Page 13 of Honey Bun

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She playfully bounced into my side. “Recreating more dates?”

Now, that was a good idea. We’d had good times as teenagers, but as adults, there was more to do. I placed my hand on her back as we breezed out the wooden door. The summer air was warm. “We’re just getting to know each other.”

“Agreed, and I’m in.”

I opened her door and tapped it. “I’ll pick you up at ten, then.”

“Sounds perfect.”

Inside, my chest expanded. I needed to be on track to win her heart because she had mine. I drove her back to her home.

As I turned off the engine, she hopped out. “Have a good evening.”

“You too,” I said.

If she’d waited, I would have opened her door, but she took off. She probably needed time, so I would wait. She was worth waiting for.

Chapter Five

Madeleine

The blinds on the windows of my old room needed serious dusting. My mother hadn’t changed my room, which was odd. I’d thought my parents were glad to see me married, but maybe that had just been my father. That day, I decided to clean, even though I probably wouldn’t be my mother’s guest for long.

I picked up my phone and opened the electronic document then clicked the button and signed my name.Done.I would tell Aurora we were moving to the city and take her to those museums in her dream book.

Then my phone rang. Adrenaline rushed through me as I saw the familiar number. He’d discovered we were gone. I buried my head between my knees then decided to answer.

He didn’t say hello. Instead, he shouted, “Where are you?”

“We had no place to go, Bob.” Tears pooled in my eyes as I remembered the last time we’d been in the same room and he’d sucker punched me in the gut for telling him I knew about his girlfriend.

“I’m sorry about what happened, Madeleine. I’ll never hurt you again.”

I narrowed my eyes. I’d heard that before. “You have Evelyn now.”

“I broke it off with her because I want you back.”

I shook. This wasn’t the life for me. “I’m going to get a divorce.”

“You can’t,” he said.

I hung up. I wouldn’t go back to him and have him break the rest of my body and soul. Life didn’t consist of waiting for the next mistake. It was time to live my life, and part of that meant showing my daughter it was okay to have dreams of her own. Her life didn’t begin and end with pleasing a husband. If she didn’t want to ever marry or have children, that was her decision to make.

As I showered, I thought about Arman. Seeing him every day would be delicious and sweeter than a freshly made cupcake. The water felt great, and in the warm steam, I thought that if I’d taken control of my life years before, maybe he’d be more to me than a boss and a friend.

I finished cleaning up and headed downstairs. My daughter was on her old phone, and I handed her mine so she could see the confirmation email. I went to make myself a coffee.

As I poured water for the machine, my mother called from the garage door, “Can you drop off an order for me?”

I gave her a thumbs-up, quickly made myself a to-go cup, and headed to the truck. She’d let us crash at her house, and helping her out was easy. I opened the passenger seat and grabbed the receipt, and my eyes widened as I saw what my mother’s order was.

I marched back to the open garage and asked, “You want me to go to the Norouzi family?”

She finished sorting the plants she’d pulled from the ground and put into pots that she’d lined up. “To the gardener. They wanted some of my salmon ranunculus bulbs for their walkway.”

I bounced on my feet as I headed out and I tossed the keys in the air. Arman was staying with his parents for the long weekend. I would see him that day no matter what.

I headed into the house to get my phone then sat next to my daughter on the couch. “You okay, Aurora?”