His Work of Art (6 page)

“Reese asked me to work on a comic book with her for her senior project.”

“Let me see.”

Reese blurted out, “Sure” at the same time he said, “No.”

He stepped in front of Reese to block her progress. “It's not finished. It's not ready to show to anyone.”

Reese bumped her shoulder into his. “She's your
mom
. Of course she'll say wonderful things, even if it was crap. Which it's not.”

His mom chuckled again. He didn't see what the hell was so funny.

Reese handed his mom the pages and he swallowed the last gulps of his coffee before tossing the cup into the can behind the counter. He busied himself with getting Reese's comics for the week. Anything to avoid watching the two women dissect his work.

“Oh, baby. These are fabulous. I wish you'd let me see more of your work.” She huddled close to Reese. “He never wants me to see anything. Every time he's working in here, he covers it all up before I can peek.”

Reese shook her head at him.

“You're one to talk. You handed me the first story and expressly said I couldn't show it to anyone else.”

“That was different.” She tilted her head and crossed her arms.

“Not really.”

His mom handed the sheets back to Reese. “I can close up tonight if you have some place you'd like to be.” Mom's eyebrows shot up. Subtlety was not her strong suit.

“We're just talking.”

“Go talk somewhere else. Get some dinner. Go see a movie. Have fun.”

“Talking about comics is fun.”

She looked to Reese for help in her argument, but Reese shrugged. “He's got you there. We both really like comics.”

“Oh, the two of you. To be twenty-two again. I'd show you what life is supposed to be like at your age.”

Adam covered his ears. “I don't want to hear what you think we should be doing.”

Reese doubled over in laughter as his mom smacked his arms and poked at his abdomen.

“Get out of here. Go have fun. Or work. Or
whatever
. I'll see you tomorrow.”

Adam smiled again. One word his mother hated was
whatever,
so the emphasis she placed on it was kind of priceless. He gave up. He wouldn't force Reese to hang out with him. He could just as easily go home and crawl into bed. He handed Reese her jacket and her bag of comics.

When they got outside he said, “Sorry about that. My mom can be pushy.”

“I like your mom. She's funny.”

“Anyway, you don't have to hang out with me. Your night is free to do whatever.” He tucked his hands in his jacket pockets, wishing he had gloves.

“I don't have anything going on. You want to grab dinner?”

“Sure. You pick a place. I'll follow in my car.” Friends traveled in separate vehicles. He didn't want to give his mom any more ideas about Reese. Uncomplicated. It was a good way to live.

He followed Reese to some hole-in-the-wall diner. She parked and waited on the sidewalk for him. Pointing at the restaurant behind her, she said, “It doesn't look like much, but they have the best cheese everything here: cheese fries, grilled cheese, mac 'n' cheese, you name it.”

“Lead the way. Who doesn't like cheese?” Christ, he sounded dumb.

Inside, they sat in a booth and Reese wiggled out of her coat and squished it in the corner with her bag. A waitress stopped by and set down menus.

Reese slapped her hand on them. “I got this.” She looked up at the waitress. “One order of cheese fries.” To him, she said, “It's a huge order. We'll split it. Burger?”

He threw up his hands. “Sure.”

“Two burgers, two Cokes.” Once the waitress left, Reese stared at him.

“What?”

“If I can't call you Captain anymore, you're gonna need a new name.”

“I have a name. Adam's good.”

“But Cap'n just has a nice ring to it.”

He shook his head. “Let's talk about the comic instead. Give your characters all the nicknames you want.”

She laughed. He liked the sound.

They talked about story ideas and the waitress came with their food. Reese was right—the cheese fries were the best he'd ever had. The burger, not so much. But hanging out with Reese was worth it.

When they were finished, Adam stood. “I'll go pay the bill.”

“You don't have to buy me dinner.”

“It's fine.”

“I'll leave the tip.”

He nodded and walked toward the register as she dug through her bag. While he waited to be rung out, the conversation of the women at the table across from the counter carried to him.

“Like she couldn't get a man of her own, so she had to poach one of ours?”

Adam spun and looked at the woman speaking. She was glaring at Reese.

“How was everything tonight?” the manager asked from behind the register.

He glanced at Reese to see if she'd heard the woman before turning to the manager. “It was great. Thanks.” He got his change and hurried back to Reese. He maneuvered her down the other aisle toward the door. He didn't want to invite any further comments.

One sentence ruined his evening. At least Reese hadn't heard. How much worse would it have been if he and Reese had been holding hands or kissing?

For a moment, the questions in his head were replaced by memories of his childhood. Walking with his parents, he heard the remarks. He'd been too young to understand their meaning, but he knew they were hurtful.

His stomach knotted. He couldn't live constantly waiting for the nastiness to come out of people. That was why he needed uncomplicated. Being Reese's friend was enough.

F
or the next week, Reese and Adam spoke daily, shooting texts and e-mails back and forth, almost always followed closely by a phone call to argue their points. It was a strange game they played and she enjoyed it. The first book was complete, with ink and color, and she'd be handing it off to her friend Julie today for a final proofread and layout for printing. Julie was the business end of the operation. Her job was production, getting everything organized and to the printer and keeping them on track.

