An Heir For Her Enemy (Bossy Bachelors #3)

19. Logan

CHAPTER 19

LOGAN

“ W hat a lovely event you’ve put together.”

Logan turned to the woman who’d spoken, a wealthy art collector named Carmen Henderson. She was the same woman Delaney had been working with on the night they’d met, if Logan remembered correctly.

“Thank you. It’s a pleasure having you here.”

“Oh, it’s a pleasure to be here.” Carmen giggled in a surprisingly girlish way. “The art isn’t the only finery on display.”

Logan wasn’t sure how to respond, so he smiled politely. “Have you had a chance to see the painting?”

“Yes. The Cherished Infant is simply gorgeous. I can’t quite believe that you managed to get your hands on it.”

“Well, I had a lot of help.” Logan thought of Delaney, kneeling in front of the painting with her kit, and quickly banished the memory.

“This event, though, is really breathtaking.” Carmen surveyed the room. Logan followed her lead.

The event had come together very nicely. Logan’s planner, David, had managed to secure a luxurious ballroom at a midtown hotel. Logan had initially planned to hold the event at his home in an attempt to increase the exclusivity but had changed his mind. He didn’t want this many people in his penthouse — and he would have needed to completely redecorate, anyway.

Tonight, the ballroom was filled with wealthy New Yorkers in evening gowns and suits. Logan’s art collection hung on the walls, with The Cherished Infant in a special display in the center of the room. Waiters passed trays of canapés and champagne, and a string quartet played in one corner. Logan himself was in demand. Carmen wasn’t the only one who had pulled him aside for a private chat — Logan had already received several investment offers from new clients.

“Thank you.” Logan gave another polite smile. “I had help with this, too.”

“Oh, so modest.” Carmen gave another girlish giggle and whacked Logan playfully on the arm with her clutch. Logan winced. The clutch was set with diamonds, so the blow had been a little painful. “Anyway, I wanted to ask if you’re looking for new investors. My people have told me that your company has a lot of promise, and after tonight I believe them.”

“That’s wonderful. I am always on the lookout for promising investors. Please, take my card and feel free to have your people call about setting up a private appointment.”

“A private appointment?” Another giggle. “Oh, Logan. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to woo me!”

Logan bit back a comment about how she’d completely misread the situation. Instead, he pretended to wave to someone across the room.

“My apologies. I’ll have to run.”

“I hope we’ll bump into each other later!” Carmen gave him another playful whack.

“Yes. I’ll see you around.” Logan managed one more smile before he disappeared into the crowd. He wove his way towards The Cherished Infant, which had at least a dozen people crowded around it. Logan glanced at the painting, then sighed. Each time he saw it, he thought of Delaney. It was terrible luck that the once-in-a-lifetime piece of art he’d managed to acquire was about a mother and a baby when the woman he loved was also pregnant.

“Mr. Banks.” A well-dressed gentlemen Logan vaguely recognized beckoned him over. “What a fine piece you’ve managed to snag.”

“Thank you.”

“I feel particularly lucky to be one of the few who gets to see it!” The man chuckled, but Logan wasn’t amused. He remembered what Delaney had told him, about what a shame it was that such a beautiful and significant piece of artwork would only be enjoyed by a select few. Maybe she’d been right. She’d been right about a lot of things.

“I count myself quite lucky as well.”

“You know, if you’re looking for more investors…”

Logan let himself be pulled into another discussion about investment opportunities, but his heart wasn’t in it. This glitzy evening filled with investment offers and praise for his art collection should have been exactly what Logan wanted, but it wasn’t. Just like his penthouse and his work, the event felt empty without Delaney by his side. She should have been here, holding Logan’s arm and offering a running commentary on the elites who were here tonight. She should have been flagging down a waiter to ask for bruschetta. She should have been providing thoughtful insight on the art and chastising Logan for hiding such beautiful pieces away.

Logan managed to hold out through the rest of the evening. He fielded investment offers and answered questions about the art. He made small talk about golf and yacht ownership and the difficulties of finding good help. He even ate a few hors d’oeuvres, though he couldn’t help thinking of Delaney as he did so.

He was relieved when the evening came to an end. He bid his guests farewell, then returned to the ballroom to oversee the cleanup and transport of his art. Now empty except for a few hotel staff and a team of people to pack up the art, the ballroom looked strangely barren and a little too shiny. The string quartet was packing up in the corner.

Across the room, The Cherished Infant caught Logan’s eye. His team was already rolling out the special case that they’d use to transport the painting back to Logan’s penthouse, but Logan felt a sudden, strange need to look at the painting a little longer.

“Do you mind starting with a few of the other pieces?” he asked.

“No problem, boss.” The team headed off towards another painting and Logan turned to The Cherished Infant.

