Three Little Words (Fool's Gold #12)(76)

“Good, because the only caves I know of are on Heidi’s ranch, and she ages her goat cheese in them. I don’t think you’d enjoy that. I would guess the smell would be difficult to take, day after day.”

Isabel managed a slight smile. “Thanks for putting my cave-living dreams in perspective.”

“You’re welcome.” Patience squeezed her hand. “I’m sorry this happened. But at the risk of being annoyingly cheerful, you have options.”

“Options that will lead to more disappointment,” Isabel grumbled. Right now she felt as if she would never figure out how to make a decent decision ever again.

“That’s my little ray of sunshine,” her friend said with a gentle smile. “Okay, you’re not going to open a store with Sonia in New York. There are hundreds of other places you could do it. Pick a city.”

“I don’t have another designer to work with.” Isabel leaned her head back against the sofa and sighed. Nothing was ever going to be right again.

“I didn’t realize there was just the one.”

Isabel straightened. “One what?”

“Designer. Sonia’s the only one?”

“Very funny.”

“I have a charming sense of humor.” Her friend shifted toward her. “I’ve seen Project Runway. Season after season they bring us brilliant designers. There are hundreds or thousands out there. You just have to find one. Or maybe five. Maybe it’s better not to have a partner right now. You could start with Dellina’s friend. Her clothes are great. They’re selling.”

Isabel saw her point. “That’s an option, except Sonia was kicking in cash, too. I don’t have enough money to start a boutique on my own.” She paused, wondering if she could stand to risk another partner. Between Eric and Sonia, she was feeling extremely unliked.

“What about Paper Moon?” Patience asked.

Isabel stared at her. “I don’t want to sell wedding gowns for the rest of my life.”

“I know that. But you don’t have to. It’s successful and there’s an income stream. That would help. You could add to the business. Bring in a few designers. Expand the business. The space next door is for lease. So lease it, open a wall and sell wedding gowns and designer clothes. I’m sure your parents would be thrilled to keep the business in the family, and you can probably trust them not to break your heart.”

Isabel stood up and walked away from the sofa. When she reached the fireplace, she turned back.

“I never thought of staying,” she admitted. “Fool’s Gold isn’t exactly the fashion capital of the world. My parents would be thrilled.”

“There are advantages to being here. We have a big tourist trade. There are plenty of women in town. Plus, you’ve sold everything from Dellina’s friend you’ve put in the window and that’s without trying.”

Not leave? She’d always planned to leave. To go back to New York. To make her mark. To stay here would be...

What? Settling? It didn’t feel like settling. She liked the town. She had friends she trusted and her family was here. She had to admit that spending more time with her nieces and nephews, not to mention her sister, would be nice.

“I’d have to get my own place,” she murmured.

“Easy enough to do. You said Madeline loves working in Paper Moon. Having her there would free up time to do what you really love.” Patience rose and crossed to her. “You don’t have to decide now, but at least think about it. I know you’re sad, but this isn’t the death of your dream. You’re being shifted into a different direction. Sometimes that’s not a bad thing.”

Isabel hugged her. “Thanks for listening,” she said.

“That’s what friends do. And the second it’s five o’clock, we’re getting drunk. Because that’s the other thing friends do.”

Isabel laughed. She was still hurt and confused, but she didn’t feel so lost. Maybe she would decide to leave after all, but she had options. Choices.

She walked with her friend to the front door and then out onto the sidewalk.

“You’ll be at Jo’s tonight right at five,” Patience said. “That was a statement, by the way, not a request.”

“I’ll be there.”

“Good.”

They hugged again, and then Patience headed toward Brew-haha. Isabel kept on going toward Paper Moon. As she smiled at people she knew, she wondered about the other complication. The one she couldn’t really talk about. Not yet.

If she didn’t leave Fool’s Gold, what was going to happen with Ford? Because she had a bad feeling that whatever she’d felt when Eric had left her didn’t begin to measure up to what it would feel like if Ford walked away.

* * *

CONSUELO STUDIED the collection. “I’m not seeing a lot of romantic comedies,” she said as she looked over the titles.

The neatly lined-up DVDs and Blu-ray movies sat on shelves by the TV in Kent’s basement. There were plenty of action movies and a large collection of kid movies, but little else.

She looked at Kent. “You realize I can’t find a single title that reflects the female point of view.”

“We’re not big on chick flicks in this house,” he admitted. “But if there’s something you want to watch, I can get it.”