74
The café was winding down for the day. The late afternoon sun slanted through the windows, painting golden streaks across the gleaming countertop where Katherine wiped down the last coffee ring with a soft cloth. The place smelled like roasted espresso and warm vanilla—comforting, familiar, her little sanctuary in the world.
She glanced at the wall clock. Just fifteen more minutes and she could finally head home, sink into the couch, and maybe call Carolina to catch up about everything. It had been a long day.
Just as she turned toward the sink, the bell above the front door chimed.
She looked up.
And her eyes widened.
There stood Carolina, framed by the soft amber light of evening, holding a massive bouquet—bright pink peonies, white roses, tiny wildflowers—all exploding in vibrant color. In her other hand was a pastel gift bag, the kind tied with satin ribbons.
Katherine blinked. “Whoa. Okay… What is all this?”
Carolina grinned like she could barely contain herself. Her cheeks were flushed, eyes sparkling. “Girl, you will not believe what happened today.”
Katherine immediately dropped the cloth on the counter and rushed around to her. “Wait, wait, wait. What happened? Gist me now! What’s going on?!”
Carolina raised the bouquet slightly, her grin stretching wider. “Can you believe all this is from Devon?”
Katherine’s jaw dropped. “What?! Devon?! Your Devon?!”
“Yes, my Devon,” Carolina giggled, shaking her head like she still didn’t believe it herself. “He sent me all this. Flowers, chocolates, and a letter…”
Katherine squealed and clapped her hands. “Oh my God, girl! What?! Tell me everything. Right now. Sit. Wait—no—stand. Just talk. Tell me what happened.”
Carolina laughed as she placed the bouquet on the counter and set the bag next to it. “Okay, so… last night, Devon and I were talking, you know? Just the usual late-night check-in. And I told him about this call I had with my mom. She was asking if I had anyone in my life, like romantically. And I was just stuck, girl. I didn’t know what to say.”
Katherine nodded, already invested. “Uh-huh, uh-huh…”
“I mean, we hadn’t exactly defined anything, you know?” Carolina continued, leaning against the counter. “Like, what do I even say? That I’m just seeing someone? Courting? It felt so weird. So I told him that. And I didn’t think much of it.”
“And then?” Katherine asked, eyes wide.
Carolina grinned again. “And then, this morning, I was at work when the receptionist said I had a delivery. I didn’t even know who it was from. When I got to the front, there it was. This huge bouquet, this adorable gift bag, and a letter.”
“Oh my god,” Katherine gasped, holding her hands over her heart.
Carolina opened the bag and pulled out the letter like it was a treasure. She unfolded it slowly, then read aloud with a blush: “‘Will you be my girlfriend?’ — Devon.”
Katherine’s jaw dropped again, and she let out a loud scream. “AHHH! Girl! Oh my GOD! That is SO romantic!”
“I KNOW!” Carolina said, half-laughing, half-swooning. “It was so simple, but it just got me, you know? I was shocked. Like, it hit me right in the heart.”
“I’m obsessed,” Katherine said, pacing in front of her, fanning herself dramatically. “I am so obsessed with this man right now. That is cute cute. So what did you do? What did you say?”
Carolina beamed. “I called him right away. Video call. I was literally holding the flowers and smiling like a fool. And I told him yes. I said yes, Katherine. I’m officially his girlfriend. Devon is my boyfriend!”
Katherine screamed again, grabbing her hands. “No! Stop! I’m so happy for you, girl! This is insane. This is crazy romantic. This is, like, fairy-tale level!”
“I know,” Carolina said, laughing. “I’m still not over it.”
Katherine let out a breathless laugh and shook her head. “Girl, we need to celebrate. This is a whole event. A whole occasion. Forget going home—let’s get drinks.”
Carolina’s eyes lit up. “Ooh, I’m in. Definitely in.”
Katherine grabbed her keys and apron. “Give me two seconds to close up, and then we’re toasting to you and Devon. I’m not letting this night pass without a toast to true love and surprise flowers.”
Carolina giggled. “Let me know if you want me to carry my huge girlfriend's energy bouquet through the streets.”
Katherine laughed. “Yes. We’re making a statement.”
And just like that, the café lights dimmed, the doors locked behind them, and the two women walked out into the city evening, giggling like teenagers, the scent of peonies trailing behind them—hope and new beginnings in full bloom.
The city lights shimmered in a blur as Katherine and Carolina stepped out of the taxi, laughing, a little too loudly, a little too freely. Their arms linked for balance, heels in hand, cheeks flushed from laughter and liquor. The wind was soft and warm against their skin as they approached the familiar brick apartment building they both called home.
“I still can’t believe he did all of that,” Katherine said, steadying herself against the banister.
“I know,” Carolina breathed, eyes dreamy. “I feel like I’m floating.”
“You are floating. Off three glasses of Moscato.”
They both burst into giggles again, clutching each other as they ascended the stairs.
