First a Dream (Dreams Come True #1) (24 page)
Read First a Dream (Dreams Come True #1) Online
Authors: Emma Nichols
Rather than ruin the trip, she stopped worrying. It was impossible to be upset around Gabriel anyway. He could love and tease the upset right out of her.
On their last night, they sat on deck sharing a bottle of wine and some pastries after tucking in the kids. “I’ve never felt so relaxed in all my life.” She leaned over and kissed him tenderly. “Thank you for that.”
“I’m so glad. I knew you had to finish preparing for your gallery show once we returned. You only have three weeks.” He reached out and held her hand. “How close are you to being ready?”
“And the relaxed feeling is gone now. Panic mode is setting in.” She shook her head.
“Not close?”
“Not close. Not ready. Scared to death.” Isabella stared at him sadly. “I was never excited about this. It’s this huge honor most of my classmates and colleagues would give an arm to do.”
“But not you?” He rubbed her thigh.
“Not me even a little bit. I think if this were right for me, it would fit, like we do. I think it’s a must be, but not a meant to be.”
“What do you want to do?” Gabriel tilted his head as he listened. “Now you don’t have to do anything, if you don’t want. We can afford it.”
Isabella laughed. “I’ll work. I mean, I have the job with Kristofer, but it’s hard when we want to travel. Or do you think that will slow down now that we’re married?” Her eyebrows rose.
“Never. I plan to see the world with you.” He crossed his arms over his chest.
She nodded. “That’s what I suspected.” She sighed. “So maybe I should freelance more. I’ve been offered so many opportunities. I could take pictures on our travels and sell them.” Isabella stopped talking when she saw the look on Gabriel’s face. “What?”
“Passion. I think we found your bigger dream.”
Taking a sip of wine, she laid back in her lounge chair. “For now, I’m simply considering my options.”
“Keep telling yourself that.” Gabriel chuckled. “Let me know what I can do to help. You’ll always have my support.”
She closed her eyes, savoring the confidence his words inspired. Isabella always felt like she could accomplish anything with Gabriel on her side.
Epilogue
3 weeks later
Isabella
Her phone chimed for the tenth time in half an hour. “I’m sorry,” she murmured as she studied the proofs Kristofer emailed her.
“These are yours. From the wedding.” He leaned on the counter across from her.
“Thank you!” She gushed as walked around to give him a hug. “It’ll quiet down in a few weeks. I promise.”
Kristofer shook his head. “No it won’t.”
Isabella paused and studied him a moment. “Where are you going with this?” She watched as he picked at a hangnail and avoided eye contact. She stood upright. “Are you firing me?”
Tilting his head, he pursed his lips. “Would you ever quit?”
“No! I’d never do that to you.” Her mind raced with what to say to him.
“Then you’re fired.” He walked back around the counter and sat at his computer.
“You’re firing me the day after my wildly successful gallery opening?” She slapped the counter. “What did I do?”
“You stayed safe.” He threw his hands in the air. “You are here because it’s safe.”
“No, I love it here.” Her brow furrowed.
“No you don’t.” He stood and took her hands in his. “This is my dream, Isabella, not yours. You know it.”
She swallowed hard, unable to argue with him. “I’ve learned so much here.”
“Now that may be the first honest thing you said to me today.” Kristofer grinned. “You’ve outgrown me. In every way.”
“What do you mean?” Her heart raced and she wasn’t sure whether it was from fear or hope.
“I open the emails. I’m the one who forwards all the magazine offers to you. Lord, by now, you could be making a mint from selling your work and freelancing. Yet you stay.” He shook his head. “Big mistake. And why?”
“We’re friends.”
“Yes, we are. And we’ll still see each other. We saw each other last night outside of work! I drove to Montreal to support you.” He grinned.
“Now who’s lying?” She smirked.
“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” He turned his back and pretended to be interested in something on the computer screen.
Isabella leaned over and whispered in his ear. “I know you and Matty are seeing each other. Going to Montreal was a date.”
“Maybe it was.” He laughed. “You’re still fired. Buh-bye.” He turned and waved. “One day, you’ll thank me.”
“Not today,” she grumbled. “Today I have to tell my husband you fired me. Bet you didn’t think about having to face him again, did you?” She narrowed her eyes at him, even if she couldn’t quite muster up any anger. Isabella knew why. Ultimately, he was right. “So I’ll go?”
“Yeah. Go follow your dreams, sugar. See you soon.” Kristofer gave her a hug then held out his hand. “I’m going to need my key back.”
“You probably just want to give it to Matty,” she accused as she removed it from her key ring.
“I probably do.” He chuckled.
As soon as Isabella walked out the door, she found Gabriel waiting for her beside the new SUV he bought her after the honeymoon. His hand was behind her back, and when he saw her, he pulled out a single red rose.
“I get roses when I’m fired?” She shook her head and laughed.
“Don’t be so rough on Kristofer. He agonized over this. Remember when he pulled me aside last night?”
“Yeah?”
“That.” He pulled her close. “Take time to figure out what you want to do. You don’t need to rush. I want you to live your dream.”
Isabella gazed up at him, squinting against the sunlight. “I think I already know what I want to do. I think I’ve just been too afraid to step out of my comfort zone and do it.”
Gabriel beamed. “Tell me all about it, Bella.” He wrapped his arms around her.
“For me, my favorite photo shoot was the one of your apartment. I loved the spontaneity. I loved submitting. It opened a lot of doors.” She smirked. “That I have been shutting.” Taking a breath, Isabella smiled. “I looked around last night at our life, our home, our friends. I’m living this amazing fairy tale. I want to work for myself, where I want, when I want. I can do it. That’s how I work best. I’m going to find my style.”
“Oh my love, that is the perfect idea.”
“I want to work out of the house, or wherever we are. I want to be there for the kids and for you. Family is everything. Love is the only thing.” Her hands moved animatedly while she talked.
“Wonderful! Have you thought of a business name yet? Or do you think you’ll use your name like Annie Leibovitz?” Gabriel leaned against the car while they spoke.
Her cheeks turned pink. “I have a name.” Taking a deep breath, she shyly revealed it. “First a Dream Photography. What do you think?”
“I think we should rush right home and let you get started. I haven’t seen you this excited about work in a very long time.”
Together, they climbed into her SUV and drove home, the place where love lived and fairy tales began, but mostly with the man who made all her dreams come true.
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Books by emma nichols:
Sin at Sea (The Sinful Series, 1)
Vixen in Vegas (The Sinful Series, 2)
Heaven in Hedonism (The Sinful Series, 3)
The Sinful Series Boxed Set
The Good Girl
Hiding Out (The Davenport Agency, 1)
Finally Found (The Davenport Agency, 2)
The Davenport Agency Boxed Set
Stormy Surrender (New Hope, 1)
Tempest Torn (New Hope, 2)
Under Umbrellas (New Hope
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3)
New Hope Boxed Set
The Wait
Terms of Service
The Truth About Love
about emma nichols
What made her decide to be an erotica author?
Simple.
How else was she going to parlay her two favorite past times into a career?
Emma is single and loving it. Like her first character, Alysin, Sin for short, she doesn't believe in settling or in settling down. She loves to indulge in her passions whenever the mood strikes and enjoys keeping all of life's cliché moments spicy.
Known for her sense of humor, Emma surrounds herself with friends whose antics often become the source of book fodder. Her ideal situation would be to explore the Caribbean while writing. She pursues that dream daily.
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