Page 186 of The Paid Wife: A Lesbian Romance
Emily cleared her throat, which was thick and sticky with
emotion. “I want to finish my art degree,” she said, “if you’ll
let me. I have no way to pay for it on my own and I know that.
If you don’t want to continue paying for the schooling, then
I’ll go get a job and I’ll take a class here and there in the
evenings, as I can afford it, and I’ll finish, even if it takes me a
few years. I’ll build up my art career because I do want it. I
love painting. It gives me greater joy than almost anything I’ve
ever known.” Emily thought of Dani when she said the word
almost. Before, painting would have been hands down the
greatest joy in her life. Now, she knew that other joys were
possible. “Dad, if you still want to keep that building, and you
still want it to be in my name, I’d like to sit down with you
and come up with a business plan. I think Dani’s store can do a
lot better with other improvements and someone to invest a
little bit of money in it to make that happen. I think that with
the money from her leasing the building, I could possibly
afford another property to invest in within a few years. That
would generate more revenue, and then maybe I could buy
another. I know that was your intention when you put the
building in my name. It wasn’t to rub it in Dani’s face that I
was above her. It was to give me that independence and to
have something to fall back on when or if my art business was
slow or didn’t work out.”
Peter simply nodded. Emily had never seen her dad overly
emotional before, but there was clear love and pride shining in
his eyes. It made her throat even thicker, but she forced herself
to keep going.
“Dani has a section of her store where she puts up art from
local artists. I think we could really grow that. I could put my
