The Drake Unwound Complete Collection (The Drake Series Book 9)(33)

"Are we still going to go to Kenya?"

"Not for a while. I'm sorry, it's not only the transplant, but Liam…" I said, taking in a deep breath. "While I'm a perfect match, there are still risks. I want to stay around for a few weeks, see how he handles the transplant. They'll put him on anti-rejection drugs but still, there's always a chance he could reject the transplant—or it could reject him. Maybe not until March, right before class starts depending on how Liam does."


She leaned in closer and hugged me. I bent down and kissed her then buried my face once more in her neck and rocked her for a moment.

"I better get dressed,” I said and pulled out of the embrace. “I have a meeting with the hematologist and later, one with a colleague about a paper we were collaborating on. We'll have to rebook our flights for next month at the earliest, depending on how long I take to recover and how Liam does."

She forced a smile and I knew she was disappointed that we weren’t going to spend much time together. I went to the bedroom while she went to the kitchen to fix us breakfast.

Kate had been so excited to go to Africa and now I was asking her to hold off her plans. She would be upset, especially after I asked her to take a semester off to come with me. Still, I could tell she understood how important this was and squelched any disappointment, putting on a happy face for me.

I appreciated it deeply.



I dressed quickly and had a quick meal of toast and fruit. Then I kissed her after I put my coat on by the front door.

"How long will you be?"

I sighed. "I should be pretty busy all morning. What are your plans for the day?"

"I think I'm going to make a canvas for a painting I'm planning. If we're going to stay for a while until you give the donation and see how it takes, I think I'd like to work on a new piece."

"Oh? You're painting again?" I said, my interest piqued. I felt bad that she had been planning on painting again but hadn’t said anything yet. I had been too busy focused on my own issues.

"Yes, and the painting's going to be pretty big, so I'm going to a friend's studio to start work on it."

"What painting?" I asked, curious about her plans.

"It's a secret," she said, smiling coyly.

"I don't like secrets, Ms. Bennet,” I said and grinned. “I hope you know I'll do everything in my power to find out what it is."

"It's a gift," she said and pouted. "I don't want you to know until it's done."

"Whose studio is it?" I tried not to sound jealous of her time away from me, although I was definitely jealous.

"This young artist from Texas who's here taking his Masters of Fine Art at Columbia. He comes from a very rich family in the oil business and so he has this great studio. I can make the canvas there using his materials, and then work on it, too, if I need space."

"You two close?” I asked, kicking myself that I couldn’t just accept that she had friends outside of our relationship that didn’t involve me. Still, it alarmed me that she had been planning all this but hadn’t spoken to me about it yet. I’d been neglecting her and would have to try harder.

"He's a good friend from college, but he's a real artist," she said. "Unlike me, who's just a weekend variety."

"Don't put yourself down like that," I said and frowned, noting a tendency in Kate to diminish her own abilities. "You're talented. You've just chosen a different path. Which you could always change, if that made you happier."

She sighed. "I might deviate from that path for a while, now that I'm on leave from grad school. I want to get back into art, since I have the time."

"So, who is this rich kid from Texas and talented artist friend of yours? I need to know if I should be jealous…"

"Drake!" she said and stepped closer to me as I wrapped a warm scarf around my neck. "He's two years younger than me, is a pothead, has tattoos and piercings. The last time I saw him, he had a bright blue streak in his long blond hair. At first I thought it was paint, but no. It was blue hair color."

I laughed at the image she painted of her friend. "Still, artists are pretty sensual people," I said, wagging my eyebrows, fighting the jealous part of me but losing spectacularly.

She wrapped her arms around my neck. "You have no cause for jealousy. He's one of those free spirits who flits from lover to lover like a butterfly from flower to flower."

That made me think immediately of him tasting Kate of course and I felt an intense possessiveness towards her that I hadn’t felt for a very long time—if ever. “Has he sampled any of your nectar?"

"No," she said and gave my shoulder a playful tap.

"Maybe I should come with you, take a look at this studio," I said, wanting to see this guy and the space she would be sharing with him.

She nodded. "If you want. I'd love to show it to you, but you are not allowed to see my painting until I feel it's ready. I've just done a few sketches at this point, so it will be a while before it's finished."

"When do you want to go?" I kept my voice light, not wanting to make her feel smothered.


"I thought you'd be busy all morning so I asked him if I could come by…"