Make Me Whole (31 page)

“It’s not funny,” Nick insisted as he retreated down the hallway. “Spiders are evil.”

“I think from its viewpoint you’re the evil one. How many of its brethren have you killed?” Galen asked as he upended the cup from the sink over it and went to fetch a piece of cardboard to slide under it.

“Not enough, because they keep breeding.”

Galen carried the spider outside and let it go, still chuckling under his breath. “Okay, all taken care of. It’s safe to come out.”

Nick emerged from the bedroom fully dressed, with an aggravated expression. “You spared it didn’t you?”

Galen shrugged with a smile. “I gave it a second chance and a warning. If it comes back, I promise to kill it for you.”

“Spider lover,” Nick accused. “I’m never going to live this down, am I?”

“Oh hell no.”

N
ICK
asked Sean to screen his calls and shut his office door during his lunch hour so he could pore over all the journals, photographs, and copies of the myth his family had collected over the centuries. His conversation with Dexios still plagued him. There was something they were missing about the statues, some key piece of evidence that might allow them to break the curse.

He wanted to believe. He needed to believe. Galen had him all mixed up inside. One minute he was telling Nick he loved him, and the next he was hung up on something from his past, something to do with a marriage proposal. Maybe he could get Galen to talk about it tonight, because Nick got the feeling that he’d shoved his foot into his mouth so damn deep that he almost choked on his knee when he asked Galen to marry him. It was better to think that there was another reason for Galen’s refusal other than the thought of being married to him made Galen shout “Hell no.”

Nick gathered the notecards he’d made and spread them out on his desk, looking for a pattern. Then he pulled out the notes he’d made about Galen, Dexios, and Lykon and all the little incidents since the statues appeared. As he did, guilt twisted inside of him. He’d been keeping secrets too, such as how much he knew about the statues and the myth. Galen would not be happy when he found out Nick had been holding out. That had been rather asinine of him. He’d have to tell Galen the truth tonight. At this rate it was going to be like a tell-all confessional after dinner. He hoped that Galen wouldn’t be too pissed. Nick winced. He’d have to find some way of making it up to him.

He’d tackle that once he had answers to give to him. Nick picked up the first notecard. The first statue had become whole before Nick and Galen had even laid eyes on each other. The only contact that they’d had was when Galen had called him. Nick stared at the card, his fingers drumming on the table.

The myth stated that Lykon would have to accept Dexios’s offer four times. It had taken Nick a while to figure out how that one applied to the first statue. Then memory had tickled. When Galen had left all those months ago, Nick had given him an open invite to call him anytime.

Nick flicked the card and considered their conversation this morning. Would he have called Galen back if the lure of the statues hadn’t been there? He’d been hurt when Galen left, not just his feelings but his pride too. The statues had fired him up, but that was just an excuse, wasn’t it? A safe reason to call Galen back, something that wouldn’t risk his heart, because if Galen was still looking for only a lay, he had a way out.

Yeah, he would’ve called Galen back. It might have taken a few days while he argued with himself, but the chance that Galen wanted something more would’ve had him taking the risk. He’d had it real bad. Nick smiled and picked up his phone, trying Galen’s office, and to his surprise, he picked up on the second ring.

“Galen Kanellis.”

“The dragon doesn’t have you pinned down in a cave?” Nick asked, picturing Galen with that slightly abstracted look and the way it would sharpen when he heard Nick’s voice. Whatever Galen felt for him now, it was certainly stronger than before.

“Are you trying to get me killed? If she knew I said that about her, I’d be dead. How’s your day going?”

“Good, I just wanted to let you know I’ve been doing some thinking about what we talked about this morning.” Nick sat back in his chair, tapping the notecard against his fingers. “I would’ve called you back, Galen. There’s no doubt. My feelings for you hadn’t changed. It just might’ve taken me a couple of days to get my head out of my ass.”

