As I stood in the middle of the very bougie gallery, I tried to keep my focus on the patrons who were admiring and purchasing my work. But every single time I tried I found my eyes scanning the crowd until they landed on a certain gorgeous redhead.
When I first saw her in the loft before the show wearing that black dress with her hair all loose and curly, I forgot about the goddamn art show all together. Instead of being on time to one of the most important nights of my career, I ended up setting Jamie on the edge of the dining room table, pulling up the bottom of that black dress and making love to her.
Even though we ended up being a little bit late, the show went surprisingly well so far. A few people have already started purchasing some of my paintings and my boss seemed very impressed with my collection.
It was all working out. Even more so that Jamie was here to share this night with me. God, she was doing so much better than that first day I saw her in the warehouse. Not only was she confiding in me and talking about her mom, but she told me that she called Harper yesterday and spoke to her and Jackson for a little while. This was good. Really good. And I was praying it only got better.
"Hey there, successful painter," she said as she sauntered over to me. She wrapped her arms around my waist and beamed up at me.
I stroked her bottom lip with my thumb. "Hey, beautiful."
"Congratulations, Atticus. This show is amazing. Just like you're work."
Well didn't that make a man's pride swell. "Thanks. Honestly, I couldn't have done it without you."
Her smile was playful. "Yeah, you're right."
I leaned down to capture her mouth in deep, soft kiss. Not caring who was watching us, I put everything I was feeling into it. Love. Trust. Gratitude. And she returned the kiss with equal fervor.
When we pulled apart Jamie's eyes studied mine. "Don't look at me like that," she breathed.
"Why not?"
"Because we can't do that here."
Dropping my lips to her neck, I whispered in her ear, "Tonight then. All night long. I'm going to spend hours tasting you, beautiful." Her breath hitched and I continued. "Hours making love to you. Feeling you come all over my dick while I'm inside you." Her head fell back a little and I sucked at her neck. "I'm going to lose myself inside you, Guinevere. Especially when you call me—"
"Atticus?"
My head shot up when I heard someone who wasn't Jamie call my name. Fuck. It took both of us a second to register what we were seeing. I straightened and Jamie turned around to face them.
"Ollie, who is that?"
There was an odd tone in Jamie's voice. Like she already knew the answer to her own question. "That's my mother."
"Your mother?"
"Yep."
My mom was all smiles as she crossed the gallery with my dad by her side. What the hell were they doing here?
I opened my arms to give both of my parents a hug. "What—I mean...how?"
My mom laughed before glancing to my dad. "It wasn't easy keeping it from you, Atticus. But we wanted it to be a surprise."
"Oh, I'm definitely surprised," I mumbled. "I told you guys not to come out here for this. It's so far."
My dad shook his head. "We wouldn't miss this, Ollie. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity."
Suddenly Jamie's hand gripped mine and I realized that my mom was studying her intently. Shit. I really hoped this didn't lead to a freak out. Not when things were going so good.
My mom's eyes flicked to me briefly. "Atticus, please tell us who your lovely date is."
I grimaced at my mom's tone. Yes, she was genuinely curious, but her tone also implied she caught me and Jamie kissing. Shit. She was going to have questions I couldn't answer.
"Mom, this is Jamie. Jamie, these are my parents, Celeste and Charles."
Jamie smiled and stuck out her hand. "It's, uh, a pleasure to meet you guys."
After the awkward exchange of handshakes, Jamie looked up at me with a I-need-air look. "If you guys excuse me, I'm going to get some champagne."
As she started off, a flicker of panic went through me and I reached for her hand to stop her. I didn't say anything. With my parents there I couldn't. But Jamie knew what I was worried about.
"I'll be right back," she said softly, promising me with her eyes that she wasn't taking off.
Thank God.
Now that I was alone with my parents, my dad cast me a pitiful look. "I'm going to get us some drinks. You two catch up."
Great, now he was gone, too. When I looked at my mom she nodded her head in the direction of one of my paintings before walking towards it. Following her, I tried to think of how to explain all this.
"Well, Atticus, are you going to tell me or do I need to ask?"
Oh, she didn't need to ask. My mom was pretty damn smart and I knew exactly what she meant. "Yes, mom. She's the girl from New York I told you about."
"Why didn't you tell me she was here? That you guys were together?"
Jesus. These were the fucking questions I couldn't answer. "We aren't together, mom. Look it's complicated and I can't really explain it. We're just..spending time together."
The arched brow my mom was sporting said my words were bullshit. "You're either lying to your mother's face or you're afraid to admit the truth."
I was starting to get a migraine. "I'm not afraid of anything, mom."
"So you told her that you're in love with her?"
