The Genius and the Muse Read online

  “You know what? Fuck it. Don’t find a nice guy. You’d get bored, and he wouldn’t know what to do with you. So… yeah, be pissed at me if you want, but you—you’re one-of-a-kind…” He paused, unsure of what he was really trying to say. “So just find a guy that gets that, you know?” He rolled his eyes at the longest voicemail in history. “Or just ignore me, because it’s none of my business, anyway. Bye.”

  He hung up the phone and walked to his truck, determined not to think about the girl with the fiery hair again.

  Part Seven: The Potter

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Claremont, California

  June 2010

  Kate could hear the laughter through the front door of the Bradley's house as she raised her hand to knock. She’d been planning on slipping the progress report under the door in case the baby was napping, but the loud laughter inside gave her pause. Biting her lip, she rapped sharply on the dark red door. Dee answered with a bright smile on her face.

  “Kate!” She pulled the younger woman into the house with a warm hug and a laugh. “I haven’t seen you in weeks. How are you?”

  Kate gave her a small smile before she replied, “I’m doing great. My classes are done. I’m almost done with the written portion of my thesis, and then I’ll have my exhibition in the fall.” She waved the papers in her hands. “I was just going to drop these off for Professor Chris.”

  Dee snorted, “Professor Chris?”

  She rolled her eyes and shrugged. “It’s my own joke. I feel weird calling him anything besides Professor Bradley, but he keeps asking me to call him Chris. It’s my own weird compromise.”

  Dee laughed. “Professor Chris…”

  She ushered Kate further into the house where a blond woman in her late thirties was sitting at the kitchen table making silly faces at Sabina. She looked up at Kate and Dee when they entered.

  “So this is the brilliant Kate I keep hearing about?”

  Dee nodded and threw an arm around Kate. “Yep, this is Kate Mitchell, Suz.” The woman watched them with kind brown eyes. She looked familiar, somehow, but Kate couldn’t place her.

  “Kate,” Dee paused. “This is an old friend of mine, Susan Rhodes.”

  “Susan Rhodes?” Kate’s ears perked up at the name and she realized why the woman must have looked so familiar. Though she was older and had slightly different features, she could have been Sam Rhodes’ sister.

  “You were in the photograph,” Kate said. “The one with Dee and Chris. The one Javi took. Are you… I mean, are you her sis—”

  “Cousin, hon. I’m Sammy’s cousin,” Susan said. She stood and held out a hand to shake Kate’s. “And I’m not that old, Dee. Sheesh.” She elbowed her friend as Dee sat next to her and took the drooling baby.

  Dee chuckled. “Suz is also a very talented ceramic and glass artist in Crestline. Her studio is just up the mountain.”

  Susan made a face. “Ceramic artist? Don’t make me laugh. I’m a potter, Kate. Ceramic and glass artist sounds way too fancy to be referring to me.” She laughed as she sat down again and took a sip from the steaming mug in front of her. “And it’s very nice to meet you. Dee and Chris are very excited about your work. They both think you’re really talented.”

  Kate smiled politely, finally remembering her manners. “It’s really nice to meet you, too. I’ve, uh… I’ve heard your name from a few people while I was doing my research. I didn’t know you were Sam’s cousin, though. Or that you were a ceramic artist.”

  “Potter, really.” Susan smiled. “I’m just a potter.”

  Dee threw an arm around Susan’s shoulders. “That’s right. Suz and I are the humble artisans of our little group from school. No fancy-schmancy artistes here, just poor working stiffs.” Dee winked. “Do you want some tea?”

  “Craftsmen, Dee. We’re craftsmen… or craftswomen, I suppose? Which sounds kind of funny, for some reason.”

  “I’d love some tea, thanks,” Kate said quietly.

  Dee got up to get Kate a mug, handing the baby to her for a moment. Kate bounced the baby girl on her knee, leaning over to place a small kiss on her dark curly head.

