Page 56 of For the Love of Art

CHAPTER

NINE

Nathan was busy scrolling his phone, his eyebrows knit closely together. I had nothing to distract me, having left my purse in my office.

The office!

Dori!

“Relax,” Nathan said.

“What?”

“I can hear you thinking, and it’s distracting me.”

“Does Dori know I’m gone?”

“Yes. I texted her.”

“What about the show? There’s a lot to do.”

“There really isn’t.” Nathan put down his phone, his grey eyes boring into me. “This is precisely why I’m taking you away from the gallery. You need to take a step back.”

“I need to dive in deeper.” I jiggled my leg. “This has to be a success.”

“It will.”

Nathan’s eyes were full of sincerity. I offered him a smile because I could see that he was genuinely trying. Inside, however, I was a mess of nerves.

I pressed my forehead to the cool window as we stopped at a red light. A steady flow of people walked by the window, and I wondered if they felt as stressed as I did.

A gleam of copper stuck out in the crowd. I stiffened, perking up slightly. My heart pounded as the copper moved closer to the car. The person in front veered to the left, and– it wasn’t him.

“Isla?”

I looked at Nathan. His jaw was set, his lips in a firm line.

“I’m okay.”

Nathan tilted his head. “Final answer?”

“I thought I saw Don.”

Nathan nodded slowly.

“I know. Stupid.”

A warmth spread on my thigh, and I saw Nathan’s hand pressed to it. Now, my heart beat rapidly for a different reason, and when I met his eyes, my mouth went dry.

“It’s not stupid,” he said softly.

“It is. I shouldn’t care. He got another woman pregnant.”

“The woman at the party.”

I nodded.

“It’s all making sense.” Nathan wet his lips. “Maybe it’s not my place to say, but she looked young.”