you for a wonderful time, and I wish you all the best, Kenzie.
Her hands are shaking so hard, she almost drops her phone. Coward. He’s ending it like this? Over text? With five thousand dollars to, what, soothe hurt feelings and make the breakup easier? For who? Him?
And what part of him thinks he can buy his way out of this with only five grand? Paul couldn’t, and neither can Derek. Nope. No way. Not after half a year of investing her time and energy into a man who’s the emotional equivalent of a black hole.
She forces herself to take several deep breaths. What she says next matters. She starts typing, her thumbs pounding hard on the glass of her Android.
Derek, please. I love you. Don’t do this. Talk to me.
He’s not going to buy his way out of this for so little cash, the sonofabitch.
She tries again. If you’re telling me you never want to see me again, and you really mean it, then fine. I’ll leave you alone. But Derek, I want you. I want to be with you. I need you.
You’re the worst thing for me, he replies.
Oh god. It’s over. She’s blown it.
Kenzie sits at the table in the restaurant as the server refills her water glass, thinking about the pile of money she stuffed into her D&G purse before she left the room. How did she not see this coming? An affair is all about the honeymoon stage, and she should have realized they were past it two months ago. That was right about the time he started getting quiet, and stopped wanting sex the minute they walked into their hotel room. When he started getting more critical, more moody, withdrawing.
She should have known, but she’d been too busy falling for him and starting to let herself think that maybe this was real. She had totally misjudged. And now it was over, and all she had to show for it was a bruised ego, a designer purse, and a small pile of cash.
And maybe a broken heart … if she allows herself to feel it.
Her phone pings in her hand, and she looks down. It’s Derek, and she has to read the words twice before they process. When they do, her whole body crumples in relief.
Forget everything I just said. I’m an asshole. Kenzie, forgive me. I don’t want this to end. I need you, too.
It’s not I love you, but it’s good enough. Jesus Christ. That was a close one.
She texts back. I’m not going anywhere. But please don’t scare me like that again. I don’t deserve that.
I won’t, he replies. And you’re absolutely right. I’m sorry. He sends her a heart emoji.
She sends one back, and as if on cue, her stomach rumbles. She puts down her phone and picks up her fork.
Time for breakfast. A girl’s gotta eat.
Chapter 14
Marin spent the entire night lying on top of the bedsheets she and Sal made love on. She didn’t sleep at all.
At seven a.m., she takes a long, hot shower. She puts on makeup. She puts on a dress, the silk Rachel Roy with the billowy sleeves. In the kitchen, she pushes a preprogrammed button on the professional-grade coffee machine Derek had splurged on a few months earlier, and three minutes later, her mug contains a perfect soy vanilla latte with an extra shot of espresso. She brings it to the banquette, where she sits by the window and catches up on a few emails.
At eight forty-five, she reads the texts between Derek and his mistress. His attempt to end it once and for all. Her efforts to suck him back in. Which seem to have worked.
She makes her decision.
The call takes all of five minutes. Marin exchanges pleasantries with her personal financial adviser and then they get down to business. She recites the account number Julian gave her and confirms the amount. If her adviser is surprised, he doesn’t say so. He doesn’t ask questions. He handles only wealthy clients, and he knows better than to probe. Two hundred fifty thousand dollars is a lot to give to one charity, but she and Derek donate large sums of money all the time, and she’s increased her donations considerably in the past year.
It’s almost as if she believes she can buy her son back with good karma.
But there really is no such thing as karma, is there? Terrible things happen, and sometimes they lead to more terrible things.