Within days, I’d gotten a job and I juggled that with looking after my grandma, but she hated the house now she was alone and wanted a change of scenery, so she moved down with my dad and told me to use her house instead of the apartment.
While Jay bought me out of the apartment, I still stayed there most days as I worked with Sean-Paul and Martine, in their gallery come café.
I was still looking around for my own gallery, but I loved their café and the hustle and bustle of working at Par Excellence. It was gorgeous, with tables along the center of the gallery and low-hanging lighting. Nico the chef was incredible, and his cakes were delectable.
He was a smash with our customers and we started to attract a different type clientele, from the suits who popped in for a coffee and browsed our artists work as they waited, to the art lovers who came in and critiqued local artists, but Nico, Martine, Philip and I made everyone welcome and soon it was a must-visit for people.
We continued to grow and expand and over the next few years, we’d gathered a good collection of art and a steady supply of artists and art dealers who wanted to display with us. I thrived and loved scouting new artists and encouraging them to work with us. I even dated a few, but when it ended it was always mutual and we always ended up as friends afterward.
I ended up buying into the business after finding a few incredible artists and having a keen eye for the business. Sean-Paul, Martine, and I wanted to expand, and we’d been scoping places out around the country and abroad. I had dated but nothing serious and still hung with Jay a lot. He’d given up his art dream to become a police officer after his dad had passed away, and he’d sailed through training.
Now at twenty-four, he had a steady boyfriend, Harold, who was a newly graduated doctor at twenty-seven and a junior resident at Mercy Hospital. Harold was fun, fabulous, and funny, but they worked long hours and sometimes barely saw each other for days at a time.
Zane had another little girl, Serena, who was adorable, and we’d met a few times when he’d come back to Minnesota or when I flew out to New York, but his dad still wouldn’t see him. I tried to get them together, but my mom and Shawn were barely in the state anymore.
As Shawn’s sixtieth was approaching, I’d agreed to scout out locations for our new gallery, but my plans were canceled at the last minute leaving me stranded in town for my stepfather’s birthday and my mom wouldn’t let me out of it. I didn’t know if Coop was coming and that thought made me nervous as hell, but I needed to calm down, or at least that was what I kept telling myself as I watched the clock anxiously on the Thursday before Shawn’s birthday dinner.
Closing down the gallery section on Thursday evening meant closing down and putting orders through and seeing them out, but I was desperate for six p.m. when the night staff came in. My day had been a long one, but it was finally after four and I’d just roped off the displays and curtained off the main gallery section.
As I walked out, a familiar face was standing staring at one of the paintings and I rushed over, throwing myself into his arms.
“Zane,” I squealed as he spun me in a circle, and he laughed, setting me on my feet.
“Hey, Bailey, how’s it going?” I beamed up at him and leaned up to kiss his cheek.
“It’s all good, Zane. How’re things with you? Where’s Sam and the kids?”
He laughed as I led him to a table and signaled to Jose, our counter assistant, for two coffees. We sat down and his lips lifted into an almost-smile as he looked over at me.
“They’re back at the hotel. I just wanted to see the place you own…”
I cut him off, saying, “Part of, I only own part.”
His eyes twinkled as he laughed throwing his head back.
He sat up and stared at me for a moment then put his hand over mine as we sat and talked for an hour, but he didn’t want to leave Sam and the kids for too long, so he had to head back. I walked him outside and stood with him in the light September rainfall.
“It’s my dad’s birthday tomorrow,” he said, as we stood outside, “he’s sixty.” I nodded and glanced up at him seeing his pinched lips and moisture-filled eyes.
“Zane, I’ll speak with him…”
Zane’s body tensed and I turned to see why he’d tensed. My face froze and my body trembled as I saw Cooper standing outside a well-known bar a few meters away. His face showed fury and Zane trembled beside me.
“Zane, go. I’ll deal with him.”
He didn’t move, just stood frozen in place as Coop began moving towards us. I pushed Zane away.
“Zane, go, please. Just go.” My voice rose in panic.
He nodded at me and turned and shot off as Coop began running towards me.
I moved so I was standing in front of him and his gaze was vicious as it lit on my face, but I didn’t flinch. He went to step around me, and I moved blocking his path.
“Bails, move out of my way.” I shook my head, ignoring the butterflies that erupted at hearing my nickname from him.
“No, Cooper. Please, don’t do this.”
He grabbed my shoulders roughly and shook me. “What. The. Hell. Is. He. Doing. Here?” he asked, shaking me on each word. I struggled in his grip and his hold loosened a fraction. His face was closer to mine than it had been in six years and his scent invaded my nose. His eyes widened as he took our stance in, and he stepped back, shaking his head.
“Cooper, come with me.”
He shook his head and glanced back at the bar almost guiltily.
“I can’t, I have to get back.”
His voice shook and he turned to look at me.
“It’s so good to see you. You look amazing.”
His eyes scanned my features and his gaze heated up as he allowed his eyes to roam all over me in my tight black dress, high-heeled pumps, and a gray sweater. I couldn’t complain at the sight of him either. He stood in stone-washed jeans and a cream-colored cashmere sweater. He looked almost edible and my mouth was watering, but I steeled myself and asked him to come with me again.
“Please, Cooper. I need to speak with you, and I want to do it alone.”
My voice was firm but pleading, and he met my eyes and nodded once.
“Lead the way, then, Bails.”
I grabbed his hand and turned, ignoring the sensation of his rough fingers in mine and the sparks that shot up and down my arm as I walked, dragging him into the gallery. We moved towards the stairs behind the cordoned-off section, and he stopped.
“Bailey, it’s closed.”
I shook my head at him, and he gave me a questioning look as I leaned over, whispering, “Perks of being one of the owners is I can go wherever I damn well like.”
He laughed and followed me, maintaining his distance a little more. We climbed the stairs and I opened the door to the roof garden. It was gorgeous and full of statues, archways, and benches. There were also wind chimes and a sheltered alcove which was where I led him to. He sat down keeping his eyes on mine the entire time. For a moment we didn’t speak, just let the fact we were together wash over us before he cleared his throat and broke our eye contact.
“What is it, Bailey?”
His tone was irritated with a bite of impatience and I swallowed around the lump in my throat as I tried to work out how to broach the subject of Zane. I opened and closed my hands pacing in front of him as I worked out how to say what I needed to without him hating me. After a second his hand closed over mine, and he pulled me over to sit beside him.