being the only person in a jewelry store… I'm sorry. I'm…" He trailed off, knowing he was letting his nerves get the best of him. "I'm not going to try to steal any of this," he said. He closed his eyes, hating himself for talking so much.

"The answer to your question is yes, lots of people in Montana carry. But honestly, it's for show with me. I’m not even sure if it's loaded."

"Aren't you afraid to say that?"

She glanced at him. "No, I just said I'm not sure, I didn't say it wasn't loaded. I doubt you're going to chance it."

She spoke casually and set the pendants out one by one. They were stored in small zippered plastic bags, and she had to open a different bag for every pendant. They seemed to be mostly nature-inspired designs. There was a tree, two different flowers, and a representation of mountains.

"Oh, I like the bird," he said when she pulled it out. "My mom likes birds."

"It's a little sparrow," Corey said, placing it on the counter in front of him. "We have a couple of other birds, and some other Montana animals—a moose, bears, and bison. Lots of animals, actually. The moose is one of our bestsellers."

"You have bison?"

"We have multiple bison options. Multiple bears also. I just don't have them all in gold. Like I said, though, I can make all the designs in any metal."

Owen watched as she continued to place pendants on the counter in front of him. Visually, she was so different from other women. She was exquisite. He felt a desire to be next to her. Owen had a few relationships in high school. He had less of them in college, and in the years since then, they were few and far between. The last year of his life had been way too busy for a relationship.

Two years ago, he starred in his friend's indie movie, and now he was an in-demand actor. He was working on his third movie, and his contract for this one was worth a large sum of money.

All this to say that Owen was completely focused during the six months it would take to shoot the movie. He did not have room or time for distraction. It had been a long time since he had felt tempted by a woman, and he tried to come to terms with the fact that this one was different and he was eager to pursue her. He had glanced at her hand several times since he walked in, and there was no wedding ring.

"I love the ram," she said casually, causing him to snap out of his thoughts.

He glanced at the counter and noticed the pendant she had just put down.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com