Chapter 52
Fifty-Two
Two Months Later
Scarlett
23 Years Old
The studio felt so small now that all of Scarlett’s close friends and family were crowding it. Even with the upstairs opened up to allow their guests to wander through the new exhibition she and Kashvi had worked tirelessly on, everyone was downstairs. She had underestimated how long people would linger while looking at children’s artwork before they had seen all they could see and wanted to get to the other portion of the evening. The room seemed calm enough, but she sidled up to Colin and his easel anyway to verify.
“Is it too loud in here? If it’s too loud in here, I can?—”
“I’m fine, Red.” Colin stooped to peck her on the lips, and she smiled before her eyes landed on the canvas he was painting. She quickly schooled her face into something less shocked and tilted her head to the side to try to get a better angle. The new perspective didn’t help, and she still couldn’t make heads or tails of it. “Do you like it?”
“Oh, it’s very… abstract.” Scarlett nodded.
“Dude, she hates it. What even is that?” Carter peered over their shoulders, chuckling.
“It’s Scarlett,” Colin said, seeming unoffended. “I think she’d tell me if she hated it.”
Scarlett took another look at it and leaned into Colin’s side to comfort him as her guilty conscience took over. She didn’t hate it. That much was true. She couldn’t hate it, because Colin had worked so hard on it, and she loved the effort he had made just to make her happy. But she definitely didn’t like it. “You know what? I see it now. My hair is orange, and I’m wearing a red dress, right?”
“It was supposed to be a bra and underwear, but I used too much water, and it started dripping, so I made it a dress,” Colin explained. A lot more than just the dress had dripped, but she kept her mouth shut.
“You were just casually painting her like a French girl in front of everyone?” Kashvi made her way over to them and peered at the picture. “Oh. I see. It wouldn’t even matter if she was fully nude because we wouldn’t be able to tell.” Scarlett shoved her and gave a reprimanding look that said to play nice. Kashvi bowed out with a grin as she made her way across the studio to Varo, where the smile quickly turned flirty. The celibacy record her friend had been keeping for a while had recently been broken given all the explicit eggplant emojis Scarlett had received via text yesterday.
“I think you should stick to lab work,” Carter told Colin with a sympathetic pat on his shoulder before he left to join Kashvi and Varo.
While Scarlett was experienced in pretending artwork was beautiful when it looked like it was made by a five-year-old, other people seemed to be unable to keep their cool when looking at Colin’s array of bleeding blobs. He would have been better off with acrylic paints, but he had been adamant that he wanted to paint with watercolors like she did, even after an entire week of complaining and saying he didn’t want to participate in the free paint she had planned for the evening because he wasn’t any good. She had been pleasantly surprised when he changed his mind, but now she was really hoping that he didn’t genuinely believe he was good at painting. If he did, it would render all his compliments about her pieces null and void given that his artistic taste was less than stellar.
One by one, everyone in the room seemed to decide that Colin’s artwork was the next exhibition piece, and they put down their paintbrushes to make their rounds.
“Good lord, man. What is that?” Braiden peered down at Colin’s painting with Jessie latched onto one of his arms, burying her face into his shoulder to keep from laughing.
“It’s Scarlett, obviously,” Colin said, unfazed as he gestured to something that was supposed to make the resemblance more obvious but did no such thing. The black splotch he had pointed to was leaking down what she assumed was her face. It looked a hell of a lot like tear-streaked mascara or clown makeup until she realized what it was.
“Oh, freckles! They look great, Colin. I like it,” Pearl said, swooping in with a smile before returning to her own easel, where she was painting a bridal bouquet that was nowhere on the abstract side. Scarlett was thankful for Pearl’s interlude between all the bad commentary because Braiden’s smirk of amusement made her want to commit a crime or defend her boyfriend even more. It turned out she didn’t have to because Braiden’s expression quickly fell when Colin spoke again.
“Have you finished the book I gave you yet? For Jessie’s sake, I think you should read it.” Colin dabbed yet another terrifying freckle onto her blob face, and Scarlett had to press her hand into her mouth. This time, she wasn’t in danger of laughing at Colin’s art, but at the stricken look occupying Braiden’s face.
