mumbled.
“Can I give a piece of advice to my favorite brother-in-law?”
“Sure.”
“Stop talking with your mouth and speak from your heart.”
“My heart? I’m surprised you think I have a heart,” he quipped.
“You have so much more than you realize, Mr. De Soto. You have compassion, loyalty, and a unique perspective on the world. You love deeply. You just don’t show it. One day you will want to share that love.”
“Your pep talks are getting better.” He chuckled, trying to defuse the moment.
“When my two monsters grow up and have a trail of lovelorn women chasing them, I am going to be prepared. The curse of the De Soto men will stop there.”
“They are pretty good. Better than I was at their age.”
Lauren laughed. “I try to teach my boys how to be respectful of women and you and your brother give them ass-backward chats behind my back. It takes me two weeks every time you visit to deprogram the things you sneak and tell them.”
Antonio knew she wanted them to grow up and be respectful mama’s boys, but the boys had to be educated about the ways of the world. If Lauren knew half the trouble her four-year-olds got into, she would wring both his and Alejandro’s necks.
“I have a meeting in five minutes. Can you call me this evening?”
“Sure. Tell my brother I said hello and that he better be treating you well.”
Lauren laughed. “You know he is.”
“I know. I wouldn’t expect anything less from him.”
* * *
Antonio had in his mouth what was the best mini crab cake he’d ever eaten, but the succulent perfection was lost on him right now. Instead, in the most casual way possible, he was watching as Blake aimlessly wandered around the gallery, wearing that damn professor’s jacket. And right beside him was none other than Lucy. At first he thought he’d seen her come into the gallery alone, but then saw Blake trailing behind her like a puppy that wasn’t house-trained yet.
She had on a nice dress, and a multicolored scarf dangled mercilessly around her neck. She always reminded him of the first brush stroke an artist would lay onto a blank canvas.
He didn’t know where it came from, but the tension was rising in his neck. What was there to be jealous of? He was there with Monica, who was dressed to kill. She had on a sleek little black dress and a pair of four-inch heels that made her, sadly, only come up to his nose. From the moment she opened her apartment door until they arrived at the gallery, he couldn’t keep his eyes or his hands off her. Tonight would be the night he sealed the deal. It had been a while, by his standards, and he needed to release some pent-up tension.
Lucy declined two offers from Felix for another round of dinner with them and she conveniently painted her trees when he wasn’t at the theater. One day he came in and found a nice corner in the balcony to spy on her. She was unaware of him and he reveled in watching her paint while she listened to the radio. She was content being the only one in the universe while she worked on her project.
The longer he watched, the more he realized that she was even quirkier than he thought. She would stick a paintbrush in her hair and then spend five minutes looking for it. She took her left shoe off and massaged her foot but never bothered to put the shoe back on. If a song was really good she’d take a break and dance horribly around the stage until she collapsed in a fit of laughter, then go back to her work.
As baffling and random as her behavior seemed to him, what was even more baffling was how all of this captivated him. He thought of her every night before he drifted off to sleep and wondered if she thought about him too.
“I think Blake owes you,” Felix said thoughtfully as he approached him. Monica was having a discussion with some friends of hers across the room.
“Why would Blake owe me anything?”
“Because if it weren’t for you, Lucy would never have gone out with
“Can I give a piece of advice to my favorite brother-in-law?”
“Sure.”
“Stop talking with your mouth and speak from your heart.”
“My heart? I’m surprised you think I have a heart,” he quipped.
“You have so much more than you realize, Mr. De Soto. You have compassion, loyalty, and a unique perspective on the world. You love deeply. You just don’t show it. One day you will want to share that love.”
“Your pep talks are getting better.” He chuckled, trying to defuse the moment.
“When my two monsters grow up and have a trail of lovelorn women chasing them, I am going to be prepared. The curse of the De Soto men will stop there.”
“They are pretty good. Better than I was at their age.”
Lauren laughed. “I try to teach my boys how to be respectful of women and you and your brother give them ass-backward chats behind my back. It takes me two weeks every time you visit to deprogram the things you sneak and tell them.”
Antonio knew she wanted them to grow up and be respectful mama’s boys, but the boys had to be educated about the ways of the world. If Lauren knew half the trouble her four-year-olds got into, she would wring both his and Alejandro’s necks.
“I have a meeting in five minutes. Can you call me this evening?”
“Sure. Tell my brother I said hello and that he better be treating you well.”
Lauren laughed. “You know he is.”
“I know. I wouldn’t expect anything less from him.”
* * *
Antonio had in his mouth what was the best mini crab cake he’d ever eaten, but the succulent perfection was lost on him right now. Instead, in the most casual way possible, he was watching as Blake aimlessly wandered around the gallery, wearing that damn professor’s jacket. And right beside him was none other than Lucy. At first he thought he’d seen her come into the gallery alone, but then saw Blake trailing behind her like a puppy that wasn’t house-trained yet.
She had on a nice dress, and a multicolored scarf dangled mercilessly around her neck. She always reminded him of the first brush stroke an artist would lay onto a blank canvas.
He didn’t know where it came from, but the tension was rising in his neck. What was there to be jealous of? He was there with Monica, who was dressed to kill. She had on a sleek little black dress and a pair of four-inch heels that made her, sadly, only come up to his nose. From the moment she opened her apartment door until they arrived at the gallery, he couldn’t keep his eyes or his hands off her. Tonight would be the night he sealed the deal. It had been a while, by his standards, and he needed to release some pent-up tension.
Lucy declined two offers from Felix for another round of dinner with them and she conveniently painted her trees when he wasn’t at the theater. One day he came in and found a nice corner in the balcony to spy on her. She was unaware of him and he reveled in watching her paint while she listened to the radio. She was content being the only one in the universe while she worked on her project.
The longer he watched, the more he realized that she was even quirkier than he thought. She would stick a paintbrush in her hair and then spend five minutes looking for it. She took her left shoe off and massaged her foot but never bothered to put the shoe back on. If a song was really good she’d take a break and dance horribly around the stage until she collapsed in a fit of laughter, then go back to her work.
As baffling and random as her behavior seemed to him, what was even more baffling was how all of this captivated him. He thought of her every night before he drifted off to sleep and wondered if she thought about him too.
“I think Blake owes you,” Felix said thoughtfully as he approached him. Monica was having a discussion with some friends of hers across the room.
“Why would Blake owe me anything?”
“Because if it weren’t for you, Lucy would never have gone out with
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