Page 13 of Unleash You

“Hey.” Anabelle’s voice and her hand on my shoulder made me jump back to reality. “You okay?”

“Yeah. You found what you were looking for?”

She nodded, her gaze trained on me. “I did. Want a sneak peek?”

“Sure.” I let her pull me toward a room on the right. At the far end, an oil painting of a boy on a swing hung under a spotlight. The subject on the canvas had only half his face and body in a way that made it look as if he were about to leap toward us.

“What do you think? He reminds me of you.” She turned her pretty gaze toward me.

“This thing is mostly dark. That reminds you of me?”

“You can’t have light without darkness.”

“Carved from light and shadows,” I mumbled. I still had some of Anabelle’s drawings from her second year in college. She’d spent two whole pages, front and back, talking about her fascination with the technique.

“You’re familiar with chiaroscuro?” A crease spread across her forehead.

“I have a friend who’s an artist. She explained it to me.” I rubbed the stubble on my cheek. “I’m sure you see way more than I do, though.”

Her eyes watered as she stepped forward and pulled me to her side. “I suppose the corps doesn’t make much time for art.”

“No, not really.”

Though after all her talk about drawings and oil paintings, I’d decided to check out the local museums in Maracaibo. Being in that space somehow bridged the distance between us, and it brought me a sliver of peace.

“What do you think of this one? There’s a perfect spot for it in your brother’s house.” She pointed to a nude, a woman in a runner’s lunge.

“Well, you know what I see?” I tried hard not to let in the images of Anabelle in the same position, all smooth skin and pink nipples, but it didn’t work. She flooded my mind in an instant.

“I know.” She laughed. “You have a good eye. The gestural energy is brilliant. You can almost see her breasts move with her body.”

Something like a guttural sound escaped my lips. “We should get going.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I’m so used to seeing models like this. I didn’t think...”

“No, it wasn’t that.”

“I’d like to draw you sometime.” She bit her lip.

“Like naked?” My mind and cock raced to the gutter.

Anabelle chuckled, a sweet sound that brightened the cavernous gallery room. “No. I meant your face.” She reached for my cheek but didn’t touch me, only pointed at my profile. “You have beautiful features. The light loves you.”

“Who would want to see that?” A trickle of sweat streamed down my back. Suddenly, the room’s temperature had gone up a few degrees. I glanced down to contain the drumming in my chest.

“The gallery assistant for starters.” She raised an eyebrow.

“We’re ready for you, Mr. Cole.” The gallery assistant walked into my line of sight.

Saved by the bell. I fished my wallet from the inside pocket of my suit jacket. “About time.”

“I apologize for the delay. Your girlfriend has excellent taste.”

“She’s not my...um.” My heart pounded. I couldn’t even get the wordgirlfriendout. Whatever gave her that idea?

“Oh. I’m sorry. I just assumed.” She beamed at me with a greedy look in her eyes. When I furrowed my brows, her body jerked into action to get Anabelle’s bill of sale for the art she’d bought. “Two-hundred and fifty thousand.” She glanced up at me before she ran the card.

“That’s fine. And he’s not my boyfriend. He’s my babysitter.” Anabelle answered for me in a tone that said “See? She’s into you.”

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