“I read the book.” Braiden sighed.
“What book?” Jessie asked.
“Nothing!” Braiden’s cheeks tinged with pink as he quickly maneuvered himself and Jessie out of the fold.
Colin guilelessly called after them, “I’m told women like it when you tell them you’re reading that!” He turned back to Scarlett. “Right?”
“I definitely like it when you read things like that.” She bit her lip. Last week, she had been made aware of all the sex books Colin had read since they parted ways all those years ago, and like the creatures of habit they were, she pulled out lined paper and a ruler to build a new experiment chart. They had been frequently putting all his new knowledge to the test and recording it, not every time, but enough to remember everything they liked and wanted to return to.
“Think we should hang it up in our living room?” Colin asked, redirecting Scarlett’s attention to his, for lack of a better word, masterpiece. Her heart dropped in her chest. Every painting in their living room had been meticulously chosen by herself and Piper. This not only did not match the uplifting vibe, but she was worried that people would think she had painted it. It was also the only suggestion Colin had made on the interior design of their home thus far, so it being ugly didn’t feel like a good enough reason to not hang it up.
“Oh, um…” Scarlett floundered and widened her eyes in Piper’s direction. Catching the hint, Piper and Leo swiftly came to her aid. “He wants to hang this in our living room. As our decorator, what do you think?”
Leo was the first to speak while Piper stood with her mouth ajar, no doubt thinking this painting was going to be the downfall of their entire design. “They’re both too nice to tell you your painting sucks, but I’m not. It’s really bad, Colin.”
“Leo,” Piper hissed, smacking him in the sternum before fixing her face into a bright smile. “I think it’s wonderful, Colin.”
“Faker.” Leo chuckled, shaking his head.
“Asshole,” Piper shot back.
Colin pulled his eyebrows together. “Is it normal to insult the person you love as much as you two do? Because I really don’t want to start insulting Scarlett.”
Scarlett shook her head and kissed his cheek. “Please don’t. They’re a special brand of weird.”
Leo shrugged and gave Piper a salacious smirk. “Foreplay.”
“I clearly entered this conversation at the wrong time,” a voice said from behind them. Scarlett turned to find that Walker and Talia had joined their group, Walker scowling at Leo, who didn’t seem to care at all that Piper’s uncle was glaring at him and instead brought the back of Piper’s hand up to his lips to kiss it.
“Oh, Colin, that’s so… I can tell you put a lot of effort into it,” Talia said thoughtfully. Walker started up a coughing fit that was clearly to dissuade his laughter.
“Maybe we could hang it in our bedroom?” Scarlett considered.
“Really?” Piper squeaked out.
The more Scarlett looked at it, the more she wanted the monstrosity to hang up somewhere in their home. Not because it was good, but because it was a display of how much Colin loved her. There were numerous black splotches all over her supposed arms and legs, which meant he had taken the time to put every freckle on like the way he kissed them when they were in bed, his hot mouth traversing her body. Her eyes in the painting were overly saturated, and the entire eye was green instead of just her irises, but it just went to show that despite hating eye contact, Colin paid attention. He had even made what she could now see were eyelashes, but he had painted them copper like her hair instead of black like she usually saw in inexperienced paintings.
“You must really love him.” Walker choked on another laugh.
Scarlett bobbed her head and leaned against Colin’s shoulder. “He’s easy to love.”
Colin kissed her fully on the mouth before looking over her shoulder to speak with someone. “Do I tell them now or later?”
Cooper sauntered over to the crowd around Colin’s painting with his two best friends flanking his sides. “Later. Fantastic painting , Colin.”
“Ew! What is that?” Camden pointed and gawked at the painting like it had personally offended him.
Straight-faced, Colin gestured off to Pearl, happily painting her flowers in the corner. “She said she liked it.”
Camden shifted on his feet and cleared his throat. “I think it’s the most beautiful painting I’ve ever seen. It took me a second to see the genius of it all.”
After two months of being with Colin again, Scarlett had been informed on all the family drama, or lack thereof in this case. She had also been around the house enough to catch on quickly to the family dynamics. Pearl was as uninterested in Camden as ever. Cooper pretended that he didn’t notice his best friend liked his sister at all and sidestepped any conversation about it. He also seemed a little too preoccupied by the only girl in their trio, who was currently sporting long goddess braids and a look of disgust.
