She came up snarling, expression fierce, gray eyes flashing. "What do you want? How dare you--" Her voice petered off when she saw the hunted look on his face. "What is it? Are you ill?"
He shook his head and felt the tears starting. In fits and starts, he told her everything he saw. And realized that she did not look surprised.
"You tried to tell me." He hiccupped, knuckling the tears away.
"I did." She acknowledged grimly. "They have affairs, but that doesn't mean they don't love each other."
He simply stared at her in shock. "How can they love each other and be doing that- that nasty thing with someone else?"
"Grow up, Dean!" She scoffed. "People cheat on each other all the time. It's just a way of life." She sounded so grown up and accepting that he could not believe it.
The idea of confronting his parents about his discovery occurred to him over the next few days, but he decided to watch them instead. And when he did, he discovered several things about the people who had created him. They weren't hiding their affairs, and they did what they pleased. His sister had told him to grow up and that was exactly what he did that fateful night.
*****
Present day….
Christ, he was bored! Instead of jetting off to Rome or even Paris, he was here, lounging around the elegant and spanking new gallery that had just opened in midtown, because he was friends with Jackson and his brother Jason. It was another oftheir attempts to bring art to the world, while at the same time helping struggling artists achieve their dreams.
It was a commendable effort and one he applauded, but he could have just as easily written a check.
And his date was being her usual greedy and grasping self by demanding that he buy her a piece of very expensive bust that looked as ugly as hell.
"Think how good it would look on my entrance table." Her husky voice was driving him nuts. He was about to tell her just that, when he happened to turn his head. That was when he caught sight of her.
She wasn't someone he knew. And from the looks of her clothing, wasn't part of his circle. The dress she had on was of good quality, but not expensive. Her complexion was a lovely caramel, and her hair was a mass of twisted coils. Her profile was turned towards him, enough for him to see the glow of pleasure on her face as she stared at a painting. He was about to dismiss her when he saw what she did next.
She was heaping food, a clever sleight of hands that was barely discernible to anyone else. If he hadn't been noticing her so closely, he would have missed it. She was tucking the food in napkins and putting them inside her very large purse.
Ignoring the woman next to him, he turned fully around so he could observe her. Each time a member of the opposite sex came up to her, she would smile and move them along firmly and continued to walk around the long trestle table.
His evening had just looked up, he decided with a grin. Putting away his glass and not even excusing himself, he wound his way towards her, curtly dismissing and ignoring the people trying to stop him.
Placing himself next to her, he scooped up an entire plate of escargot and placed a napkin over it. "Are we stocking up for the Apocalypse?"
His deep amused voice had the petite woman whirling around.
"Pardon?"
He noticed two things at once. She had perfect diction and her eyes were a curious golden brown that reminded him of a tiger he had seen in South Africa. And she was even more delectably beautiful up close. His loins tightened in alarming arousal.
It took him a few seconds to get his thoughts together.
Taking a deep breath, he gestured towards her purse. "I figured you were taking the food for a reason."
"Oh." He almost grinned in fascination at the embarrassed look on her lovely face. "You saw me. Did anyone else?"
His smile widened. "I sincerely doubt that or you would have been booted out of here by now." At the alarmed look on her face, he hastened to reassure her. "Now that we're in this thing together, you're safe of course."
One tapered brow lifted as she stared him down, which was difficult to do, considering she barely reached his shoulders. "You're making fun of me and wondering why I'm taking the food. I can assure you, I'm not starving or anything."
"That's a distinct relief."
Her expression told him clearly that his fun at her expense was not appreciated.
"So, why are you doing it?"
"I passed a couple of homeless persons a few blocks away. They looked hungry."