Kallie

Kallie sat at her desk, going over her appointment list for the week. She had kept things light because she figured she would be settling into the home she and James were preparing. Still in that honeymoon stage of bliss. Still the light of each other’s eyes. She sent off a few emails to some clients she knew wanted her services that week, letting them know she was free. Open to help them in any way she could. She tried not to think about the past couple of weeks. About the fact that she had given up one relationship and was halfway out of another one.

She figured the time would fly if she was getting her heart broken, so she might as well work while she had the time.

A videoconference call devolved into her client asking her questions about her wedding. Wondering how it went. Asking her about her honeymoon. And it was the first time she truly thought back on what happened. Recounting it to her client forced her to see it from an outside point of view. It gave her the ability to remove all of the emotions she was experiencing in that moment and see it for what it was. A brief moment in time where her judgment had lapsed. Her client balked when she talked about James trying to apologize for what he had done. How he had betrayed her on their sacred day. Kallie closed her eyes and told her client briefly that she had taken the honeymoon anyway. To have some time to herself. And her client cheered her on, telling her it was what she deserved after what her ex-fiancé put her through.

If only she knew what had really taken place on that island.

That was true karma.

Kallie stayed up most of the night batting things back and forth. She kept volleying between wanting Ash and not wanting him. About wanting to call James and not wanting to call him. The history she had with a man she loved crept into the forefront of her mind during the early hours of the morning. And then, they were washed away with the tidal wave that was Ash. In some ways, she thought Ash and the island were her own dose of karma. She hated the way she had been judged by James and his family, and then she judged James for his singular action on their wedding day. Dumped him without allowing him to give an explanation. Left him without giving them the chance to recover.

And yet, she knew that any other woman would have made the same choice she had that day. She knew any other woman—her mother included—would have left him standing there in the middle of the narthex of the cathedral they were supposed to be married in with his tail between his legs. But years of history was hard to erase. Years of whispering “I love you” in the middle of the night and years of making love until the sun came up. Years of traveling and years of arguments and years of crying tears together. Years of coming back from the brink of darkness Kallie never thought they would come out of.

What did she and Ash have? Some island with a storm and an ex that wielded her money like the raging confidence of that storm.

Kallie felt like she had been sitting at her desk all day. But when she looked down at the clock on her computer, she realized she had only been at work for an hour. And a shadow that loomed over her ripped her from her trance. She looked up and saw a delivery man with a bright smile on his face at her door. He handed her a package. She furrowed her brow and peeked at it, reading her name written in a beautiful cursive on top of the package.

She recognized that handwriting.

And her stomach instantly dropped.

Kallie carefully unwrapped her package and found a black velvet box inside. There was a card on top of it. With the name “Kal-Bear” written in that beautiful cursive writing. James had sent her something. Some sort of present. And she held her breath as she set the present on her desk and picked up the card.

My dearest Kallie,

You mean more to me than anything in the entire world, and I want our love to endure. I want us to be able to handle the pressure of this world and the heat we will attract from others for loving the way we do. Because when heat is combined with pressure, and you give it enough time, the most beautiful thing appears.

Forever yours,

James

At least her fingertips trembled as she plucked a black velvet box from its container. She opened it steadily, trying to convince herself that the present she thought was in here wasn't actually in here. But it was. It was a beautiful diamond necklace. One she had been gazing at through a window for months. The beautiful aquamarine teardrop gem was strong on a string that housed beautiful white and yellow diamonds. It was subtle. Small. Delicate, like the small chain the gem hung from. And it was every bit as beautiful as it was the day she saw it in the window.

Kallie couldn't put it down. James had always been charming, but he never went to great lengths to spend a lot of money on her. Every once in a while, he surprised her with something that reminded her of his money. But most of what he spent was to impress other people. They would go out to eat at fancy restaurants with some of his friends, and he would pick up the entire bill. He would pay for people's medical bills and wait for the praise that would come his way. At least, that was how she saw it whenever she got angry with him. Outside of a pair of small diamond earrings, the only piece of expensive jewelry James ever purchased for her was Kallie’s engagement ring.

And yet, she was looking at a necklace she had been staring at for months. The only piece of jewelry that had ever caught her eye in a store. She was holding it in her hands, and it was from the man she had almost married.

More proof of their history.

More proof that he paid attention more than he let on.

Kallie drew in a deep breath as her mind began to swirl. The ball was currently in her court and she didn't know how she felt about that. She was slowly eliminating Ash from her memory so she could get back to work. Get back to her life. Get back to moving forward. And then she was slapped with a gift that should have made her happy. That should have made her eyes glisten with tears. That should have made her feel thankful.

If James knew she wanted this necklace so badly, why wait until he is so royally screwed to get it for her?

“I can’t accept this,” Kallie said over the phone.

“It’s yours. I know you’ve been staring at it. Kallie, that necklace has you written all over it,” James said.

“I’m not accepting this gift. I’m taking it back to the store.”

“Then if you won’t accept the gift, Kal-Bear, have dinner with me. You can return it to me in person and not have to go through the hassle of crossing town to walk into the store.”

“James, come on.”

“What? You want to return the gift, and that’s fine. I have the receipt. Just meet me for dinner and you can hand it over,” he said.

