I think I need another drink.
“You taking care of my girl, Archer?” I let out a giggle because my alcohol-soaked brain thinks it’s funny that a man wearing an outfit that probably costs as much as my first car is standing in the middle of my dad’s living room with a bunch of twenty-somethings, drunk off their asses.
“I promised I would Bianca, so there’s no need to murder me,” he says with a smile. I like that he has a sense of humor. Hollie needs that.
“Good, it would be a shame to upset Hollie.”
“I agree.” He gives her another squeeze and sets his chin on the top of her head, all cute and shit. “Here, I got this for you. Happy Birthday, Bianca.”
I frown down at the and the card he just pulled from his pocket. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”
“I wanted to,” he says with a genuine smile. I take the card from him and turn it over in my hand. It’s postcard sized and printed on the front is a reproduction of my favorite painting from Soo Kent. It’s covered in shades of purple and green blended together to look like large bunches of hydrangeas. It’s one of those paintings you fall in love with at first sight.
“Thank you, Archer, I mean it. How did you know this is one of my favorite paintings? I don’t have any reproductions of it so I’m totally putting this up in my bedroom.”
He lets out a chuckle. “Hollie mentioned to me it was one of your favorites. But it’s not the postcard that’s the gift. The painting is going to be delivered to you next week.”
I look between him and Hollie waiting for the joke, but they’re both just staring at me with smiles on their faces. “Are you fucking with me?” I practically shout because I apparently no longer have volume control.
“No, I’m not fucking with you,” he laughs.
“Archer, I work for a gallery. I know how expensive this is, like tens of thousands of dollars. You can’t just give it to me.”
Is it hot in here or is it just me, I feel like I’m going to pass out. “Full disclosure, it’s been hanging in the penthouse of The Clarke San Diego. Do you know how many people have probably walked right by it and not even noticed? I’d feel much better if somebody had it who would actually appreciate it.”
I look down at the card in my hand again, feeling slightly stunned. “I know I should refuse this, but I really really want it,” I admit to him.
“Good, because it’s already being boxed up, so you really can’t refuse it.” I pull him into a hug, and he seems a little surprised. He’s completely stiff for a few seconds before he relaxes and gives me a quick squeeze back. When we pull away, I see Hollie grinning at both of us like a fool.
I hold the card to my chest, still not sure I believe him, but I just want to make sure he understands something. “Just because you’re giving me this doesn’t mean our bargain is off. You hurt her, you die,” I point to Hollie who is rolling her eyes.
“Understood,” he says in all seriousness before turning to the woman in question. “Do you want another drink, angel?”
“Yes, please.”
“You too, Bianca?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
He takes off towards the kitchen leaving us alone again. Well, as alone as you can be in a house crowded with a hundred drunk people. “Your boyfriend gave me a painting.”
“You’re going to have to get over it, hun. Once that man sets his mind to something he doesn’t let it go.”
“Oh, I’m not talking him out of it. I’m hanging that thing right over my bed.”
She laughs and hooks her arm through mine as we start to head outside for some air. It’s then that I feel my boobs shaking.“Hold on a second.” I reach down into the top of my dress, fishing around.
“What the hell are you doing?” Hollie laughs.
My hand wraps around the solid object and I pull my phone out of my cleavage triumphantly. “Where else was I supposed to keep it?”
I can feel the smile spread across my face when I see the name displayed on the phone.
“Who is that?” Hollie asks.
I shrug my shoulders, playing it cool. “Nobody, why?”
“Uh, because your face just lit up more than when Archer gave you a thirty-thousand-dollar painting!”