When this whole project was finished, Reese was going to throw one hell of a party to celebrate. She'd asked Julie to pick up the book so she could introduce Julie to Adam. Up until now, Julie hadn't had a role to play and Reese had been the go-between, but with as much as Adam had invested in her project, and in turn, her grade, he should probably get to meet the rest of the team.

She was glad that Adam suggested they work at the shop this afternoon. Their weekend meetings were testing the limits of her control over her crush. They always sat close. How could they not? They hunched over the same pages and discussed character and story and how to portray them. It wasn't something that could be done on opposite ends of a couch.

She knew this because she'd tried. She knew Adam wasn't interested because he didn't react to any kind of flirtation she threw out. So she wasn't his type. At least she got a pretty good friend out of the deal. And an awesome artist to work with.

When she got to Comic Universe, Adam was deep in conversation with a couple of guys about a series she knew nothing about. She waved with the cup of coffee she'd brought him as she walked behind the customers and took a seat at his desk. She'd spent so much time here that it was starting to feel more like a home away from home.

Adam walked behind the register and rang the guys out. They left saying they'd see him next week.

“You didn't have to cut it short. I would've waited.”

“But then my coffee would be cold.” He picked up the cup at her elbow. “What's the bribe for?”

“It's not a bribe. I know you like it and I worked the early shift.” She checked her watch. “Julie should be here soon. I can't wait for you to meet her.”

“I still don't see why we need another person. We're handling it all okay.”

“Publishing companies have entire teams dedicated to what we're doing. I can't do it all. I'm actually amazed that you're doing all of the artwork. I would've been happy if you got me to the ink phase and I just had to hire someone to color.”

The look on Adam's face was priceless, like she'd just lobbed the biggest insult ever.

“What? Everyone has his specialty. I knew you could draw. How was I supposed to know if you could color?” She shifted on the stool and her jacket slid out from under her butt.

Adam bent over and tugged the jacket the rest of the way off the stool and hung it up. “So did you have someone else lined up?”

She spun on the stool to watch him move. “I had someone in mind, but I never talked to him about it. There was nothing to say until I had actual pictures. And then you kept going.”

In truth, she was ecstatic that Adam was handling all of the stages of artwork. The only other artist she was familiar with was her ex-boyfriend, Frankie. Although she still saw Frankie every week at their regular RPG night, she really didn't want him to have a piece of her book.

“Promise me that no one else will touch this.” Adam's tone was more serious than usual, which she didn't even think possible.

“Julie's it. If she finds a problem, she'll bounce it back to us. With her handling the production end, I can focus on marketing and promotion.” She spun back toward the desk, taking in the length of the store as she did. She jumped off the stool. “Oh my God. This is perfect.”

“What is?” Adam leaned casually against the counter by the register.

“Would your mom mind if we filmed the campaign ad here?”

“Huh?”

“In order to set up my crowd source campaign to fund the printing of the comic, I need to have a video. Like a commercial. This would be the perfect location.”

Adam shrugged. “I don't see why she'd care, but I'll ask.”

The door opened and Julie walked in. Reese stared at her a minute. She was decked out in a long red cashmere coat that her boyfriend had bought her. Her blond hair was swept up in a way that Reese couldn't imagine how to do and her cheeks were pink from the cold. She looked slightly older than Reese, especially since Reese still dressed the same way she had since high school.

Not Julie. Julie always looked like she was on her way to a job interview.

“Hi,” she said as she walked through the store, pulling her gloves off. “Cute store.”

Reese stepped forward. “Julie, this is Adam, our artist. This is his mom's shop. Adam, Julie.”

Reese turned and looked at Adam, who smiled at Julie before taking her hand. She didn't miss the appreciative sweep of his gaze over Julie's body. A twinge of jealousy poked her chest. Hadn't she just convinced herself that Adam was good to have as a friend? So what if he was attracted to Julie?

At least she understood why. Reese just wasn't his type. She turned away and grabbed the pages off the desk. “Here it is.”

She held the stack out to Julie, who accepted it, but instead of putting it away in her bag, she laid it out on the counter. “This is really good work, guys. Not that I'm an expert in comics or anything.”

“What are you an expert in?” Adam asked.

Julie turned her brilliant smile on Adam. “While I love English, I knew there wouldn't be enough money in it for me, so I turned to computers. I'm your publisher.”

Adam nodded, but he didn't look convinced that Julie knew what she was talking about.

“Reese, I know you're doing the marketing end, but I think you need to have a few of these panels for advertising. Like blown up bigger.” She turned to Adam. “Do you have a problem with that?”

“Making copies of those?”

“Not all of them, but a few key pieces to highlight your work. I'll choose a few and get started and let you see. Then you'll have them for marketing and promotion.” She stacked the pages she'd spread out and opened the flap on her light brown leather briefcase to slide them in.

Anxiety tumbled through Reese's stomach. That was their only finished copy. Watching someone else handle it, take it away, made her edgy. She released a slow breath. She trusted Julie and knew Julie would get it right, just like Adam had. They were going to be a success.

