All Chapters of Billionaire Daddy's Little Artist: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

*Lily*“What’s wrong with her?” I asked. “What did Victoria know?”William paced the room, running his hand through his dark hair. “She said she got a call from one of Eva’s friends who said she was complaining about stomach pains and couldn’t get out of bed. They took her to the ER there, and that’s all they know. I’ve got to make some calls. We’ll have to leave tonight.”I nodded. “Of course.”While William was busy making calls to Steven, Grace, and his international contacts, I changed and packed our things. I’d never seen William so distraught. He’d been on the phone for twenty minutes, raising his voice, making demands, then trying to reach Eva, but his calls went straight to her voicemail.As we waited for Steven to come around with the car, I received a text from Tony Gold about doing a new show. He said he knew I worked for William now but wanted to see if I might be interested. It was just a few weeks away. I wasn’t sure how William would feel about me returning to

*William*As I caught up with an old acquaintance of mine from my days at Yale Business School, I saw Lily and Eva talking. At first, I didn’t think anything of it, but then I grew concerned. Lily’s face turned the color of schoolboard chalk. She eyed frantically for me over Eva’s head. As hard as I tried, my old buddy, Frank, would not take a hint. He brought up story after story from college, most containing excessive amounts of alcohol.I had spent the past week and a half by Eva’s side, more or less. Her surgery and recovery threw me for a loop. All through Eva’s younger days, she had been blessed with perfect health, not even a broken arm or sprained ankle. The worst illnesses she faced were chicken pox and a bout of mono in high school.When we arrived back in New York from Belize, she’d done a quick stint at Mount Sinai, followed by checkups at the penthouse with our primary care physician, who said she was finally cleared to return to her regular routine.Victoria an

*William*I held the bridge of my nose while the four analysts in my office read off our recent numbers. Then we rehashed why the deal was taking so long to close in Toronto. I wanted concrete solutions, and all I was getting was excuses.Grace interrupted the meeting to let me know I was meeting with my marketing executive and friend, Jim, at 11:00. “Okay, we are done here!” I said. “Team, I want this closed by the end of the month.” They all began talking at once, and I almost slammed my fist on the desk. Instead, I said, “That will be all.” I rarely lost my temper at work, but the evening with Eva and Lily still had me rattled. Neither of them had reached out to me so I thought I would give it time and try calling them in a few days. The event forced me to involve my ex-wife, something I desperately tried to avoid, but Eva was unpredictable. I had to tell Victoria what happened and explain to her about Lily. I didn’t think it would be too serious, but I needed someone to keep

*Lily*William took my hand in his, and we climbed another marble staircase. We passed a museum worker who nodded to William. I smiled at him, wondering what I ever did to deserve his adoration.“William, how?” I spun around, taking in everything I loved about this museum, which was literally one of my favorite places on Earth. “How did you know? Degas, Monet, Boudin, all my absolute favorites are here! It’s one of the most famous museums in the world.”“You don’t say?”We toured all my favorite galleries, and I pointed out what I loved about Edgar Degas’ The Dance Class.“He’s a French Impressionist known for his ballerinas.” I felt like twirling around the room. “He painted over six hundred ballet scenes. He said natural light was too easy and criticized painters who painted outdoors. And here Vermeer was called the Master of Light.”“How do you know all this?”“I soaked it all in during school,” I said. “And you know, Pollock painted on the floor so he could apply the

*Lily*When I entered my apartment, I saw that Grace had sent over a batch of new art supplies and a manilla envelope with my typed name on the front. I ripped it open immediately, worrying it might be from Victoria, but it was a contract for my services with LiVo Technologies that included a monthly stipend for living expenses, supplies, and $5,000 in addition to my paid rent.I only had to produce a total of four paintings per quarter, an unbelievably low quota for what I was used to creating. There was a quick note from Grace asking me to sign and return the document if I found the terms acceptable. The terms were amazingly generous. I’d be a fool not to sign.My trip to the MET with William inspired me to paint my subsequent work using oil paints. Like a child with a new present, I opened numerous canvases that varied in sizes and textures.William also got me thinking about how I missed attending classes. It was probably too late for summer school, but I would have to look