Page 67 of Sight Unseen

Nate chuckled as the waiter came over with the bottle of champagne. I poured, and passed a glass to Nate.

“Okay, now you know my secret, give me the good news.” Nate flashed me a sexy grin.

I was still on a high and I mimicked a trumpet fanfare. “I sold Conchious Effort today for an incredibly good price.” I stopped for dramatic effect.

Nate punched me on the arm.

“Ow, you bastard. What was that for?” I rubbed my bicep as I winced.

“For keeping me in suspense.” Nate went back to eating and I watched as he picked up another chunk of seafood and popped it in his mouth.

It always amazed me how he managed to make it look as if he wasn’t blind, as if he knew where everything was. It was the habit he’d gotten into of prepping his food with surgical precision so he could eat it without fearing he’d make a fool of himself. Everything was carefully cut up, sorted and placed on his plate so he could get to it without any fuss.

I looked down at my rather messy plate with everything randomly scattered across it and not for the first time thought how I took my sight for granted.

Nate talked around his food. “So, while you know I’m not really into the money side of things, tell me what it went for, and who it went to.”

I finished my mouthful and put down my fork. “We used the new online auction system Rachel set up and I was pleased with the result. It sold for twenty thousand dollars.”

Nate choked and spat something out. A piece of asparagus went flying across the table to land on my plate.

I regarded it with a grimace. “Yeah, thanks, sweetheart. I’m not a baby bird and I don’t need pre-masticated food. Thanks anyway.”

I picked the offending morsel off and wrapped it in a napkin.

Nate flapped a hand as he tried to get his coughing under control. He picked up his wineglass and took a slurp. I stood, worried he’d choke, and smacked his back. Finally, after his coughing fit subsided, I sat back down.

“Twenty thousand dollars?” Nate’s voice was squeaky and he took another sip of wine.

“Yup. This guy wanted it bad. No doubt he saw the program that tells people how much this work meant to you, how it was your first real work since you were blinded. He paid us a few days ago and it’s been shipped already. It’ll take a while to get there, but he seems happy.”

I regarded him slyly as his face got less pink and returned to his normal color. “Of course, there are those other pieces you’re working on that I’m dying to see. The secret projects. No doubt those will be coming my way and I can sell them too?” I tried to sound innocent but Nate knew how much I wanted to see the pieces he’d been sweating over for weeks, probably months.

He snorted. “Nice try. And those pieces won’t ever be for sale. Back to Conchious Effort. Do you know who the buyer is?”

And there it was. I was about to get the third degree. Best head it off at the pass.

“The buyer’s name is Anthony Hedgewick. He’s some big-shot entrepreneur in Christchurch, New Zealand—there’s a coincidence, seeing as how your family lives there—and he’s looking forward to getting his sculpture, Rachel said. He told her the pieces would be put where they rightfully belonged, and that he’d take really good care of it.”

I noticed Nate’s stillness. His hands lay flat on the table and he hardly drew a breath. His face was shadowed, his brown eyes dark. I wasn’t sure what the expression on his face was. I couldn’t read it and hadn’t seen it before.

“Nate, you okay?” I reached over and covered his hand with mine. His hands were ice cold. “Babe, what the hell? Are you still struggling with your breathing?”

Nate shook his head jerkily. “No, it’s—” He sat back in his chair and closed his eyes briefly. “My dad’s middle name is Anthony, and my mother’s maiden name was Hedgewick. It seems a bit out of the blue, I guess, that he lives in Christchurch as well. It couldn’t possibly be my dad that bought that piece, could it?”

I nearly spat out the wine I’d sipped. “Hell, no. Why would he do that after the conversation you had with him last time?”

Nate shrugged, his face uncertain. “I don’t know.” Hope dawned over his face and my heart fell.

Please don’t believe it, Nate, I thought desperately. Your father can’t possibly be this buyer. Surely you can’t be this naïve after everything that you’ve gone through?

Part of me loved the fact Nate never gave up on his family despite everything they’d put him through. The other part despaired at knowing he could and would get hurt again.

“Can you—” Nate fumbled with his napkin, and those beautiful eyes stared right through me. “Can you find out the address you sent it to? Maybe we can make sure.”

I stared at him, feeling helpless. “Baby, I can check the shipping address on my phone app, but are you sure this is what you want? Maybe you should let sleeping dogs lie.”

I broke off, seeing the need on Nate’s face. I had such a bad feeling about this.