  “So, Kate, Dee says you’re doing your thesis on Reed’s work? That’s great. He’s such a gifted artist. It’s wonderful that he’s inspired you so much,” Susan said with a smile.

  Kate snorted a little. “Yeah, he’s brilliant all right.” She continued watching Sabina smile at her as the baby girl drooled a little and grabbed Kate’s chin.

  Susan cleared her throat. “So, not the idol you thought he’d be? Found out he was human after all? Who’d you talk to? Brandon Wylie? That was the assistant’s name, right?”

  Kate stared at Susan for a moment before she looked back at the baby. She just shrugged, not knowing what to say.

  She heard Dee speak behind her. “Never forget who is telling a story, Kate.”

  “So he’s lying?”

  Susan said, “I don’t know what he told you.”

  Kate looked up, still bouncing the baby lightly on her lap. Sabina began to fuss and kick her legs. “You’re Sam’s cousin. So tell me, do you still talk to O’Connor?”

  Susan’s mouth lifted in the corner. “Reed and I were never very close, to be honest. Sam and I were more like sisters than cousins when we were children, but Reed has a hard time opening up to most people. We talk very rarely now.”

  “Oh yeah?” Kate asked with a slightly bitter smile. “I can see why you might not want to stay friendly with him, considering.”

  Susan cocked her head to the side and smiled. “Be careful making assumptions, Kate.”

  Kate looked at her in astonishment. “You know why they broke up, don’t you? I mean, if you’re as close as you say you are with your cousin, you must know.”

  Susan sighed a little as Dee sat back down at the table. She handed Kate her tea and picked up Sabina. Dee grabbed a blanket from the back of the chair and sat down, opening her blouse discreetly to feed the fussy baby.

  Susan spoke again. “I imagine I know as well as anyone besides Reed and Sam why their relationship ended. Well…” She sighed. “That’s probably not the best way to phrase it.”

  “What do you mean?” Kate asked.

  “Nothing really ended, you know. They just broke up.”

  “Yeah,” Kate said, her lip curling slightly at the corner. “I know.”

  “No,” Susan murmured, shaking her head. “I don’t think you do.”

  Kate stared at Susan for a few long minutes, watching her while she drank her tea.

  “Are you sticking up for O’Connor?” Kate was incredulous. Susan cocked an eyebrow at her, and suddenly, Kate felt like the youngest person in the room. She realized that she sounded like an annoyed teenager. “I mean,” she started, “I just don’t understand how he could throw everything away. Everyone said what they had was so special.”

  “It was.”

  She swallowed the lump in her throat, refusing to cry. “So why would someone throw that away? I don’t understand. They sounded so extraordinary.” Kate halted, unsure of what she wanted to say, and not understanding how she had become so invested in two people she only knew by reputation.

  “They were extraordinary,” Susan said. Kate saw Dee nodding silently from the corner of her eye as she stroked Sabina’s cheek. “And I don’t know everything that happened,” Susan continued. “It's really not my story to tell. I know the basics. But more importantly, I know that Sam doesn’t harbor any bitterness toward Reed.”

  It was then that Kate realized tears had come to her eyes. She swiped at them, embarrassed at her own emotion. Susan just looked at her with understanding eyes.

  “How?” Kate asked. “How could she—”

  “Like I said, I don’t know everything; they’re both very private people and were always extremely protective of each other, even when they separated. But I do know that if anyone is aware of their own shortcomings, it’s Sam. And she’s one of the least judgmental people I
know.”

  Kate was silent for a few moments, then she asked, “Does she still love him?”

  The tears that sprang to Susan’s eyes were quickly blinked away. “Didn’t I say it earlier? Nothing really ended.”

  Kate took a deep breath. “But he—”

  Dee finally broke into the conversation with a gentle voice, “Eventually, Kate, you’re going to realize that sometimes in life, there isn’t a good guy and a bad guy. Sometimes, even with the best of intentions—even with people who love each other—things can happen. We all have to take responsibility for our own actions. Good or bad.”

