Bring Me Fire (13 page)

Chapter 24

After Aidan left, Sky took her coffee and went to visit Julia at work. She explained the situation and told her that she’d just seen Aidan.

"
What do you think I should do?" she asked.

"
I think you should let her buy it," Julia said. "She deserves all that, and more. She’s been spreading seriously heinous rumors about you. Why the hell should you give her the heads up about something like that?"

"
I know she doesn’t deserve it," Sky said. "And don’t get me wrong - there’s a part of me that would love to just let her bid as much money as she could. There’s a part of me that would want to get into a bidding war with her. But I think I’d feel really bad after, that I knew it all along and didn’t do anything. Plus someone else will buy that painting eventually from
Prelude.
What if it’s someone that’s saved all their money to get this one painting, and they don’t even know they’re buying a fake? That’s terrible."

"
I think you just said what you should do."

"
I did?"

"
Yes. You should get into a bidding war with Ashley. There’s no way she’ll let you win, and that way, some other person won’t get the painting."

Sky laughed.
"I can’t really do that."

"
Maybe I’ll go. I’ll do it. This is your perfect opportunity for revenge."

"
I don’t know if I want revenge. Things are actually going okay, you know? And if she hadn’t fired me, then I wouldn’t have ended up working for Josh."

"
It’s not the firing I’m talking about. It’s the rumors. Why spread rumors about you now that you’re not even working there? It’s messed up. You should let her buy it, let her spend a bunch of money on it, and
then
let it slip that you knew all along. It’s perfect."

"
I’m not going to do that."

"
I know. You’re too nice. Okay, so you don’t have to do that, but you don’t have to tell her that you know it’s fake. You do your thing, let her do hers and who knows? Maybe after she spends a bunch of money on it and finds out that it’s fake, she’ll have learned a lesson. If she hadn’t been such a gigantic bitch to you then of course you’d give her the heads up about it. Really, this is a life lesson for her, and I think you need to let her learn it. You’d actually be doing her a disservice by preventing her from buying it."

Sky shook her head.
"Your logic is really hard to follow sometimes."

"
It’s only because you know I’m right."

Was her friend right? Sky didn’t know. The more she thought about the whole thing, the more conflicted she felt.

Josh had driven up to Mendocino to visit one of his artist friends, so Sky and Conner were alone in the house. Sky tried to focus getting the paintings in the library photographed and their
information written down so she could enter it into the computer database, but she found herself unable to concentrate.

"
Hey!" Sky looked up sharply as Conner snapped his fingers in front of her face. "Yoo-hoo!" He looked at her closely. "Girl, your head is in the clouds right now. Did you hear a word of what I just said?"

"
Um, sorry" Sky racked her brain, trying to recall even a snippet of the conversation, but couldn’t.

Conner raised an eyebrow.
"I didn’t think so," he said. "Come on, let’s take a break. Tell me what’s going on."

"
Okay." Sky carefully leaned the paintings back against the wall and followed Conner down the hallway into the kitchen. They sat on two of the high stools at the marble countertop.

"
This is probably bothering me more than it should," Sky said. "But I happen to know that a painting that Ashley wants to buy at the Billingsgate Auction is not the original. Even though it’s being advertised as such."

"
That’s what this is about?" Conner waved his hand dismissively. "I thought that something serious had actually happened."

"
You don’t think this is a little serious?"
"Not in the least! It’s the perfect opportunity to let a shitty person have something shitty happen to them. I’d let that bitch spend as much money as possible on that fake ass painting," Conner said. "Oh, to hear the gavel go down and the auctioneer say,
Sold!
Why, that would be music to my ears."

"
So you think I shouldn’t say anything."

"
Hell no! Girl, are you crazy? This is the woman who fired your ass, and then, after firing you, started talking shit. I’d say you’re actually letting her off pretty easy. You don’t even want to
know
the sorts of havoc I would wreak if someone did that to me."

Sky shook her head, laughing.
"No, I certainly would not."

"
The way I see it is - she wronged you. And you took the path of least resistance, by not calling her out on it. Now the universe is presenting you with an opportunity to let her really screw herself, and you don’t even have to do anything. It’s pretty perfect, if you want my humble opinion about it. So just sit back and enjoy. It’s called karma, and it ain’t always pretty." He grinned. "And if you don’t believe me, talk to your man when he gets back. I’m sure he’ll tell you the exact same thing."

