Night to Remember

Celebrating

- Victoria -

I spent a few days at Harper's apartment, crying my heart out over the scumbag I once called husband. "How could he do this to me?" I asked myself every time I opened my eyes.

We were happy, or at least I thought we were. The morning kisses while preparing breakfast, random calls during the day saying he misses me. Gifts, flowers, and romantic dates two times a week. Not to mention the incredible s*x whenever we wanted. Was it all a lie?

The door to my bedroom opened, and Harper walked in with a tray full of food. The smell was heavenly, and I eagerly sat up to devour whatever she came here with.

"We have an appointment at 1 pm with the counselor. You need to fix yourself, sweetie." She announced, placing the tray on my lap. I nodded in acknowledgment and started eating.

True to her words, Harper called her friend when we reached her apartment and asked to arrange the divorce papers. She told him everything about Tom's infidelity and the prenup we signed. Thanks to my parents' insistence, I had one.

Tom called every two hours since I informed him about my decision, but I declined him every time, not ready to deal with him any time soon. When he showed up once, Harper shut the door in front of his face, shouting to wait for the lawyer to contact him.

After breakfast, I went to the adjusted bathroom and prepared for my afternoon appointment. At 12.45 am, Harper and I went inside the building of a very prestigious law firm, and after giving the front desk lady my name, we took the lift to the 12th floor, where Johnathan Harris's office was located.

After being assisted by a lovely lady in her early fifties, we entered an expensively designed office where a handsome man in his late forties greeted us with a charming smile. He was tall, well-built, and looked gorgeous in his three-pieced dark gray suit. After formal introductions, we got to our seats, and I let out a massive gush of air, waiting for the unavoidable to come.

"Mr. Montgomery agrees to the divorce terms and takes full responsibility for his actions. Although he did violate the terms of the prenuptial agreement, he claims to be unable to fulfill the obligations of paragraph 8, so he pleads to release him from the payment."

Mr. Harris stated, hesitantly sliding the papers over the mahogany desk. As expected, Harper immediately objected and started voicing her not-so-pleasant comments toward my husband while I decided to ignore her and go through the documents for a change.

That fucker didn't have problems admitting his sins but only with paying for them. And in our case, literally paying, as the prenup we both signed stated that in case of his infidelity, he had to pay me one hundred thousand dollars for every year of our marriage. In my case, it's over three hundred thousand at this moment.

Greedy little bastard. I thought as I looked at the empty place on the left side at the end of the document calling for my signature. Reluctantly, I looked to the right side, where the sweeping signature he boldly placed screamed at me in victory.

Not minding Harper's angry words with Mr. Harris, I took the pen, and for the last time, I put my signature using Tom's last name in my elegant cursive.

"Deal." I agreed and stood, extending my hand to Mr. Harris.

"Thank you for your service. I expect the certificate in a few days. Have a good day, sir." I bid goodbye with a smile.

"Are you out of your mind, Tori?! The fucker has to pay for what he did. You can't leave it like that." Harper snapped at me.

"He's not worth it, Harper. And what is a three hundred thousand compared to what still stays mine?" I asked as I grabbed the door handle, waiting for her to join me.

"Still, I think he needs to pay." She persisted, walking past me like it was her marriage we had just agreed to end.

"And he'll pay. When his time comes," I whispered so no one would hear.

With huffing and puffing, Harper, we left the building in the worst mood we had entered, but I knew that her reactions were just a pure example of her concern for me. She was my lioness when I had no strength to fight and my voice of reason when I exaggerated.

"Will meat pizza and a bottle of scotch help you with your mood?" I asked once we reached her apartment after a long, silent forty-minute taxi drive.

"I can't today. I must go with the bride and take care of all the details from her neverending list of demands." Harper rolled her eyes as she checked her phone.

"Is the future Mrs. Remington already on your s**t list?" I mocked, fluttering my eyelashes at her. "When will you be back?" I added, seeing her irritation at my remark.

"Friday evening. And yes." She collapsed dramatically on the sofa, "Future Mrs. Remington still holds the title of 'the biggest pain in my ass,' I wish to puff her away and send her to the other end of the world." She sighed, "Her demands are unimaginable and impossible to reach." She closed her eyes in defeat.

I walked to the couch and sat beside her, stroking her long curly hair. "Isn't your company known for creating miracles? Everybody knows that only Harper Pierson can do the impossible." I reminded her of her greatness.

"Go on." She urged me to continue, still not opening her eyes.

"You are a goddamn professional. You have worked hard to be the great Harper Pierson who knows no limits about doing miracles for her clients. Even the Loch Ness monster would swim in the pond if the client requested that." I joked, and it worked.

"The Loch Ness monster actually swam from Scotland to attend the wedding. That's the bride's mother." Harper jested, and we both burst out laughing.

When we finished joking, I helped Harper to pack. The new assignment we celebrated not so long ago was quite challenging for her, not to mention being a great test of my best friend's patience limit. Ms. Madison McKenna, the future Mrs. Remington, had only the wildest desires for her wedding and gave even the shortest time frame to achieve them.

"Are you going to be OK?" She asked me when she was out of the door heading down for the cab.

"I'll be fine, Harpie. I have tons of ingredients, free time to bake, and a neverending supply of wine in the store around the corner. Don't worry about me." I assured her and pushed her inside the elevator.

Sending her a flying kiss, I waited as the doors closed after her before proceeding with my plan for the next couple of days. Baking, filling my free time, and drinking cheap wine were the plans I managed to follow until Friday afternoon.

I was sitting at the dining table looking at the paper delivered by a professional server stating that my marriage with Thomas Adam Montgomery had ended. That's the most desired certificate I have ever received in years. Tom was supposed to be my life, happiness, and everything, but in the end, he turned out to be a cheater and a liar, all to prevent me from achieving my dreams.

I met Thomas at university. We both attended the same classes, eager to become successful owners of our dream businesses. He was the golden boy of the campus, surprisingly interested in me, a simple, hard-working girl with a strict plan for her future.

Initially, I didn't fall for his charms; he was a famous midfielder on our university football team. However, after a few months of persistence, I accepted his invitation for a date, and since then, we have been together. I was so clumsy around him that I hid myself for a week after some embarrassing situation a month after our first date.

But he didn't let me go; instead, he barged into the dormitory, demanding to see me. That night I knew he was my Prince Charming, my anchor, and my other half, yelling for the whole dormitory to hear, "Marry me, Victoria Jane Ridley!" kneeling in the middle of the corridor.

After five years, I'm almost twenty-three years old and divorced. I chuckled at my bitter-sweet short love story, wondering what life had in store for me for the next years. The apartment door opened as I sighed, and an exhausted Harper entered.

"Look what just came today." I waved to her with my freshly received divorce certificate.

Harper smiled at me, kicking her suitcase deeper into the living room as she lifted the bag filled with different kinds of booze from our favorite shop. "And look what I brought to celebrate it." She winked as she kicked the doors shut. It was time to start celebrating.