“I, uh—”
“I’ll bring him right back,” Kris said to the group, before dragging him away by the wrist.
“Seriously?” Mike hissed as his sister weaved them through the crowd and into the laundry room. Once she saw no one else was in the room she closed the door behind them.
“Look, I’m just going to say this once, then I’ll leave it alone, okay?” She reached out and grabbed his phone away from him. “She’s into you, Mike.”
“Kris, you have no idea what you’re—”
“No?” she said, pulling up the picture again. “There’s more where this came from. And isn’t it interesting that the entire time you’ve known her Rori has never posted pictures of a night out, but now that she knows you’re having a big party, she posts pictures of herself out on the town?”
“That doesn’t mean—”
“Bro, shut up and listen to my totally awesome insight. Then do with it what you will.” Kris held up the phone, this time with a different picture on the screen. “If you look at the picture closely you’ll see that she’s more than a little drunk. You can see it in her eyes and the blush in her cheeks. Now I know you’ve stalked the other images on her page. Is there even one of her not sober besides these? Are there any pictures of her being openly lewd with men? None. Image is huge for her, and those pics don’t make the cut. And then she posts these? Never mind that all the guys she’s out with are all totally gay. Some of them look butch, but they have too many buttons undone to be straight.”
She forced the phone into Mike’s hand.
“Yes, you can sleep with Tiffany tonight. I’ve heard her talking about how she’s going to land you tonight which, as your sister, makes me want to shave her head in her sleep. But that’s beside the point. The point is that I owe Rori for pushing Luke into my lap. So I’m just standing here asking you if you’re ready to throw away all the ground work you’ve laid with her in the past few months?” She tapped the phone. “I know you think she slept with that Count Loser guy last night, but based on these pictures I’m saying she didn’t. Or if she did, it didn’t go well at all. This is a girl who is freaking out. I know, because I pulled stunts like this like a thousand times when I knew Luke was getting laid. He, like you, didn’t notice. I rubbed up on men right in front of him, and he grabbed the girl he was with and took her back to the bedroom.”
Hearing his sister describe the scene he knew she’d lived through over the years, Mike felt a little sick. “I’m sorry, Kris.”
She frowned. “Me, too. And obviously I’ve forgiven him for being such an ass, but I don’t know that Rori will. Her trust issues are a lot deeper than mine. One roll in the hay and she may write you off forever. If you’re cool with that, fine. But if you are thinking of making a big move when you go to New York next month, then girls like Tiffany need to wait. I’m just laying that out there for you plain and clear before you get drunk and stupid. Because I want you to be happy. And I like Rori—as weird as that is. She’s good people.”
“Even though she’s made out with Luke?” Mike asked, feeling a little bit bitter about it himself.
She shrugged. “You saw how they were together. Not exactly dripping with chemistry.”
“No,” he agreed.
“It’s up to you, bro. I just had to do my sisterly duty. I’m done now.” She started out, but Mike stopped her hand before it reached the door knob.
“Kris?”
“Yeah?”
“Let’s say I wanted to get Rori’s full attention without freaking her out. What kind of pictures would I post?”
His sister grinned. “That’s too easy. Post pictures that both she and all her gay buddies will obsess over.”
Mike grimaced. “Ew.”
Kris shrugged. “It is what it is. You post pictures those boys like looking at and they’re going to talk you up all night long and bring you up over and over for the next month. You want your shot at Rori? Well then, you might have to show some skin.”
“What happened to my sister?” he asked, shaking his head. “You used to be so innocent.”
“Yeah, and thank God those days are over. I’ve never been happier, which is why I want you happy, too. You want Rori’s full attention tonight, then get your butt outside and start a ball game with shirts against skins and make sure you’re a skin. I’ll take pictures, and only post the ones that will make her gay friends fight over the phone. What do you say?”
He gave his sister a side hug. “I’d say you’re tactics are mercenary and I hope I never get on your bad side.”
“So you’re in?”
Mike nodded. “I’m in, sis.”
She sent him a smile. “Alrighty then. Let’s go take some pictures that’ll make Rori swoon.”
“Let’s do it.”
Chapter 44
“Another round?” Fredrik asked when the waiter came by again.
Rori shook her head. “I think I’m one drink away from bending over a toilet.”
Fredrik gave a quick shake of his head to the server then focused back in on her phone. Rori eyed the go-go dancer dancing adjacent to their booth and took note of the fact that she was the only one in her party watching the guy bust a move. For the past few minutes they’d all been huddled over her phone oohing and ahhing and pointing.
“Do I even want to know?” she asked.
Fredrik looked up, his lips pursed playfully. “It involves skin. Lots and lots of skin.”
Rori groaned. “Well, I’m glad someone’s enjoying it.”
“Are you kidding?” Fredrik said. “I’m tagging myself in all of the pictures so they’ll show up on my feed and I can save them to my hard drive.”
Rori squinted at that. “Since when do you like looking at women?”
“Oh, honey, there are no women in these pictures. Only fine, fine men.”
“What?” Rori said lunging forward. “Let me see that?”
