“The reception,” Lauren said, walking away.
“It is nice,” Brian told Piper. “I really like that Harley and Grant found each other and that they are going to go back to Thailand. There was a time when everyone would have expected her to give up her life and move back here.”
“Not that long ago,” Piper said. “Grant’s a great guy. I think that even though times have changed, some men still wouldn’t follow their woman.”
Brian took a sip of his vodka and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m not sure I’d leave the country, but I who am I to judge someone else?”
“Right. Everyone makes the choices that work for them,” Piper concurred.
Watching her niece, she was happy for Harley but another part of her was...leery. Piper had once come close to believing she’d found someone she could share her life with, but she hadn’t measured up to his version of perfection and he’d left. And although it had stung for a time, life hadn’t ended. She was old enough to know she didn’t need a man by her side to complete her. But spending the reception with Brian...exploring the spark of sensuality he’d lit in her...had shown her that she had missed the companionship of having a partner. Not that Brian would be her partner, but maybe it was time for her to start looking again.
She had been put off dating after her bad breakup and watching Ava’s marriage to Trent as his health deteriorated. But her nieces and nephews were all finding love and that made her long for something to help fill the void.
That said, she would never try to change for a man again. And she’d never be with a guy she couldn’t trust. But laughing and talking with Brian had reminded her of how much she’d shut herself off from relationships. Maybe it was fear or something else that had kept her away, but it was time to stop it.
She turned her attention to the coming week. She was looking forward to getting back to Dallas. Even though he had a law firm in the big D, he wasn’t part of her circle. Once she was home, she’d be away from the confusion and desire that Brian was stirring in her.
Two
The Dallas art district was downtown in the city’s cultural hub. The strikingly angular Meyerson Symphony Center and the lavish Winspear Opera House gave the area its grounding. Piper’s gallery was close to the Nasher Sculpture Center with its exhibits of modern masterpieces in a verdant setting. She had worked hard to be able to have her gallery in the art district instead of on the outskirts of town, but it was important for her clients to know that she was a respectable art dealer. Today she’d started her morning walking through the Crow Collection of Asian Art displays. Sometimes she needed to recharge her inner artist. Especially now.
Wednesdays had traditionally been when she did her accounting and read the reports her accountant sent over. But since the trouble with the Wingate company started and the scandal had broken there had been a steady decline in profits. And if the black-and-white numbers in front of her weren’t enough evidence, she also had realized that the gallery crowds were thinner. She could blame the economy, but the truth was no one wanted to be associated with someone—even on the fringes—who’d had assets seized by the DEA.
She’d had one client even go so far as to ask if she could provide proof of her due diligence on the provenance for a painting that they’d purchased almost five years ago. She’d done it, but it had ticked her off because she had never taken a penny of Wingate money and she’d always run her gallery with a strong moral and ethical code. But she couldn’t fight whispers, and if she was going to be painted with the same brush as her sister and nieces and nephews, she was going to have to look at a way to expand her business. Find a new revenue stream.
“Hey, boss, here’s your chai latte,” Coco said, coming in and dropping it on her desk. “Also, Gracie Diaz called a few minutes ago and asked if you had time to see her this afternoon.”
“Thanks for the latte,” Piper said. “I believe my afternoon is open. I already pulled some slides. Would you mind assembling them in viewing room A?”
“Not at all. And I’ll arrange a time with Gracie and put it on your calendar. Also, we’ve had a few requests for commission work. I know you have the gala piece going up next week. Are you interested?”
“Probably,” Piper said. “You know how busy the holiday season can be. We need to also see about renting out the space at night for office parties like we did last year.”
Coco sat down in the guest chair and propped her combat-booted feet on the corner of Piper’s desk. “I’ve already started. I have three parties lined up so far and I’ve got two more who should get back to me next week. One client wondered if we could hang something modern, similar to the party in that Love Actually movie. I told them we’d see. We do have those nudes from Maxi that seemed like they might work.”
“I like that idea. I’ll go over to the warehouse later this week and see what we have. Put on your event planner hat and see if we can do something more with this concept. We need to make a push through the holidays to drive revenue.”
“No problem, boss,” Coco said.
One of her other assistants—Paul—came to her door. “There’s a Brian Cooper here to see you.”
“He’s been here before,” Coco murmured. “Kind of cute, easy smile, nice ass. Want me to talk to him for you?”
“I’ve got it. Get to work on those paintings for Gracie and get that firmed up. Paul, Coco’s going to need your help with a themed office party,” Piper said, leaving her assistants and heading out onto the balcony where all of the offices were.
She looked down onto the main gallery floor where Brian was easy to spot. He stood in front of a kinetic wire sculpture she’d collaborated with a local spoken-word poet to create. It was called The Border and spoke directly about Xavier’s struggle to stay on the right side of the law. The sculpture was one body but two faces looking in different directions. One contemplative, the other angry. In one hand was a notepad and pen, in the other, a gun. She was proud of it but she saw the parts she could still improve. For instance, the angle of the jaw on one side was sharper than the other.
As much as she loved creating, there was also a part of her that hated it. Seeing the image in her head and then witnessing how close she got to it, without ever quite reaching it, was a constant struggle.
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and shook off that mood as she approached Brian. He wore a suit that was cut to fit his broad shoulders and tapered to his narrow waist sending a sensual thrill through her.
“Hello, Brian. I wasn’t expecting to see you today,” she said,
He turned to face her with a good-natured smile, drawing her gaze to his mouth. He had full, chiseled lips that looked like they were made for kissing. She should have kissed him on Saturday at the reception so she’d have that out of the way. Instead she was staring and wondering how his firm mouth would feel pressed against hers.