Chapter 46 Bought - Lily
"Lily, could you please stay for a second?" Professor Bernard says after his class.
I frown as I pack away my stuff in my bag, some of the students looking at me like I'm in trouble. I gulp when I walk down to his table in the front, wondering what the hell this could be about.
"How are things going?" He smiles at me. "Have you worked on the assignment I gave you?"
I'm not in trouble, feeling relieved. "I did, I'm done with it actually. Should I take a picture, or do you want to see the whole painting?"
He looks surprised. "You're a fast wokrer."
"Yeah, I started painting and just couldn't stop." I laugh nervously. "The paint is still fresh, though, so I don't want to transport it too soon."
"You can send a picture, for now, and then we'll set up a date in let's say, two weeks while it dries." He smiles that charming smile I feel he only uses for his students. "In the meantime, I would like to see you after class again today to discuss your other work. If you're chosen, you need at least five pieces for the exhibition, and the year goes by so fast, I want you to be prepared."
"Does that mean I actually stand a chance?" I ask, surprised. What other reason would he want to work with me on more pieces?
I have read up on the exhibition. Vincent said this might not be one of the best art programs, but I think he was downplaying that a little. The artists whose work gets shown at the exhibition, have great success stories in the art work. Being exhibited in your first year is a huge accomplishment.
"Wouldn't be talking to you if you didn't." He winks at me. "I will be in my office from five if you can stop by just for a second."
"Yes, professor!" I sound a little too excited to my own ears, but he's actually considering me!
I thought my landscapes were boring compared to the other students' work, but he must see something in my art if he wants to give me a chance.
The rest of the day goes by slowly, and I try to tame my excitement in my other classes, laughing to myself when one of the lecturers tells us that we will be working on a naked portrait, taking me back to this morning when Vincent said he will pose for me. Afterwards, he made love to me, not the angry, explosive sex we usually have. No, it was slow, and he kissed me like he never wanted to stop. It's almost like he knew excatly what I needed after doubts were running through my mind.
"I have a meeting with my professor at five in his office." I tell Frank in-between classes. "Could you please not loiter around like a creep?"
Frank raises his eyebrows. "A creep protecting you if I may add."
"There's nobody here who wants to harm me." I wave my hand around the sea of eccentric students. "Like who could possibly hurt me of these people?"
Well, one guy has a ton of piercings and tattoos, loking like he escaped from a deranged clinic, but everyone looks relatively innocent.
"You'd be surprised where the danger lurks." Frank says drily. "Listen, the deal was you get to come to college as long as you are acccompanied by a gurad. Luckily for you, I am that guard. I won't go inside with you, but I will be waiting outside."
I guess that I will have to be satisfied with that.
At least he doesn't walk next to me, following me from a distance, but he still stands out like a sore thumb amongst the much younger students. Everybody probaby already knows he's my bodyguard, and everyone knows I'm the mafia princess married to the mafia pirnce. I feel like having a bodyguard puts even more of a target on my back.
Porfessor Bernard's door is wide open when I get there, and I knowck before popping my head in. He's sitting behind a well organized desk typing something on his computer, but his head whips up when he sees me, and he smiles.
"Lily, please come in, you can shut the door behind you."
I do as he says and walk into his office,feeling nervous, not knowing what he will say next. I could have a career in art if this man thinks I have what it takes. I don't even know if Vincent thought that far ahead, sending me here, but who said a mafia wife should only be at home?
"Please take a seat." He shows me the chair opposite him, and I oblige, looking around at the impressive art works on his walls.
"All students' work." He says when he notices my observation. "I'm very proud of what they have achieved."
'It's really good." Nerves flutter in my stomach. Would I even be able to compete with that?
"You can be just as good as soon as we figure out what story you want to tell." He tilts his head to the side as he looks at me, his eyes seeming to assess me like I'm one of the paintings on the wall.
"Like I said before, professor, I mostly painted landscapes." I clear my throat that suddenly feels scratchy.
"Yet, you sketched your husband, and I thought it was really good, too." His eyes narrow on me, feeling like he wants to see inside my soul. "Maybe it's time you move away from landscapes and see what else you might be good at. You might end up being surprised by the talent you have."
"What do you suggest I focus on, then?"
"Funny you should ask, because that's exactly what I wanted to meet with you about." He gets up from his desk and walks around it to stop next to ne, leaning on the wood. "I want you to think about what you feel, Lily. That's what art is all about, when you put all your feelings on that canvas and in turn, make other people feel what you're feeling."
I frown. "Okay, so I will try to figure that out."
"When I looked at that sketch of your husband, i see the look of a captor." Professor Bernard fists his hand tightly. "Is that how you feel, Like you were caught? Like you were bought?"
My mouth falls open in shock before I close it, and shake my head. "Excuse me?"
"Show us your life, Lily!" He continues passionately. "Show us what that girl in the wedding dress felt like."
I realise two things then. This man knows exactly who I am and he has been watching me.
The question is, did he look me up and saw my wedding photos, or did he know before I even steped foot into his class?