The Raven (The Florentine #1)(90)
Author: Sylvain Reynard

He placed a hand to her hip. “When I was human, slender women had a low survival rate. They were considered sickly, infirm, and definitely not beautiful.”

“You don’t mind my weight?”

He brought his hand to the top of the sheet, where she’d twisted it under her arms.

“Let me look at you.”

“I’m naked.”

“Precisely.” His gaze darted to her breasts as he pulled the sheet from her body. He stood there, his eyes roaming her figure with undisguised appreciation. “You’re an attractive woman, Raven.”

She didn’t meet his eyes. She felt conspicuous, embarrassed. She bent to pick up the sheet but he took her hand, leading her over to his painting of Primavera.

He stood behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders.

“I can see you may need a little convincing. Take a moment and examine the painting, focusing on the female forms.”

“I know what they look like.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “I’m an art restorer, remember?”

“You may have looked at them, but you haven’t seen them. Look again.”

Raven began at the left of the painting with the figure of Mercury and moved to look at the three Graces.

“They’re certainly healthy.”

“Look on the Graces before examining Venus. Remember, these are depictions of the ideal of feminine beauty.”

“According to Botticelli.”

William squeezed her shoulders. “Botticelli recognized beauty when he saw it. He admired Simonetta Vespucci, for example, and she was extremely attractive.”

Raven turned her head to the side. “You aren’t making me feel better.”

“That’s because you aren’t paying attention. Look at the women’s stomachs.”

She did as she was told. “They’re rounded.”

“They’re healthy.” William brought his hands to her abdomen and placed them flat against her. “As are you.” His lips found her ear. “And their breasts?”

Raven shuddered at his nearness.

“It’s difficult to make out but they look full.”

William brushed her hands aside and cupped her breasts, reveling in the weight. “You’re far more voluptuous. Far more pleasing to my eyes, my hands, my mouth.” He kissed her ear. “What about their bottoms?”

“They’ve got back.”

“Back?”

“Um, they have substantial bottoms.”

“Hmm.” William slid his hands down the curves of her sides and her hips before gripping her backside. “You have an excellent, round bottom. It pleases me to hold it while I’m inside you.”

He stepped in front of her, facing her. “In other words, Botticelli’s ideal women look like women and not boys. They’re soft and curvaceous. Healthy and rounded. Women of the size figured in this painting were considered beautiful for centuries, if not millennia. They were the aesthetic ideal during my lifetime and long after.”

He brought his mouth to her neck before whispering, “My ideal hasn’t changed.”

Without a word, Raven wrapped her arms around his shoulders and kissed him as he carried her to bed.

Chapter Forty-five

“Someone is happy this morning.” Patrick smirked as he saw Raven sitting at her desk with a dreamy smile on her face.

She was staring at an image of Primavera that she’d used as the wallpaper to her desktop computer.

“Earth to Raven?” He snapped his fingers, causing her to jump.

When she saw who’d surprised her, she shoved his arm. “Jeez, Patrick. What the hell?”

He laughed. “I called your name twice.”

“I was concentrating.” She turned back to her computer, logging out of the system.

“On what, your wallpaper?”

“Very funny.”

“Why so happy this morning? Is it because Batelli got turfed?”

Raven glanced around the room at their colleagues. Fortunately, they weren’t paying attention to their conversation.

“Ssshhh!” She gave Patrick a censorious look.

He lifted his hands in surrender. “Sorry.”

“Summer is coming. That makes me happy.” Raven grabbed her cane and walked to the wardrobe to retrieve her lab coat.

“Right.” Patrick followed her. “Hey, if things with your wine collector are that good, why don’t we go on a double date? Gina wanted to plan something for your birthday.”

“It isn’t until July.”

“Well, she’ll plan a party for then. But we should go out before that. Bring your friend to meet us.”

“Um, I don’t know.” Raven tried not to look troubled.

“No big deal. I know how things are when it’s new.” He smiled again.

Raven returned his smile. “Things are pretty new with Gina. You guys have only been together a couple of weeks.”

“Yeah, but it feels like longer because we were friends first. How’s your collector?”

She directed her grin at her lab coat. “He’s good. Thanks.”

Patrick shook his head at her. “Now that we know everything is good, let me know when you’re free. We can go out to dinner or meet for drinks after work. You decide.”

He started for the door. “By the way, they’re going to reopen the exhibition hall in a couple of weeks. The Prado in Madrid agreed to lend us a few pieces.”

Raven gestured to him to come back. “Does that mean they’ve closed the investigation?”

“No. From what I hear, it’s just moved off-site. There’s no way Vitali is going to let the illustrations go without a massive investigation. By the way, be careful walking around the city at night. The newspapers are reporting that there’s a motorcycle gang attacking people. They shot a guy with a crossbow Monday night.”

“What?” Raven’s jaw dropped open.

“I know. Ridiculous, right? The BBC is reporting that both British and American tourists are canceling their travel plans to Florence this summer. The theft at the gallery, plus those bodies they found near the river, and now the motorcycle gang have all hit the news.”

“Is the gang attacking random people or are they targeting?”

Patrick gave her a quizzical look. “I have no idea. There were reports of attacks but when the police arrived, the victims had disappeared.”

“Thanks, Patrick. Say hi to Gina. I’ll let you know about dinner.”