Theo
THEO
Leaning against the wall, blew out another cloud of smoke. The sounds of the street echoed down the alleyway, shadows of people walking on the sidewalk stretching across the trash-littered ground. Closing his eyes, he listened to the sounds of the city echoing between the brick walls. It was soothing, starkly contrasting the maddening silence of the expansive house he’d grown up in. The sound of so many people going about their lives, laughing, talking, sometimes arguing, as they passed so close to him, always left him with a sense of peace.
It certainly took the edge off what he knew was waiting behind the door to his left. had known the day was coming, Wednesday sticking out on his phone’s calendar like an accusation. He hated the preparation before a show and being paraded around like a show pony during the whole thing.
The door opened with a harsh squawk, and his cousin stepped out onto the stoop. Her blond hair fell around her shoulders in a thick sheaf, but it didn’t block the frown that darkened her green eyes.
“, what are you doing?” she asked, staring down at him.
didn’t open his eyes. “Hiding.”
Blair huffed. “I did not arrange this show for you to hide.”
“The show isn’t for three hours, Blair.”
“Yes, and if you don’t get in here to look over everything, Emily will have a panic attack.”
“And they say artists are divas.”
“This from the man standing in a dirty alley rather than coming inside and talking to the lovely woman who’s helping to put your work on display.”
grimaced, flicking the cigarette to the ground with a huff. “And why does she need my input?”
“Because she wants to ensure everything is to your liking.”
“If that were the case, I wouldn’t be here. I don’t care how she displays them. She can strap them to deer carcasses for all I care.”
Blair smirked. “That would certainly draw attention. But I think you should save that for the more uh...bohemian sorts.”
“Just say poor people who like art. It’s more honest,” said, looking up at her.
Blair gave him an unimpressed look. “I’ll leave being rude to you.”
“Honest.”
“Call it what you want, but you’re still getting your ass in this building and helping my friend find some peace of mind.”
wrinkled his nose. “And what about my peace of mind?”
“Your peace of mind comes when you get commissions and sales at the end of the night. Now get in here.”
She looked at him with narrowed eyes, and he sighed, following her into the gallery. Blair Atkins was a short, waif of a woman but wielded a personality with all the force of a bomb when needed. It was probably the only reason the rest of their family hadn’t distanced themselves from her because of her association with . She also dealt with the family finances, which gave her a lot of weight to throw around.
He followed her into the main room. Like every other gallery he’d been to, it was a large room with full and half partitions for hanging paintings. Every place meant for a painting also came with a placard so the name of the work, handwritten in delicate text, could be slipped inside. Half of the paintings he’d chosen for the show were already up, their brilliance exposed by the bright lights. When the show started, the ceiling lights would be dimmed, and the display lights over each painting would be flipped on instead.
“Emily?” Blair called out, glancing over her shoulder to make sure was still there.
The tall brunette bustled into the room, her hands clutching a tablet. Emily’s eyes widened when she saw , sagging with relief. cocked a brow at her but said nothing as she hurried over.
Geez, Blair hadn’t been kidding about the panic attack.
“Oh, thank God you found him, Blair,” Emily said hastily, turning to . “I need your opinion on the backdrop I chose for the Gutter series.”
“It...honestly doesn’t matter to me,” began, shutting up when Blair glared at him over Emily’s shoulder.
Emily’s eyes widened. “But it does matter. It has to fit the theme you were going for. And while I simply adore your work, utterly adore, it has to fit your vision. Otherwise, the whole thing will be a total mess.”
She spoke so rapidly and earnestly in her despair that could only nod as though he pretended to agree. Blair winked at him before walking off, heels clacking on the wood floor as she left them to it.
was all but dragged over to another full partition, where three of his paintings had already been hung. Emily had insisted that they choose a color palette or wallpaper for each section of the collection that was hung according to theme. He wasn’t quite sure how she managed it, but apparently, the woman had a whole host of temporary sheets that could be applied to the smooth walls to give them the appearance of being painted or adorned with wallpaper.
Emily pulled the tablet up and opened it, displaying various colors and patterns. “I had thought to go with charcoal gray, as it fits the somber backgrounds and despairing quality, but I couldn’t help but wonder if something softer would do it more justice.”
“Softer?” asked.
“Yes, an eggshell blue perhaps, or lavender. I had considered canary yellow, but that seemed too great a contrast. But I thought perhaps something a little lighter would draw more attention to the dark tones you used.”
blinked. “I can see what you’re aiming at. That’s a good idea.”
She beamed as though he’d just presented her with a long-lost family heirloom she’d searched her whole life for. watched as she tapped away, showing a few selections of colors and babbling the entire time. He quickly realized she didn’t want him to pick anything so much as agree for her own peace of mind.
That one partition was not the end. It turned out there were even more sections she wanted his opinion on. had to give the woman credit begrudgingly. She was definitely dedicated and driven. Yet, as she drew him to yet another display setup, he couldn’t help but think she was a little too driven.
By the time it was done, he was left standing in the middle of the room, dazed and wishing he could have a drink. Emily had practically skipped away after checking, double-checking, and then triple-checking to make sure everything would be perfect.
Blair strode back into view, stepping around a partition. “Have fun?”
scowled at her. “That was more work than creating the damn things.”
Blair chuckled. “She’s very good at what she does. That’s precisely why I picked her.”
rolled his eyes. “You picked her because you knew Miss High Society Gallery Director would make a big fuss.”
“And look at all the attention and money you’ll end up with.”
“I have attention and money.”
