She’sdefinitely nota man.
I casually look down at her medium-sized tits and quickly back up to her big doe eyes.
NO! Definitelynota man.
“You’re Alex?” I ask.
She nods. “Mm-hmm.”
While I’m still trying to comprehend that all this time I thought Alex was a guy when she really isallwoman, I shake my head slowly and blurt out without thinking, “But you’re not a dude?”
Alex chuckles. “Um… nope!” She places her hands on her tits, squeezes, and nods. “Yep, definitelynota dude.”
I make a little grunt and think how hot that was while drawing my brows together in semi-shock. “Nate, you said Alex was a dude!”
Nate jolts back, watching me with a smirk. “What? No, I didn’t.”
Squishing my brows even further together, I think back to our short conversations about Alex. “No, you’re right. I guess I just assumed. How did I not know you were Alex?” I scrub my fingers through my hair. “Dude, Ria sent you a chick… no wonder you knew it was over for good.”
“Mmm…” Nate slumps his shoulders while Alex keeps looking from me to Nate and back to me again.
“Wow! It’s astounding,” she says.
“What?” I ask while raising an eyebrow.
“Well, you look so alike at first glance. But really, you’re nothing alike. There are so many subtle differences,” she says, and Nate and I both tilt our heads in unison.
“Really? People always have such a hard time telling us apart,” I state.
“Pfft, nah. I’d be able to tell you two apart easily. The first sign is that little bit of gold you have in your eyes, which differs from Nate’s. His are just blue, whereas yours turn more to a golden green. Plus, you have more of a subtle freckle pattern just under your right eye. Nate doesn’t have that.”
“Wow! Your attention to detail is quite, um… scary,” I say as Nate chuckles.
“That’s what makes me good at art. I see the beauty in everything.”
“Even a dipshit like Nate.” I chuckle to myself. Making light of every situation is something I do when I’m nervous or out of my comfort zone.
Her brows draw together before she answers, “Well, come in, have a look around. I think you’ll see Nate is actually pretty damn good.”
I nod at Alex as she defends Nate from my stupid, nervous remark.Good on her for sticking up for him.I like her already. “I can’t believe I’ve never been here before.”
“It’s not like you knew about it, though. You know… in your defense,” Nate says.
“True. Now I know where you used to disappear to.” I smile. “I’m proud of you, bro. Learning to read, Funging your Shui, opening a gallery, you’re really stepping it up. I like this new you.”
He smiles weakly. “I couldn’t have done it without Ria. She pushed me to be better. I wish she could see this.” He draws a deep, centering breath. “I miss her, you know?”
Alex looks out to the street. “Shit! People are actually coming. Quickly, go away… like now,” she murmurs, gesturing with her hands for us to shoo. I laugh along with Nate, and we walk off to another wall to check out one of his paintings as if we were interested in making a purchase before a group of people walks in. Alex gets right to work as Nate tenses up and chews on his bottom lip while looking around a little too noticeably.
“Stop looking around. You’re being obvious,” I chide while frowning at him.
“I’m nervous. What if they hate everything? What if they’re critics, and they review really badly?”
“Dude, you’ve been open five minutes. You need to calm the fuck down. Do I need to get Whisper in here to calm down your ass?”
“No, I don’t need him in here…” he pauses, trying to find the right word, “… rearranging. Let’s go out back. I can’t handle watching.”
“Pussy,” I scold with a chuckle.
