Chapter 36
Chapter Thirty-Six
Isla
Knox sits across from me. We’re in one of the corner booths at the restaurant.
We decided to have breakfast together here today.
He looks exhausted, but he’s watching me with that quiet intensity that always makes my pulse flutter.
Holding his coffee in one steady hand, he listens while I talk.
I’ve been rambling about the production meeting at the theater last night for at least thirty minutes.
Not once has Knox looked away. Not once has he interrupted. He’s just… listening.
He only just got back from his business trip—literally stepped off the plane a little over an hour ago. But he wanted to meet me here before heading to Vale Global since he hasn’t seen me since Friday… and because it’s my last full day working here.
The thought hits me all over again.
My last day.
I’ll be dropping in over the next few days to hand over my duties to the new assistant manager we finally hired. She starts next week. The same week I officially begin at the theatre.
“I still can’t believe it.” I chuckle, cutting my pancake into tiny, uneven pieces because I’m too excited to eat.
“The production team is incredible. André introduced me to everyone, and they were actually interested in what I had to say. Me. And Kira—the set designer—said my forest concept reminded her of her work on early productions like Les Misérables.”
Knox’s mouth curves. “Of course, she did.”
“I’m just so excited.” I laugh. “The theater I worked at years ago was great, but this is a whole new world. It really is the dream. And thanks to you, I’m living it.”
He reaches across the table and brushes his fingers over my wrist. “You deserve it.”
“I don’t know how to thank you.”
“You already have.” He nods with conviction. “I’ve never seen you this happy. That makes me happy.”
I smile back at him. I am happy. Getting the job at the theater has been phenomenal. But not more than our decision to stay together. That amplified everything else.
Things felt different the moment we had that talk. It was like the clock hanging over our heads disappeared and I could breathe. It felt that way for him, too. Like his final restraint had snapped.
I feel more of him every time we’re together.
A kiss doesn’t feel like just a kiss anymore.
A touch isn’t just a touch.
And when we make love, it feels like more than just emotion. It feels like truth.
But if I’m honest, something still feels amiss.
Maybe because we went through so much in the beginning with the contract and the wedding, only to stay together with mere words.
Or maybe it’s because we never talked about what comes next. Not really. Not the practical parts. Not the things we were supposed to face when the marriage ended.
Every time I try to think about any of that, something inside me shuts down.
And I don’t want to touch it. I don’t want to spoil this euphoria I feel.
I’m in love. I’m happy. What more could a girl want?
“What happens next?” he asks, pulling me back to the present moment. The irony in the question isn’t lost on me, but I know he’s talking about the theater.
“I’ll have a year’s worth of training.” I stab a piece of pancake with my fork.
“Kind of like a trial period. André doesn’t think I’ll need the full year, but it’s standard protocol.
And even though I’ll still be in training, he actually wants to use some of my portfolio concepts on the smaller productions. ”
“That’s fantastic, Isla.” His face brightens.
“This is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.” I release a sigh and finally take a bite.
“Hey, don’t make me jealous.” Knox sets down his coffee and pretends to be hurt. “I’m supposed to be the best thing that happened to you.”
I laugh. “You are, Knox Vale. But you know what I mean.”
“Just teasing, love.” He winks. “I’m glad everything is coming together for you.”
“Thank you. Me too. I don’t know when I’m going to calm down from this.”
“I think we should go to dinner tonight.” He nods. “To celebrate.”
“Oh, I’d love that.” I rub my hands together, already looking forward to going out with him.
“Good. Eat up before your food gets cold.”
I smile and take a bigger helping of pancake.
We fall into a comfortable quiet, but Knox keeps watching me. I watch him, too.
“Excuse me,” a voice interrupts gently.
I look up to find Mrs. Porter standing beside our table. She’s in her eighties and has been coming here since my grandparents opened the restaurant. Her signature white bob and shiny pearl necklace are exactly where they always are. She’s one of the regulars who’s supported us through everything.
“I’m so sorry to intrude, dear.” She looks at me first, then Knox.
