Page 39 of Just Desserts

"All things considered? What does that mean! What is going on? Jonathan is an absolute wreck, Isla. He's devastated! Said you won't speak to him all over some silly misunderstanding. Now here you are chatting away with another man, but you won't speak to your own husband?" Sheila was red in the face, I had never seen her this upset.

"My ex-husband you mean, or soon to be." I said calmly, any anxiety I had about this convo was now replaced with white hot rage.

"And I'm not sure what Jonathan's definition of a misunderstanding is, but let me tell you I understand perfectly that he has been and still is sleeping with my cousin.Our marriage isover. That silly misunderstanding is not something your son can talk himself out of unfortunately." I watched as the color drained from Sheila's face. She took a step back and William wrapped his arms around her.

"What are you talking about!" He blustered looking between his wife and me.

"What did Jonathan tell you?" I asked, crossing my arms, my impatience with this situation growing.

William mumbled for a bit before repeating what Sheila had said about a "small misunderstanding" and my "irrational response." I went over to my purse that was sitting near the register. Grabbing my cellphone I pulled up the pictures I had taken of Alyssa and Jonathan that night. I sent it to both their phones and watched as they heard beeps.

They looked at me with confusion before I looked pointedly at their pockets. They both took their phones out and opened the message I just sent them and for a minute I felt guilty for what I had done. Guilt was quickly replaced with rage at the audacity Jonathan had to send his poor parents to plead his case without telling them the details.

"That right there, is not a small misunderstanding in my opinion. If you still disagree, then I'm sorry but we can no longer be in contact anymore. I am divorcing Jonathan, whether he likes it or not. I don't know right now if I have room in my life for a relationship with you two but if that's something you do want, you need to get on my side of this misunderstanding pretty goddamn quick. Now, please get out of my shop and do not come back. Tell your son any and all communication goes through my lawyer or the restraining order will go out."

The gravity of the situation seemed to fully hit them at thatmoment and they both sank in on themselves, deflating in front of my eyes.

"I'm sorry Isla, we had no idea. I'm so disappointed in him, oh, Isla." Tears were running down Sheila's face as she took a step towards me, I instinctually backed away.

"I can't Sheila, I'm sorry I need some time. Please, just leave. I'm sorry." I put my hands up as a barrier, needing to keep distance between us.

"We understand, we won't bother you again. I'm sorry as well Isla, you didn't deserve any of this." William said, true remorse on his face.

I nodded at him and then averted my eyes, willing this confrontation to end. William gently steered Sheila out of the shop and I stood frozen in my spot as I watched him help his sobbing wife into the car. I barely registered Myles coming back in from the kitchen, but somehow I knew he was there. He put a hand on my shoulder and looked at me questioningly.

Before giving it too much thought I curled into him, snuggling my face into the crook between his neck and shoulder trying to disappear. He wrapped his arms around me, seemingly content to let me try to crawl into his skin. He held me tightly for who knows how long.

I wasn't crying, my emotions were vacillating from sadness to rage and everywhere in between. While I was caught up in a storm of emotions Myles was there, keeping me grounded, holding me in his strong arms. I gave in and let him comfort me, soaking it in for as long as I could.

"Tell me what you need. Do you want to get back to work? Do you want me to take you home? Can I feed you? Anything you want sweetheart just let me know." He murmured into my hairas I moved my cheek to rest on his chest, breathing in his scent.

Eventually I muttered, "Food sounds good. And beer. Or tequila. Any alcohol would do."

"I'm at your service, just say the word" He said, smiling down at me. He gave me a slight nudge so I would look up at him, before continuing, "Go grab your stuff pretty girl, I know a great Mexican restaurant that makes a mean Margarita ." I smiled, that sounded like the perfect idea. His arms closed tighter around me, as if he was afraid I would disappear as soon as he let me go. I took a step back and looked up at him.

"Thank you." I said softly, trying to convey just how much his support meant to me.

"Anything for you Isla." He replied back, equally as emotional. Neither of us moved for a minute until I heard my phone beep.

A missed call from Jonathan as well as texts from Wes and my mom cluttered the screen of my phone. Knowing Wes was the most likely to worry and do something stupid if I didn't reply, I sent him a text to let him know I was with Myles if he needed to reach me. I promptly turned my phone off after that, unwilling to deal with any additional contact with the outside world.

Grabbing my jacket I watched as Myles shrugged his own on. Like always, he stuck close to me as I locked the door up before getting me seated in his car. My thoughts were a rollercoaster, but with Myles' hand on my leg as we drove I was able to remain grounded. In this moment, he was my anchor, keeping me from drifting away in a sea of anger and sadness.

With that thought I wrapped my hand around his so that ours were entwined, resting on his leg. Myles looked at me with surprise, his face quickly morphing into delight. He gave my hand a squeeze then looked back to the road. He pulled into aparking lot of a small restaurant I had never been to.

"Let's go get you fed." He said after we were parked.

"And Wasted. Drunk. Blotto." I added, reminding him of my goals for the night. He laughed as he helped me out of the truck and we headed into the restaurant.

"Your wish is my command." He said, that smile blinding me. As if it was natural our hands reached for each other like we had been doing it for decades. As we headed to dinner I realized, despite the outside drama, this was still a spectacular day.

Chapter 30

Myles

As I escorted Isla into the restaurant I was grateful to see it wasn't too busy. Juan, the owner, saw me enter and came out to greet me. Juan had worked at The Bennett for a few years before leaving to open the restaurant. I was a huge supporter of his and even helped put up some of the money for him to open the shop.

It had been a dream in his family since he was a kid, the recipes were his grandmothers and his mother, father, brother and their wives all worked at the restaurant. They were lovely people and the food was always fantastic. Made from scratch with fresh ingredients. Juan gave me a big smile and hearty handshake once he reached us.

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