“It looks like a radioactive orange and red turd is crying black tears,” Jayla scoffed and elbowed Cooper. “Coop and Colin are just screwing with everyone.” Scarlett narrowed her eyes as she looked between Colin and Cooper. Colin’s face gave away nothing, but Cooper’s…
Cooper threw up his hands in aggravation, and Scarlett’s shoulders sagged in relief. The painting wouldn’t have to adorn any of her walls if Colin was just screwing with her. “Jay, what the fuck?” Cooper glared.
“Language!” Walker and Talia shouted at the same time.
“You’re easy to read.” Jayla smirked.
“I’m not as easy to read as you think I am,” Cooper muttered. Scarlett scooted closer to Colin, hiding slightly behind him because, as an honorary Hartrick, she knew Cooper and Jayla’s history, and unlike everyone else who had secrets, she couldn’t keep them from blatantly showing on her face. It was partially why she and Colin worked so well. Out of anyone he knew, she was the easiest for him to read. That, and they had made a pact to answer honestly anytime one of them wanted to know.
“What are you thinking about?” Colin asked her, grinning from ear to ear.
“I’m thinking that I still want this painting, but I want to hang it up in my closet so no one can see it.” Scarlett bit her bottom lip. Colin smiled even wider, and it was all the confirmation she needed. “So you were just fucking with me, then? You don’t legitimately think you’re the next Van Gogh?”
“I don’t legitimately think I’m the next Scarlett Wallace ,” he said sweetly.
The conversation around them had wandered away, bickering more about wasted pranks and inappropriate language for teenagers. The touch of Colin’s hand on the small of her back along with her name said in reverence, as if her art were built for museums and high-end galleries, felt intensely intimate.
She blushed and entwined her fingers with his. “I still like the painting because you knew it would make me happy if you tried, and you tried really hard.”
Colin shrugged. “If you say so. I think it looks like it was painted by a toddler. I bet your painting looks like a masterpiece.”
“Not this again,” Scarlett groaned. For the last two months, Colin had been on her ass about wanting to see the painting he had commissioned, but she had kept it hidden and threatened him with celibacy if he looked at it before it was ready. The painting had been done for weeks, but she couldn’t bring herself to say it was done because there might still be imperfections she could fix before it was too late.
“What’s your normal turnaround time for commissioned pieces? Because this customer service is lackluster at best,” Colin stated, folding his arms over his chest. “I will need the reference photos back at some point.”
She rolled her eyes with a huff. “You told me to take my time! And I normally don’t get commissioned art pieces that make me cry this much.”
He paled a bit. “It made you cry?”
“Yes. Not in a bad way, I just keep thinking of you requesting it and how beautiful the idea is, and then—” She gestured to her eyes, starting to water. “And then I get terrified all over again that I didn’t do well enough.”
“You could never ruin it. I know you’ll do a good job. That’s why I asked you to do it.”
“That’s a lot of pressure and expectation to live up to.”
Colin pulled her into his chest and squeezed. “You know you’re special. You know you’re good at this. You know that I’ll love whatever you came up with.”
Scarlett blew out a breath and let her head rest against his chest. “I just want it to be perfect.”
“Can I please see it?” Colin pleaded. As if they were waiting for the perfect inopportune time to make their grand entrance back into the party, her family members all filed out of her office and made a beeline for her.
“It’s beautiful!” Harper declared as Scarlett removed herself from Colin’s embrace and took her family’s commentary with a light smile and a murmured thank-you.
“It’s your best work to date.” Nora nodded.
Eden hummed. “I agree.”
Uncle Marty reached out to shake Colin’s hand with a firm grip and smiled brightly. “You’re going to love it.”
Scarlett watched as Colin’s expression soured during the handshake, and he jerked his head toward her. “You showed it to them before me?” The hurt look on his face made her wish she hadn’t, but she knew at least Eden and her mom would tell her straight if she needed to redo it. Harper and Marty were solely there to boost her confidence. She wasn’t above getting compliments she knew she would get regardless of if the painting was good. “Why can’t I see it? I don’t understand.”
