by Sky Winters
*****
THE END
Brother’s Bear
"I work in the morning."
How Anna had both loved and loathed those words at the same time. When Gabriel Kempton had called her back, she'd been floored. After the lackluster reception of her final academic exhibition had stolen her chance at graduate school, she knew the only way into higher education was through completing an apprenticeship to garner real world experience. No opportunity had been beneath her, and Anna had launched her resume off to dozens of apprenticeship positions. That Gabriel Kempton of all people had been the only one to call her back had to be proof that she was meant to succeed. Working beneath his direction would not only look good on her future applications, but it would draw the eyes of the art world in her direction. Even if Gabriel was unsatisfied with her work, the fact that they would be associated would work in her favor.
But he worked in the mornings.
Anna couldn't remember the last time she'd willingly gotten out of bed before noon. Given the choice, she preferred to sleep through the afternoon. Mornings had never been her friend, and anyone who knew her had always planned around that fact accordingly. Anna Nightingale, her mother had sung to her in her teenage years, little lark, despises the light, favors the dark. But now the nightingale stood before the private art studios of Southview University, cup of bitterly black coffee in hand, while the sun rose on the horizon.
"This is your future, Anna," she whispered to herself, the words catching in the thick yarn of her maroon infinity scarf. She slipped her car keys into the small purse slung from her shoulder. "Just a year of early mornings, and then you'll be set for life. Suck it up."
Studio C3 was already lit up on the inside. In the early hour of the day little traffic passed, and the street lights had begun to fade to orange. It seemed like everyone else on the planet slept except for the man she knew lurked beyond the studio walls. And herself, of course. She hesitated before the door, wondering if she should knock or not. Better to be overly polite, she thought, than to be rude. Anna rapped upon the door.
"Come in," a voice called from inside. Although she could tell there was great volume behind it, the words barely bled through the door and she'd almost missed them. Had the morning not been so quiet, Anna was sure she never would have heard the invitation. Without wasting any more time, Anna entered the studio.
Had she to guess, Anna would have said that Gabriel Kempton had already been at work for hours. The largest block of marble she'd ever seen sat in the center of the studio upon a raised platform, its corners and sides already carved off. The pitched pieces lay haphazardly on the floor around the platform. Apart from a few messy tables pressed against the wall and two folding metal chairs tucked into them, the room was empty.
"I need you to start tidying the pieces that have fallen," Gabriel's voice instructed. He was behind the block of marble, out of her field of view. The end of the sentence was punctuated with the bright clang of a mallet striking down upon metal. A new piece of marble knocked loose and toppled to the ground. "Stack them all on one of the tables. We might be able to recycle the scrap for small projects."
No hellos, no good mornings. Had she not been so exhausted, Anna might have bristled at his lack of respect. A hasty sip of coffee silenced any sass. She set the cup down on one of the tables and made her way towards the marble.
"And when you're done that, then you can start to sweep." Gabriel stepped out from behind the marble, and Anna stopped in her tracks. Gabriel Kempton was the talk of the art world and the pride of Southview's Master of Fine Arts program, but every article she'd read about him and his accomplishments had only shown his face, focusing more upon his creations. While his facial features had been handsome, Anna had always assumed he'd look like a scrawny artist in person. The body she'd pictured and the man who stood before her were not one in the same.
Instead of narrow and lanky, Gabriel was cut and svelte. The grey t-shirt he wore stretched across his chest and filled out in the shoulders and arms, and although his muscles were not excessive, there was no question that they were visible. Toned arms, a firm chest, and a body that tapered into his hips, Gabriel looked more like a swimmer than a sculptor. Momentarily Anna wondered if she had nodded off to sleep and was imagining the whole thing. There was no way someone could look as handsome as he did while toiling away in a studio for fourteen hours a day.
The prolonged pause attracted Gabriel's attention, and he looked towards her for the first time. Anna glanced up into his dark eyes and noticed how they stared. Low self-confidence reared inside of her, allowing an uneasy feeling to bloom in the pit of her stomach. Most of the time she ignored the stares, but Gabriel was the only one in the room and he made no effort to hide that he was looking at her. Anna knew that she was curvy, too curvy to be considered conventionally beautiful by men like Gabriel, but she'd always considered herself pretty. Between a great wardrobe and the care she invested to keep her light auburn hair shimmering and styled, Anna had never let her size stop her. Yet here she was, arrested by Gabriel's gaze.
"Anna Nightingale?" Gabriel asked after a long silence. His eyes swept her down and then up, absorbing her every detail. The critical eyes of an artist ripped her apart, and Anna felt both exposed and breathless. There was something silently dominating about Gabriel's presence that let her on edge, uncomfortable and yet intrigued.
"That's me," Anna replied, voice smaller than she would have liked.
"It's nice to meet you," Gabriel said after a pause. His eyes lingered on her for a moment longer, and then he turned back to his work. "I look forward to working with you this year."
"Yeah," Anna whispered, the word little more than a squeak, "me too."
When his eyes darted away from her and back to the marble, the spell was broken. Pressure lifted from Anna's lungs, and she realized that she'd been holding her breath. She inhaled deeply and shook her head, freeing herself further from his spell, then set to work collecting the fallen pieces of stone.
