Page 100 of Nesting With My Three Alphas
"Because when I first drove away from Chicago, I thought my life was over. I thought I'd destroyed everything good about myself and that the best I could hope for was to hide somewhere and try not to cause any more damage." She picked at the edge of her sandwich, not quite meeting my eyes. "And now I have this incredible life with people who love me and work that matters and a future that looks bright instead of terrifying."
"And that scares you," I said, understanding the real question underneath her words.
"It scares me that it might not last. That I might wake up and discover this was all too good to be true."
I came around the counter and pulled her into my arms, breathing in the familiar comfort of her scent mixed with the faint tang of artistic inspiration.
"Kit, look at me." I waited until her eyes met mine. "When you showed up here scared and alone, do you know what I saw?"
"Someone broken?"
"I saw someone brave enough to choose herself over a situation that was destroying her. Someone who'd rather face the unknown than accept being diminished." I tucked a paint-streaked strand of hair behind her ear. "And every day since then, you've proven that my first impression was right."
"I don't feel brave most of the time."
"Brave people rarely do. They just do what needs to be done anyway."
She was quiet for a moment, processing this in the careful way she approached emotional truths that contradicted her old beliefs about herself.
"The grant application," she said suddenly. "Did you see anything from the arts council?"
I retrieved the envelope from behind the counter, noting how her breathing quickened when she saw the return address. "Arrived this morning. I've been wondering if I should hide it until after tonight or let you deal with whatever it says now."
"Now," she said immediately. "If it's bad news, I want to process it before the party. If it's good news..." She trailed off, as if she couldn't quite imagine that outcome.
"If it's good news, we celebrate twice as hard tonight."
Kit took the envelope with hands that trembled slightly, turning it over as if she could divine its contents through touch.
"What if they said no?" she asked. "What if they don't think my program is worth funding?"
"Then they're idiots, and we figure out another way to expand what you're doing." I settled beside her, close enough to offersupport without crowding. "But Kit, even if this particular grant doesn't work out, look at what you've already accomplished. Three art classes running simultaneously. A waiting list for your workshops. Communities from four different counties asking you to consult on their arts programs."
"You know about the consulting calls?"
"Reed mentioned mysterious conversations about curriculum licensing."
Kit's cheeks flushed slightly. "I didn't want to make a big deal about it until I knew if it was going anywhere. But there are six different towns that want to implement something similar to what we're doing here. They're offering to pay me to help train their teachers and adapt the curriculum."
Six different towns. Kit's influence was spreading far beyond Hollow Haven, touching communities across the region in ways she was still learning to recognize as significant.
"That's incredible, Kit. Do you realize what that means?"
"That I might have accidentally created something bigger than I intended?"
"That you've created something important enough that other people want to learn from it." I watched her face as this reality settled. "That you're not just teaching art. You're changing how communities think about creative expression and mental health."
She stared at the unopened envelope, then at me, then back at the envelope.
"Open it," I said gently. "Whatever it says, we'll figure it out together."
Kit tore open the envelope with the quick motion of someone removing a bandage, pulling out a folded letter that looked official and intimidating.
I watched her face as she read, noting the moment her expression shifted from apprehension to disbelief to something approaching shock.
"Kit?"
"They said yes," she whispered. "They said yes, and they want to fund a three-year pilot program, and they're calling it 'innovative' and 'exactly what rural communities need.'"
