Chapter 83: Olivia's Dilemma

The world beyond Olivia's studio blurred into insignificance as she stood in front of a huge blank canvas, paintbrush in hand. Shut inside here for three days, her phone off and the door locked to everyone, the only companions to her artistic supplies were the furious storm of emotions raging within her. Olivia took a deep breath, dipped her brush into the almost black blue, and laid the first stroke across the canvas. It was wild, almost violent in its intensity—the conflict that had driven her headlong into this self-imposed exile now manifested on the page. Memories and emotions swirled through her mind as she metaphorically threw colors on her palette when she painted. There was Mark, reliable and solid, who had been there for her, holding her up during the times she was unable to cope with the repeated bouts of illness—the quiet moments of understanding that built a relationship. Then, unasked for, Nathan inundated her thoughts: the passion of their early days, the intensity of