By the end of the day, all Anna had done was collect discarded marble and sweep. Typically she would have complained, but watching Gabriel work was well worth the menial labor. Every time he struck at the block his biceps tensed and she could see how corded and strong they were. The sweat that lined his brow glistened, and the scent of pine and masculine undertones had leeched slowly through the room. Anna didn't consider herself boy crazy, but something about Gabriel grabbed her attention in a way no other guy had.
From time to time he'd engaged her in conversation. They'd spoken about her plans for school and the kind of media she liked to work with. Gabriel had told her a little bit about the marble sculpture exhibit he was preparing for, and invited her to sculpt some of her own statues from the leftover marble. By the end of the day, blissfully over by noon, Anna exited into the brisk fall air entirely smitten. Gabriel was like the marble he sculpted: smooth, classic, and flawless. Thoughts of him clouded her mind, and it wasn't until a hand clamped down upon her wrist that she realized someone had been trying to get her attention.
Gabriel Kempton stood at her side, his calloused hand holding her in place.
"Anna," he said, catching her eyes with his own. Up close Anna could see how dark they truly were, his stunning irises a shade of brown she'd never seen in eyes before. Their eyes locked, and once more she found herself breathless. Even after six hours working together, Gabriel still held her prisoner.
"I'm sorry, my head was uh, somewhere else." She couldn't part from his eyes, and it looked like Gabriel was having difficulty doing the same. He, however, spoke as though he was unaffected.
"Elsewhere is right. You forgot your phone," he said, extending her cellphone towards her with his free hand. The other still gripped her wrist, unwilling to let go. Anna blinked, eyelids remaining closed for a prolonged moment. Gabriel was as close to a celebrity as she'd ever met, and here he was holding onto her and returning her forgotten belongings.
"Thanks."
"I saw you didn't have my number in your contact list," Gabriel continued casually. "So I put it in for you. And according to your calendar, you’re free tomorrow night after your haircut. Now you're not."
The meaning of what he said didn't register. Anna lifted her gaze and stared at him blankly, feeling her hands began to tremble.
"What?"
"I put the details in, so make sure you're not late. Seven at Cosgrove Cafe. I'll be waiting."
Those dark eyes bored into her a final time before he offered her a playful smirk and turned away, sequestering himself back into Studio C3. When the doors had closed Anna blinked hard, took a stabilizing breath, then looked down at the phone in her hand. How had he gotten past the lock screen? He must have been watching her throughout the day as she texted, and then...
Her fingers flew over the screen and the phone unlocked. There, amongst her upcoming events, was a four hour chunk of time at Cosgrove Cafe. The address had been entered as event information, as had another telling detail. Recorded under the event's notes was another message.
"Date with Gabriel — wear something nice, but not too fancy."
Anna almost dropped the phone. How a man like Gabriel could be interested in someone like her she wasn't sure, but that didn't matter. What did matter was that they were going out tomorrow, and she had no idea what she was going to wear.
A burst of energy coursed through her, and Anna grabbed at the plush scarf that hung from her neck to choke the cry of glee it brought. It was as though she were in high school again, and the cool, popular boy had just winked at her from across the cafeteria. Well, not quite. Gabriel was much more handsome and talented than any boy in her high school had ever been, and he didn't call her chubs at every chance he got.
Every inch of her body energized and alive, Anna ran for her rusted out Camry and sank into the driver seat. Once behind closed doors she let her head fall back against the rest and laughed, wild and free. Feeling wanted was a luxury she wasn't often afforded, and God, did Gabriel make her feel wanted.
A new internship, a new shot at the future, and now a new shot at love. Everything was falling into place all at once, and Anna felt like these were the first happenings in a series of events that would leave her forever changed.
Chapter Two
Piles of clean clothes littered her bedroom floor, and shoes were scattered here and there in clusters. The battle had been waged, and she'd won. From the mess she'd found an outfit she thought was nice, but not too formal. A simple teal dress was her prize. It cinched beneath the waist to draw attention to the best of her curves, its shoulder straps wide enough that they didn't look out of place on her bigger shoulders. What Anna liked the best about the dress was the neckline; it plunged into a V just low enough to draw attention to the plump curve of her breasts without being too overt. The skirt fell just above the knee, flirty and yet simple. Anna knew it made her look amazing.
Paired with a set of black flats she was good to go. Now the outfit hung pristine from the back of her closet door while the rest of her sizeable wardrobe lay in disarray across the room, and it would stay there until the weekend. Getting up early had already taken its toll on her, and Anna had little energy to devote to cleaning.
The second day of her internship would have been the same as the first had Gabriel not already made his interest clear. Anna was told to tidy up and sweep, and from time to time Gabriel asked her to fetch a different kind of chisel, but now Anna also watched for how he looked at her. From time to time she caught his dark eyes drinking her in when he thought she wasn't looking, and each time her cheeks flushed red in delight. Of course, he caught her looking at him as well. Each time he shot her a devious grin that disarmed her entirely, and the work day both seemed to crawl and fly by when knowing that later that evening they'd be seeing each other as more than professionals.