Galen was quiet at first, and when he spoke again his voice was warm. Nick loved that sound, the way Galen spoke to him now without any of the distance he’d had before. “Thank you for telling me.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll talk to you later.” Nick hung up, smiling to himself as he turned to another notecard. It was hard to remember who had said or done what, but when the second statue had become whole, it had to have been because Galen had opened up about Bryan. Nick had asked him to tell him why he had been so reluctant to commit, and Galen couldn’t tell him at first. Nick had offered to listen when he was ready.

That had to be it, Nick making a literal offer and Galen accepting it. There wasn’t any twist to the legend. It was as straightforward as it got. So all Galen had to do was accept his marriage proposal, and it would be over with. If Galen loved him as he claimed, then what was the big deal? Say yes, and they could work out the details later.

Somehow he had to make Galen see that. Nick picked up the third notecard and frowned. This was the one that still perplexed him. Both he and Galen could see Lykon, could see how the statue would look when it was complete, and yet something was holding it back from fully materializing.

Nick hadn’t been able to miss what had happened. They’d been looking at the second statue. Galen had given him a look that had pierced him right through and told Nick that he loved him. His heart still flipped every time he thought of it, hearing those words the first time with the oh-so-sincere expression in Galen’s eyes. The third statue had come together right in front of their eyes… almost.

So what was missing?

Nick told Galen not to say the words unless he meant them, and Galen had said them anyway. If Galen didn’t mean them, nothing should’ve happened with the statues at all. Nick’s heart stopped and started again in a rapid drumbeat.

Galen loved him. He really did, even if the thought still scared Nick. He’d allowed himself to start to believe in the hallway after the disastrous proposal. And he remembered how right it felt when he told Galen that he believed him. He had to let go of his fears and embrace it, the way he had when he’d called Galen back, or when he agreed to go on the date. He’d been afraid, but the fear was worth the gain. Galen had to have been afraid too, when he’d talked about Bryan.

The missing element wasn’t Galen, it was Nick. Nick had to acknowledge Galen too. Really acknowledge and accept the fact that Galen loved him without waiting for the emotion to be snatched back. Galen wasn’t his mom. Galen wouldn’t tell him that and then cut him off cold.

Nick shoved aside the journals and dragged the copies of the myth to him again. He scanned over the pages, searching to see if his theory was right.
“…until your fickle lover fulfills his promise four times over and you accept him.”
Nick had to accept Galen’s love. He had to believe it. And the offers couldn’t be just anything. They had to be offers from the heart without any ulterior motive.

He’d bet that the first statue didn’t become whole until after Nick had called Galen back or the second statue until after he’d listened to Galen pour his heart out without judgment or jealousy. That’s why the third statue remained cursed. Galen had done what Nick requested, but Nick hadn’t taken him at his word.

That meant if Nick was the missing element, he had to face the fact that the family journals were biased. They were all from the Dexios reincarnation’s point of view. So the breakups and betrayals were one-sided. Cythera blamed Dexios as much as she blamed Lykon. Dexios gave up on Lykon; that’s what he’d been referring to in his last visit. And he’d been right too, about the journals clouding the truth.

Nick had a part in this legend too. If he stayed strong and didn’t give into doubt, all of them would be okay. Nick and Galen would break the curse together. His heart began racing.

Nick grabbed the phone and called Galen back. “Go check the third statue.”

“What?” Galen asking, sounding puzzled. “Are you okay?”

“Set the phone down and go check the third statue now.” Nick heard the sound of the phone hitting the desk and running feet. He waited, hardly daring to breathe. He didn’t need confirmation. He knew, he knew it in his heart.

The pounding of feet signaled Galen’s return, and Nick squeezed his eyes shut, his heart loud in his ears.

“What the hell? How did you know?” Galen said, breathless as he came back. “It’s perfect, it’s beautiful. What did you do? You have to come see this.”

Nick laughed and sank back into his chair. “Tell me again you love me.”

A startled silence followed, and then Galen’s voice went warm again, the same warmth that Nick had not quite grasped last night. “I love you. You believe me now, don’t you? I love you. I swore I’d pound it into your head and ears until you got it.”

Nick closed his eyes and smiled. “I’ve got it, Galen. I believe you.”

