Stroke of Love

Chapter 3: Unexpected Good Fortune

Later, while Jay was hosting a Japanese delegation of loyal buyers in the gallery cafe, Karen was trying to teach her evening class how to 'personify' animals.

She had no examples and no hands with which to draw any, so she was getting veritably irritated.

After a mere twenty minutes, she cancelled the class, using last night's accident as reason. No one griped and many of them actually offered their sympathy at her situation.

As soon as each of her students had departed, Karen called a cab, picked up her portfolio carrier and her purse and went outside. The evening was humid but it wasn't raining and there were no signs of a downpour beginning in the near future so she was content to wait outside, holding her precious artwork by her side.

If anyone had told her that with the sun behind her she looked like a sun fairy, she probably would have told them off. She literally glowed in the approaching hours of dusk, the sky reflecting the naturally peachy colours of her skin and hair. But she couldn't see that and so stood oblivious to her picturesque nature.

Nevertheless, it was a pleasant ride home with the driver helping her put her belongings in the car and taking them out again at her house, carrying them all the way to her doorstep. She couldn't have known it was because he thought she looked as pretty as a celestial creature from a children's story, but she did appreciate his consideration.

"Thank you," she said, paying him with a kind tip.

"My pleasure, ma'am. And get well soon."

He bounced off the porch, painted blue and white, and jumped back into his cab.

Her dogs gave her a more cautious reception today, much to her relief. She went to kitchen, which was virtually empty- like every other room- all things already in storage, except for the solitary plate and set of knives and forks.

Karen was hardly in the mood to battle with kitchen utensils and chopping boards, so she decided to eat cereal. Even yoghurt would have been a struggle at this point, she thought wistfully.

"Cheerios it is!" she declared out loud with less than a little joy.

After she'd eaten, she went upstairs with Prado and Uffizi, her beloved Malamuts. She sat down on her bed and picked up the phone from her nightstand, placing it in her lap. She then looked over to her nightstand once more, where Jay Madison's card lay. Poking the digits one at a time with the forefinger of her left hand, she dialled and then picked up the phone.

It didn't even ring.

"Hello," she heard him say.

"Wow. That was fast."

There was a short pause, then he laughed. "Hello Karen. I was actually about to make a call."

"Oh, I'm sorry-" how had he known it was her? She wondered.

"No, it's nothing urgent," he assured her.

"How did you know it was me?" she asked, curious yet shy.

"You're the only Southern belle I know," he said with another chuckle.

"I see." Pause.

"How's the house hunt going? Are you phoning to tell me you've found something?"

"Actually, I haven't... and I was wondering if your offer of a couple rooms was still open."

Jay liked the way she finished her sentences as clearly as she had started it, leaving nothing to chance.

"Yes, you can have the rooms."

He wasn't going to tell her he wasn't actually looking for a tenant and the offer was only open to her. Something told Madison she didn't like to burden other people.

"Oh, great. I was hoping you'd say that. Um, is tomorrow too soon for you?" she ventured. "Today was the last day of my lease here but I could shack briefly with a friend if you need time."

"No, tomorrow is absolutely fine." Pause. "Do you need help moving your things? What with your hand in a cast, you may need an extra one or two."

She laughed helplessly, "You'll eventually have to stop offering your hands as a replacement for mine! Otherwise I'll have you drawing for my classes too."

He laughed. "That might be fun actually."

They made arrangements for Harold and a few other friends to move her things over during the day and then she reluctantly agreed for him to pick her up after her last class, since she didn't actually know where he lived.

The day went by quickly for both of them, Karen gave theory lessons in all her classes and Jay pored over ten different artists' work. Never did the gallery display something he hadn't seen and it gave him a chance to see what would be up on the walls, since he often he didn't have time to stroll through the exhibits once they were up.

"As writers, you all know how powerful words can be, but in an effort to display how capturing motion and emotion in art is important, I'd like a volunteer to draw whatever images come to mind as I read, for the class."

All her adult writers weren't very forthcoming about sharing their work at the best of times, so the silence and shuffling came as no surprise. She glanced away from the students and after a moment, she heard a familiar voice say, "I'll volunteer myself," only it wasn't a voice she could identify as a particular student.

She abandoned gazing through her notes to look around. Almost immediately, her eyes widened.

There stood Jay Madison, looking as debonair as a model off an Italian runway. Good Lord, he was a piece of eye candy.

He smiled at her when their eyes met. She couldn't help smiling back even though she was surprised.

Recovering quickly, she said, "Okay, Jay, come to the front."

Her fifteen students had no time to stare at the intruder or speculate much, for as soon as he'd picked up the pencil, Karen started.

''The bird swooped..."