The painting was dark and moody. The hand clawing out of the ground as people walked around oblivious spoke to me as clearly as the day I painted it.
“Do you know why I chose you?”
Oh this should be interesting.
Stuffing my hands in the pockets of my jeans, I turned to face her. “Because I work hard and I’m good at what I do?” I guessed, unsure as to where the conversation was going.
“Yes, that too,” she replied dismissively. “But a lot of good artists pass my desk every day.” She gestured to my work with her head. “But this is deeper than just good. This is emotional. I work with the people who not only deliver the best product, but also evoke the best emotional reaction and response.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that.” I felt my brows furrow as unease settled over me.
She doesn’t do compliments. What’s going on?
Charlotte looked at me firmly, her mouth in a hard line. “Do you think the Roman Harper based in New York will be able to execute the same artistic level as the Roman Harper based in Richmond, Virginia?”
“Yes, I have no doubt.”
She looked at me for a second before giving me a curt nod. “Very well.” Turning on her heel, she walked back out of the gallery.
I followed behind her until we were in the confines of her office again.
“I received a call from Nina Lowe.” She paused as if she were waiting for my reaction.
I didn’t give her one.
“She would like to include you in an exhibit this December at Pho Gallery.”
I nodded and spoke slowly. “That’s awesome.”
Charlotte Spence doesn’t get excited, but she’s usually a lot more enthusiastic than she is now. What is going on?
“Usually Nina’s assistant would call my assistant and I would talk to my client to see if they would like to be included and so on and so forth.” Charlotte crossed her arms over her chest. “But today, Nina requested that I call her first thing this morning. When I did, she told me that she would love to have you in her year in review exhibit that she’s putting together for December. And then she mentioned that she didn’t have her assistant call because her assistant was your girlfriend.”
“Oh?”
We were both quiet, waiting each other out.
I cleared my throat. “Is that a conflict of interest?”
“You tell me?”
“No.” Even though I said the word confidently, I didn’t know what the hell Charlotte was insinuating.
She nodded a few times and jotted something down in her notebook. “So would you be interested in the opportunity?”
“What percentage of the commission is she asking for?”
Charlotte gave me the slightest of smiles and nodded slowly. “That’s good to hear. Business decisions are made with the head and not the heart. That question lets me know everything I need to know. So here’s everything you need to know…”
I reviewed the paperwork with the information regarding the show. It appeared as though I would be the featured artist, but I would be sharing the spotlight with a few other artists with whom I wasn’t familiar.
“This particular grouping isn’t what’s best for your career. What they are selling for is far less than what your work can and should go for. This opportunity wouldn’t serve in your best interests. Ultimately, it’s your decision,” Charlotte pointed out as I reviewed the notes again.
We concluded our meeting fifteen minutes later.
I pulled out my phone as I left Charlotte Spence’s office and toward the subway. I had three missed text messages from Bianca and a missed call from Elizabeth.
Bianca Baker: Hope your meeting with Charlotte Spence goes well. You’re going to have to paint something new soon. You’re pretty much out of everything you’ve painted this year. I’m going to have to save my checks to buy a Roman Harper original. Love you!
Bianca Baker: Sitting at my desk thinking about when Easy tried to get Keisha’s number and he kept rapping Drake lyrics to her. I’m literally sitting here laughing my ass off. He is so dumb!
I laughed at the memory of Brad flirting with Keisha before looking at the last text message from Bianca.
Bianca Baker: Lunch?
Roman Harper: The meeting was interesting. I’ll tell you about it over lunch. I’ll head over to you now. We were just talking about Easy doing that on the way to the airport and it was just as funny today as it was yesterday.
Bianca Baker: Jealous! Wish I could’ve gone to the airport with the three of you. Instead, I was here with Nina and she’s been acting weird.
I didn’t know how to respond to that because I knew exactly why Nina was acting weird.
Roman Harper: I missed you this morning. See you in about an hour.
Bianca Baker: Cool! Nina is out until one so that is perfect timing.
Maneuvering through a mass of people, I scrolled down to Elizabeth’s number and pressed the call button.
“Roman!” Elizabeth answered on the first ring.
The light and airy tone of her voice echoed through the phone and took me by surprise.
“Hi, how are you?” I asked slowly. Turning away from the stairwell that led to the subway, I bumped into an older man. “Excuse me.”
“I’m not bad. I’m not good, but I’ll get there. This month has flown by. How are you? It’s loud where you are.”
“Yeah, it’s noisy in New York. I’m good though,” I told her, flagging down a taxi.
“You’re visiting Bianca?”
Opening the door to the taxi, I slid into the backseat. I gave the driver a head nod and the address to Pho Gallery.
“Roman?”
“Yes, I’m here. I’m not visiting. I just moved here.”
“What?” Elizabeth screeched so loudly that I had to pull the phone away from my ear. “You moved? I’m your mother and I have no idea where you live! We don’t talk for a few days and you live in a whole different state!”