Chapter 25

Josh got back later that afternoon, as Sky was wrapping things up for the day. He came up behind her, putting one hand on her lower back, the other against her hip. He turned her to face him.

"I missed you today," he said. "Next time I go up to visit Warren you’ll have to come with me. He’s rather reclusive, but he says he’d like to meet you." He leaned down and kissed her. "How was your day?"

"
It was all right."

She followed Josh into the living room, where he sat in one of the leather recliners. He stretched.
"I feel like I’ve been in the car for half the day. Oh wait, I have. I usually stay overnight in Mendocino, but I didn’t this time."

"
Oh." Sky leaned against the wall and fiddled with a loose thread on the sleeve of her shirt. "How come?"

He lifted his head and looked at her.
"I wanted to come back and see you. But you’re looking a little less than thrilled. Are you sure everything is okay?"
"I’m still thinking about that fake painting they’re going to try to sell at the auction."

"
The McManus?"
"Yes. I just found out that Ashley wants to buy it."

"
I see."

"
What do you think I should do?"

"
I think you should come over here and sit down," Josh said, patting his lap. "Right now, in fact."

"
That’s not what I’m talking about," Sky said, though she did go over and sit with him. She put one arm across his shoulders and ran her other hand down the length of his arm. "I am worried about the auction."

"
Are we still talking about this? Why?"
"Because everyone seems to think that I shouldn’t say anything. That I should just let her buy it."

"
And what do you think?"
"I think that since I know it’s not real, and that she’s probably going to spend a lot of money on it, I should say something. It's not just Ashley that will be affected, it's also Aiden and he's a really good guy. I don't want bad things to happen to him."

He brushed back some stray hairs from her face.
"Then say something."

"
Is that what you think I should do?"

"
Does it matter?"

"
Well, yes! Yes, actually, it does. You are the owner of the original painting, after all."

"
I think it’s pretty clear how you feel about it. I think you’ve got your answer."

"
But I don’t know! I keep going back and forth."

"
Right. Everyone you’ve talked to has said not to say anything, and that doesn’t seem to be sitting well with you. Correct?"

"
Yes."

"
So, then, that’s your answer."

"
That I should say something?"

He tilted her face toward his.
"I find all this moral soul searching very endearing, and something of a turn on." He kissed the tip of her nose. "It’s really your call what you want to do about this. I won’t judge you either way." He kissed her on the mouth, letting his lips brush lightly against hers. "It is entirely up to you," he said, his mouth still right against hers. His fingertips brushed over her earlobe, entwined themselves in the strands of her hair. She let her body relax into his, let her hands trail down his chest to his trim waist, narrow hips. Kissing him was this easy fluid motion; there were no awkward movements, no teeth banging together or his mouth going one way while hers went the other. She opened her eyes and saw that his were closed, his dark lashes thick against his fair skin.  Yet she found she couldn’t completely give herself into the sensations, pleasant as they were. There was a part of her that couldn’t stop thinking about the fake painting. She knew it wasn’t real. She knew that someone was probably going to spend a lot of money on it. Was it her place to say something? That was the one thing that she didn’t know.

Chapter 26

Sky stood in the living room and turned in a circle slowly, letting her eyes take in every available inch of wall space. This was the largest room of the house, and with its vaulted ceilings and wall to floor windows on the far wall, it got great light and should really be where Josh’s favorite paintings went.

She’d nearly completed cataloging and photographing all the art and she knew both Josh and Conner were pleased with her work and impressed at how quickly she was moving along. This was, in fact, one of the first things Conner said to her that morning when he picked her up.

"
I don’t mean to meddle," he said as they drove toward the Bay Bridge. "But you’re certainly moving along at a much faster clip than I expected. And that’s great; you’re doing a wonderful job. But I’m not sure how much work Josh is going to have for you once this is complete."

Sky had laughed.
"Are you afraid he’s going to give me your job?"

"
The thought has never crossed my mind." Conner replied with a wink. "Sweetie, few people could do what I do, so I’ve got the job security. I suppose I’m just being selfish, because I like having you around, and I don’t want to see you finish with this project and then end up working somewhere else. I mean, I know it’s going to happen, but things have been more fun with you around."

Now, as she stood in the living room, she considered what Conner said. He was right, of course; this job wouldn’t last forever and she wasn’t sure what her next steps would be when she was finished. Even if Josh were to offer her something more long-term, she didn’t know if she’d take it, because he was her boyfriend now. And though by no means did she consider herself a dating expert, she knew enough to know that more often than not, if you wanted to stay in a happy relationship, it would probably be better if you
didn’t
work with your significant other.