Their apartments sat across from one another on the second floor—two cozy one-bedrooms separated by a short hallway and years of friendship.
Katherine dug into her purse for her keys, still buzzing from the night. “Alright, girlfriend. Get some sleep. And don’t go sniffing that bouquet in your dreams.”
Carolina smiled, swaying a bit. “You too, future bride of Manhattan. Bye, babe.”
“Goodnight, babe.”
They gave each other a mock air kiss and slipped into their respective apartments.
Katherine shut the door gently behind her. The apartment was dim and hushed, the after-scent of roasted beans still lingering from that morning’s grind. She slipped off her shoes, let her purse fall to the side, and headed straight for the fridge to grab a bottle of water.
She was halfway through gulping it when she spotted her phone screen lighting up on the counter.
1 missed call — Kingsley.
Her heart did a little flip—unexpected and swift.
She stared at the name for a moment, the cool water settling in her chest, chasing the wine fuzz away. Then she dialed him back.
It rang only twice.
“Katherine,” came Kingsley’s low, slightly rough voice on the other end.
She sat slowly on the edge of her couch. “Hey… I saw your call.”
“Yeah,” Kingsley said, exhaling. “I wasn’t sure if you’d be asleep.”
“I was just getting in,” she replied. “Went out with Carolina… she had a lot to celebrate.”
A soft chuckle. “I’m glad. She deserves something good.”
There was a small pause.
There was a pause on the line. Then Kingsley said, “Hey, remember when we were on the phone the other night… and the call dropped?”
Katherine’s brows lifted as she straightened a bit. “Yeah… you didn’t call back. I figured something happened.”
“It was Beth,” he said. “She came home.”
Katherine blinked. “I thought she wasn’t due back for like another month.”
“Yeah,” he replied with a sigh. “That was the plan. But apparently, the campaign got cut short for some reason, so she came back early. Took me by surprise.”
Then his voice shifted, heavier like he’d been holding something all day. “I told Beth.”
Katherine blinked. “You told her…?”
“I told her I want a divorce.”
Katherine sat up straighter, her heart now fully alert. “Wait—what? You actually told her?”
“I did,” he said. “Tonight.”
She swallowed. “What… what did she say?”
“She wasn’t okay with it at all,” he replied, voice quiet. “She acted shocked, angry… like she didn’t see it coming. But I told her the truth. I kept trying to explain it… all of it.”
Katherine closed her eyes for a second. “Kingsley…”
“I know,” he said before she could say more. “But I had to.”
She sighed. “I just… don’t pressure her, okay? Please. Don’t make her feel the way you made me feel back then. Like it’s all on her like she’s the reason everything’s broken. It’s not easy for a woman to walk away from the man she loves.”
Kingsley was silent for a long beat.
Then: “But Katherine… she doesn’t love me. She doesn’t even care about me. All she cares about is her image, her likes, her status, her followers. I didn’t want to tell you this before, because I didn’t know how to even say it, but…” He exhaled hard. “She got pregnant. And she aborted the baby without even telling me.”
Katherine’s mouth parted in stunned silence. “…What?”
“She didn’t want her body to change,” he continued, bitterness edging into his voice. “She didn’t want to ‘ruin her figure’ and mess up her campaign. I found out later—she never told me. She just did it.”
“Oh my God… Kingsley,” Katherine breathed, one hand slowly coming up to her mouth. “Why would she do that…?”
“For the internet,” he said flatly. “For her ‘brand.’ Because a baby would have meant slowing down. And she doesn’t care about anyone except herself. Not me, not the child, not our marriage. Just how she looks to the world. Just her reputation.”
Katherine was quiet, shaken.
“That’s why this is different,” Kingsley added, softer now. “You loved me. Genuinely. Even when it was messy. Even when I didn’t deserve it. And I was such a damn fool, Katherine. I threw away everything real for something so fake.”
His voice cracked slightly.
“I’m sorry. I am so… deeply sorry.”
Katherine pressed her eyes shut, her chest heavy with the weight of it all. His voice, those words—it was everything she had wanted to hear once, and it hurt just the same to hear them now.
“I believe you,” she whispered, throat tight.
Another pause passed between them—quiet but full, as if grief and guilt and memories were settling into the space like dust.
“I just… I don’t want you to go to war with her,” Katherine finally said. “Just… handle it gently, okay? You may not think she loves you, but she probably built her whole life around the idea of you. Walking away from that… even for someone like her, it’ll shake her world.”
“I’ll try,” he murmured. “But I’m done living in someone else’s version of happiness. I want mine back. I want you back. Not as a second chance… but as the right one.”
Katherine closed her eyes, a tear slipping down her cheek.
She didn’t answer that part.
“Get some sleep,” she said instead.
“You too.”
“Goodnight, Kingsley.”
“Goodnight, Katherine.”
She ended the call and sat in the quiet of her apartment, the hum of the fridge the only sound. Her heart beat loudly in her chest.
He told her.
He really told her.
And now… everything was about to change again.