Page 102 of More Than I Can Bear

I felt the same as I had the first time I stepped in here, like I’d found my people.

“We have a spot for a solo show, if you’re interested,” Cress said, like she wasn’t just offering me all of my hopes and dreams at once. “But there’s a catch.”

“A catch?” Intrigued Jack was replaced by the hard eyed PR manager as she stepped forward. “What catch?”

“We’re usually booked out for a year in advance,” Cress explained, “but we’ve had a last minute cancellation. An American artist was supposed to be showing his work then but his work got lost as it was shipped over, leaving him here, but no work to show.” She smiled at me. “We thought you might like to take his spot. Your work is hot right now.”

I flushed at that, even if I knew it was true. Kaine had forced me to overhaul my e-commerce platform and the sales were coming in thick and fast. River was off the building site and working with me full time, prepping shoes for me.

“It is. We have a team working with Freya now to raise that further,” Jack replied smoothly before crossing her arms. “And what does your organisation bring to the table?”

Cress caught that moment, seeming to stare far too long at the lean muscles in Jack’s forearms before forcing her eyes up.

“Bear Claw has a reputation that speaks for itself. Kaine Farrelly could probably get you in the door of any number of galleries, but not ones with a client database of buyers completely geared towards the kind of art Freya makes. We look after the misfits, the outcasts, the Salon des Refusés, if you like.” Jack’s eyebrow jerked up at that art history reference. “Because we love that kind of artwork and we’ve found a lot of other people do too. Kaine has made clear he’s not interested in his m—, partner being locked down by an exclusive contract. That’s fine. But we do have an amazing network of galleries that we also work with. If Freya shows with us, we can put her forward to others like us all around the world.”

“So the answer is yes,” I said, without thinking and Jack made a small sound of disapproval. “But the problem is when is the show supposed to happen.”

“Three weeks,” Cress replied with a rueful smile. “If that doesn’t work for you, we could turn it into a group show, get some of our regulars to jump in and submit the works they have going right now to pad out the space.”

“No.”

“Jesus, Frey,” Jack hissed at me. “Game face, remember?”

“No.” I reiterated that a little more definitely now. “I can do this.” I turned to face Jack. “This is the kind of opportunity I’ve been waiting for. I’ll stop doing the markets for a bit, hold back the stock and…” I turned around and faced the gallery, seeing the empty walls now, then an overlay of them covered with my work. “I’ll make it happen. I have the materials, the shoes…”

Jack let out a long sigh and then turned to Cress.

“So I assume you’ve got a contract?”

“Of course.” Cress walked over to her desk and retrieved a sheaf of papers. “Take it and have your lawyers look at it, or…” She gave Jack a speculative look. “We could discuss the details over coffee if you like? Just to be clear about our intentions.”

I smiled slowly, watching my super poised friend flush, search for a response, fail, clear her throat and then try again.

“That could be worthwhile, just so I know exactly what you’ve outlined here…” Jack said.

“So how did it go?”

All three of my guys were up and on their feet the minute I walked into the house we all shared. We’d moved all my things into their place one weekend, once I realised I’d have a fridge full of rotten food now, having avoided my flat for some time.

“Did they give you competitive terms?” Kaine asked. “They didn’t try to slide that exclusivity condition in again, did they?”

“Did they give you the show?” Adam asked.

“Of course, they gave her the show,” Kaine scoffed.

What was it like?River smirked when I looked his way, the smile growing broader as I showed him, mentally, the gallery, Cress, Jack and then my dream for the show. Unfortunately there was the matter of the timeline.

“It’s in three weeks,” I said.

“Three weeks?” Kaine jerked back as if slapped.

“Fuck yeah!” Adam said, then pulled out his phone. “So we need shit, lots of art shit. Start putting in an Amazon wish list, baby, and I’ll get it sent via expedited shipping.”

“She can’t put a whole show worth of work together in three weeks!” Kaine snapped.

“No?” As I said that, River came to stand beside me, his arm wrapping around my waist. “Just watch me.”

Chapter52

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