She was lost in these thoughts and didn’t realize Josh had come into the room until she felt his hands on her shoulders. She jumped.

"You scared me," she said, turning to face him.

"
Sorry," he said, kissing her forehead. "You seem rather lost in thought. Everything okay?"

He took a step back, holding her at arm’s length distance, and studied her face. He had a shadow of stubble stippling the sides of his face, and his hair was a little mussed, like he briefly stepped outside on a windy day.

"I was just thinking about what I was going to do with this room," Sky said. "There’s a lot of space, and I think a lot of different possibilities."

She ran her hand up his arm. He wore a thin, charcoal-colored sweater and jeans; it was a simple outfit but on him it somehow looked stunning. He nodded, but stayed quiet, watching her.

"I guess I was thinking about something else," she said after a minute.

He raised his eyebrows and pressed his lips together, suppressing a smile.
"I thought so. And what would that be?"

"
Well, I’ve got almost all of the art cataloged; I’ve just got a few more pages of stuff to enter into the database."

"
I know. I’ve been very impressed with the efficiency of your work."

"
So then I’m going to work with you to get it all up and arranged how you want - which I’m looking forward to."

"
Happy to hear it. So am I."

"
But then I started to think about what my plan’s going to be after this is done. I mean, I knew coming into this it wasn’t going to be a long-term thing, so I guess maybe I should’ve had some other plan in place."
"The job’s not over yet."

"
I know."

"
Did you have something in mind?"

"
No, not yet. I’d like to get something in a gallery, of course, but really, I should be open to anything."

"
We might be able to figure something out," Josh said. "You are my girlfriend, after all."

Sky laughed.
"Right. Not your daughter or your invalid wife, so you definitely don’t need to support me."

"
Whoa, whoa, I was just saying we might be able to figure something out, and here you are talking about kids and marriage."

She punched him lightly on the shoulder.
"You know what I mean. And never mind. I definitely
don’t
want to talk about kids or marriage. With you or anyone else!"

"
I should’ve known there were other men waiting in the wings."

"
There are no other men."

"
I find that hard to believe."

"
Well, you shouldn’t. I’m certainly no former Hollywood movie star or in possession of any notable talents."

"
Stop." He put a forefinger up to her lips. "You are absolutely spectacular, and I wouldn’t say that if I didn’t mean it."

"
That’s sweet of you to say." Sky looked into his eyes, a deep, endless blue. He smiled. "I have to be honest, though; it still does surprise me sometimes that you want to be with me."

"
And why would that be?"

"
Oh, I don’t know. Because you could be with pretty much anyone you wanted? Because all you do is basically have to step out the door and people will be throwing themselves at your feet?"
"You didn’t. You, if I recall correctly, picked the lock and snuck into somewhere you weren’t supposed to go, completely heedless to my wishes."

"
Yes, I do recall that, actually."

"
I’m not entirely used to people
not
doing what they think I want them to do. And that was part of the problem with dating. Even when you’re not in Hollywood anymore, women, they don’t want to treat you like a regular guy. They just don’t. And that means they don’t want to be themselves, and they try to do what they
think
you want them to do. I’d go out on a date and it’d be like the girl wouldn’t give me a straightforward answer until she’d sussed out how I felt about something, and then she’d respond how she thought I wanted her to. Always deferring to me.
Did she want to go do this?
Maybe, she doesn’t know; do I? If I do, she does. It felt like being on a job interview. It was terrible. And then you come into the picture - ironically, for an actual job interview - and you’re just so completely yourself, it’s like you can’t even help it."

"
That almost sounds like an insult."

"
Well, it’s not. It was very refreshing, actually."

"
So you being pissed off that day you found me in your private room was actually not genuine?"

"
Oh, no, it was genuine. But there was also a part of me that appreciated that you would just go ahead and do something, even though you knew you weren’t supposed to. Even if it was, technically, violating a very base level of trust." He grinned. "That last part was sort of a joke. But really, Sky, don’t think for a second that you are not worthy of this relationship. Please don’t do that. Because that’s just the sort of shit that I’d expect from one of the other women I’d gone on dates with, and that’s precisely one of the reasons why there weren’t subsequent dates. It might sound cliché to say it, but I’m a person just like anyone else, and a pretty regular one at that. And I feel like around you, that is true. And it’s a good thing."

