Chapter Thirty-Five #2
Alex’s mom nods with enthusiasm. “Yep! So my friend Vera lives there. I’ve known her for ages.
We met through a professor of mine back when I was in college.
She was here in Nebraska, setting up an exhibition at a small gallery in Omaha.
It was the very first exhibition that featured any of my paintings.
She and I kept in touch after, though she’s been on the West Coast for the last fifteen years or so.
She runs a huge art collective, manages multiple galleries, puts on events all year round.
And she’s always looking for good, reliable employees.
She’s demanding but fair. I don’t know for sure, but I’d venture that she pays quite well. ”
She glances at Alex, who’s now shoving a huge bite of eggs in his mouth, and he nods, chews quickly, and swallows. “Sounds perfect for you,” he says, nudging me with his elbow.
I frown. Did he already know about this? “I don’t have any experience working with art or art galleries or exhibitions,” I say quietly, but again, his mom just smiles, shaking her head lightly.
“Your job at the library right now—what is it that you do?” she asks.
“Um, I’ve mostly been working on the library’s annual fundraiser.
Sorting through donated books, cataloging them.
Inputting the details into a spreadsheet, assessing damage.
” I pause, and Alex’s mom is nodding gently at me now.
“Filing and organization.” She nods more, and her smile brightens.
“I’ve also helped set up for some of the summer events the library runs, and I did some work on a new display for the children’s books section. ”
“Nico, that is exactly the type of work experience I bet she’d be looking for,” she says. “I mean, I don’t know for sure whether she’s hiring right now, but even if she’s not, she’s got a huge network of artists and other professionals she works with, and I bet she’ll know someone.”
It’s hard to believe it might actually be possible, but I want to believe it. I glance at Alex, and he’s got this incredible smile on his face, his blue eyes lighting up with that same sort of excitement he has when he’s talking about astrophysics and stuff.
“Sounds like a good place to start, right?” he says, and I nod.
This sense of hope inside me is an odd feeling that I’m not entirely used to. But it’s immediately at war with another, not-so-nice feeling—something telling me there’s not a chance in the world for this to work out, but all the chance in the world for me to fail at it and let Alex down.
“If you want, I can give Vera a call,” Alex’s mom suggests.
I blink and look down for a few seconds, trying to get myself to fight against that not-so-nice feeling and agree. “Um . . .”
Alex’s hand settles gently on my upper back, and when I force myself to look up and over at him, he’s got the same encouraging, hopeful expression in his eyes.
“Maybe it’ll work out,” he says softly. There’s a flicker in his eyes of some other emotion, almost pleading. “You can’t know if you don’t give it a chance.”
He’s right. Of course.
His hand slides along my upper back and stops at my shoulder, giving me a light squeeze, and I reach up until my fingers find his. The corners of his lips twitch up into a fuller smile when I nod slightly, and that grin—his gorgeous, kind, heart-stopping grin—brightens up the whole room.
I can’t help but feel his excitement and just enough of his confidence that I nod again and turn back to look at his mom. “Okay, um, yeah. I would really appreciate that, Ms. Hayes.”
She pauses to glance from me to Alex and back, and then she nods and says, “I’ll give her a call later today.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m happy to help. Really.” With another understanding smile and another glance from me to Alex, she stands up and starts clearing the table. “Finish eating, sweetie. You don’t want Nico to be late.”
“Oh, right,” Alex says. He squeezes my shoulder again before letting his hand drop, and then he shoves the last of his waffles into his mouth and swallows as he pushes back his chair. “Ready to go?”
I am. But there’s a lump in my throat now. Because if his mom didn’t know about us before, I’m pretty sure she does now. Like, ninety-five percent sure.
I push my chair back and stand up, and Alex’s hand finds my back as he stands as well. “I’ll clear our dishes and meet you out at the truck?”
“Sure, yeah, thanks,” I reply.
He steps closer and lowers his head slowly, giving me time to back away if I’m not really comfortable kissing him in front of his mom. My cheeks flush with heat, but I nod my consent, and his eyes brighten before he leans in the rest of the way and kisses me softly on the lips.
It’s a brief kiss, and I feel him smile against me as he kisses me a second time. Then he pulls back, grinning. “I’ll just be a minute.”
“’Kay.” I manage to hold myself together, and as Alex gathers our dishes and steps away, I take a breath and head toward the front door. “Thank you for breakfast, Ms. Hayes,” I say when I reach the door.
I glance back over my shoulder and see Alex standing next to her, setting the dishes in the sink.
She’s got her arm around his waist in a half hug, and she releases him and turns around, her eyes glinting with amusement.
“You’re welcome, sweetie,” she says. “Have a great day, and I’ll see you after work. ”
I nod, hold her gaze for another second, and then head out the door to wait for Alex.