Rough Canvas (Nature of Desire 6)

"Though I don't understand it, I can't deny it anymore, that what you feel for one another is as real as what I was given with your father. If you don't take and make a life out of that, you'd be a fool. And I didn't raise a fool. So I think it's time for it to be between the two of you and God, and I'll pray for you both. " He squeezed her again, holding her tightly so his heart wouldn't break. "I love you so much, Mom. I never stopped. I never would have, no matter what. " Her shoulders hitched in a little sob. She put her face into his shoulder and he felt her swallow, then she drew back, squared her shoulders and gave his hands a pat.

When she gave him a quick smile, her eyes glinted and she swiped at an escaped tear.

"Let's get home now. Tomorrow you'll go back to New York and get that smart-mouthed Yankee's butt on a plane back here. If you aren't back in time for your doctor's appointment, I'm coming to get you both. And I can promise you, New York is not ready for me. "

* * * * *

"I t

hought you'd left. "

Lauren paused at the open door of the gallery, arching a brow. "And a good morning to you too. We thought we might stay one more day. "

"Statue of Liberty's open for viewing. Then there's the Guggenheim. I'm busy. " He glanced at her. "Where's Josh?"

"Getting us coffee down the street. He'll be here in a minute. " She glanced over at the woman going through a box of receipts. "You must be Linda, his general manager.

We heard good things about you the other night. "

Linda nodded with a smile, a wary glance at Marcus.

When she and Josh had been unable to get Marcus to answer his cell after lunch, Lauren had suggested they try the gallery, since it was not far from their hotel. Since they both knew Thomas had headed back that morning, they'd agreed they weren't going to return to Florida until they were sure Marcus was going to be okay. She was glad they'd gone with that intuition.

Lauren put her hands on her hips. "Linda, I think you want to take a personal day.

Your boss is acting like a jerk, and I'm more equipped than you are to slap him around until he pulls the stick out of his ass. "

Marcus raised his head, met her cold blue stare with one of his own. "You come here to fight?"

"No. But if you're rude to me one more time, that's what it's going to be. " Marcus slapped the ledger closed, extended it to Linda. "File that in the back. "

"Please," Lauren added. "He meant to say please. " After Linda disappeared, Lauren made her way to the counter, one casual step at a time, surveying the layout and artwork in this front area. Marcus stood behind a high walnut counter. His restless energy made him prefer to work on his feet. He'd told her it made a better impression on clients if the proprietor was standing when they arrived anyway, as if waiting just for them. With his forbidding expression today, she thought they might scream and run the other way.

When she got to the counter, she pivoted on her heel, presenting her back to him to see what art he'd chosen to place in his direct line of sight.

There were a couple of Josh's sculptures on pedestals of course, the first thing people saw when they came in. But on the wall, with a distinct but discreet block letter sign, "Not for Sale - Other Work by This Artist Available" was a farm scene. A man leaning shirtless against a fence, watching the sun set, the image so vibrant and strong, so real, that anyone would feel they were standing just a few feet behind that man.

Watching. Absorbing everything he was.

She turned back to face him. "You put him here, where you could see him every day. "

"Get out, Lauren. I mean it. You don't want to be around me today, and I'm not in the mood for games. "

Lauren put her palms flat on the carved and polished wooden surface and looked up into his face. Marcus was truly intimidating when he was pissed and broody, and there was an even deeper level to it, something volatile and dark, layers of past poison injecting itself into the present. Everything pulsing off him said he wasn't in control, and what's more, he didn't really give a fuck that he wasn't.

She'd once stood toe-to-toe with Josh, called forth his demons and unleashed them upon herself. She'd taken him down with nothing but nerve and the expert use of a whip that, in the face of a powerful man's rage, hadn't lasted five seconds. The nerve had. The love had.

Marcus was a different entity, with even more violent spaces. She could sense that, but just like with Josh, she believed she knew the core of the man. So when she reached up with both hands to frame his face, she wasn't surprised when his hands caught her wrists. But he didn't push her away. He held her there, his grip squeezing her as if she were a lifeline.

"You're a great Mistress, Lauren," he said quietly. "But you're a woman. I'm stronger, bigger and a hell of a lot meaner than you'd ever dream of being. You value our friendship, you don't fuck with me today. "

Thomas had said something about the polish being all seared away when they were in the kitchen. She understood it now, seeing the coldness in his eyes.

"Marcus, if you value our friendship, you'll take your hands off my wife. Now. I mean it. Because I am bigger and stronger. " Josh set down the coffee cups on the entrance table and moved forward, his gray eyes hard. He took Lauren's elbow, drew her away. When he did, Marcus let go.

Josh took her wrist in one hand, looked at the red marks and looked at Marcus.

"Josh - "