It wasn't my intention to have such a lengthy wait between chapters, yet we all know how the song goes... 'Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans.' There will be one more chapter which takes Anna and Van away from the city. Thanks, as always, to my wonderful editor for helping me with the details, and to the great Lit readers who've been so patient.
© annanova, 2013
*
"Seriously, can you believe how well the show went?"
Anna hadn't been able to stop chattering about her first international photography exhibit. She had slowed a little over breakfast, but not by much.
"Yes, babe," Van grinned. No matter how many times she said it, he was still excited for her. "You might have mentioned something about it this morning."
She laughed at his tone and turned to watch the passing Quebec countryside. They were following up on an offer from Antoine, the manager of Galerie Lamarque, the location of the photo exhibit.
"Okay, maybe I'm going a little overboard, but I have another show coming as a result of this one and I sold five of my pictures. Five, Van,
five
! Antoine said that hardly ever happens... especially for someone that they'd never heard of."
The late spring sun warmed the car, somehow even making his laughter sound happier to her ears.
"I was standing right behind you, Anna, I heard everything he said." Reaching over to squeeze her thigh, he smiled before casually tracing the delicate line of her chin. "I'm proud of you. I know you've been working toward this for a long time."
She laughed at his statement, recalling what he'd been doing during her discussion with the gallery manager. "You were standing right behind me and listening? Yeah, sure you were," she teased. "I kind of think that your ears have migrated because you seemed to be more occupied with my ass than my conversation."
His grin spread into a full smile. "Well, you can't blame me for that... you kept teasing me with it, and you have such a great ass."
~*~*~
In her excitement about the show, they'd arrived early. Two of the young assistants had been stunned into near-submission at the view of Anna's hem fluttering around her thighs in the draft of the closing door. She had turned to take her lover's hand, so the men caught a glimpse of the sweet crease at the junction of her ass and thigh.
Hearing one man gasp, Van smiled while squeezing her hand. "See?" he whispered. "It's already working."
Antoine swooped in and the young men snapped into preparation mode. He caught Anna's free hand and gave her his usual greeting of a kiss on each cheek, before standing back to take a good look at what had so distracted his workers. "My dear, you're not supposed to compete with the art on the walls," he laughed. Spinning her like a dancer and watching her hem rise again, he continued to laugh and told Van, "She's enough to make me wish I could give you a run for your money."
Simple yet elegant, her dress flowed enticingly over her beautiful body. Extending to just below her exquisite ass was a semi-sheer sheath in cream overlaid by a slightly longer, finely-knit coverlet that clasped over one shoulder, leaving the other bare. Also in cream, decorated in a paisley design of teal, green and gold, the tapered material vividly described her sensual curves while lending an evocative touch of her Celtic heritage to the Urban Sophisticate oeuvre she maintained for professional events. With the classic silver heels she'd purchased earlier that day providing the perfect complement to her smooth, sculpted legs, she knew she was ready to impress.
Once the show started, the gallery was packed. Thrilled for Antoine at the incredible turn-out, Anna was a little nervous, too. It was her first international showing and following the call she'd received from the Forbes Erotic Arts Gallery, she recognized the opportunities opening before her.
She just had to be brave enough to take them.
"There you are,
ma belle
." The manager handed her a glass of champagne, toasting the exhibition's success. "But... where is your handsome man?"
"I think he might be assigning himself the job of my promoter," she giggled. "I saw him in front of 'Masques' a few minutes ago, talking it up to a few people."
"That will be an easy job for him." Tipping his glass to hers again, Antoine confided, "That photo will sell tonight. The textures make an intriguing subject for our clientele, who tend to appreciate the abstract... and the erotic."
"Oh, I don't know about —"
"No... you will be quite successful with your photography, Anna. What we have seen here, I am sure, is only an
amuse-bouche
. Or, what you call, a taste."
A light blush coloring her cheeks, she smiled. "
Merci
, Antoine. I appreciate how much you've done to support me through this show. I just hope people will like what I've tried to do."
"I have already heard good things. In fact," he leaned in, conspiratorially, "a little bird told me that you had a very interesting phone call today."
Somehow, she wasn't surprised that he knew. "Have you ever worked with them?"
