Page 46 of Nova

14

Promise

Blinking my eyes open, I immediately feel the loss of Cain's heat, and I know he is no longer in bed with me. The clock on the bedside table reads 4:58 am. Wondering why he would be up this early, I climb out of bed and snag his shirt from the floor and cover my naked body. Once I have finished my business in the bathroom, I head downstairs to see if he is there, but I come up empty. I walk into the living room to also find it empty. I start to worry about where he could be when I catch a flicker of light flashing through the kitchen window to my left. Padding further into the kitchen, I reach over the sink and pull back the curtain to get a better look. Cain's back yard is enormous, and at the back of the property sits a massive industrial size metal building with the roll-up door that is open. I see flashes of light that look almost like fire and a shadowy figure moving around.What is he doing out there?

Curiosity getting the better of me, I open the back-sliding glass door, step out onto the patio, and make my way across the lawn, my toes sinking into the fresh, lush grass. I'm not prepared for what I find when I step through the entryway of the shed. Cain is standing with his back to me in front of a heating chamber. He is shirtless, wearing a pair of faded jeans that hang low on his hips. The bright fire from the chamber is lighting up his skin making him sweat. Cain is holding a long metal pipe and is twisting it while holding it over the flame. I watch as he works the tube, his muscles flexing with each twist. Stunned speechless my eyes shift from him to the large angel sculpture sitting on the table behind him. I then scan the shelves lining the wall of the shed and see several pieces of glass art. ''Oh my God,'' I gasp covering my mouth alerting Cain to my presence. He turns and smiles that smile. ''Hey, Sugar.''

I watch as Cain carries the long metal pipe in his hand to a metal table where he begins twisting it, rolling the molten glass on end, shaping it. I'm so mesmerized by what he is doing that I don't speak. I keep watching him. Cain then sits on a stool, picks up what looks like a big wooden spoon, cups the glass with it and twists the metal pipe again, shaping the glass into something rounder. With ease, he holds the pipe in one hand and puts a thick padded glove on his other hand. Once he is finished putting the glove on, he picks another tool and cuts the upper part of the glass. The piece falls away, landing in his gloved hand. Cain stands, strides over to a metal box, opens it and places the glass inside then closes the door. By this point, I finally find my voice. ''This is amazing,'' I breathe. ''You do all of this?' I point to the pieces lining the shelves and to the partially finished angel in front of me.

''Yeah,'' Cain shrugs like it's no big deal. Only I see it as a huge deal.

''How long have you been glassblowing?'' I start to walk around his workspace and look at some of the pieces sitting around.

''Since I was a kid. My grandmother did it as a hobby. I used to love watching her work. One day I asked her if she'd teach me. I was probably fifteen at the time. Been doing it ever since. Before I had Piper, I worked out on the rigs and didn't do it as much, but once I had her, I quit rough neckin'. I had a daughter to raise but didn't have any direction. All I knew was I needed a job that allowed me to be home with Piper, so I decided to make a go of sellin' my pieces. The rest is history. I used to sell my art in a few shops around New Orleans but now I mainly do custom orders.''

''Like this?'' I point to the angel.

''Yeah. A brother of mine who is the VP of The Kings out in Montana is havin' it made for his woman, Bella.''

I run my fingers along the wings of the angel. The angel itself is transparent in color except for the wings which are blue and green. ''So beautiful,'' I breathe.

Next, I inspect a few pieces he has on a shelf. One is a bowl. It's shaped like an oyster shell and is rainbow-colored. I pick it up and begin admiring its eccentric colors up close. When I flip it over, I nearly drop the bowl. The name LeBlanc next to a Flor De Lis symbol. ''Oh my God! You're that LeBlanc?''

Cain shakes his head and chuckles. ''I take it you've heard of my stuff.''

''Heard of you? Cain, you're like the biggest name in the glassblowing industry! Some of your smaller pieces sell for thousands of dollars.'' I nearly shout. And on that thought, I carefully set the bowl down. ''Wait here. I'll be right back.'' I dash out of the shed without waiting for a response from Cain and run into the house and up the stairs to the bedroom. Dropping down to the floor of the closet, I dig through the box of stuff I keep my mom's mementos in. Finding what I'm looking for, I hold it close to my chest and hurry back out to the shed where Cain is still standing in the same spot I left him. Stopping in front of him, nearly out of breath and panting, I hold up an orange, red and blue glass butterfly. ''Three months before my mom's accident, she took me to the flea market. That was our thing. We loved them. The last one we went to I saw this butterfly and was immediately drawn to it and my mom didn't hesitate to buy it for me.'' I flip the butterfly over to show Cain the stamp on the bottom.

''Fuck, babe. I remember this. I must have been twenty-five or so when I made it. I remember because Piper was just a baby, but she was fascinated with butterflies. I also never create two similar pieces. Piper has one but hers is pink. I sold a few in some local shops in town.''

''Lucky for me, I got this before you made a name for yourself. I've looked up your work, Cain. I bet whoever sold this to me sixteen years ago is kicking themselves now,'' I chuckle.

Closing my eyes and holding the butterfly close to my chest. ''I can't believe I've had a piece of you with me this whole time,'' I tell him as tears begin to pool in my eyes.

He cups my face. ''Fuck, babe.''

''Your art is beautiful, Cain. It means something to people. Every time I look at this butterfly, I think of my mom and that perfect day we spent together.''

Cain kisses my lips. ''I'm glad you have that, babe.''

"Me too, honey."

Later that day,London and I are at our new office getting things set up. Our furniture was delivered an hour ago, and since Cain is off doing club business, Fender and Kiwi are here helping us since Piper went to hang at the clubhouse with Josie and Payton. Currently, we're breaking for lunch. London and I are sitting on our new sofa eating the Shrimp Po' Boy sandwich and fries Fender brought us while he and Kiwi are outside on their phones and smoking.

''So, you and Nova are getting pretty serious,'' London speaks through a mouth full of food.

''I know it's fast,'' I shrug, ''But it feels right, you know.''

''I'm happy you're happy, Promise.'' London looks at me like she wants to say more.

''Why do I feel a but coming?''

''I worry about you. I mean how much do you actually know about Nova and the club?''

''I know Cain is a great father and a devoted friend to his brothers. I know he's caring and protective. And the more I get to know him, the more I like him. As for the club, I don't know much. We both know of the rumors, but I have not directly asked him.''

''Do the rumors about The Kings scare you?'' London asks.

I ponder her question a second. ''No. Not just Cain, but his brothers, Kiwi, Fender, and all the guys have never given me a reason to be scared of them. Besides, rumors are not something we should base our opinion on.''

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