Yet this could be huge for the gallery. Bringing in Hoan Dwell would not only secure Elements financially for quite some time, it would bump up their prestige, too.
"I'll meet him. With the understanding that there will be no promises."
Mr. Hawthorn turned to face her fully. "Where?"
Her gaze drifted over his shoulder as she ran through the options in her mind. It would have to be a location close to Anchorage, with a well-lit parking lot. Italian was too messy, but Salvatore's had booths spaced pretty far apart so they'd have a semblance of privacy. Gino would let her park right out front and see her to her car if necessary. She'd used him before for catering an opening.
She looked up and gave Mr. Hawthorn the address. "I can't make it this week, not until Friday."
He nodded once. "Friday at seven. I will relay this to Mr. Dwell." He reached into his breast pocket once more. "I've been instructed to give you this if you agreed to dinner."
He held out a small pink envelope, non-threatening in nature, but her heart stopped on a dime. Cold sweat broke out on her forehead, a contradiction to the heat that churned in her gut. All pretenses of professionalism gone, she took it from him with trembling fingers and whispered a thank you.
She stood for several moments after he left, staring blankly at the envelope. She'd gotten others like it by carrier with no return address and no signature. One every year on her birthday for the past five years. On occasion, for seemingly no reason, she received three others. Eight in total, and all eight knocking her thoughts straight into orbit without gravity for anchor.
They'd been anonymous, hand-written letters. Until now. Did this mean they'd been from Hoan Dwell all along? She pressed a cool palm to her forehead. What was someone like her doing on his radar? She stared at the envelope, wanting to tear it open and read the sensual words she knew would be inside.
Nicole rushed into her office. "Well? What happened?"
Raven cleared her throat and drew in a deep lungful of air. "Mr. Dwell wants to set up a showing. We're meeting for dinner on Friday."
"Shut the front door! Seriously?"
"Yes." The envelope weighed heavy in her hands. She needed to get out of here. The letter couldn't be read where anyone could see her reaction. Besides, Noah was coming for dinner tonight and she still needed to stop by the market. "I'm going to head home early. Why don't you lock up and call it a day?"
"Will do." Nicole paused. "Why aren't you more excited?"
"I am." She laughed nervously. "Just in shock, I guess."
Nicole grinned. "I can't wait to find out what happens on Friday. Happy Birthday to you! Best present ever. Showing Dwell's work will put us in the black for years."
A smile curved her lips. "I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks again for the bracelet."
Nicole had shown up for work today with a large mocha and a small present for Raven's birthday. The two people who never forgot were Nicole and Noah. The greatest friends a gal could ask for. Her mother had yet to call but, judging by history, she'd ring at ten tonight as an afterthought, her mind too scattered to remember sooner.
Bundling into her coat and scarf, she stepped out into the biting January wind and walked the few feet to her SUV. The seemingly eternal dusk for this time of year would be pitch black in a couple of hours. After hitting the market to pick up fresh crab legs, she made her way to the edge of town and parked in her apartment complex's lot, directly under a street lamp and closest to the entry.
Once inside, she stripped out of her dress clothes and into pajamas. Noah wouldn't care. They'd been best friends since day one of college when they'd literally slammed into each other rushing to class. He'd seen her in worse getups and she'd known him before he made his millions with his tourism recreation company. There were no pretenses with him. For that, she was grateful.
After putting everything away, she started dinner and stared again at the envelope on the counter, teasing her to pick it up. When the first letter arrived six years ago, she'd been frightened at first. Even though arousing in context, it still was an unknown. Unknown sender, unknown admirer, unknown reasoning. She didn't like the unknown. Not even a little. The one surprise party Nicole