His Four Poster Bed (Bedroom Secrets Series Book 2) by Emma Thorne

lady with all this ma’am stuff.”
    “Yes, ma’am . . . I mean miss.” Todd’s freckled cheeks flushed. “I’ll be downstairs if you need anything. And thank you about . . . you know.”
    “Of course, Todd,” I said, turning at the sound of voices in the condo. Marco was having an animated conversation with a dark haired man who appeared to be adjusting the branches of what looked like a sculpture of a large silver tree. A beautiful red haired woman sat on the couch by the fireplace turning pages in a catalog as if she were waiting for an appointment.
    “Hello,” I said, walking into the room, worried I should have called before arriving. “Sorry to interrupt.”
    “You’re not.” Marco’s face lit up when he saw me. He strode across the room and planted a long lingering kiss on my lips. “Hello gorgeous,” he said, taking a moment to look into my eyes.
    “Hello,” I giggled a little embarrassed at his display of affection.
    “Theo Manhattan, this is Odessa Starr,” Marco held my arm and called over his shoulder to the man by the tree.
    Theo stopped his work and nodded at me. He had long wavy dark hair and the palest blue eyes I’d ever seen. “It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he said with a lilting British accent. “I apologize for interrupting your evening, this bloody installation was supposed to take an hour.”
    “Installation?” I said, as Marco took my hand and led me around the couch so I could sit beside the red haired woman.
    “I’m Grace,” she said, softly extending her pale hand. “I’m with Theo. I’m here for emotional support only.” She nodded at the man beside the tree catching his eye. He stopped his work to smile at her. It was clear in that moment that they were deeply in love.
    “Theo is the artist I told you about,” Marco said.
    “You made the bird cages,” I said, the pieces falling into place. “Marco is a great admirer of your work.”
    “She gifted them back to me,” Marco said, to Theo his lips in a tight line of mock anger. “I gave them to her and she just sent them back as if they were nothing at all. She may be beautiful, but no doubt about it, she’s cruel. Cruel I tell you.”
    “Come on,” I said, laughing. “It was too much. They were lovely Theo, really they were. You are very talented.”
    “You don’t need to apologize to me,” Theo said, stepping back from the sculpture. The trunk of the tree stopped at about six feet with the branches extending even higher.
    “I’ll help,” Grace said, standing. “It’s beautiful babe, it really is.” Grace got up off the couch and picked up one of the birdcages from the auction hanging it on a thin branch. Marco offered me his hand and we stood together as Theo and Grace arranged the cages on the tree in front of the enormous glass window that faced the night sky.
    “Now that’s complete,” Theo said, stepping back from his work. Grace sidled up beside him slipping her hand into his. The two of them made quite a pair with his blue eyes and her dark red hair and pale skin. She reminded me of a woodland fairy, ethereal and sparkling, yet something about her gaze suggested a fire burned in her soul. I liked her. I liked him. I could see why Marco had invested so much time in this artist and in his art.
    “I love it,” Marco said, walking to the sculpture and tracing his fingers over the branches. “Now aren’t you sad you gave me back those cages, Odessa?” he joked.
    “I don’t have room in my studio for a display like this,” I said.
    “Right then, we’ll be off.” Theo said. He packed up a small tool chest with Grace’s help and the two of them walked hand in hand to the elevator. “It was lovely meeting you Odessa, good night.” The elevator chimed and Theo and Grace disappeared downstairs.
    Marco slipped behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist leaning down to whisper in my ear. “Do you like the sculpture?”
    “Yes,” I said, admiring the way the light hit the