Make Me Whole Read Free

crates? Like right this minute? I get the impression that I’m going to be contracting you to move and set them up for me. But I need to see them to be sure.”
    “Not a problem. It shouldn’t take me long to break them down. If you want, I can call my boss and see if they can send some extra men when you want to haul them to the exhibit room.”
    “That would be great.” Galen grabbed his layout sheet and squeezed by him. “Suzane and I will get out of your way.”
    “What’s the point in looking at your new layout when you’re just going to change it again? You won’t stop playing around with it until everything is in place.” Suzane leaned over to study the doorknob and lock on the storeroom door. “It doesn’t look like it’s been tampered with.”
    “Why would anyone break in just to leave art behind instead of stealing it? I’m sure we’ll find the paperwork once it’s all cleared away.” He handed Suzane his layout and she took it with a sigh. “You have to admit, it’s missing something.”
    “Yes, only I doubt this trouble-waiting-to-happen is going to fill that void.”
    Galen’s eyes fell on the uncovered first statue. A sense of reverent awe filled him and his jaw dropped. The man stood with his legs spread slightly apart, his arms outstretched and curled as if he had been in the midst of an embrace. Sunlight streamed through the window, giving the metal a burnished, glowing quality. The aged bronze with a nice warm patina made Galen’s fingertips itch to caress it. “Oh wow, will you look at him? He’s perfect.”
    “Yeah, he’s pretty hot.” Knox carried out the sections of crate and the shreds of wool. “I’ll be right back to get the rest.”
    Galen moved closer and ran his hand over the man’s muscled arm. The metal was smooth and strangely warm. His hair lay in a shaggy mess about his head, which was tilted to one side, his lips parted and pursed. He made Galen think of kissing. It had been too long since he’d been kissed just right. He only had himself to blame. He’d been the one to put a temporary moratorium on casual flings. That was after he’d broken things off with Nick only to wonder what if too many times when he was alone at night.
    “I think you’re crazy if you intend on actually making this a part of the exhibit.” Suzane came up beside him and gave his shoulder a shake. “You don’t even know if it’s authentic or not, or how old it is, or why someone would just give it to you with no information or explanation. It’s going to come back and bite you in the ass, I just know it.”
    “Bites on the ass can be fun.”
    Suzane smacked him with the folder. “You’re incorrigible. I’m serious. You’ve sunk your entire inheritance into this museum. I’m not going to let you ruin all your hard work because someone dangled a statue of a half-naked muscled man in front of you.”
    “The authenticity can be researched.” Galen flashed a smile at her. “That’s what you’re good at. I want you to find everything you can about him. As for who our mysterious donor is and why they were so generous, I don’t care. If I ever meet them I’m going to kiss him or her.”
    “People don’t give things for nothing.”
    “Where’s your sense of adventure? Besides, the upcoming exhibit is new homoerotic interpretations on the ancient world, so even if it isn’t old it’ll still work.”
    Suzane groaned. “You don’t even know if it’s homoerotic or not. Remember the theme for your museum? Gay love, sex, and life? You can’t have a centerpiece for a new exhibit that runs counter to what you’ve established. Not after all the work we’ve put into making a name for it.”
    Galen knelt down to examine all the glorious little details, the ridged lines on the man’s legs indicating scars, the realism in his hands as they gripped someone who had disappeared long ago. “I’m not sure about erotic; maybe the second half is in another crate,” he mused,