“Nice to meet you, Adam. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other once things get moving along.” Julie pulled her gloves back on. “Want to grab a drink later?” she asked Reese.

“It's Thursday.”

“Right. Geek night. I forgot. Give me a call this weekend and we'll chat.” As she turned toward the door, she winked at Reese and mouthed, “He's cute.”

Yeah, Reese already knew that. Too bad he didn't feel the same.

After Julie left, Adam asked, “Geek night?”

Reese's cheeks flamed. “Uh, yeah. That's what she calls it. I meet with friends on Thursday nights.”

“I thought you always worked on Thursdays and that's why you couldn't meet about the comics. So what are you doing?” He sipped his coffee.

Reese bit down hard on her lip. She should be able to tell Adam. Of all the people she knew, he should understand. “We meet weekly to play a tabletop RPG.”

“So you're a D&D girl.” She heard the smug smile in his voice.

“We don't play Dungeons and Dragons. We play Hero's Crusade.”

“Never heard of it.”

“It's the same kind of game as D&D. We meet, we go on missions, we battle.” She reached for her bag and pulled out her notebook.

For the next two hours, they worked on story, occasionally being interrupted by customers looking for their favorite comics. Some stopped and listened to Adam and Reese discussing plot and characterization before asking for help. Others actually offered input. Useless input, but at least they were showing interest.

Reese glanced at the clock. “I need to get going.”

Adam looked at her and asked, “Game time?”

“Yeah.” She shoved her notebook into her bag. “If you're not doing anything tonight, you could join us.”

As soon the words left her mouth, she regretted them. She shouldn't assume he'd want to hang out with her more than what they needed to do for the book. Plus, her friends hated when outsiders showed up.

He seemed to weigh her invitation, which meant that she couldn't rescind. The best she could hope for was that he wouldn't want to.

“My mom will be here in a little bit to relieve me. Can you wait? I'll follow in my car.”

Damn. How was she going to explain him to the guys? “Sure,” she answered with a tight-lipped smile.

As soon as he accepted Reese's offer, Adam questioned it. Her face froze and he thought that maybe she didn't really want him to come. Then why invite him? He didn't even know why he'd accepted, other than he wanted to see a different side of Reese. They'd spent a bunch of time together, but he only got to know one side of her: the writer.

He knew the writer pretty well. She was controlling and demanding, yet scattered in her thought process. She was messy. It was the best way to describe her. He wanted to know if she was like that in every aspect of her life.

Before Reese had the chance to say or do anything else, his mom breezed through the door. Since he didn't have classes on Thursdays, he'd started opening the store so she could have time off. She insisted that she close on those days, though. It was like she couldn't be happy leaving the shop alone for an entire day.

“Hey, Mom.”

“Hi, honey. Reese, it's good to see you again. If you become any more of a fixture around here, I'll have to put you to work.”

The offhand comment sparked something in Adam's mind. Reese would be good here. She'd already proven it. She hadn't mentioned anything about moving away from Chicago after graduating, so she might be a good fit to replace him. His mom would be in good hands and he would worry less.

Huh. It was a weird feeling to acknowledge that he would trust Reese with his mother. Well, at least the shop.

“You ready?” Reese asked.

“Yeah. See you tomorrow, Mom.” He grabbed his jacket and followed Reese out the door.

They drove down to the Lincoln Park area. They were near DePaul University and traffic was thick. Reese pulled into a small parking lot, but didn't park. He pulled up alongside her.

She rolled down her window and said, “You can park here. They only have two guest spots. I know the neighborhood, so I'll find something on the street.”

“No. That's crazy. I'll find metered parking.” Now he felt bad that not only was he intruding on her night with friends, but she'd lose out on free parking too.

“No.” She shook her head and waved. “Hold on. Let me call Lee and see if there's another spot.”

She tapped away on her phone while they sat in their cars blocking the path for anyone else who might go by. “Awesome!” She yelled, “Take this spot. Lee has an assigned spot that he's not using because his car's in the shop.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.” She rolled up her window and drove away, not giving him a chance to argue.

He pulled in and waited to see where she'd come from. A moment later, she was walking toward him carrying a grocery bag in addition to her usual one. He got out of the car and met her. He pointed to the plastic bag. “Should I have brought something?”

“Nah. This is just some chips and salsa. The guys will have pop. We take turns bringing food.”

She led the way to a three-story walk-up. The building was old, and it didn't look like much had been updated, unlike many of the other buildings around them. Reese shoved through the exterior door and rang a bell. The buzzer sounded and she opened the interior door.

Adam continued to follow her up the stairs. When they got to the third floor, a door on their right opened, but no one greeted them. They took off their coats and hung them on an already overburdened coatrack.

He looked around the apartment. It was nothing special. A futon sat in the corner with a table smashed against it. They obviously had rearranged furniture to accommodate the table that three guys were sitting around.

“Hey, everyone. This is Adam.” She pointed her thumb over her shoulder at him. She put chips and salsa on the kitchen counter.