Scarlett winced and looked at the floor. “I needed to know what they thought before I showed it to you. You like everything I paint. I wanted constructive criticism, and now I know it’s ready.”
Colin brightened a bit. “Then can I see it now?”
She swallowed, nerves turning over her stomach. “Okay.” She lifted her hand, and Colin took it, practically dragging her along to her office, where she had her easel flipped away from the open doorway. He dropped her hand when he reached the easel and moved around the side of it so quickly she thought he might knock it to the floor. When he didn’t and instead stood stock still in front of it, her anxiety ramped up tenfold. She slowly maneuvered to his side and confirmed nothing had happened to the piece since she had set it there before the soft opening of the gallery. Silently, Colin moved back toward the door, and she thought he might walk out completely until he did something much more in character: shut the door, silencing all their family and friends before returning to the easel and once again staring at it.
“Marry me,” Colin said.
“W-what?” Scarlett blinked, her brain rebooting from shock.
“Marry me,” he stated simply. “Or, I guess I should say, ‘Will you marry me?’”
She floundered for a response. “I-isn’t it a bit early for that?”
“Socially, it might be. Do you want to wait so our family and friends don’t look down on us? I’m fine with that.”
“I don’t even—I didn’t realize that this was an option. We just started dating again.” Her voice was coming out all squeaky, but she couldn’t wrap her head around anything he was saying when he hadn’t told her what he thought of the painting. She looked at her artwork again, wondering what exactly had brought this about.
Colin cocked his head to the side. “I’ve been yours for five years. But yes, I suppose you are correct. Is that a no, then?”
Was it? Scarlett’s heart desperately wanted it, but her brain said impulse decisions had gotten her in trouble before, especially with Colin. Her family would be more than shocked if she told them they were getting married so soon after getting back together. The first time she had wanted to make a rash decision and move across the country with him, they had protested it vehemently. She wasn’t sure what their reaction would be to this, but she had a feeling they would think she was foolish, and she had enough of a self-preservation instinct to not want a fight with them again. She also had enough free agency to know what she wanted and take it without any input from her family.
Lifting a finger, Scarlett turned fully toward him. “Tell me what you think of the painting first.”
“The painting makes me want to marry you.” Again, it was so simple, and yet when Colin laid things out so plainly like that, it made her chest ache with affection. She loved his ability to get right to the point.
“But what about it makes you want to marry me?” she pried.
“Did you know they were lab partners after my dad bribed his chemistry teacher to be paired with my mom?” Colin asked. She nodded. “And you know they were each other’s best friend and soulmate?” She nodded again. “I told you to paint them dancing, Scarlett, I didn’t tell you where to paint them. You painted them dancing in the very place my dad proposed at the lookout. It’s the same place that I would want to marry you. And the inscription on the bottom? It’s perfect.” She looked down to where she had inked her signature and written a great soul never dies in neat calligraphy above it, not so big that it overpowered any of the art, but enough to be legible if you were looking for it. “I have everything I want and all the facts I need to know that we’ll last forever because my parents did last forever. I got to see the end of their forever, and they were still in love the day they died. If their souls are still alive, then I imagine that they’re still in love. We already agreed we’re soulmates. You were my lab partner. You’re my best friend. I love you. You paint beautiful things, and I want you to paint the rest of our life together.”
“Okay,” Scarlett choked back her emotion. The beating of her chest was quickened and pounding in her ears like it wanted to rip free to be with her other half. She stepped toward him, and he bent down to press a languid kiss to her lips. “I’ll marry you.” They kissed again, and she added, “in a year. We can be engaged till then and keep it a secret until we’re sure my family won’t lose their shit.”
“Perfect,” he whispered and kissed her one last time. “You know how much I love rules. Does Kashvi get to know like last time?”
“This time, I think it’ll just be our secret. No one else matters.” She grinned.
“Great. Now that that’s settled…” Colin trudged away from her, breaking up their happy bubble the way he did everything: abruptly. He jerked open the door and called out to the packed corner of the studio, “Pearl, come see the gift I got you.”