Dear Ex-Husband, Watch Me Love Again

Chapter 10

Silence in the living room was so thick that Katherine could almost hear her own breathing.

Her parents exchanged a look and by the time they looked back at her, Katherine knew she was about to get a sermon.

“Are you being serious?” Her mother, Gianna, was the first to speak, repeating it as though she needed to hear it again to be sure.

“Yes.” Katherine nodded. “I want to work for the company. I want to take my place as your daughter and heir to the Whitmore group.”

Her father, Kenneth Whitmore set his cup down slowly and leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees.

“Katherine,” he said carefully, “you were the one who told us, very clearly, that your place was in your home. That you wanted to build a family and that business would only get in the way of that. You chose your husband.” He paused. “Those were your words, Kate.”

"I know they were," she swallowed. "I was wrong."

Her mother reached over and touched her hand. "Sweetheart, has something happened? Because this feels very sudden."

"It's not sudden," Katherine said, and she meant it. The decision had been forming for days, maybe longer than she wanted to admit. "I've just spent a long time putting my energy into something that wasn't giving me anything back. I think it's time I invested in myself instead."

“Did Lucas do something?” Gianna frowned, leaning forward.

Katherine looked at both her parents, knowing that the second she told them about Lucas’s infidelity they would move every mountain to ruin him. So, she shook her head.

“N—No.” she lied. “It’s not just about Lucas. This is a decision I want to make for myself.”

"You're sure about this?" Kenneth asked.

"I've never been more sure of anything," she replied.

He went quiet for a moment and then nodded once. “Alright.” He smiled, clearly happy his daughter had changed her mind.

Unlike what he had been telling her, he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of leaving the family business in the hands of a stranger whenever it was time for him to resign.

“I’m happy you’ve decided to return, Kate. I really am.” He said with a genuine smile as Gianna hugged Kate the second time.

“But,” he held up a hand before she could get too excited. “But, you need to understand something. The company has grown since you stepped away. You cannot walk back in and expect to pick up where you left off. There are things you will need to learn, processes that have changed, people you will need to understand."

"I know," Katherine nodded. "I'm not asking for a shortcut."

"Good." He nodded again. "Because I won't be giving you one." There was no harshness in it. Just the particular firmness of a man who had built something he was proud of and refused to hand any part of it to someone who wasn't ready, even his own daughter. "I have someone in mind to guide you. A business expert I trust completely. He'll get you up to speed before you take on anything major."

"Do I know who he is?" Katherine asked, looking between both parents.

"I don’t think so. He’s someone I've worked with closely," Kenneth said. "You'll meet him soon enough. What matters is that he knows what he's doing and I trust his judgment." He picked his cup back up, the conversation clearly settled in his mind. "How soon can you start?"

Katherine blinked. "How soon is soon?"

"I was thinking immediately," he said simply, as though this were completely reasonable.

Her mother laughed softly beside her. "Your father has never understood the concept of easing into things."

"Immediately works," Katherine chuckled, bubbling with excitement.

Her father smiled then, a real one, the kind she hadn't seen directed at her in a long time. It made something in her chest loosen, just slightly.

*****

She stayed for dinner.

For the first time in what felt like years, she sat at the table she had grown up at and ate a meal without counting how many hours it would be before she needed to get home to Lucas. She laughed at her father's stories. She let her mother fuss over how little she had been eating.

It wasn’t until evening before she finally decided that it was time to return to the house she shared with Lucas..

By the time she arrived at the house, it was still empty.

Lucas had not called.

She checked her phone once out of habit, then set it face down on the nightstand and went to wash her face. She used to lie awake waiting for the sound of his key in the door, her mind spinning through every possible explanation for why he was late, every reason she could find to believe the best of him.

Tonight she fell asleep before eleven.

The next morning, she woke to a message from her father with an address and a time. Nothing else. Just the location and the instructions to be on time.

She smiled and got up to get ready.

Lucas still hadn't come home.

She made herself coffee, got dressed in something professional enough to make a first impression, and left the house without sending him a single message.

The address her father had sent led her to a restaurant that was famous for entertaining the rich. She took another look at her outfit as she stood outside and pouted.

“A restaurant. Really, Dad?” She sighed.

She had a freaking blue suit on and looked like a lawyer. Definitely not a good outfit choice for a restaurant.

In her defense, she had no idea.

She pushed her embarrassment to the back of her head and walked, gave the staff her father’s name, and walked to where the guest was already waiting.

From where she stood, she could only see his back as he faced the window. She straightened her suit one more time, took a deep breath, and walked to the table.

“I’m sorry for being late. I had trouble finding this place.” She apologized and was about to sit when the man turned.

She nearly lost her footing, stumbling briefly by the table.

Her eyes widened in shock as she stared at the man who was to become her business guide. Her lips twitched into a pleasant smile.

“Zane?”