“Elizabeth, calm down,” I said soothingly, trying to keep her from getting upset. “The decision to move in together happened less than a week ago. I was already spending so much time up here that it just made sense for me to move up here too. I was going to tell you the next time we spoke. But between packing up my house, packing up B’s apartment, moving everything in and then spending the weekend with Easy and Malik, it’s been a busy few days.”
“So you two decided less than a week ago to move in together? And now you are living in New York? That’s fast!”
Although she didn’t say it in a judgmental way, I got defensive. “I’m good with every decision we’ve made as a couple.”
Everything about the evolution of the relationship between me and B is fast. We’ve been together for two months and now we’re living together. It feels right and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Elizabeth was quiet for a moment so I quietly waited for her response, letting the news I’d just given her sink in. After a couple of minutes, she cleared her throat lightly before she spoke. “I was in a dark place when you two were here for the funeral. I’d just lost the love of my life and I felt like I had lost myself. You were the happiest I’d seen you in a long time. And I didn’t want anything to take that away from you. I saw how loss devastated you before, but you weren’t even this happy when you thought you were head over heels for Tia. What you have with Bianca seems different, Roman. And I’ve only seen you two together once and it just reminded me of when William and I first got together. Did I tell you the story of how we met?”
“Yes.”
When we talked a couple of weeks ago, you recounted the entire meeting and first date.
I smiled sadly knowing it made her happy to talk about him. “But you can tell me again if you’d like.”
“No, no. I just wanted to make sure I told you how much of William I see in you and how much of our relationship I see in yours and Bianca’s.”
I didn’t know what to say in response to that so
I didn’t say anything.
Elizabeth continued, “I’m sorry about what I said and the timing of it.”
“You were sad. I understand.”
“Yeah, well. I still shouldn’t give my son awful advice because I’m drowning my sorrows in alcohol. So coming from me as your mother, but also coming from me as a woman who found and married her true love, I just want to tell you not to listen to my advice from before. Love hard and fully and with your whole heart. Time is precious so instead of protecting that fragile Harper heart, fill it with love. Let love protect it from the inside out.”
I nodded, even though she couldn’t see me. “Thanks,” I mumbled into the phone. “It’s good to hear you say that. I’m happy. I promise.”
And I meant it. As silly as it was, having Elizabeth take back her warning felt like a weight was lifting off of me. I didn’t need her approval, but it was nice to know that she didn’t see doom in my future.
Elizabeth and I never had talks about relationships; she left that up to William. But ever since she said that my heart couldn’t take another blow, I couldn’t shake her words. It was bad enough when I was telling myself that, but to have Elizabeth confirm my thoughts haunted me.
“If you’re happy, I’m happy, dear. Just promise me that if things don’t work out, you won’t lose yourself. I worry because with Tia—”
Cutting her off, I snapped, “Bianca is nothing like Tia.”
“No, no. I wasn’t insinuating that she was like Tia. I just wanted to point out that you finally made it to your dream. You wanted to end up with your love in New York with a blossoming art career. You thought that was going to happen with Tia, but maybe you never even saw yourself there with Tia. Maybe it was always Bianca you were supposed to fulfill that dream with.”
“I would agree with that.”
She laughed. “Of course you would.” She paused. “It’s good to laugh again.”
“How are you, Elizabeth? Do you need anything?”
“I feel…empty. It’s hard to explain. But just know that I am okay. I realized that the reason I feel so empty is because I know how it feels to love and be truly loved.”
“I understand that.”
We were both quiet.
“I knew it could happen at any time,” Elizabeth admitted. “The doctor let us know. But nothing can prepare you for when you lose the person God created just for you. Whether it’s death, drugs, alcohol, mental illness, careers or whatever else, loving someone fully is a risk worth taking.”
Before B, I wouldn’t have known what she was talking about. Now, I agree wholeheartedly.
“You’re not staying home alone are you?” I asked as the taxi inched its way toward Bianca’s job. Sometimes just the anticipation to see her was enough to get my heart racing.
“I am alone, but I need to be right now. The first week, Benjamin was here, but he wasn’t in a good place. He was too consumed with grief and he was drinking heavily.”
“So he just left you?” Leaning forward, I paid my cab fare and got out of the yellow car.
After all she’s done for his ass, he couldn’t even pull his shit together long enough to be there for her!
Standing on the sidewalk in front of Pho Gallery, I developed a deeper level of hate for Benjamin.
“No, he didn’t leave. I sent him to an alcohol abuse facility. It was only supposed to be a one-week stay in which he’d receive mandatory group and individual counseling. But he’s been gone for longer than I anticipated. I haven’t seen him since I sent him there. I’ve talked to him though. He calls every other day. He sounds…I hope he gets the help that he needs at the facility. I don’t know when he’s coming back.”
It’s about time he gets help.
“So you’ve been alone since then?”
“No, I needed to get out of the house. Too many memories. I went to stay with my mother for a little more than a week and then Grandma Pearl for a few days. I’ve been home alone for just a day and I already have plans to leave in a couple of days.”
“Where are you headed?”
“To Virginia! Surprise!” She giggled lightly. “I’m going to be staying a week or two with the Simons.”