“I
ALMOST
feel like this is a second home,” Nick said as he climbed into Galen’s tower office. The hint of defensive wariness in Nick’s eyes had disappeared, and Galen’s heart skipped a beat. Nick did believe him. Even if Galen hadn’t seen the third statue changed with his own eyes, he would’ve recognized that faith in Nick’s gaze.

“Suzane has accused me of treating the museum like a home. She has booted me out of here on more than one night.” Galen tipped his head back when Nick approached and sank his hand into Nick’s hair at his kiss. That same surety was there in the possessive sweep of Nick’s tongue, in the firm touch of his lips. It made Galen smile all over again.

“I hate to interrupt this interlude,” Suzane said in a dry voice. Galen broke away and looked around Nick at his assistant, who had poked her head up through the stairwell. “But I thought you should know that I found the drums you wanted for the gala.”

“Yes!” Galen pumped his fist with a grin.

A smile flickered over Suzane’s lips before she continued, “The museum is locked down for the night, and if you decide to do something that I absolutely would’ve done in my younger days, keep it off the security cameras.”

“Thank you, I’ll try to keep my baser instincts under control.”

“I hope not,” Nick murmured as Suzane echoed the sentiment with a wicked glint in her eyes and told them good night. The sound of her footsteps echoed through the stairwell, and Galen found himself listening until he was sure she’d made it to the bottom.

“I called my mom today,” Galen said as Nick took one of the chairs in front of his desk. “Told her all about you.”

“Does this mean that there’s a family dinner on the horizon that I’m going to have to attend?” Nick asked with his head cocked and a smile quirking his lips. “Because I’ve got to warn you, you can expect that from my family after I talk with them.”

“Of course there will be a family dinner. Though, she is planning on a quiet meal first before she inflicts the sisters, the cousins, and all the rest of the brood on you.” Galen’s mother had been overjoyed to hear that he was dating someone seriously again, happy enough that she didn’t even quibble over the likelihood that he’d move in with Nick after the gala. And that was a major block for her. He’d heard her views on shacking up on more than one occasion.

“Speaking of my family, they’ll probably try to get you to San Francisco either for the holidays or for the christening, but I had another thought in mind,” Nick said. “I’m taking a trip to Santorini at the end of summer, and I was thinking of swinging by home for a day or two as well. Why don’t you go with me?”

“To San Francisco or Santorini?”

“Both.” Galen frowned, and Nick cocked his head. “Let me guess, bad timing again?”

“I don’t want to leave the entire place in Suzane’s hands and go out of the country, not until she’s better, and that’s going to be right before Heather leaves us too. And if the new exhibit brings us the increased traffic that we want, I just don’t see how I can get away from here anytime soon.”

Nick picked up a stack of order forms and began organizing them. Galen hated to see the quick flicker of disappointment in his eyes, but he didn’t see a way around it. “I understand. Really, I do. You know, I could help out around here in a more official capacity,” Nick said with a neutral expression. “If I wouldn’t be stepping on any toes. I know you have plans for this place, long-term ones. I’d love to lay the groundwork with you.”

Galen hesitated. He should’ve thought of that before. Nick was already involved in so many ways; why not make it more official? Nick would be an asset. He had a background with business and HR that Galen didn’t, but it would be a totally different dynamic than what he had with Suzane. The museum had been Galen’s dream for a long time. Nick had had similar dreams. If Galen involved him it would become more of a sharing, and that was a little intimidating.

“You don’t have to say anything now.” Nick stuck the organized invoices into a file. “Just think on it.”

“I will, I promise.”

“Sooo… anything else happen today?” The air of suppressed excitement around Nick returned, betrayed by the tone of his voice and the way he couldn’t seem to stay quite still. “Did you get your new cell phone?”

“Yes, but you didn’t run over straight from the bank to talk about that.” Galen shut his laptop and gestured toward the fire pole. “Let’s go see them.”

There was an extra bounce to Nick’s step as they walked to the exhibit room. Galen was a little surprised that he hadn’t stolen a peek before coming up. He didn’t know if he would’ve had Nick’s restraint. He’d been down here more times than he could count today to ogle. He wouldn’t have blamed Nick one bit if he’d stopped by first to ogle as well.