22. The Art of Stealing Hearts
22
The Art of Stealing Hearts
C ake tasting was just the thing Nicole needed to forget about her troubles. The company she was with also helped distract her from William too. She, Nessa, and Spencer were at New Horizon, trying out different cake flavors for Nessa’s party. It was a matter of three weeks away. After the cake tasting, they’ll meet the vendors set to be a part of the magical event.
Nicole finished her last of the sherbet cake sample and sighed. “It was delicious, but it was a little plain. Doesn’t feel like a birthday cake to me.”
Nessa licked the frosting off her fork, used on the cake in front of her. “What about this one? I think I could eat a sheet of it.”
“Let’s hope you don’t,” Spencer replied.
Nicole picked up a piece of the banana split cake and tried it. The sweetness of bananas, chocolate, and the crunch of the wafers exploded on her tongue. “This is it,” she exclaimed, looking at Nessa. “I think your guests are going to love it. Good taste.”
“Let me be the judge of that.” Spencer motioned for Nicole to pass him the cake, but Nicole wouldn’t risk dropping it.
She stabbed a bit of it with her fork and offered it to him. He opened his mouth, and she fed him the piece, the intimacy of the moment not lost on her. She’d done it at every one of her weddings. Not one of them felt as comfortable or natural as with Spencer.
His eyes widened. Nodding as he swallowed.
Nicole laughed. She took the fork out of his mouth and set it on the plate. “Was that a yes?”
“It tastes like heaven. Of course, it’s a yes.”
“Told you,” Nessa said. “It’s the best.”
“Then it’s settled. The banana split is the winner. Now that the hard part is done, time for the easy stuff.”
Nicole scheduled for several artists to meet with Nessa and Spencer at the venue. Since the party would have art stations, Nicole thought having local artists who specialized in each station’s theme would make it more special.
They met with the artist who would teach the kids how to make pottery, the two who would lead the drawing lessons, and the last who would instruct the children how to paint. All the artists were friendly and passionate about their craft. Nessa seemed excited to meet all of them, but most excited for the portrait drawing instructor, Emma, who showed her some tricks on how to draw people.
“All the people I draw are stick figures. How do you draw portraits?” she asked, her sketchbook open, ready to mirror whatever Emma did to her own.
“It takes lots and lots of practice. You can’t expect yourself to become an expert overnight. In the beginning, you have to take small steps. Like when you learn how to ride a bike. You start slow, then the better you get, the faster you go. And if you mess up, that’s okay. Because you know just by doing it, you’re getting better. A good exercise would be to try drawing people in your life, it will give you practice. Then, once you’re ready, you can draw the most important person in your life. ”
“So one day I’ll be able to draw my mom?”
“If you work hard enough, then yeah, you can.”
Emma begun drawing slowly so Nessa could follow along and learn. Their pencils were moving along on their notepads when Spencer and Nicole ducked out of the room. They meandered from room to room, settling inside one studio.
Nicole watched him closely, looking for signs of distress from Nessa mentioning her mom. He avoided her eyes, watching his shoes, his hands inside his pockets. “I’m sure the mention of her hurt,” Nicole began. “But you can’t let it.”
“I would never want Nessa to stop loving her mom or forget about her. I want her to love with her whole little heart. I’m just afraid it’ll get broken again and this time, it’ll be my fault because I could’ve prevented it and didn’t.”
“Have you spoken to your sister?”
“No. She’s left me more voice messages. The same stuff. She wants to see her and me, make things right. I want to believe her. I really do, but she’s tried this before and failed. How many chances can you give someone before pulling the line and saying that’s enough?”
Nicole gave him a small smile, understanding him more than he thought. “It’s not the same thing, but Maya’s father was a gambling addict. He was always after the next score, thinking the next one could set us up for life. I forgave him when he would blow through his paycheck or would leave me alone on nights to care for our daughter. Looking back, it gave me good practice for when he finally left us for good,” she added with a hollow laugh. “The point is, I enabled him longer than I should have because I didn’t want to see the truth of our situation. He never thought he was going to win the big one. Or get us set for life. It was an excuse for him to relive his youth that parenthood and marriage stole from him. He never intended on making it work with me. I was his mistake. And I’m still paying for it.”
“So you think I shouldn’t give her another chance because I’ll regret it?”
“No. That’s not what I’m saying. If I had a chance to redo things with Kyle, I wouldn’t. I would still give Kyle a chance and live in delusional bliss for a few years longer than jumping ahead to the misery. At least then we got time to be a family, no matter how false it was.”
“But is a couple of years of happiness worth the heartbreak that came afterward?”