"Well, one of their major donors is also very active with our gallery, so it isn't unheard of that we share talent. I have been hearing only good things from them." He set his empty glass on a nearby table then stood back, crossing his arms to watch her reaction. "Do you have anything in mind for the people at the Forbes?"
She took a moment to think, finally saying, "Holly told me that one of their donors mentioned the nipple shot to her, so I'd want to take that one."
They discussed the intricacies of the art world for several minutes before Antoine reminded her how he had advised her when she had initially signed on for the show at Lamarque. She had consulted with an attorney friend about withholding a few pieces to build a personal collection and developing other shots as limited edition printings, which would help her availability. It wasn't until she thought of the pictures she'd taken in the hotel room that she felt a pair of warm, familiar arms take their place around her waist.
Leaning into Van's chest, she smiled while continuing her conversation. "As a matter of fact, I took a few shots this morning that might work for a future show. Maybe you could take a look and let me know what you think."
"If you want to use any of those... you're definitely taking me with you to that show." His breath tickled her ear. Drinking in her low laugh, he kissed the side of her neck.
"She took pictures of you?" The gallery manager arched an eyebrow in amused curiosity. "Yes, I'll be happy to take a look and give you an opinion, Anna. He'd make a wonderful subject."
"I want to play some more with the color and tones on a few of them, but I was happy with how they turned out the first time I ran them through the program." They agreed to meet the following morning for a professional evaluation, then returned to mingling with the audience.
Much as he had during the private showing the previous night, Van found himself hanging back to watch Anna chat. He was impressed by how she moved seamlessly from one guest to another, chatting with each and making him or her feel they'd been focused on to the exclusion of anyone else. Watching each person she spoke with after she'd walked away, he could see they were thinking about what she'd said. They would also turn back to her work, looking at it anew as if seeking clues that had been dropped in conversation.
Anna had turned, thinking to grab a glass of water when she bumped into a guest.
"Oh, excuse me!" she apologized. From the corner of her eye, she noticed Van observing her. Pushing him to the back of her mind, she tried to talk with the man upon whom she'd spilled her water.
"Please, it's quite alright."
There was something vaguely familiar about the older man with his warm smile and thick white hair. His friendly eyes seemed to indicate they shared a secret.
He helped her pat his coat dry, chuckling at the confused expression on her face. Before she could ask, he told her, "No, we haven't met... yet we're not completely strangers, either." Laughing at her puzzlement, he added, "I'm... staying at the Hotel de Montréal."
Realization dawned, and she flushed multiple tones of red. "So you're...."
"I'm Rob. My room is on the courtyard," he nodded, with a knowing smile. Before she could do anything, he took her hand. "No, please, you shouldn't be embarrassed by it. You're a beautiful young woman, and it was an honor to have been allowed to witness your joy."
"Well... thank you," she murmured. Pulling her professionalism to the fore, she grinned, "So then, Rob, what brings you to the gallery tonight?"
He noted to himself that she hadn't released his hand. "I mentioned something about being a hobbyist photographer to the concierge in our hotel, and he directed me here. I've taken landscapes for years and have experimented with portraits, although I'm generally not lucky enough to get shots like these." With a subtle nod, he indicated the picture they were standing in front of. "How did you manage this?"
It was a black and white treatment of a woman's shapely leg embraced by a silk stocking attached to a garter belt. Just below the clasp, a man's hand could be seen caressing her thigh.
"Believe it or not, it wasn't easy," Anna laughed. "I was playing around with a few ideas I had about lighting and texture. The real trick was finding just the right hand."
"I can't imagine that you wouldn't have had dozens of volunteers. I certainly would've been happy to have you take a picture of my hand on the leg of a beautiful woman."
"Thank you again. I think you understand what I was looking for, though." She turned to demonstrate on the picture itself. "Just because you have a sexy leg and a man's hand, it doesn't mean they'll be right together. What is the feeling I want to impart to the viewer? What kind of man owns that hand? How did they come to be together?"
"Yes, I see what you mean," the man agreed. "The question then becomes whether you'd be able to find a story for a hand like mine."
"Hmm, I like that." Her smile was warm. Raising his hand, she studied it intently, holding it to the light.
"What do you see, Anna?"
"I see that I don't need to find a story for you... your hand has many already." Turning her shining green eyes to his, she added, "The real question is, which of those stories would