"Don't forget," Gabriel bade her at the end of the day, "Cosgrove Cafe, seven. Don't be late. I don't want you to miss it."
"It?" Anna asked. They were packing up for the day, Gabriel rinsing his hands and arms in the studio's sink.
"You'll see tonight if you're not late," he promised, but said no more. "It was good working with you again today."
"And you." This time she was prepared. Anna smiled at him even as her heart fluttered and then made her exit. There were only about five hours left after her haircut until she'd have to head out, and she intended to make the most of them.
A long, thorough shower. Anna scrubbed herself pink and shaved carefully, not willing to miss a single hair. Once the blank canvas was prepared, she dried and styled her freshly cut hair and agonized over her makeup. A modestly colored lip and a touch of drama to the eye was her signature, and by the time Anna was done she knew she looked amazing. Chubby or not, she was worth looking at.
Prim and proper, she took the dress down from the back of her closet door and slipped into it. There was just enough time left to move one of the piles of clothes back into her closet when the alarm on her cellphone went off — it was time to hit the road.
"Act normal," she whispered to herself as she descended her apartment stairs and towards the parking lot. "He's just a normal person interested in normal people things, and there's no reason to do weird things. If he asked you out, it means he likes you, so don't try too hard."
The front doors opened following a heavy push, and Anna emerged into the chilly fall evening. She'd brought along a light jacket and was grateful for it. Just the walk between the building and the car was brisk, and goose flesh rose along her arms.
Cosgrove Cafe was a good half hour drive from where she lived, clear on the other side of the city, but close enough to Southview's campus that it made sense that Gabriel would know of it. With fifteen minutes to spare, Anna parked a few blocks away and walked her way over. The neighborhood was a blend of residential and retail, indie shops popping up down the main street while the off-streets housed middle class families. It was on one of those off-streets that she found Cosgrove Cafe. Renovated from residential house to coffee shop, the establishment flirted with the corner of the main street. Cheery bay windows glowed with warm light, and through them Anna could see the place was busy. People clustered near the windows, all standing. For a coffee house, so many standing patrons seemed strange.
Anna entered through the front doors to find it crowded there, too. The walls dividing the original rooms of the house had been taken down, the remaining support beams done up with a wood trimming that served as table space. Tall stools were drawn up to them, but tonight no one was sitting, and even the loose tables and chairs had been pushed to the side. Anna picked her way through the crowd, searching for Gabriel. It was ten minutes to seven and he had been insistent she be on time, so where was he?
It wasn't long before Anna found her answer.
At the back of the cafe was a small stage area, barely elevated from the normal floor. Everyone in the place had gathered to face it, and a band was setting up for a performance. Three members fiddled with microphones and stools, and amongst them Anna recognized Gabriel. An acoustic guitar hung from a strap secured across his shoulder. His insistence she arrive on time made sense; he was going to play the show, and he didn't want her to miss it.
Tonight he was dressed in simple dark jeans and a fitted white dress shirt. A thick, woven hemp bracelet hung from his left wrist, but instead of lend him femininity, it lent his masculinity a softer edge. Anna pushed her way through the crowd to stand towards the front, watching as they set up. In all of her research she'd never heard mention that Gabriel was musically inclined, and the surprise was welcome. Gabriel had been handsome with a chisel in his hand, the muscles in his arms hardening as he worked over the block of marble, but now she saw a softer side to his creativity and found herself just a
s hooked. There was something about a man with a guitar that was irresistible, and Anna couldn't wait until he played.
Before long the three of them had taken their places on stage. Gabriel sat center, guitar placed comfortably on his lap. The two others settled just a little behind him, one of them standing behind an upright bass, the other seated with a cello. All three of them had microphones positioned for use, and Anna wondered what kind of a show she was in for.
"Hey," Gabriel greeted the crowd, leaning forward just a little bit to speak into the microphone. The sound of his voice struck her deep, and Anna's eyes found their way to his. Gabriel hadn't found her yet through the crowd, but she saw him looking. "A big thanks to the Cosgrove Cafe for hosting us tonight, and a huge thank you to all of you who made your way out to see us. We're Dreams of the Wild. I'm Gabriel. The good looking guy on bass is Michael, and our talented cellist is Luke. I won't tell you about how attractive he is, because he's off the market; sorry ladies."
There were some cheers and some laughter, and Anna couldn't help but smile. Gabriel's dominance translated well into charisma; he had the whole room hanging on his words.
"We've got an hour and a half to entertain you, and we hope you enjoy the music. If not, well, we're getting paid for this anyway, so that's okay."
More laughter. Gabriel grinned as well, and Anna watched as the tension eased from his shoulders.
"Let's get this show on the road. This first one's called 'Conversations of Solitude'. Enjoy."
The music began. The deep melody of the cello paired with the strumming of the guitar, and both instruments rode upon the grounding beat of the bass. Anna had never heard anything quite like it. It wasn't classical, but it wasn't quite pop, either. There was a poetic way the music flowed that suggested more technical prowess than simple pop beats, but a concurrent simplicity made it easy to listen to. Within the first handful of seconds Anna found herself enamored. When Gabriel began to sing there was no escape.