“Not at all. It’s always great to see you, Mrs. Porter.” I set my fork down and smile.
“I just wanted to say… your grandparents would have been so proud of you.” She nods once, eyes glassy with emotion. “They would have loved what you and your mother did with the place after your father passed.”
My heart softens, but there’s something in her expression, something tight and worried, that twists inside me.
“Thank you,” I tell her quietly. “That means more than you know.”
She nods again, then exhales as her gaze flicks between Knox and me. When her face falls, the dread in my stomach sharpens.
“It’s such a shame what’s happening to the place,” she whispers. “This restaurant has been a second home to so many of us. My husband proposed to me right over there.”
I blink. “What do you mean? What’s happening to the place?”
She hesitates. “The demolition.”
A stone the size of Texas drops into my stomach. “What?”
“Oh…” She swallows. “Dear, haven’t you seen?”
“No. Seen what?”
I whip my gaze to Knox, and my world tilts. He’s gone statue-still, every muscle locked, every trace of warmth drained from his face. His sun-kissed skin turns pale in an instant.
That’s when I know something is very, very wrong.
Mrs. Porter holds out a folded newspaper, hands trembling as she opens it.
My gaze meets the headline:
VALE GLOBAL SET TO DEMOLISH HISTORIC MONROE’S RESTAURANT
My stomach plummets so fast I feel like I’m free-falling. Heat rushes to my face, then drains all at once. My vision wavers, like the room pulls back, shrinking around the single, brutal sentence.
“What—” My voice cracks. “What is this?”
Knox reaches for the paper, jaw tightening like a vise. “May I?” he asks Mrs. Porter, voice low.
She hands it to him right away.
He scans the article, each line carving deeper shadows into his features. I tear my gaze away, returning to the page—to the photo of my family’s restaurant.
To the words multi-million-dollar luxury apartments in development.
Pending demolition.
And the name of the company responsible.
His company.
And worse… his name.
It’s right there, printed like a brand. The article credits the proposal to him. His idea. His project. His signature on the death sentence of the place that built me.
My throat closes. My hands shake so violently the cutlery rattles against the table.
Mrs. Porter touches my arm gently. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. Truly.” Her voice trembles. The look she gives Knox is not unkind but disappointed, wounded, and then she walks away.
Silence crushes the air around me.
Knox lowers the newspaper, but he doesn’t speak.
“Knox…” My voice is barely a sound. Barely a breath. “Is this…” I swallow hard, meeting his eyes because I need the truth. “Is this true, Knox?”
His jaw flexes, and finally, he looks at me. “Isla…” he starts carefully, voice low and too controlled. “Let’s talk about this somewhere private.”
My pulse spikes. “Just answer me.”
He glances down at the newspaper again, then lifts his gaze to mine. “It’s… complicated.”
Complicated. The word detonates inside my chest. “That’s not an answer.”
He slowly exhales through his nose, steadying. “I was going to talk to you.”
“When?” My voice trembles. “Before or after the bulldozers arrived?”
His expression tightens. “It’s not like that.”
“It looks exactly like that.” I grip the paper so tightly the edges crumple. “This was what you planned all along, wasn’t it?”
His eyes flicker with something pained, but when he nods, all I can feel is my own devastation.
Damn him. He had this plan from the very beginning. Before we even met.
He walked into William’s office that morning so long ago, armed with this.
Demolition.
I shake my head, feeling so crushed my body barely moves. “You should have told me. You knew how much this place meant to me, yet you kept this horrible secret. I had to find out from the press.”
The tears come now, hot and humiliating, and people from nearby tables turn to stare.
“Isla, I have no idea how the press found out.”
I can’t stay here. Not in this booth. Not in this building. Not with him looking at me like he has any right to be confused.
I push up from the table and head straight for the door.
“Isla!” Knox stands immediately, following me, but I don’t care. I keep walking.
I step outside, the morning light hitting me like a slap. My head spins.
Demolished.
The word echoes through the hollow of my mind.