“If I had pushed Kyle away in the beginning, he would have left me and Maya sooner. There’s heartbreak regardless, Spencer, if you decide to keep Nessa from her mom. She’s devastated at being kept away from her daughter. Nessa hurts from not having known her mom. And you agonize over your decision to keep two women you love apart. Yes, your sister could hurt Nessa if given the chance. Giving her an opportunity to make things right could open up a world of hurt, but it could also heal you from the misery you’re already living in.”
Spencer nodded, but Nicole had a feeling her advice didn’t sit well with him, but she was happy she was honest with him. “And here I thought you were supposed to help me plan a kickass party. Not help me fix my life,” he half-joked, bringing the mood up.
“I’m a woman of many talents.”
“Okay, Iyanla,” he said, grinning at her. Mentally, Nicole padded herself on the back for bringing that smile back to his face. She wanted him to never lose it.
“How is everything on your end? That guy hasn’t sent you anymore threats, has he?”
Nicole’s own smile dipped upon hearing about William. “Luckily, no, but he’s always at the back of my mind now. It’s hard to anticipate his next move when he moves with no rhyme or reason. ”
“Could he have ended his crusade?”
“I doubt it. He’s probably in a cave, planning his next attack like an evil Batman.”
“Batman is already pretty morally grey,” Spencer corrected.
“But he’s not a bad guy like William. Batman goes after criminals—”
“Like yourself?”
Nicole furrowed her eyebrows, her expression matching her state of mind. Where was this sudden defense of William coming from? “I thought you didn’t care about that?”
“I don’t. All I’m saying is it seems like this guy does. He might think he’s doing the right thing, no matter how misguided he is. Every one paints themselves as the hero of their own story and casts someone else as the villain. You’re William’s villain. He’s yours.”
That didn’t sit well with Nicole. William was a monster. His methods of payback against her far surpassed what she had done to him. Pretending to love him and tempting him into cheating was one thing. Stalking her daughter and sending her threatening notes was different.
“I gave you a hard dose of reality and now you’re giving me some of your own? Is that what this is?”
“I don’t agree with what he’s done—”
“Then why are you defending him so hard? Do you think he’s justified in doing this to me because I screwed him over first? I’ll be the first one to tell you I’m far from a victim, but his actions are downright vile. He wants to ruin me, Spencer. If you’re trying to get me to see him as a man and not a monster, then you’re failing. Miserably.”
Nicole turned on her heel, ready to forget this conversation ever happened. A tug at her hand brought her back. “Wait, I’m not defending him, okay? I’m sorry for giving you that impression.”
“Then what were you doing? ”
“I don’t know,” he sighed. He ran his hand over his fade, his face revealing how exhausted he was. “I guess I was looking for rationality in how someone could do something like this. But that’s not fair to you and it’s not what you need to hear right now. Nicole, I’m sorry. I’m on your side. I’m sorry for making you doubt that for even a second. You won’t ever have to doubt that again.”
Her eyes softened. She squeezed his hand, appreciating him realizing he hurt her and fixing it. That’s all she could ask from somebody. “I’m sorry too, for jumping to conclusions. It’s not easy for me to trust people. I’m always thinking of ways someone can screw me over. The result of being burned too many times.”
“That’s something I’ll have to get used to. Not being one of those people.”
Nicole couldn’t stop her lips from forming a smile. “You’re off to a good start.”
“I want to be off to a better one. I want to do something for you. Something to give you some peace of mind.”
“I’m listening.”
“Have you thought about installing security cameras in your home and office?”
“I bought some before this William situation happened. I didn’t bother to have them installed because I never thought I would need them.”
“Do you still have the box?”
“Yeah, they’re at my place. Why?”
“Let me install them for you.”
“You know how to install security cameras?”
“Yeah. My father taught me everything I needed to know.”
“You’re serious?”
“Why not? If it’ll prevent you from worrying all the time, I want to do it. I can even install some at your daughter’s place. ”
“She stays with her girlfriend and her girlfriend’s father. They have the security cameras covered.”
“So that leaves just you.” Spencer took a step closer, his voice low and smooth. “Let me help make sure you’re safe.”
Nicole swallowed the lump in her throat, her heartbeat picking up speed. A man hadn’t had this kind of effect on her since Kyle. It had become a foreign feeling, not known to her since she was a teenager. Becoming reacquainted with it through Spencer both terrified her and excited her. She’d been alone long enough.
“Okay. I’ll let you help me. When could you come by?”
“Nessa is spending the weekend at a sleepover at Cindy’s. I can swing by your place around 3 p.m. tomorrow, then we can head by your office if that sounds good to you.”
Nicole’s mind was swimming. The idea of spending almost an entire Saturday alone with Spencer in her home made her dizzy with anticipation. “Perfect.”