Ch. Mr.chatterbox for her, Mr.Icebox for me? Ice melts and so did my love. 52 Mr.chatterbox for her, Mr.Icebox for me? Ice melts and so did my love. 52

Chapter 3 

I met Casey for lunch at a noodle spot near work. 

The second she sat down, she grabbed my hand. 

“Nope. You’re eating first. Then we talk.” 

She ordered me beef noodles. 

I pushed the bowl to the side and told her everything-the passwords, the ring, the postcards, my birthday disaster. 

She didn’t say a word the whole time. 

When I finished, she just sat there staring at me. 

“When you guys got married, he seriously didn’t change anything?” 

“He said it was easier to leave it.” 

“And the couch, the curtains-do you actually like any of that stuff?” 

“Hate all of it.” 

Casey leaned back in her chair. 

“That place was decorated when he was with Jenna, wasn’t it?” 

“They finished the reno right before they broke up.” 

“So it’s her passwords, her style, her ring locked in the safe, her letters hidden in the closet. You didn’t marry Eric. You just moved into Jenna’s leftover life.” 

My fingers were shredding the napkin on the table. 

“Yeah. I know.” 

“You know?” 

“I’ve known for a while now.” 

She looked at me like she was trying to figure out a puzzle. 

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Chapter 3 

“Then why now? Why did you wait this long?” 

“I kept thinking time would fix it. That eventually things would feel different. But it’s been three years-over a thousand days-and he hasn’t changed one single password.” 

Her eyes went glassy. 

“What did the lawyer say?” 

“The draft’ll be ready in a few days.” 

“What about the house?” 

“It’s his. He bought it before we got married.” 

“So you’re walking away with nothing.” 

“I don’t want anything from him anyway.” 

Casey pressed her lips together hard. 

“Come stay with me.” 

“Not yet. I need to see one more thing through first.” 

“What?” 

“He promised to make up my birthday this weekend. I want to see where he actually takes me.” 

Saturday, five o’clock. Eric texted me an address. 

Italian place downtown. 

When I walked in, he was already flipping through the menu. 

“Order whatever you want. It’s on me.” 

I picked two dishes. 

Eric added a bottle of wine and carpaccio. 

The food came and I picked up my fork. 

“Have you been here before?” 

“Yeah, a couple times. It’s pretty solid.” 

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Chapter 3 

“With who?” 

His hand paused mid-pour. 

“Just work stuff. Team dinners.” 

I pulled out my phone, opened Yelp, and searched for the restaurant. 

The top review had six photos-the last one was Jenna’s selfie. 

The caption said: Our anniversary spot every single year! The owner knows us by name now lol. Love you for bringing 

me here, Eric. 

Posted four years ago. 

Username: MoonCat. 

I turned my phone around so he could see it. 

His whole face changed. 

“Are you seriously digging through old reviews right now?” 

“It’s literally the first one that comes up. I didn’t have to dig.” 

“That was forever ago.” 

“Right. So you’re ‘making up’ my birthday by bringing me to your anniversary spot with her and ordering the exact same food you used to share.” 

He put down his fork and his voice went flat. 

“Oh my god, Diana-aren’t you exhausted? I brought you here because the food’s good. Who cares who I came with 

before?” 

“Tell me one thing I like to eat.” 

He just stared at me. 

“What?” 

“Just one thing. What do I actually like?” 

Everyone around us was talking, laughing, clinking glasses. Our table sat in complete silence. 

Eric’s mouth opened but nothing came out. 

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Chapter 3 

Finally: “You eat pretty much everything.” 

“Okay. Then tell me what I don’t eat.” 

Nothing. 

“I don’t eat raw meat. Anything raw, actually. I told you that my first month living with you, and you just ordered carpaccio.” 

“You never made it a huge deal.” 

“I did. You just didn’t bother remembering. But hey, all your brain space is tied up in 0912 anyway, right?” 

His jaw clenched so tight I could see the muscle jump. 

“What the hell do you want from me?” 

I put down my fork, grabbed my bag, and stood up. 

“I’m leaving.” 

“Diana.” 

I didn’t turn around. 

“You gonna keep this up till you feel like you won something?” 

I walked out. 

It was drizzling outside and I stood under the awning waiting for my Uber. 

My phone lit up with a text from Eric. 

You’re being ridiculous. It’s just dinner-is this really worth blowing everything up over? 

I swiped the notification away and got in the car. 

Rain slid down the window in crooked lines. 

I texted Casey. 

Test complete. 

you get the guest room ready?