Page 77 of Gideon
“Hey, Zeke. When did you get the new art?” Ollie asked, pointing over at a smaller wall in the kitchen that was filled with a beautiful painting of Talia.
“I made that for Talia, actually,” Zeke beamed with pride. Talia blushed and I couldn’t help noticing the way her eyes flickered to the other piece of art in the room. A large rectangular painting sat opposite her portrait, but this one was huge by comparison, and completely different in painting style. It was covered in blotches and splatters that made little to no sense. With a black background and gold splattered paint and blobs everywhere, it seemed like they were painted by two very different artists.
“What about that one?” I asked, raising my voice to be heard over the boys’ chatter. Talia groaned, hiding her face behind her hands, and Zeke smiled even wider somehow.
“Oh, there is astoryhere!” Delilah nearly squealed with excitement, clapping her hands in delight.
“Spill the beans, brother,” Ollie teased. The brothers all made their way over to the table, sitting around it, or in chairs nearby, as space permitted. “Surely you didn’t paint that one as well?” he teased, pointing at the black and gold painting on the wall.
“I did. Well, sort of,” Zeke answered quietly.
“Is that a blush I see, Ezekiel Temple?!” Ollie teased him further. He was a jokester, just as Gideon had told me.
“Please, do share with the class,” Gideon added, joining in the teasing of his brother.
“Talia and I… painted that one together,” he said, shrugging off the story that was so obviously there.
“Oh, I don’t think any of us are going to let you get away with that. Details. Now,” I joined in, finding my confidence and laying it out there. Gideon had said I could trust these people, so it was now or never.
“Ooh, Gideon! Your new wife is a bit of a spitfire, huh?” Malachi teased from his chair in the corner. What was with him and wanting to be at the back? I shrugged the internal question off.
“What can I say? I like them spicy,” Gideon teased, throwing me a wink.
“You all do,” Delilah added, and everyone joined in on the laughter as we heard the front door slam open. All heads turned as Levi and Ruth made their way into the room. Ruth’s face was etched in concern and Levi looked paler and more worried than I had ever seen him around town. In a single, jarring moment, I felt the mood slide sideways into serious concern. The fear and worry that I had barely managed to shove down bubbled back up to the surface with a vengeance.
“Levi, you okay, man?” Ollie asked him, his brow furrowed.
“I am most definitely not. I am the opposite of okay,” Levi stated with a weighty groan. Zeke moved away from the table, offering Levi his seat and guiding his older brother to the table.
“What happened, love?” Ruth asked him calmly, rubbing a hand over Levi’s back.
“I don’t want to talk about it yet. Gideon? How was your first day?” he asked, changing the subject definitively.
“Well, I was with you most of the day,” Gideon answered, confused.
“Half the day at best,” Levi scoffed derisively.
“They’re starting a new build soon. An odd cabin set out in the woods.” Gideon relayed the information again to Levi.
“Fuck,” Levi groaned, slamming back half of his drink in one swig with a grimace and hiss.
“I’ll see if I can find anything in the financials about it,” Zeke offered.
“That would be good. Gideon, did they say when they plan to break ground?” Levi asked, running a hand through his hair. I noticed how shaky it was. Something had riled him up, and that was saying something, based on what Gideon had told me of Levi.
“Soon. They want the build done by fall, so it’ll have to start soon if they plan on getting it done before the ground freezes,” Gideon answered. His eyes flashed to mine, raising an eyebrow in question. I knew the question he was asking. Was I ready?
“Gideon?” I asked, reaching a hand out for his drink. I didn’t miss the looks of surprise from his brothers, but Gideon slid his glass across the table to me. I took a slow sip of the burning amber liquid, wincing as it burned my throat.
“Delilah, will you switch with me?” Gideon asked, gesturing to their seats.
“Of course,” she exclaimed, quickly rising from her seat and switching places with my husband. As much as I liked having other women around to sit with, I was grateful for Gideon’s support, both emotional and physical, for the moment that was coming.
“As we are on the subject, Naomi and I have some things we need to discuss with all of you,” Gideon began, taking my hand in his on top of the table. The brothers cast glances at one another and then all attention focused on the two of us. Zeke got a strange look on his face, and Talia began to fidget next to me.
“As do we,” Zeke announced with a heavy sigh.
“Gideon, you first,” Levi directed. Gideon was right. He definitely liked to run the show, even in his frazzled state.