“I know what you’re trying to do. I know how you’ve played this out,” Kallie said.

“Dinner. That’s it. You can even leave before you order, if that’s what you wish. You can put the gift down, turn around, and walk out. And I won’t stop you.”

“You won’t stop me.”

“Nope. I’ll let you walk away if that’s what you wish,” he said.

Kallie sat there, debating on his words. Was he telling the truth? Would it be that easy?

Had it ever been that easy?

“Okay,” she said reluctantly. “But only to return the gift.”

“I’ll text you the details. I can’t wait to see you.”

“That makes one of us.”

Kallie hung up the phone before James could get another word in edgewise. She was not looking forward to seeing him. She knew what he was doing. It was sneaky. She hoped that if she called him, she would find an innocence behind the gift. A little gesture of hope to show that he really was sorry for what happened on their wedding day. But it was only in an attempt to wrangle her into dinner, and she knew that.

So why did she agree to meet him for dinner?

Kallie’s eyes panned over to the stack of business cards on her desk. “An organized life is a happy life.” That was the motto of her small business. She wondered where she went wrong. She wondered when everything had toppled in on itself and become so chaotic. Her eyes fell back to her lap and she took in the beautiful necklace. What had briefly been a symbol of hope and a reminder of a future she had with a fiancé had quickly turned into a physical symbol of his ability to manipulate her. She closed the velvet box and tossed it back into the package, sighing as she did so.

Then, her phone rang out on her desk.

“Kallie Semple, Chaos To Construct, where an organized life is a happy life. How can I help you today?”

“Hi! Yes. So, um, I saw one of your advertisements online, and I could really use your help if you have time.”

“Of course I have the time for you,” she said. “What’s the problem?”

“You do physical organization, right?”

“I do make house calls, yes.”

“Do you have any for today? I’m really overwhelmed, and I’m sinking in so much stuff.”

Kallie toggled with her calendar as the woman on the other end of the line sniffled.

“I actually have two free hours from ten to noon today.”

“Oh my gosh. Could I book you? I’ll pay you whatever you ask. I’ve been trying to get my things organized and get them donated to charity and I can’t see my floor.”

“Don’t worry. Take a deep breath, Miss...?”

“Susan. Gloria Susan.”

“Miss Susan,” she said. “Take a deep breath. Chaos thrives on anxiety. Give me your address, and I’ll be there promptly at ten.”

“Thank you so much. Really. Thank you.”

“Of course. It’s not a problem. I’ll even help you pick out a charity that rings true with your values.”

“Really? You’ll do that.”

“Of course I will. Now, what's your address?”

Kallie took down the address and the phone number of the woman on the other end of the line. Miss Susa kept telling her she would pay her whatever was necessary, and Kallie kept trying to calm her down. In all of the years she had been doing this, Kallie knew that someone who was this wound up with anxiety probably had the situation blown way out of proportion. But she had the hours free, and James had spoiled the idea of her sitting at her desk for the morning.

It wasn't until she hung up the phone and agreed to be there in an hour that she recognized the address.

It belonged to the same building Ash lived in.

Forty-five minutes later, Kallie was looking up at the tall, shining edifice of Ash’s apartment building. Kalie sighed as she looked back at her car. She had been tricked. Like James tried to trick her that morning. There was no one in this building by the name of “Gloria Susan.” There was no one in that building who would call out to her for her services, because no one in that building would give away their stuff. They would simply leave it in a closet the way Ash’s father's whatever-numbered wife left all of her clothes behind in the divorce.

Should she even bother going inside?

“Miss Semple?”

Kallie was pulled from her trance before her eyes fell onto a man standing in front of her.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Follow me, please.”

Kallie frowned. Of course Ash had thought of everything. The doorman didn't even turn back to look and see if she was following. She could get in her car and drive away. Act like this never happened and go back to her desk. Back to her work. Back to her life. But work was waiting for her? She had intentionally lightened her schedule to almost nothing because of how she thought her life was going to pan out.

She wasn't in control of the situation, and Kallie was tired of using her energy to fight. She was tired of fighting for control. Fighting for her voice. Fighting for her right to make decisions. Ash had put her on a path toward him, and he had gone to great lengths to get her back out to his place. James just sent her a necklace and then dangled the receipt in front of her face. Like a doggy treat for an animal.

At least Ash didn’t treat her like an animal.

Kallie followed after the doorman and stepped behind him into the elevator. He rode up with her all the way to the penthouse floor, then he escorted her to where she needed to be. She stood in front of Ash’s door, and the man even knocked for her.

Heaven forbid she lifts her own fist do anything for herself.

The doorman nodded at her with a broad smile that swept across his cheeks. Did he know what was going on? Or was it in his job description to be that cheerful all the time? He left for the elevator, leaving her alone and listening to the footfalls of Ash’s feet, and she debated on whether or not to run again. She was tired of fighting, but was she tired of running?

Yes.

Kallie was simply ... tired.

He opened the door and smiled, and even though she was torn on what to do, the sight made her heart beat wildly in her chest. She didn't know whether to be amused or annoyed with him, but she did know one thing.

It felt good looking up into his hazel eyes.