God, I’m so fucking stupid.
All this time, I never once considered he may do this. I assumed having a restaurant so established on Park Avenue was worth its weight in gold.
But what’s worth more?
The land. The location.
Real estate.
Real estate on Park Avenue. That’s what Knox wanted.
Vale Global is known for finance and investments. But not real estate. Until now.
It’s like someone ripped the wool from my eyes.
A venture like this… it would be the only thing big enough to make up for everything my father did. The perfect retribution.
Knox catches up, grabbing my arm. “Isla, please. We need to talk about this.” His eyes plead with me, but I can’t think past the ache in my heart.
“You made me believe you were going to keep the place,” I choke out.
“I didn’t. You just assumed that.”
“You said you’d buy me out.” My voice becomes whisper-soft, as though disconnected from me. “That made me believe you were going to keep the place.”
“Isla.” His tone drops, sharp and fierce. “I didn’t want to talk about this until I had a solution that wouldn’t upset you.”
“What were you going to do? What solution could you possibly come up with where you get to demolish the restaurant, and I’d be okay with it?”
He blows out a breath. “I don’t know. Nothing was supposed to be finalized until we…” His voice trails off.
“Got divorced?” I fill in.
“That’s not happening now,” he says quickly, his eyes going wide with dread. “We’re staying together. The plans for the restaurant have nothing to do with us staying together. This is business.”
That word—business—hits me like a slap.
“This is my family’s legacy. And it’s just business to you?”
“That’s not what I meant.” He steps closer.
“When we agreed to the contract, I was only thinking of one thing: Salvaging my name. Your father’s scandal nearly destroyed me in my own company.
I needed something big enough to wipe my slate clean.
The restaurant was the only asset important enough to do that. ”
My heart free-falls, and the wounds I carry from my father’s mistakes rip open again.
Knox gazes at me, his throat working. “I didn’t want to hurt you.”
“Maybe not,” I whisper. “Maybe you didn’t set out to hurt me, but you have. I understand what my father did to you. It was despicable, and I’m ashamed. I understand wanting to rebuild your name after he dragged yours through the mud.”
My voice splinters, but I keep going. “But how am I supposed to be okay with you tearing down a place that was a home to me? How am I supposed to accept that you made plans for your future that erases my past?”
His shoulders flinch. “Isla…”
“This restaurant isn’t just a building, Knox. It’s my grandparents’ soul. It’s my mother’s heart. It’s the only thing my father didn’t manage to ruin. It’s the one piece of my life that still felt like mine.”
I shake my head, choking on the words. “And you… you kept me close. You asked me to stay. You made me believe we were building something real… all while hiding the one thing that could destroy me.” My voice breaks completely. “That isn’t business to me. It feels like betrayal.”
“No. Please don’t think that. I swear to God that was never my intention. I thought I could fix this before it ever touched you.” His voice cracks on that last word, but it doesn’t matter. Because I already see the truth.
“But you can’t,” I breathe. “Can you?”
He hesitates. That one second, that tiny, devastating pause, is my answer.
Knox exhales, defeated. “The board and investors… they’re invested. Invested in a way they’ve never been before. I’m supposed to take over Vale Global from my father next year.” He stops, jaw tightening. “I can’t back out now.”
There it is.
The answer.
His future on one side. My past on the other.
No bridge between them.
A numb breath escapes me. “I have to go.”
His eyes flare in panic, and he tugs on my arm. “Isla, wait—”
“There’s nothing more to say,” I whisper. “Because the only thing that could fix this for me is the one thing you won’t do. You won’t change your plans. I know that. And I won’t beg you to.”
“Isla…” His breath falters.
“I need to go, Knox.” The words scrape out of my throat raw. “Please. Don’t follow me.”
Tension vibrates off him, the possessive, protective instinct he’s barely holding back, but he doesn’t move. He doesn’t breathe. He doesn’t argue.
Because he knows he can’t fix this with an apology or a promise or a touch.
Not this time.
He releases me.
And I turn and walk away with my heart shattering.