Page 17 of The Holidays with Dr. Mitchell
It was easy to see that Nat had some form of a relationship with Titus’s assistant, which seemed natural since the Hawk brothers had entered a business relationship with Jim Mitchell and his VP, Nat’s husband, Spencer. Nat handled the majority of their real estate transactions, and they all attended events and dinners together, so they were probably friends by now. And, to all of us, Candace seemed to be more thanjust an assistantto Titus Hawk.
“It’s no big deal. Ashley is a talented artist, and Titus will be blown away with this piece,” she looked back at me. “After he saw it online, he had to have it. I have to say it’s even more beautiful in person. It looks almost three-dimensional; I can’t imagine how you pulled that off.”
I grinned. “I paint the entire canvas black and then gradually bring dark to light colors in. Somehow, that’s the trick to creating that feature with my portraits.”
“Well, I’m sure we will be back for more once Mr. Hawk sees this in person,” she finished. “My driver is here, so I’m going to head out.”
“Have a good day,” I said.
“Tell Mr. Hawk I will see him tomorrow night at the Crown Gala,” Nat said.
“Sure thing,” she said, and then she disappeared out of the door.
“Let me lock this,” I said. Candace came to pick up that portrait thirty minutes after I usually closed up shop, and I was eager to finish the day.
“That poor girl,” Nat said with a sigh. “Blowing her boss while he’s fucking every woman he meets at these events we all attend.”
“Is Titusthatbad?” I cringed.
Nat rolled her eyes. “You know the type all too well, Ashley. He’s a typical gorgeous-as-hell young billionaire new to Los Angeles, and every woman wants him. He knows it, appreciates it, and enjoys it.”
“Yeah,” I said. “Doessheknow?”
“Of course not,” Nat chuckled. “That’s how men like Titus get away with this shit. I’d like to say it’s willful ignorance, but you know how it goes. They make women feel like they’re the one and only.”
“I feel bad for her,” I said.
“I don’t,” Nat said unsympathetically. “Any woman wrapping herself up in a man because she wants his money, or hell, evenlove,when he makes it obvious that he’s not settling down anytime soon is asking for heartbreak.”
“Yeah, but if he’s playing her, she wouldn’t know,” I said. “She might think he could fall in love with her. Maybe that’s what she hangs onto.”
Nat folded her arms and smiled at me, “Your naivety is adorable.”
I rolled my eyes, “There’s nothing adorable about feeling bad for someone who is going to get their heart broken by a billionaire playboy.”
“You think that girl doesn’t know what she’s working with?” Nat challenged.
“No, I honestly don’t,” I said. “I think it’s pathetic that these men use their money and status to draw women in only to discard them when they get bored.”
“Honey, don’t get worked up about a tale that’s old as time,” Nat said in her usual sassy yet knowledgeable tone. “These women,especiallyCandace, know what they’re signing up for with men like Titus and his brothers. Titus shows no shame by telling everyone he is staying on the market. Shit, she’s mostlikely had to help a few of hisladiesout of the house the next morning.”
“Jesus, I can’t imagine. Well, maybe she’s notblowinghim, like you suggested.”
“She’s definitely blowing him. I can spot a blower from a mile away and twenty thousand leagues under the sea,” Nat confirmed, walking over to my sailboat portrait exhibits. “She wants more, but he won’t let it get that far because she’s already too attached. I see it all the time with these hot-lips assistants. The only thing these players won’t do when they see that hopeful, fantasyland look in their eyes, like Candace has, is fuck them.”
“Well, it’s all the same if you ask me.”
“Not for them,” Nat said, knowing her way around the world of players. “Fucking and blowing are two very separate things. Blowing is just having a dick in your mouth, but fucking is more than that. It’s seeing the look in his eyes when he slips his hard dick in you, knowing it’s your glorious and wet vajayjay that’s giving him pleasure, and when he can’t hide his look of satisfaction and relief that you’re giving him, that’s when the emotional connection takes place. It’s all wrapped up in the fact that he needs her for more than just sex, so once the sex happens, you have one happy assistant who’s now staked a claim on a man who wants his freedom.”
Just hearing Nat talk about seeing the pleasure in your man’s eyes while he’s climaxing was making me ache to be with Jake. I pictured that look on his face at the beginning of our relationship, and now that I thought about it, I hadn’t seen thatlooksince I’d been diagnosed with cancer and even after beating it. It grieved my heart to think that we were somehow drifting apart. Life had us both in its stronghold, and I didn’t like it. I missed my goddamn husband.
“Ash? Honey, I didn’t mean to upset you,” Nat said. “You know how I get with this shit. Who knows, maybe Titus does have a thing for Candace. Only time will tell, but it’s nothing for you to get upset about.”
“It’s not that,” I said, wiping the tears from my eyes I hadn’t felt streaming down my face. “I mean, I feel horrible for her, but you’re right. I don’t even know the man well, and people’s choices are none of my business. We live and learn.”
“Then what is it?” Nat questioned more seriously, moving on from the Candace and Titus gossip session we found ourselves in.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s hormones. I’ve been in menopause since the surgery, and Dr. Aster told me this would be rough despite the hormone pills I’m taking.”
