'Which I guess brings us back to Joe.' Maddy stared at her nearly empty glass. 'What am I going to do? I really insulted him.'
Amy squeezed her hand. 'Then apologize.'
Christine shuddered. 'Don't you just hate that?'
'Not when I've been this stupid.' Maddy sighed. 'I just hope we can work past this.'
'If he loves you, you will.' Christine swiveled on the coffee table to survey their supplies. 'In the meantime, we have wine, chocolate, and Johnny Depp.'
'Orlando Bloom,' Amy countered. 'He has the sweetest eyes.'
'Okay, you get sweet, I get bad, and Maddy gets the cucumber.'
'Christine!' Amy blushed.
'For her eyes.' Christine blinked, the picture of pure innocence. 'That is why you got it, right?'
Maddy smiled at both her friends, loving them so much she thought she might start crying again. Good thing Amy got that cucumber.
Chapter 22
The evening of the show, Maddy stood in the middle of the Taos gallery, feeling stunned. The crowd filled the place to overflowing, bodies bumping as people maneuvered from the food table to the bar. Voices bubbled as brightly as the champagne while the track lighting glinted off enough jewelry to stock Tiffany's.
They'd come because of Rick-the beautiful, the rich, and even the famous-not knowing or caring a thing about 'Madeline.' All that was changing right before her eyes.
'Looks like you sold another one.' Christine nodded toward one of the sales staff as he slipped a SOLD tag in the corner of a frame. The couple standing next to him were practically glowing with pride. Glowing. At the thought of owning one of her originals.
She blinked in amazement. 'I think I need to do more work.'
'Ya think?' Christine smiled at her. 'The new pieces really are incredible. The best work you've ever done. I guess if I'm going to buy
'Actually, it's not for sale.' Maddy turned toward the piece, which hung in a place of prominence, the focal point of the room. 'I've decided to give it to Joe, to hang over the fireplace in the dining hall. It's where it belongs.'
Looking at the image, as the colors glimmered in the spotlight, she ached to be back at the camp.
Rick slipped up behind her, squeezed her shoulders. 'We've sold fifty prints, my dear. Good for you.'
After giving her cheek a smacking kiss, he moved on, calling out someone's name. His news left her staggered. Fifty prints in one show. 'Wow!'
'Do you need to sit down?' Amy asked.
'No.' She laughed, and felt light-headed. 'I'm fine.'
Christine tilted her head, studying her. 'Good thing you decided to deal with that fear of success.'
Maddy pressed a hand to her stomach. 'Acknowledging it didn't instantly get rid of it.'
'You'll get there. In the meantime…' Christine stopped a waiter passing through the crowd with a silver tray of champagne flutes. When they all had one she lifted hers. 'Here's to my beautiful, talented, wonderful friend Madeline. I wish you success and joy.'
'Me too,' Amy said. A bright
'Thank you.' Maddy's heart squeezed. 'I'm glad both of you could be here for this. I don't think I could have handled the last few days as well without you.'
'And that, right there'-Christine tipped her glass-'is what friends are all about.'
'Lucky for me I picked two good ones.' Maddy smiled at both of them.
'You know what this means, though,' Christine said to Amy. 'She's completed her challenge to get her work in a gallery.'
'Most definitely.' Amy looked around. 'I guess that means we have to do ours now.'
'Yep.' Christine smiled flirtatiously as a cute guy walked by, then sighed in disappointment when he lit up and hugged another man. 'This is getting depressing. Here we are, all three of us looking exceptionally hot, and every really good-looking guy in sight is gay.'
'Well, you two certainly look hot,' Amy countered, admiring Christine's ice blue cocktail dress that showed a mile of leg.
'Amy, if anyone looks hot tonight, it's you,' Maddy insisted. She'd gone with the long black dress and added a small fortune's worth of silver jewelry on loan from the gallery. Then she'd pressed Amy into borrowing the little red number, and laughed at the wonder on her friend's face when she realized it fit-and looked spectacular on her.
'So'-Christine continued to scan the room over the rim of her champagne flute-'Amy, have you decided where you're going on your challenge?'
'That depends on what nanny jobs come in.' Excitement danced into Amy's eyes, which Christine had accented with just the right amount of makeup. 'But I've always wanted to go someplace tropical, like the Caribbean.'
'Now there's a fabulous idea,' Christine said.
'I'm thinking a cruise. As long as I stay on the ship, even I can't get lost.'
Maddy narrowed her eyes. 'I'm not sure, but I think that might be cheating. What do you say, Christine?'
'Oh my heavenly bodies!' Christine grabbed her arm, staring toward the door. 'I swear to God, if this one's gay, I'm giving up on men.'
Maddy turned. And felt her heart go still. The noise faded, the lights dimmed as she watched him scan the room. Then his gaze met hers. And he smiled.
'Joe,' she whispered, relief and joy welling up inside her.
'Joe?' Christine repeated. Maddy didn't have to see her friend's face to picture the arched brow and look of approval. 'Well, my, my. You definitely didn't exaggerate.'
He came straight toward her, turning his broad shoulders this way and that to get through the crowd. Her pulse fluttered with hope.
Then he was standing right in front of her. 'Hey.'
'You came.' She wanted desperately to hug him and feel his arm around her, to lay her head against his chest and feel his heart beat against her cheek.
His expression turned sheepish. 'I remembered telling you I wouldn't miss it. The Colonel once told me to always be a man of my word.'
The ache of missing him grew. 'That's good advice for women too.'
'So, you're Joe.' Christine stepped closer.
'Oh. Sorry.' Maddy shook herself. 'Joe, these are my friends.'
'Let me guess.' He turned to the leggy blonde. 'Christine Ashton?'
'I see Maddy's been talking about us.' She shook his hand, her grip firm and straightforward.
'Nothing but praise, I assure you.' He smiled at the pretty brunette, who managed to look both sexy and sweet. 'And you must be Amy Baker.'
'Yes.' Amy took his hand in more of a finger cuddle than a shake. 'It's good to meet you.'
'Same here.'
'You know, Amy'-Christine looped her arm through her friend's-'I'm really dying to take another stroll through the gallery, make sure we saw everything. How about you?'
'Hmm? Oh. Yes, I'd love to.'
The two of them moved away, leaving Joe standing there with no buffer between him and Maddy. Nothing to lessen the punch of seeing her. She'd piled her hair up in some outrageously feminine way that accentuated the heart shape of her face.
Staring at her made him ache from the memory of the scene before she'd left and with longing to make things right again.
He glanced down, then back up. 'All day I've been dying to talk to you, but… damn, Maddy, you always leave me speechless.'
