CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Nick unlocked the gallery’s front door. “Come in. I have hot coffee waiting in the kitchen.”
Hannah looked at Brett.
He waved her inside.
The knot in the pit of her stomach hadn’t gotten any better. They’d left The Baxter Hotel in silence, barely looking at each other as they’d made their way to his truck.
She couldn’t blame Brett for keeping his distance. She knew how hard it must have been to tell her he loved her. But she needed to at least try to make a name for herself as an artist. This time, she’d followed her head and not her heart. She just hoped she wouldn’t regret her decision to go to Vancouver.
Nick walked into the spacious kitchen at the back of the gallery. “Liliana and her team worked very hard to bring you an answer so quickly. Part of that was due to the quality of the painting. Creme and sugar?”
Hannah pulled her gaze off the wall opposite them. “Just creme for me, please.”
Brett took off his jacket and left it on the large stainless steel counter. “Creme and two sugars for me, thanks.”
“You have a sweet tooth?” Nick asked.
Heat hit Brett’s cheeks. “Sometimes.”
“I have a special cookie that you will enjoy.” Nick took a round, metal container out of a cupboard. “These are called kourabiedes. They are Greek butter cookies that my granddaughter, Mia, baked. Try them. They are perfect with a strong cup of Greek coffee.”
Brett bit into one of the crescent-shaped cookies. “They’re good.”
Nick gave a satisfied smile. “For you too, Hannah. They will give you a little boost of energy.”
She was about to tell Nick that she didn't need one, but she changed her mind. If it could get her through the next hour, she would be incredibly grateful.
“Thank you.” As soon as she bit into the cookie, she sighed.
“I will leave a plate of kourabiedes on the counter. Please help yourself.”
Hannah turned back to the wall of paintings she’d seen when she first walked into the kitchen. “You’ve added more pictures to your memory wall.”
Nick handed Hannah a cup of coffee. “I have,” he said proudly. “My new granddaughter has been busy making her pappouli lots of art. I am very blessed.”
Mia, Nick’s granddaughter, was marrying Stan Lewis in a few months. Stan’s eleven-year-old daughter, Annabelle, had found a special place in Nick’s heart.
“Annabelle is coming to Claire’s next art workshop.”
Nick looked curiously at her. “You will not be there?”
Hannah glanced at Brett. “Not this time,” she said softly.
Brett left his mug of coffee on the counter. “Would you mind if we talked about the painting? I promised Pat I’d take him a copy of the report.”
“Of course,” Nick said as he waved them through another door. “It is getting late and Pat will be tired. Let us go to my office. I have everything you will need in there.”
Hannah cradled the cup of coffee in her hands. The heat seeped into her cold fingers and gave her something to focus on instead of Brett.
Nick handed each of them a folder. “Liliana has provided you with an in-depth report that verifies the authenticity of the painting. She believes Albert Bierstadt painted the canvas after an 1859 expedition to the Rocky Mountains. Another canvas called,The Rocky Mountains, Lander’s Peak,was completed in 1863 and is based on sketches Bierstadt made from the 1859 expedition. Pat’s painting shares similar geographical features to that canvas.”
“Did Liliana have any idea about how Pat’s grandparents became the owners of the painting?”
“That she did not know. When Pat and Ida are able to assist her, she would be happy to investigate any family or business connections to the Bierstadt family. Before Ida became sick, Pat mentioned some documents given to him from his grandmother’s estate. These may also provide more clues. We will have to wait until the time is right to find them.”
Brett opened the report and read Liliana’s summary of her findings. “She thinks the painting is worth a million dollars?”
