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“That doesn’t sound like me.”
“You’re right, it doesn’t. Now I’m suspicious.”
“Can’t a man tell his girlfriend how beautiful, talented, and wonderful she is without her thinking something is wrong?” I place a kiss to her forehead, careful not to mess up her makeup any more than our impromptu quickie in the bathroom already has.
She’s still looking at me a little suspiciously but then just shrugs her shoulders, brushing it off. “I would totally grill you but we’ve been in here too long. Dad and Violet are watching Oliver and I’m afraid she’s going to tip over any minute.”
After one final kiss I open the bathroom door and usher her back into the employee break room of Gault Galleries. She’s right, we really do need to relieve Dante and Violet. They both took to Oliver as soon as they met him and offered up their babysitting services. As soon as Oliver found out that Dante could show him how to build things the kid was all in. Even though Dante is already a dad I think they’re both trying to get some kid time in since they have not one but two little ones on the way. Poor Violet is so tiny she looks like she’s about to tip over and I’m sure chasing after Oliver isn’t helping.
By the time we make it back to the gallery floor, hand-in-hand, the size of the crowd has grown significantly letting me know we were gone longer than I thought. Bianca’s first show was three months ago, and while she only had four pieces up they sold incredibly quickly and drew quite the buzz from thelocal art scene. This prompted Margot to invite her to participate in this show as well but this time she gets to display eight paintings and if the small crowd of people that’s clustered around the area her work is at is any indication, they’re going to all have sold placards next to them before the night is out.
When she finally let me see her work all those months ago she was surprisingly nervous and a bit abashed. I didn’t understand it until she started pulling them out for me, one after the other. There were a ton that were just me. Some were me from the shoulders up, others just my face. There were even some with just an eye or an obscured body part. Besides me, there were quite a few of Oliver as well. Even though it was a little weird seeing myself on canvas over and over again it was obvious that Bianca was incredibly talented. I knew she was just from the sketches she used to draw around my place, before I even got to see her paintings. It’s just now that everybody else is starting to notice it.
I did feel a little awkward during the first show she had. I couldn’t figure out why people were looking at me and whispering until I realized that several of my likenesses were hanging on a nearby wall and for sale. The thought of a painting of me hanging in somebody else’s space was a little odd at first but I quickly got over it. If Bianca wanted to paint me, I would let her do it all day long and consider myself lucky for it. I knew it would be time to worry when she wanted to paint somebody else, though I was counting on that day never coming.
“Bianca!” I hear Oliver before I even see him. Like a flash, he’s dodging between people and heads straight at Bianca, ramming into her legs full force. I can’t help but smile when she wraps him in a hug. She may not like kids, but she loves Oliver. She treats him just like he was her own and that’s more than I could ever ask for. I’m only a little jealous that she seems to be his favorite person now. The two of them often disappear and goon adventures while I’m working late. Though I still insist they remain vigilant and that tracker never leaves Oliver’s arm, I’m glad that what happened hasn’t stopped them from going out and experiencing the world. Even if I’d like to keep them both tightly ensconced in bubble wrap. I tried to get Bianca to wear a tracking watch as well but she put her foot down and said I was going overboard. I’m still determined to get one on her someday.
Violet comes waddling over to us with Dante close behind her. “Sorry, he got away from me,” she says while cradling her stomach.
“Baby, why don’t you let me find you a chair so you can sit down,” Dante says while hovering behind her. Not that I blame him, she looks a bit like she’s wilting. I’ll be surprised if they’re still here in an hour which means I need to get this show on the road.
“Oh I’m fine. The doctor said a little exercise was good for me.”
“She also said you should be resting,” I hear him mumble grumpily which makes me smile.
“Thanks for keeping an eye on him, Vi. I just needed to talk to Carson about something for a few minutes.”
Violet looks her up and down. “Yeah, I bet he wanted totalkto you.”
Bianca doesn’t even bother to deny the not-so-subtle accusation. There’s no use. We’re pretty notorious amongst our friends for slipping away and banging one out at any opportunity. “Have you seen Jenna?” She asks, looking around the room. “I’ve got to know who that painting belongs to. I can’t get anyone who works here to tell me and any time I got within ten feet of it today to take a peek someone was there to usher me away. I don’t get it.”
I turn to the painting she’s referring to that’s hanging by itself on the far wall. It’s currently covered by some kind of whitefabric sheeting and there isn’t any plaque next to it, giving any indication what it is or who might have painted it.
“That’s weird, weren’t you the person that set up most of the show?” I ask innocently.
“Exactly, why keep this from me? It doesn’t make any sense.”
“Well, let’s walk around the room a bit, maybe we’ll find Jenna and she’ll be willing to tell you something about it.” I wouldn’t bet on it. I’ve sworn that girl to secrecy. I’m pretty sure I’ll be fixing her parking tickets for the rest of my life for this one. “Besides, there are a group of people over there who look like they’d love to speak to the artist.” With my hand resting on the small of her back I steer her towards the group of people clustered around her own paintings.
Before we get there we’re stopped by a group of large men who look vaguely familiar and completely out of place like they aren’t quite comfortable in the nice clothes they’ve squeezed themselves into tonight.
“Oh my god, you guys came!” Bianca squeals. She rushes up to them and starts hugging one after the other. “I can’t believe you guys all came. Dad didn’t tell me you were going to be here. You have no idea how much this means to me.” I was about to lose my shit at her handsy greeting when I realize they're a group of men that work for her father. While it’s not enough to stamp out my jealousy completely, it allows me to keep it in check for the moment. When she’s done saying hi to each of them, I grab her hand and pull her back to my side making it very clear who she belongs to.
“Carson, this is Jake, Gabe, and Travis. They’ve all worked with Dad for years. Guys, this is my boyfriend Carson.”
After we all exchange greetings Bianca chats with them for a bit and I spot Margot not too far from me, conversing with a group of men and women in clothes that probably cost more than my car. She sees me staring and I give her a quick jerk ofmy chin which brings a smile to her face. Disengaging from her conversation, she makes her way across the gallery floor.
“I think your Dad is calling us,” I whisper into Bianca’s ear. She says goodbye to the group of men, thanking them for coming once again, and we head over to where her father is standing with Violet tucked into his side in front of her paintings.
“What did you need?” She asks Dante. He looks over at her, slightly confused since he didn’t call for her at all and he’s about to respond when Margot claps her hands and her loud voice draws us all to attention. She’s standing in front of the wall to our right where the mysterious covered painting that’s been driving Bianca crazy is hanging, with Jenna by her side.
“I want to thank you all once again for joining us this evening. As you know, Gault Gallery has the honor of hosting Seattle’s most premier artists. We take pride in providing our patrons with the best of the best. That being said, we also like to keep our ear to the ground and discover those up and coming artists that thrill and enchant us with their view of the world. You’ve seen some of those very artists hanging on our walls tonight.”
Margot makes a sweeping gesture with her arm and there’s applause from the room. I give Bianca a quick squeeze and look down to see her smiling. I know this has been her dream, to be recognized by her peers and art connoisseurs for her talent.
“Thank you, thank you,” Margot says, quieting the crowd. “With all the pieces we’ve seen tonight, we still have one more to show you. Will the artist of this particularly extraordinary piece please come forward?”
I see Bianca’s head swiveling back and forth searching the room just as I feel Oliver tugging on the leg of my pants. “Now Dad?”