"Another champagne, please."
Standing at the open bar, I tapped the counter anxiously as I waited. Holy shit balls. Tonight started out amazingly. The way Ollie reacted when he saw me in my dress was even better than that.
And the show...He really was talented. So many people already bought most of his work and even inquired about private jobs from him. Then as he was promising me all the delicious things he was going to do to me tonight, his parents showed up.
His parents. For a split second, I wanted to slap him for setting me up to meet them. Then I saw the pure look of shock and surprise on his face. He had no idea they were coming. He was just as thrown off by all of this as I was.
I honestly felt a little bad that I fled that little encounter. Even more so when Ollie reached for my hand to stop me. God, the panic in his eyes was like a knife to my heart. He was terrified I might take off. So I promised him I wouldn't. And I was going to keep that promise.
"Here you go, miss."
"Thanks." I reached for the champagne and downed it. Then asked for another. And I downed that one, too.
Just when I decided to rejoin Ollie and his parents, I heard his mom's voice from the other side of the painting I was standing next to.
"Well, Atticus, are you going to tell me or do I need to ask?"
Ollie's response was automatic. "Yes, mom. She's the girl from New York I told you about."
He told her about me? When? And how much did he dish out?
"Why didn't you tell me she was here? That you guys were together?"
Slight hesitation this time. "We aren't together, mom. Look it's complicated and I can't really explain it. We're just..spending time together."
Well, it was the truth. We didn't know what the hell we were, let alone if we were together.
"You're either lying to your mother's face or you're afraid to admit the truth."
"I'm not afraid of anything, mom."
My chest constricted in warning and my anxiety started to rise. Then she spoke again...
"So you told her that you're in love with her?"
My breath caught just as a hazy memory started to come back to me. It was the night of my mom's birthday; when I had way too much to drink.
"Can you just take me to bed and hold me?"
"Yeah, of course." He scooped me up in his arms and carried me to the bedroom before setting me on the edge of the mattress.
Then like the gentleman he was, he stripped of my shoes and clothes before putting me in one of his shirts. Next thing I knew, we were laying together like we usually did. Me on his chest and his hand buried in my hair.
"I love you, Ollie."
I had no idea where that came from. Probably all the hooch. But I had to admit that it felt right saying it.
As I drifted off to sleep, all I heard from Ollie was one word:
"Ditto."
Reality came crashing back to me and I just stood there, my mouth going dry and my heart racing. If Ollie answered his mom I didn't hear it. Apparently my ears stopped working, also.
Needing some air, I made my way towards the exit of the gallery. I took a few deep breaths as I started pacing up and down the sidewalk.
Oh, my God. Oh. My. God. Ohmygod. I told Ollie I loved him. While I was hammered, apparently. And he said ditto back to me. What was that? Did he say it because he was trying to not make me upset? Or because he did love me and just wasn't ready to say it?
Slow down, Jamie. First I needed to accept the fact that Drunk Jamie was very much in love with Ollie. But I wasn't sure if Sober Jamie was. Or at the very least if she was ready to admit it and accept it. I put my hand to my head as I tried to make sense of it all.
"Jamie?"
Ollie's voice registered, but I was having trouble focusing right now. That was until I felt his warm hands cupping my face. It was like the instant his skin touched mine, time stopped.
"Jamie? Are you okay?" His voice was strong and calm, but his eyes were panicked. "Jesus, I'm so sorry that you were ambushed like that. I swear I had no idea my parents would be here."
Taking another deep breath, I tried to force myself to calm down. Ollie still thought that I was freaking out by his parents being here. I couldn't let him figure out the real reason I was having a mental meltdown.
Not only that, this was a monumental night for him and I wasn't going to let my own anxiety and personal issues ruin it.
"It's okay," I said with a voice that was a little too shaky. "I'm fine, Ollie. I promise."
"You don't seem fine." Those baby blues were filled with such concern. "What can I do?"
Shoring up all the strength I had, I gave him a genuine smile before pressing my lips against his. He was hesitant to kiss me back at first. Almost like he wasn't convinced I was alright. So I deepened the kiss, licking inside his mouth until he was groaning against me.
When I finally pulled away, he had the same heated look in his eyes that I saw whenever he wanted to be inside me. Like, right that instant.
I touched his lips softly with my fingers before meeting his gaze again with a genuine smile. "I promise, Atticus. I'm fine." Stepping back I held out my hand. "Now, let's go back in there. Tonight is your night."
He took my hand with that charming Ollie Lake smile. "Yeah, let's go, beautiful."
***
Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed part 1 of the art show. Part two will be up Friday!
And what do we think about his parents being here? Can't wait for you guys to see what I have planned!
🖤