All I Believe (Firsts and Forever, #10)(93)

“Definitely,” he said. She waved at us before disappearing into the crowd, her lion dog and his buddy right beside her.

“Somebody’s been looking for you,” Jessie announced, coming up to us with Ignacio Mondelvano in tow.

“Iggy!” Luca exclaimed, and he and I both hugged our friend.

“Feliz cumpleanos Luciano,” he said, kissing Luca’s cheeks. “I’m so glad I got to be here for this! It’s some party, no?”

“Nana at her finest,” I told him. “When did you get in?”

“Just three hours ago. My body doesn’t know if it should be asleep or awake!” Ollie had been working with Christopher Robin Andrews, a friend of the family who owned a gallery (and was a brilliant artist in his own right) to host Ignacio’s first U.S. show. It was still a few weeks away, but Iggy had decided to come to San Francisco early, rent a studio space, and find some fresh inspiration for his paintings.


“I’m so glad you’re here,” Luca told him. “You’re staying with Ollie, right?”

His friend said, “I am, but from the look of his apartment, I think he must spend all his time over here. It’s pretty empty. Not that I’m complaining! It’s very generous, all he’s doing for me.”

Andreo joined us a few minutes later. He carried a brightly wrapped package, and gave his brother an awkward hug as he wished him a happy birthday. He’d returned to Rome after the situation with Jerry was resolved, just long enough to wrap up a few things before moving stateside to be close to his brother.

“Can I steal you and Nico away for a minute?” Andreo asked. He told our friends, “I’ll bring them right back, I promise.”

“Come on,” I said, “I know someplace relatively quiet.” I led them through the circus tent and out the other side, and we followed a path through a hedge to a beautiful little Victorian tree house. “This has always been one of my favorite places,” I told them as I led the way up the built-in ladder.

When I poked my head in the door, Vincent and Trevor’s son Josh greeted me with, “Hey. Welcome to introvert central.” The thirteen-year-old was reclining in a sea of pillows with a paperback.

Across the room, Chance’s friend Zachary was sitting in a window seat, savoring a plate of appetizers. “I can clear out if you need me to,” Zachary said. “I just…you know. It was a lot out there.”

“It’s fine,” Andreo said, “you can stay. I just wanted to give my brother his birthday present.”

As he handed Luca the flat, square package, his brother told him, “I thought we agreed, no presents.”

“I never agreed to that,” Andreo said. “Nico didn’t either. This is from both of us.”

“Even though Andreo paid for it,” I said.

“But the idea was all yours,” Luca’s brother countered.

Luca tore off a strip of the paper, and then he went very still. “It can’t be,” he whispered. He tore off a bit more paper, and then he sat down abruptly on one of the floor cushions. “It…it just can’t.” He removed the rest of the paper carefully, then held the wooden frame between his hands, an absolutely stunned expression on his face. Andreo and I exchanged grins and gave each other a high-five. “How? How can this be here?” Luca murmured.

I walked around behind him and looked over his shoulder at the tiny Cezanne. The painting itself measured just six-by-six, but the frame bumped it out to a square foot. The landscape was bright and exquisite, an entire little world captured on canvas. “It didn’t belong in a douchebag’s bathroom,” I said. “That was just wrong. It needs to be with someone who loves it. Andreo and I hope you’ll keep it, Luca, and will it to a museum as part of your estate years from now. It hasn’t had an owner who truly appreciates it in a long time, and it deserves that before it goes on public display.”

“I just told you about this once, a long time ago,” Luca said, his wide eyes meeting mine. “I didn’t even name the movie star who owned it. How on earth did you track it down?”

“It wasn’t too hard,” Andreo said.

As Josh and Zachary got up and came over to take a look at the painting, Luca asked his brother, “How could you afford this? It must have wiped you out financially.”

“Actually, I got a hell of a deal on it. That movie star you bought it for, Jason Jax, was strapped for cash. He’s on his way to prison. There’s some huge scandal, I didn’t catch the details,” Andreo told him. “I got it for pennies on the dollar, compared to what you paid for it.”

“That’s crazy! How could he let it go for that?” Luca asked.

His brother just shrugged and said, “Lawyers are expensive, and Jax wasn’t the type to save for a rainy day. I paid him cash, and he seemed glad to get it.”

“That’s really cool,” Josh said, indicating the little canvas. “Who’s the artist? I can’t quite make out the signature.”

“Paul Cezanne,” Luca told him. “He was French, and one of the most influential artists of the twentieth century. He was the greatest of the post-impressionists, in my opinion. This is one of his later works, you can tell at a glance by the vibrant colors. His earlier paintings were much darker.” Luca launched into an art lesson as Zachary and Josh paid close attention. He was animated and passionate, and it was a joy to watch him.