He grins. I can see his happy, relieved look through the stems. “Well, you deserve to get them. Especially after what you did for me. I sold eight pieces last night. Eight. I made more at that gallery show than I have the last year working here.”
I drop the flowers lower so I can see him better. “Colin, I didn’t do anything. I just told you that you were talented. You did all the work. You’re the one.”
“No, you told me you wanted to have my children.”
I back up a step, my heart filling completely to the top with a dense cold. “You know I didn’t mean that literally, right?” Dread is seriously heavy. I feel like I have a lump of steel sitting in my chest. My mouth has gotten me into trouble before, but this right here would be a whole other level of awful.
“Yeah, of course,” he says, his tone all light and airy, like I’m not in the middle of dying right in front of him. “That’s not what I meant. The point is, you kind of just dropped your whole Quin-act. You were you for a few seconds in my apartment with me. And in that moment, you were totally honest. You got what I was seeing when I did Teagan’s portrait. You got it. You got me.” He puts his hand over his heart and his voice is filled with such passion and excitement, it stuns me.
I’m shaking my head. “I don’t understand. Are you, or are you not, telling me you’re in love with me?” I feel sick as I wait for his answer. Please say no, please say no, please say no…
He grins. “Yes, I do think I love you. But not like that.”
“Wow. That was ever so much clearer. Thank you.” I glare at him.
He puts his hand on my shoulder. It’s heavy and warm. The thing that costumed my heart with coldness is beginning to thaw. “I mean, you’re very special to me. Even though I hardly know you, I feel like I really do know you. And you remind me of someone very, very important to me.” He pauses as his eyes go suddenly red. “She used to fix things. She fixed everything. But she’s gone now, so I thought I lost that forever and that shit would always be broken … wrong in some way. But I guess I kind of feel like I got it back in a way or I’ve got a second chance. So thanks. Thanks for being honest with me. Thanks for being … you. Thanks for fixing the unfixable.” He moves his hand to the top of my head and musses up my hair.
“Hey! Watch the ‘do, man!” I yank my head away from him. I have both hands on the flowers, so my hair is left to fend for itself. I suddenly feel like I’m ten years old again. I don’t have an older brother, but I’m pretty sure this is what it feels like to have one.
“Sorry. Want me to take those from you?”
“Yes,” I say, heaving the roses in his direction. As soon as my hands are free I pat my hair down.
“Come on. You can keep them in here to enjoy.” He heads back to Rebel’s apartment.
“Are you going to apologize to Mick?” I ask to his back.
He freezes. “No.” His good mood has vaporized into thin air.
“I’m afraid I’m going to have to insist on that,” I say, liking this new power trip he’s put me on. I am the Queen of Trouble. Has a nice ring to it.
“I’m not going to do that,” he says, turning around.
I move closer so that our faces are only a few inches apart. “Yes, you are, actually.”
We’re busy glaring at each other when Rebel comes up from the stairway. He stops in the hall and watches us. I turn to face him and feel my face go red as I take in his expression. He looks angry. Disappointed.
“What are you doing?” he asks Colin.
“Nothing.” The cocky, devil-may-care attitude is back full-force. “Just carrying these in for her before I go to the gym.”
“Actually,” I say, taking the vase from Colin, “he’s getting ready to go over to the hospital so he can apologize to Mick. Because if he doesn’t, I’m not going to be coming around here anymore. I don’t hang with cowards.” I glare at Colin.
“I almost killed him,” Colin says, his words only for me. Some of the attitude has slipped away.
“Exactly. Go fix it.” I pull open the door, my eyes still on Colin’s.
“It’s not fixable.”
“Everything is fixable,” I say. “Everything. Didn’t you just say that to me like less than a minute ago? Stop expecting someone else to do it for you and do it for yourself.”
He clamps his lips together and says nothing, but the accompanying glare doesn’t bother me in the least.