Which was true. Okay, maybe he didn’t have a lot of money, but he had more than enough to sustain his lifestyle. He’d been on his own when he walked away from his family, and he’d had a couple of years’ practice living on his own, so he was doing well for himself.
Blair looked at him knowingly. “And you’re saying you couldn’t do with more of either?”
True, attention led to money, and money meant his expenses would be an easier weight to bear. It didn’t change the fact that he hated every minute of dealing with the public regarding his work. If they wanted a commission or to buy a print, by all means, he had a system set up that worked just fine.
“I’m saying I hate pimping myself out like a whore,” grumbled.
“Ah, yes, but unless you want to suffer in obscurity and aim for the whole starving artist trope, then perhaps you should suck it up and deal with it.”
eyed her suspiciously. “And just what do you get out of this?”
Blair frowned. “What, helping my favorite cousin isn’t enough?”
“Yeah, I’m going back to my nickname for your director friend. We both know that word of this will get back to the family,” said.
“And?”
“And we both know that you delight in sticking it to them in the best ways.”
had to give Blair credit, the look of innocence on her face was believable. The only thing that gave her away was the slightest jerk of her eyes to the left. Only those who knew Blair would have caught the little tell.
“Uh-huh,” grunted.
“Oh, it’ll be fine,” Blair said, waving him off.
“Uh-huh.”
Blair’s nostrils flared. “And so what if they do hear? Would that be so bad?”
“You’re the one who has to deal with the fallout, not me. I fucked off from the family for a reason,” grumbled.
“Well, I’m banking on them hearing. And I chose Emily because I knew she’d give the best presentation of your work. Which your work deserves, I might add. And I hope the news spreads through every circle, and your mother gets to hear every word of it. And I hope every bit of praise and commendation sticks right in her craw.”
cocked his head, staring at her. “Where did that come from?”
Blair’s features schooled into a pleasant smile. “The same place as when I told your mother that cutting you out of the family was the most foolish thing she could have done.”
“You...told her that?” asked slowly.
“There were a few other statements thrown in there, but that was the summation of what I said, yes.”
“Uh,” began, not sure how to continue.
He and Blair had always been close, even from a young age. There was only a year between them, and since their mothers were close, he and Blair had seen a lot of each other growing up. Despite the fact that Blair took to the lessons of their family, right down to the rules of propriety and dignity, she had been the only one in their family who had never given him shit for what he did.
When he got his first tattoo at the tender age of sixteen, a black hole sucking in a whirling mass of colors, she’d proclaimed it fascinating and well done. His mother had called it an atrocity to his fair skin and demanded to know the artist. Probably to run him out of town and leave him penniless. When he’d had three rings in his ear at eighteen, Blair had called it chic and teased him, wondering why he hadn’t covered his whole ear. His mother, however, had refused to speak to him every time she saw the piercings.
Those were only two moments out of dozens where Blair had supported him without doubt or hesitation. Yet they had been private moments. Never once, not in ’s sight anyway, had he ever seen her say a word against someone in the family when it came to him. Then again, he had to remember she had never been in as strong a position as she was now.
His throat felt thick. “Thank you.”
Blair winked at him. “Don’t start getting emotional on me, . Lord knows Emily is doing that enough for both of us.”
“And then some,” muttered, turning his face from her before she could see his burning cheeks.
“Why do you keep doing that?” she asked.
jerked his head back toward her. “Doing what?”
“You keep running your tongue piercing over your lips.”
He hadn’t even realized he’d been doing it. The realization made him laugh.
“Ah, well, you see. I might have had an interesting visit to the hospital on Friday.”
Blair looked at him warily. “Do I even want to know?”
grinned. “Let’s just say that a tongue piercing and a dick piercing are not a good combination.”
“Oh God, ,” she groaned.
“What? It’s never happened before! I didn’t even think about it till my tongue was stuck.”
“I really don’t want the details, , please. I love you, but I don’t need to hear the details of your sex life.”
“Pfft, that was ruined the minute my tongue got stuck. Still can’t tell if my tongue has recovered or not.”
Blair sighed. “Poor you.”
“Exactly! I was traumatized by the entire thing, and you’re moaning about a few details.”
“I pity the man you were stuck to and whoever helped free you at the hospital,” Blair said as she pinched the bridge of her nose.
stepped closer, hooking his arm around her elbow. “Oh, if you think that’s bad, wait till I tell you about my conversation over coffee afterward.”
“Oh, who did you scar?” she asked knowingly.
He regaled the story as they walked toward the front of the building and outside. True to her expectations, he left no details out and was emphatic about how ‘daddy’ the doctor had been. And just as he expected, she tried desperately not to laugh but inevitably lost.
“You cannot be taken anywhere,” she said around her chuckles.
“You can dress me up, but that won’t change a thing,” he agreed.
She looked at him speculatively. “Speaking of?—”
“Don’t even think about it. I’m not dressing up.”
“It wouldn’t hurt.”
“Not you, maybe. I’m not spending the night choking around a suit while playing nice with all the high society people. It’s not happening, Blair.”
“It’s not like I’m asking you to remove your piercings or...well, maybe we can do something with your hair.”
rolled his eyes. “I’m shearing it short, so no, you’re not doing anything with my hair.”
“I’m not going to win this argument, am I?”
“You won the last round. I’m not backing down on this one.”
She patted his arm as they walked. “Fair enough. Now tell me about this cute doctor of yours.”
“I just did.”
“This would be the first guy you brought up that didn’t end up with you sleeping with them. Color me intrigued.”
“Only because he said no!”
“Yet he acted like a bashful schoolboy when you flirted with him. Which means he wanted to.”
“So?”
Her grin was devilish. “And that makes him so much more interesting.”