Page 111 of Painted Dreams
She startled when their server appeared.
“All done with that salad, Miss?”
She’d barely touched it. “Yes, thanks.”
He replaced it with her entree. For the first time since arriving at the restaurant, she felt hungry. “This looks delicious.”
“Thank your grandmother. She picked the place.”
Kat smiled. “This is one of her favorites.” Kat glanced at her grandmother’s table. Dear Nana. Always looking out for her. Always on her side.
“She has good taste.”
Kat couldn’t help a laugh. “Oh, my gosh. This is why she wanted to go shopping today.” She put a hand to her chest. “She had this all planned. New dress, compliments of Nana.”
“It’s very nice.” Nick’s voice dropped as a light sparked in his eyes.
“Thank you.” Kat reached for her water.
“I’m sure she told you how popular your painting was at the auction?”
With a nod, Kat cut into her steak. She took one bite then set down her fork. “Nana told meall about the auction,” she said pointedly.
“I figured.”
“Pete? And myMom?”
“Had to do something.”
“Why?”
Nick straightened, his jaw muscle clenching. “I admit, confronting your mom was just for fun. I wanted to see her reaction. But Pete, he needed to know what it felt like to be embarrassed, taken for a ride. He needed to feel some consequences.”
“You won’t believe this, but my mom–”
“Told you she was proud of you?”
“No. But she asked for a painting to hang above the new mantel.”
A hint of a smile turned Nick’s lips. “I’m glad. How’d you find out about Pete?”
“Matt took your advice. Went to a different gallery. I ran into him there.”
“Good. Another repercussion for that sleazebag Pete.”
“I love that you did it, but I just want him out of my life. What if he wants revenge?”
Nick shook his head. “No way. You hold all the cards in this. You have nothing to worry about.”
They fell silent, and Kat returned her attention to her meal. Questions jumbled her mind. Where did they go from here? Should she mention her new project? She might not get a better opening, and she wanted all the cards on the table. “Nick, I want to tell you something.”
He stopped eating and gave her his full attention.
“Pete’s old news. I’m looking into launching my own business—a new approach to getting my work out there.” She couldn’t help the hint of defiance—make thatdetermination—that laced her words.
“Really?” Nick’s eyes widened. “What’s that look like?”
She sucked in a deep breath. “To you, it might look like privilege. Nana is providing the seed money. She has an inheritance set aside for me that I can use. The people at the Denver Art Museum are helping, too. So, I’ll have an enormous head start, an advantage over a lot of people.”