  Susan looked at Dee, still blinking away tears. “That’s true. Very, very true.” She nodded, before adding in a lighter tone, “I think it’s thirty, right Dee? Isn’t that when you’re required to own up to your own shit?”

  Dee winked. “Yep, that’s what the manual said.”

  “I keep losing my copy.”

  “I don’t think I ever got mine.” The two women laughed at what must have been an ongoing joke.

  Kate couldn’t help but smile, looking back and forth between them. She wondered, as she observed their playful banter, whether the friendships she had in school would develop into the kind of friendship she saw before her.

  The tension slowly dissolved as the conversation turned to family, work, and other mutual friends.

  “So, I thought Javi would just meet you for coffee or something, but did I hear he let you walk through his studio?” Dee asked. “That’s like finding the Holy Grail or a unicorn or something.”

  “Not that you could find anything in that place,” Susan said. “Who knows, maybe that’s where the unicorns are hiding.”

  “No, Javi would kill them and turn them into taco meat if they were.”

  “True.” Susan turned to her. “But he let Kate past the fiery gate. Whatever could that mean?”

  Kate fought the immediate blush that rose to her cheeks. “He… uh, he was nice enough to talk to me, but—”

  “And it’s so funny,” Susan added. “I was talking to Toni last week and she mentioned she’d seen Javi at the Art Walk last month with a redhead.”

  Kate stammered as two sets of eyes turned toward her. “Oh, that was nothing, we—”

  “Well, that would be noticeable,” Dee interrupted. ”You never hear about Javi with anyone, that’s kind of—”

  “Unusual.”

  “To say the least.”

  “Nothing’s going on!” Kate felt like he was blushing from her neck to the tips of her hair when she finally squeaked out the protest. “Really, he was just returning some filters I left at his place, and he showed me around the Art Walk because I’d never been before, and we ate tacos because… well, I think that’s the only thing he eats. But he really, I mean… he doesn’t like me.” She looked around at the amused faces of the other women. “Really.”

  “No, of course not.” Susan shook her head. “Javi doesn’t like anyone.”

  Dee nodded. “No, very antisocial. He barely speaks to his own sister.”

  Kate still felt like her face was on fire. “Nothing… nothing is going on.”

  Dee and Susan were both just smiling at her like she was the butt of some inside joke.

  “So, Suz, what do you think? You know I can’t go right now, want to drag Kate here to New York next month to keep you company?” Dee asked. “She’d be fun to hang out with and she might even like museums as much as you.”

  “Oh, I don’t know. She’s probably not interested in—”

  “I’ve never been to New York!” Kate said, looking between Dee and Susan. “Are you joking?”

  Dee winked at her, patting the baby who had fallen asleep on her shoulder. “I have a feeling there might be things in New York for Kate to discover. Things. People. Maybe a few answers?”

  Susan smiled. “I’m game if she wants to. I’m stealing Carson’s plane to go up there anyway. It’d be nice if it carried more than one person for once. Besides, she could meet Lydia. I think Lydia would like her.”

  “Lydia Collins?” Kate gaped. The wonder of the surprise invitation paled in comparison to the opportunity to meet the famed agent. “You think Lydia Collins would like me?” She wasn’t modest about her work, but the prospect of meeting the renowned agent was enough to make a seasoned professional swoon, much less a not-quite-out-of-school grad student. She could only gulp.

  Susan laughed again. “If you can charm Javi, you can charm Lydia. Besides, I think she’s bored with her old artists. She could use a challenge.”

  Kate was still mulling what Susan had said about her “charming Javi” when she finally processed what the other woman was proposing.

  “Susan, I’m really grateful for the invite, but I don’t have the money—”

  “I’m loaded, by the way. I married this insanely wealthy guy who has more money than he knows what to do with. Luckily, he thinks I’m charmingly eccentric.” Susan grinned. “His family has a condo in Manhattan, so don’t worry about paying for a place to stay or anything. It’s fine. Just keep me company, have some fun, and see what happens. I love taking newbies to New York for the first time.” Susan winked. “Besides… you never know who you might run into.”