Raoul slapped Fredrik’s arm. “You had to open your little mouth, didn’t you?”
“Don’t worry,” he said handing the phone over to Rori. “I already tagged them all. We can all bring them up on our phones now.”
It was almost comical how quickly four different phones came up as Rori took her phone from Fredrik. On the screen was the last picture Fredrik had tagged himself in. It showed Mike mid-jump, his arm extended to let a basketball roll off his fingertips and into the hoop above him.
“Holy…” she said, but didn’t complete the thought. She’d seen his amazing arms before, but not his chest. Not those abs.
“Are you sure he’s straight?” Damien asked, scrolling through the pictures on his phone. “He’s built like he’s fabulous.”
“Straight,” Rori said somewhat territorially as she moved to the next picture. “Dios mio.”
“I’ll second that,” Fredrik said. “Honey, if you don’t take this man to bed when he comes, it’s a crime against nature.”
“God, I hate those straight-man shorts,” Raoul said. “I can’t tell what he’s got under there.”
“I have it on good authority that he’s favorably endowed,” Rori said, recalling her day with Sydney.
“Mmmm,” Rori wasn’t sure who made the sound or if all of them did.
“Well, silver lining here,” Fredrik said. “He’s not having a big ol’ orgy tonight.”
“Such a shame,” Damien pouted before Fredrick gave his arm a swat.
“Rori here doesn’t want him hooking up before he gets here, otherwise she might not have a shot at him.”
“Oh, sorry,” Damien said. “You totally need to bring him out when he comes, by the way. He can be my eye porn for that night.”
“If we have time, sure,” Rori said. “We might be otherwise occupied, though.”
Fredrik grinned at her and offered her a high five. “That’s my girl.”
Chapter 45
September
At last. Rori didn’t want to confess that she had been counting the days until Mike got on a flight in S
alt Lake that would drop him off in New York, but she had been. Just like she’d counted the hours of his flight and obsessed over getting a town car there in time. A town car that seemed to be taking it’s time delivering the man to her doorstep.
She should have just picked Mike up at the airport herself. It would have saved her half a day of staring at the clock and drying her hands on her pants. So gross. But nerves were nerves, and as rational as she tried to be about his visit, her body had its own agenda. It hadn’t wanted to send a car to pick him up while she stayed at the school and taught. It had wanted to show up with the car and used the drive back to the museum to acquaint herself with his body.
But civilized people didn’t do that. And people in New York didn’t go pick up visitors at the airport. They sent cars. It was a very New York thing to do. Respectful and thoughtful without coming across as an anxious girlfriend who couldn’t stand to wait one second longer than necessary to see her man.
Yes, Rori was planning on sleeping with Mike, but she still had to maintain some boundaries to avoid sending the wrong signals. She couldn’t forget that in the end she would be with Anton. Mike Cannon was just her last hurrah before settling down… or he would be if he ever got there. He’d landed over two hours ago. Rori knew. She’d been checking the updates religiously.
Two hours. That was more than enough time to find the town car and get into the city from JFK. He’d even mentioned that he was FedExing his equipment and only bringing a carryon so there was no reason for him to be caught up with any luggage issues.
So, again, where the hell was he?
An hour of drawing time remained and most of the students were focusing in the details of their sketches. The model’s generous breasts, flared hips, and flawless skin made her an good subject. What made her a great model was the self awareness and self love so apparent in her shameless eyes. She knew she didn’t have the body shape that was considered sexy by glamour magazines. And she clearly did not give a shit. The glint in her eye all but said, Find every flaw you want. It doesn’t change the fact that I can make you see God anytime I feel like it.
The best models were always the ones who loved their bodies. Angelica was one of those rare few who fit in that category.
Rori made another round to observe the progress of the students. No one merited interruption. Like any artist with a willing muse, they were focused on depicting what had caught their attention. Some were focused in on one body part, others concentrating on the holistic impression of the woman. One of her favorite students had focused in on the soft slope of Angelica’s generous hips and curvy thighs in an angled profile. It maintained pure modesty while also capturing the unabashed sensuality of the woman.
“Excellent,” she murmured as she saw the student add the last shading details. This student had an obvious gift with realism but a passion for the abstract. His in-class work was phenomenal, but his original works ignored the skill he had honed and had frustrated, angry auras about them. Yet another tortured artist. Brilliance anchored by emotional torment. The combination was so common, it was a cliché.
Moving to the next student, Rori fought the urge to frown. Impassive. That’s what she needed to be. Just like she was with Mike.
Where was the idiot? He had no excuse to be lost and she knew he and the driver had found each other, since that was the last time he’d texted her.
Two hours ago.
She should just leave the class and get to the bottom of everything. It was where her head was at anyway. Her students wouldn’t care. Fredrik wouldn’t care. She was the only one who cared, which was the exact reason Rori had to stay right where she was and see the class through to the end.
Because if she didn’t, everyone would know she cared. And that would be bad, indeed.
.
Chapter 46
It had taken Mike an hour to make it past the lobby. The exhibit space was ideal for Mike’s particular style of capturing events. The open, airy gallery had very few natural obstructions and presented the issue of offering him too many options, rather than too few.