He’d seen the painting before buying it, of course, but he’d been so distracted by Delaney’s surprising pregnancy that he hadn’t had the chance to take a good look. Now, alone in the middle of a bustling ballroom, Logan really looked at it.

He still didn’t know much about art. In his mind, this piece could have been painted by Botticelli as easily as by Michelangelo or da Vinci. He didn’t know the reasoning behind the colors the painter had chosen. He couldn’t identify the symbolism behind the shadows and sunlight in the background. He couldn’t date the painting based on the style or the materials used.

None of that matters. Delaney wasn’t here, but Logan heard the echo of her words as clearly as if she were standing next to him. What matters is how it makes you feel.

Logan tilted his head to get a new angle on the painting. He wasn’t sure how it made him feel. At first, when he’d seen pictures of The Cherished Infant before coming to Rome, he hadn’t felt anything. The painting had looked more or less like a pile of money.

Then, in Rome, when he’d seen the painting at Marco Vassallo’s house, he’d found it frightening. The painting showed a mother cradling a baby, love shining in both their eyes. Instead of the woman in the painting in her old-fashioned dress, he’d seen Delaney holding their child. Logan hadn’t been able to look long.

And now… when Logan looked at the painting now, he felt regret. He saw the love the mother and her beloved child shared. He saw the hope in the mother’s eyes — and the fulfillment. And this time, when Logan looked at the painting, he imagined the painter, too. Perhaps the painter had stood where Logan was now, committing the image of the mother and baby to canvas. Perhaps he’d felt left out. Perhaps he regretted standing behind his easel, instead of sitting beside the woman and holding her hand.

Logan knew that he had no basis for his imaginings. More likely than not, the painter hadn’t been related to the woman and baby at all. Maybe this scene had been conjured from his imagination, not even painted from life. Yet Logan knew what Delaney would tell him if she were here: none of that mattered. What mattered was how Logan felt .

And Logan felt regret.

Like the painter he’d imagined, he felt left out. He regretted standing behind his work instead of stepping into the scene — because that was all he’d done, all his life. Logan had always prioritized work over everything else. He’d wanted financial security. He’d wanted a legacy. Perhaps the painter had wanted the same thing, when he’d chosen to paint over be with the woman he loved.

In that moment, it was abundantly clear to Logan that he’d made a mistake. More than one. As he looked at the painting, he understood why his work had begun to feel hollow. He understood why his office and his penthouse didn’t give him the pride it used it. He understood why nothing felt the same anymore.

He needed to step into the painting, not look from outside. He needed to be with Delaney, in whatever way she’d have him. He needed to be a father to their child. Without his family by his side, his work would never fulfill him the way it used to. Logan had never been happier than when he explored Rome with Delaney by his side, getting lost in the winding streets, sampling pizzas, and getting caught in the rain.

Delaney had been right. Logan would never be truly happy if he cared about nothing more than making the next billion.

Logan still knew that he wasn’t ready to be a father or a partner. He had a lot to learn about how to raise a child and about how to be a reliable partner for Delaney. Yet he also knew that he would never really be ready. He hadn’t known how to invest when he’d purchased a book on day trading at the age of fifteen — and he’d managed to create a successful company in only ten years. He didn’t know how to be a father or a partner today, but if he gave it all he had, he was sure he could figure it out.

“Mr. Banks?” One of the staff appeared by Logan’s shoulder. “We’ve packed up the other pieces and need to start on this one. Is that okay?”

“Yes, of course. Sorry for the delay.” Logan stepped back and watched as they eased the painting into a large wooden crate. Before they closed it, he caught one more glimpse of the mother’s smiling face before she disappeared.

“Thank you for all your hard work,” Logan said.

“Anytime, boss.” They wheeled the painting away on a dolly. Logan felt a strange sense of loss as it disappeared. He knew now that he’d made a mistake when he’d pushed Delaney away. He also knew it might be too late to fix that mistake.

After all, he had walked away from Delaney not once, but twice, both times when she’d been vulnerable and needed him. He wasn’t sure how she could trust him now. He wouldn’t trust him, in her position.

Logan bid goodnight to the remaining staff, called out a few more thank-yous, and headed out onto the street. A few hesitant flakes of snow drifted from the midnight sky and dissolved when they hit the pavement, beautiful but fleeting. Logan began to walk, his breath forming a cloud in front of him. He wasn’t sure where he was going, only that he needed time to think.

As he wandered aimlessly through the darkened streets of the city that never sleeps, a plan began to form. At first, it consisted of only a few wispy tendrils of an idea, but by the time Logan had circled his way into the financial district, he was almost certain that he could pull it off.

The only question was whether it would be enough.