Free Tempting the Artist by Sharon C. Cooper Page B

done the piece by
memory.
    Absolutely
breathtaking .
    Finally pulling himself
away, he stepped to another nude painting of a man, leaning against
a fireplace mantle, a drink in his hand. Tastefully done, she
revealed just enough of his body but left plenty for the
imagination. And next to that painting, a naked woman holding
a red scarf that draped loosely across her
breasts, and slid between her opened thighs. The material covered
the most intimate parts of the woman’s body, but still left enough
of her exposed to keep the observer wondering what lay
beneath.
    “ So why nudes?”
    “ Why not?” Christina’s
words loaded with attitude shot across the room faster than the
speed of light.
    Luke lifted his hands in mock
surrender. “Hey, I’m not complaining. I’m even thinking about
commissioning you to paint something for my place. I just wonder
why the change. Your earlier work was landscapes and abstract. Then
all of a sudden, you’re doing a show of all nudes.” Again, his mind
took him back to that last night in New York. It was no wonder she
had wanted to stay longer. She, Sasha Knight, had been the featured
artist.
    Sasha Knight. She’s Sasha
Knight . He couldn’t wrap his brain around
this new information.
    “ The human body fascinates
me.” Christina stepped over to another nude hanging on the wall. A
couple staring lovingly into each other’s eyes. In the painting,
the woman’s hand rested against the man’s jaw and one of the man’s
hands on her hip. “Body parts, skin tones, and even one’s
imperfections. All of it. Fascinating.”
    Luke stared at the painting, noticing
the slight love handles on the male figure. The dark discoloration
around the woman’s elbow and her slightly sagging breast were real.
When he first looked at the painting, he zoned in on the pose and
the way the couple touched each other. The tenderness of the scene
so evident, he hadn’t noticed any imperfections.
    A lover of art, Luke was familiar with
Sasha Knight’s work and had even purchased one of her abstract
pieces a year ago. Who knew he’d be sharing this moment with the
talented artist?
    He shook his head, rubbing his hand
over the top of his hair and down to the back of his neck. Hell, he
had shared a whole lot more than a moment with her. And all this
time she never said a word. Never let on that she was Sasha
Knight.
    That twinge of annoyance from earlier
slowly turned into anger. How could she not tell him? He felt like
a damn fool. All this time and he never knew. He should’ve been
able to figure it out himself. The signs were there. The evasive
responses to his questions regarding some of her travels; her
desire to visit practically every art gallery in New York, and her
obsession with Sasha Knight. He should have known.
    Luke glanced at Christina.
“Our last night in New York, at the art gallery, you asked me what
type of person I thought Sasha Knight was. Do you remember what I
said?” Christina gave a slight nod. Luke turned back to the
painting in front of him. “Like then, I
think her talents shine through in the landscapes and abstract
work, but there’s something about the nudes that reveal a different
side of her. She’s someone who pays attention to details and
there’s passion. Raw, unbridled passion seeping from the canvas. I
also remember saying that she’s someone who is clearly comfortable
with her sexuality, whatever that might be.”
    “ You also said that she
probably lived in California, maybe Venus Beach.”
    Luke turned back to Christina just as
she diverted her gaze to the floor, but he didn’t miss the small
smile on her lips.
    “ I always thought you were
amazing. Your quiet spirit, your ability to see the positive in any
situation, and your sunny personality, but this …” He waved his
hand around the small room, “This is astounding.”
    A crimson color rose to her cheeks and
that shy smile that he had missed like crazy graced her beautiful
face. Even with very little