Seven cameras would probably work best, though. Five fixed, one on a track, and one handheld with him that he could use to roam around. He was supposed to check with Fredrik about where he could set up his monitor feed so it wouldn’t distract from the event. But Mike didn’t see how that would be a problem, since he could make anywhere in the building work. Even a linen closet.
He would place the first stationary camera at the entrance where it could capture the mood of each attendee as they arrived and departed. High and angled would be perfect. The next camera—
“Can I help you?” a female voice called out from behind Mike. He turned to see a platinum blonde with a pixie cut striding his way with purpose. She was his age, maybe a little older, but definitely more stylish.
Mike sent her a broad smile and held out his hand. “I’m Mike. I’m the videographer for Friday’s event. Just here to case out the logistics.”
She didn’t take his hand. “Who let you in? The exhibit is closed to visitors during the transition.”
“Sorry. I wasn’t aware of that. I was just on my way to meet up with Rori when I saw the space and just kind of showed myself in.”
“Right,” she said. “You just figured no one would care that you were alone in a room full of millions of dollars of art without any supervision.”
“Well, when you put it like that,” Mike drawled, taking a second look at the art around him. Millions of dollars? Really?
“You think it’s overpriced,” she accused.
Mike shrugged. “I think art is worth what people will pay for it. That’ll always be the name of the game, right?”
She gave a small nod. “So, you call her Rori, huh?”
The quick change in subject caught Mike off guard. “Well, it’s her name.”
“No, her name is Aurora. Everyone that I’ve ever heard calls her that. Except you and Fredrik.”
He wasn’t quite sure what to say to that.
“Is she your girlfriend?”
“I, uh, no.”
“But you want her to be,” she amended. “That’s why you’re here under the ruse of filming. As an excuse to get close and get in her good graces.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
“I would,” the woman said, her New York gaze assessing him anew. “Hmmm. Interesting.”
Mike didn’t dare ask this what exactly she found interesting lest he fall into some other invisible verbal trap.
“So, to impress her, you’re going to wander around during her event and annoy guests with stupid questions so you can capture them on film?”
“Well, not exactly—”
“Because, as a heads up, 95% of the people who will becoming wouldn’t know Aurora Townsend if they passed her on the street. They’ll just be here because it will be one of the ‘it’ things to do that night and they want to appear on the social page or a fashion blog.”
“Well, if I do my job right very few people will take notice of me. I’m thinking of using seven cameras for the occasion, most of which would be overhead and out of sight of all the guests. I would be able to control them by remote and then take a handheld through the crowd during busy pushes and capture candid chatter and reactions.”
Chloe’s eyes narrowed. “Seven?”
Mike nodded. “I think that should be enough.”
She chewed her bottom lip lightly. “With monitor feeds for each one?”
“Yeah.”
She watched him for another beat, then stuck out her hand. “I’m Chloe, by the way. And I guess I should do my job and help you find Fredrik.”
Mike took her hand. Man, the woman had a grip. “Thanks, Chloe.”
“Don’t thank me yet. Talking a big game and delivering a good game are two different things. I minored in film in college. I just want to see what you can pull off in the name of impressing Rori.”
Mike made the mental note to call Rori “Aurora”
in professional circles. “You have a great space here, so I don’t see why I shouldn’t be able to pull off something marketable.”
Chloe smirked at him over her shoulder as she started away and didn’t offer an answer. Mike had no idea what she was thinking, but he was pretty sure that he had just set something in motion.
One minute after Chloe disappeared a man Mike recognized from Rori’s pictures on Facebook appeared.
“Well, here you are in the flesh,” he gushed, holding out his hand. “I’m Fredrik.”
Mike shook his hand. “Mike. Thanks for having me.”
“Of course. Did Chloe show you around?”
He sent her a smile. “We didn’t get that far. She found me showing myself around.”
“Oh, we can’t have that,” Fredrik said. “Let me show you the space. Personal tour.”
“That’d be great. Thank you.”
Chapter 47
When Rori finally tracked Mike down he was literally in the rafters with Fredrik holding a ladder for him.
“Ah, so you did make it here,” she said, trying to keep the annoyance out of her voice.
Mike’s face popped into view above her. “Hi, there. Yep. I got here. Fredrik was just letting check out anchor points.”
“Oh. Sounds fun.”
Fredrik wiggled his eyebrows and kept his voice soft when he added, “He’s gone up and down this ladder six times already.”
Rori rolled her eyes. “Well, let me know when you want to break for dinner. My treat.”
“Oh, Fredrik invited us both to his place,” Mike said.
“He did?” Rori said, sending Fredrik a narrow look.
Fredrik didn’t even try to apologize. “The food will be fabulous, won’t it, Rori? You’ve been to our soirees.”
“Yes,” she said, her smile plastic. “Excellent food.”
“Great,” Mike beamed. “I’ll just keep poking around for camera spots until then.”
“Great,” Rori echoed, hoping she sounded sincere. “I’ll finish up with some stuff upstairs.”
Mr Imperfect Page 22