  A huge smile of anticipation crossed Kate’s face for the first time in weeks.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Brooklyn, New York

  New Year’s Eve 2006

  Sam sniffed a little as she curled next to Reed on the bed. They watched the fireworks and revelry on the small television in their bedroom and held each other. She stared blankly at the screen as the crowd in Times Square went wild.

  “January would have been a really easy birthday month to remember,” she said with carefully affected nonchalance. “Though, I guess it comes right after Christmas, so that’s not so great.” Her voice caught toward the end. “You’d have to wait a long time to get presents again, you know?”

  Reed took a deep breath, swallowing the lump in his throat that always threatened to overwhelm him when she spoke of their lost child. “Sam—”

  “I know.” She stopped him and let out a quiet breath. “I know.”

  He remained silent, pressing her more tightly against his chest and wrapping her in his arms. He rocked her a little and kissed her forehead gently, brushing away the blond strands that had fallen in her eyes.

  “I’m going to get better, Reed,” she whispered. “Promise. This year I’m going to be better. I’m going to stop thinking about it so much, okay?”

  Reed clenched his eyes in pain, ignoring his own tears as Sam buried her wet face in his chest. He sniffed a little and cleared his throat.

  “You don’t have to stop thinking about it,” he said hoarsely. “I just want us to be able to move forward. You know that. We have a future together. I just—I don’t want you to forget that part.”

  “I know.”

  They lay in stillness as the hours passed, holding each other as the clock struck midnight. In time, they both drifted to sleep in each other’s arms.

  In the early light of dawn, Sam felt him get up and sit on the edge of the bed, stretching his legs and arching his back to get the kinks out.

  She stared at his naked body. His was the only human form she sketched anymore. For weeks after her surgery, she had seen children whenever she left the apartment, their small, sweet faces peeked from every corner of the city and filled her mind. The only way she could keep from drawing them constantly was to focus on Reed. So, she sketched his arms, his face, the detail around his lips, and the blue eyes that watched her with growing concern.

  She hadn’t worked on a canvas of any other person in months, though she had started work on an oil rendering of her favorite picture she kept tucked away in her grandfather’s Bible. Dee had taken the photograph years ago and given a copy to each of them. Reed kept his in their studio.

  “Where are you off to this morning?” she asked, enjoying the way the morning light crossed his back, highlighting th
e dips and shadows of his shoulder blades. Reed turned, a sleepy smile crinkling the corners of his eyes. He crawled over her in bed, tickling her ribs a little and rubbing his morning stubble along her neck as he grinned at her.

  “Happy New Year,” he whispered before kissing her mouth.

  “Mmmm, you’re quite the party favor.” She smiled, reveling in his sleepy attentions and stroking his face. Reed usually liked to cuddle in the mornings, choosing to linger in bed with her unless he had to work. They would often start the day by making love before falling asleep for another hour or two. He chuckled at her sleepy smile before getting out of bed to throw on some clothes.

  “I’m off to a shoot.”

  “On New Year’s morning? Whose idea was that?”

  “I know, right? Don’t they know what a party animal I am?” Reed rolled his eyes as she laughed. He’d become notorious in fashion circles for not joining in the party lifestyle that so many of his peers enjoyed.

  “Apparently some idiot designer is demanding authentic morning-after-the-bash atmosphere for his spring collection. They even paid some hotel to keep the mess after its New Year’s party. It’s completely ridiculous, but that’s why they pay me the big bucks. I should be back in a couple of hours. Wylie’s already there setting everything up.”

  Sam wrinkled her nose. “I’m glad you have an assistant, but I still don’t like that guy. He’s so… weaselly.”

  He shrugged. “We’ll see. I’m trying to give him a chance to prove himself, and besides… he heels well.”

  Sam slapped his shoulder. “He’s not a dog!”

  “Oh, but he is,” Reed snorted. “Really, Sam, he is. You should see him drooling after these models we work with.”