Sweet Love - Mia Kayla Page 0,83

she stepped back, she smiled and gave my girlfriend a once-over. “And you must be charming Charlie …”

She extended her hand, and Charlie shook it graciously.

“Yes. And I love your work. I follow you on social media, and I love the artists you feature.” Charlie’s voice heightened with excitement.

“And you are one of the talented artists that I want to feature on my blog.” Nui spread her arms and turned in an exaggerated circle. “Look at this. I mean, the depth of these abstracts and the paintings … you’ve caught great detail on some of them.” She pointed to the other end of the room. “There’s one there that’s breathtaking. It’s of a daughter and father.”

Charlie’s smile widened. “That’s me and my dad.”

“There is so much emotion there, just from his stare. It’s pouring out of him in waves. Endless waves.”

Charlie sucked on her bottom lip, teetering back on her heels. “Yeah … it was one of the last pictures we took together before he died.”

Nui’s smile slipped and she leaned into Charlie. “He’d be so proud of you. Your artwork is …” She paused for dramatic effect, which was signature to Nui. “One word: remarkable.”

Charlie let out one long breath, and her shoulders relaxed.

“Charlie.”

My head turned to the woman who had called her name. It was Charlie’s mother, I had no doubt. Because twenty-five years from now, I could see Charlie standing in front of me, stunning as ever, her eyes a vibrant emerald green.

Charlie’s mother’s face was exuberant, smile wide, eyes bright. “Look at this, honey. It’s amazing.”

Charlie bit her bottom lip, nervous, but as soon as her mother took her in and wrapped her arms around her in a hug, Charlie’s whole body relaxed.

“Look at all of this.”

Automatically, I smiled. ’Cause, shit, this was all Charlie had wanted from her mother—acknowledgment of her work.

Her mother pulled back and cupped her face with a lightness of her fingertips. “I’m so, so proud of you, honey.” She motioned to the spectators around the room. “Look at all the people who have come to see your work. It’s a full house.”

Charlie laughed. “Yeah, I’m pretty shocked. I wasn’t expecting this type of turnout.”

“Kid, I wish your dad were here to see this. I’ve been walking around for ten minutes, looking for you, just listening to random people admiring your pieces.” She leaned in, squeezing Charlie’s hand. “Good job, baby girl.”

They shared an emotional-filled glance.

After a beat, Charlie turned to us. “Mom, this is Connor, and this is Nui.”

I had my spiel ready—how stunning she looked and there was no wonder where Charlie had gotten her good looks from. I was about to tell her that I’d been waiting to meet her, but I faltered a bit because Charlie had lumped me in with Nui, as though I were a friend.

I took a step forward, extending a strong hand to Charlie’s mother. “Nice to finally meet you.”

She eyed me for a moment. “Nice to meet you, Connor. I’m Olivia.” Then, she turned to Nui. “What did you say your name was?”

“Nui. I have to tell you, Olivia, I’m an artist myself, and your daughter’s work is beyond this world.”

They began talking about Charlie and individual pieces and which were Nui’s favorites.

As their conversation continued, my jaw tightened. I’d wanted a better introduction. I didn’t know what I had expected. I hadn’t expected for her to treat me like one of the people who had just shown up to her daughter’s exhibit. When I stepped into Charlie and placed a hand on the small of her back, she took a step forward.

What the hell?

Then, the next series of events happened so rapid fast that it took a while for me to take in what was going on.

Charlie

“Connor!” From my far left, walking toward us was Sandy, holding a champagne glass.

I had known Richard would be here, but why the hell was Sandy here? She didn’t even like me. Plus, she had an event at work today. And how the hell did she know Connor?

“Sandy?” Connor’s eyes flew wide open when Sandy wrapped her arms around him in a tight vise.

I gritted my teeth together in a smile, the type of smile that hurt because I was grinding my molars.

Richard strolled in right behind him. “Connor, I haven’t seen you in forever.”

It was as though I were in the twilight zone, watching Richard hug Connor as though he knew him … really knew him.

“Did you move back?”

“No, I didn’t, sir,” Connor said. “Just