"
I never thought about it like that," Sky said. "That sounds awful. Dating’s hard enough as it is."

"
Right. And we don’t need to talk about this anymore. I’m not trying to deluge you with my sob stories, but I don’t want you to think for a second that I don’t feel like I’m just as lucky to have you."

The smile was gone from his face and he was looking at her with a very serious expression. She felt that she should say something in response, but she couldn’t think of anything. Nothing seemed right, anyway.
Thank you
?
I feel the same
? So instead, she took a step closer and reached behind his head with her hand, pulled his face toward hers. They kissed. She ran her hands down his back, he smoothed the muscles in her shoulders, brushed his fingertips over her skin before touching her breasts, lightly at first, then with more fervor when she groaned slightly.

She could feel the warmth of his palms, radiating heat through the fabric of her clothes, but she was suddenly overcome with the need to have his bare skin touching her own. She pulled her shirt off. An expression of delighted admiration crossed his face as she let the shirt fall to the ground; it was a tight-fitting shirt, no bra required. She lifted the hem of his sweater up his torso, and in one easy motion he pulled it off, as well as the cotton-shirt he wore underneath.

He pulled her close to him, buried his face in her neck. His breath was warm, and he kissed her slowly, running his hands down her sides, letting them come to rest on her hips. His thumbs pressed lightly against the top of her pelvis. He kissed her collarbone, her breasts, went down to his knees. He unbuttoned her jeans and pulled the zipper down, one tooth at a time. Sky grabbed a handful of his thick hair and looked down at the top of his head.

He ran his hands down the length of her legs after she had stepped out of her pants and underwear. She was glad she’d worn her black bikini cut panties with the lace trim and not
the stretched out, worn paisley print ones she’d almost put on that morning. Not that it really would’ve mattered, she decided, because he hadn’t paid a single second of attention to them at all.

Her shoulders relaxed and she let her head fall back as he explored seemingly every inch of her body with his hands, his mouth. Her thighs trembled. Still on his knees, he guided her over to the couch. Instead of lying her down though, as she’d been expecting, he slid out of his own jeans and sat, held his arms out to her. She climbed onto his lap, folding her legs underneath her on either side of him. He reached to the side table and pulled a condom out of the drawer.

"You keep condoms in with your remotes?"

"
I don’t watch TV."

He opened the condom and put it on. She straddled him and they kissed, tongues entwined, the sensation being that they were melding together, becoming one. Sky felt as though their energies were mingling, and though he certainly wasn’t the first person she’d ever slept with, he was the first person she’d ever experienced a sensation like that with.

"Wow," she breathed.

"
Is this okay? We can stop, if you want."

"
No, no, this is fine," Sky said quickly. Energy seemed to be buzzing the length of her body, filling her head like the thrum of friendly bees. "More than fine."

She couldn’t help watch his face, the way he let his head fall back against the couch, eyes closed. He bit down on his lower lip and winced, as though in pain. Sky had never watched a lover like this before, really paid attention to the expression on his face, and she was fascinated by the fact that if you didn’t know what he was doing, from the look on Josh’s face, you’d think he was suffering. Their bodies moved effortlessly together. She swiveled her hips and he stroked her sides, squeezed her legs, and gripped the small of her back.

After, they lay together on the couch, bodies entwined in such a way that Sky thought would make an excellent painting. Her gaze wandered over to her discarded pile of clothes in the middle of the room.

"
I still don’t have something to wear to the auction," she said, sighing.

"
I’m sure you can come up with something. That outfit you wore to the party in Tiburon would be fine. Or don’t dress up at all. You don’t have to, you know."

"
I know. But then if I don’t I’m going to feel weird if everyone else is. And it’s kind of fun. I’m just not so good at picking out outfits."

"
I’d say you’re doing just fine."

"
I’m currently not wearing anything, which is not the style I’m planning to go for at the auction."

"
And you look lovely. But you also looked lovely in jeans and a t-shirt, so you’ll look great in whatever it is you decide to wear."

"
That’s not true but very kind of you to say."

"
It’s true. But if you’re having doubts, why not ask Conner to help you out."

"
He does have a knack for that sort of thing."

He brushed back a lock of her hair.
"Thank you," he said, a slight smile touching the corners of his mouth.

"
For what?" she asked, lifting her head so she could look at him.
"For being you." She returned the smile and kissed him, a long, lingering kiss. Then she lay her head back down on his chest and closed her eyes, listened to gentle thud of his heartbeat.