“Really?” I didn’t know if I was more surprised that she was staying on the East Coast for so long or that a small part of me was actually looking forward to seeing her. Without thinking, I continued, “You’ll have to come to New York on one of your days so I can make sure you’re okay.”
“Roman, you don’t know how happy that makes me.”
“I need to go. But let me know when you arrive in Virginia and we’ll make some plans.”
“I love you, son.”
“Love you, too.”
Disconnecting the call, I slipped my phone into my back pocket. Scrubbing my face with my hands, I let out a deep breath. In an odd way, William’s death brought Elizabeth and I closer and pushed Benjamin and I further apart.
But honestly, Benjamin and I weren’t ever going to be the brothers our parents wanted us to be. And I’m okay with that. I hope he gets the help he needs for Elizabeth’s sake, but after the stunt he pulled at William’s funeral, he’s dead to me.
I shook off the feelings that my family brought out of me and walked into Pho Gallery. As soon as Bianca looked up from her desk, everything else melted away. She was the only thing that mattered.
“Welcome to Pho Gallery.” Her throaty voice stirred my dick and my emotions at the same time.
Crossing the room toward her, I stuffed my hands in my pockets. “Say it again.”
She stood up and my breath caught. Her black cardigan downplayed her full breasts, but the rest of the dress showed off her beautiful body. As she strutted around her desk, I stared hungrily at the roundness of her hips and the plumpness of her ass. I didn’t get a chance to see her dressed before heading to the airport so I reveled in watching the Aztec printed dress hug every curve of her body. From the four or five inch heels to the way her hair was twisted up and away from her face, I was at a loss for words.
“Welcome. To. Pho. Gallery.” She over-enunciated each word comically before she started giggling. “I’m glad you’re here, but stop looking at me like that!”
Snapping my eyes back to hers, I shrugged. “Like what?”
“Like you’re trying to get something started in the middle of my work day,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around me.
My hands massaged down her back until settling on her hips. Dipping my head down, I kissed her deeply, covering her warm mouth with my own. “You get an hour for lunch.” With my hands running up and down her sides slowly, I pulled her flush against my body, pressing my hardening dick into her soft belly. “Do you know what we could do with an hour? I could have you bent over the desk in no time.”
She moaned softly, closing her eyes. “You are a bad influence on me.” Her voice was breathy as if she were considering my offer.
“That’s not the first time I’ve heard that.” Kissing my way to her earlobe, I nibbled. “And it won’t be the last I’m sure.”
She moaned again and my dick sprang to life. Something low in my gut twisted with a desire to be inside of her right then and there. I didn’t know how to explain it, but when it came to Bianca Baker, I was insatiable.
“Ro,” she whispered heatedly, moving her body against mine sexily. “We have to stop.”
My lips brushed against hers teasingly until we were kissing with a frantic desire that bubbled up from deep within. Knowing someone might walk in should’ve cooled us down, but instead, it added to the moment. Cupping her ass, I lifted her to her tiptoes, deepening the kiss.
When my dick felt like it might break through the denim of my jeans, I pulled away. Putting a few inches of space between us, I tried to calm down.
Bianca’s breaths were shallow and coming out in spurts. She had her hand over her chest and her eyes were heavy lidded. She looked both mad and turned on at the same time.
I gulped mouthfuls of air as I w
atched her. My heart hammered in my chest. My blood rushed through my veins. I took another step back. “Are you mad that I stopped or mad that I started?”
“Both, ass! Now what am I supposed to do? I’ll be thinking about you bending me over my desk for the rest of my workday.”
I smirked. “If it’s any consolation, I’ll be thinking about the same thing. And believe me, I didn’t want to stop, but I didn’t want to do anything to get you fired.” Grabbing her hand, I made sure that our fingers were the only parts of our bodies touching. I still wanted her and any contact beyond holding hands was dangerous for me. “If another minute would’ve passed, I don’t know if I could’ve stopped until I was inside of you. Nina could’ve walked in with a potential client and paperwork for you to sign and I still don’t think I would’ve been able to keep my hands off of you.”
With her head back, Bianca laughed loudly. “You’re the worst!” Once her laughter subsided, she added, “This is your fault, you know? Don’t get me all hot and bothered at work!”
“It’s not my fault. I was caught off guard by how absolutely sexy you are. And the way you fill out this dress is…stimulating. Did you look at yourself in the mirror this morning? This is way too sexy for work.”
She laughed again. “The skirt part hits below the knee and the fabric is clingy, but it’s not tight.” She pulled the material away from her body and I watched it snap back into place. “See? Work dress!”
“The only thing I see is the outfit I’m going to have balled up beside your desk if you keep looking at me like —”
“Are you open today?” A woman called out as she entered the gallery.
Bianca glanced down at the crotch of my jeans and smiled. “Hi, yes we are. Welcome to Pho Gallery!”
Does that mean my hard-on has gone down or not?
I signaled to her with my eyes and she just smiled harder. I waited, but she unraveled her fingers from mine and strode effortlessly around me to the visitor.
Heartfelt Page 23