Chapter 38
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Isla
I went back to my parents’ home. I couldn’t face going back to Knox’s house. Strange. I’d gotten used to calling it home over the last few months. But today, it’s his place.
Mom is on her way. She should be here any minute. I felt bad that I left the restaurant the way I did while she didn’t have anyone to support her. When I spoke to her on my way here, she told me she’d spoken to Mrs. Porter, too, just after I left.
The house feels too quiet when I walk in. Almost like a tomb.
But that fragile feeling inside me is worse. It feels like my stomach is made of ice-thin glass and any more bad news will shatter me from the inside out.
I head into the living room and turn on the TV just to fill the silence and distract me. I flick through the channels trying to find something that will hit the spot.
I tried calling Mia, but she’s in St. Lucia with Logan. Her phone went straight through to voicemail because she’s probably asleep. The time difference there is quite a few hours.
I left a message. I know she’ll call me back. It’s just a matter of when. But by the time we speak, I probably will have gone crazy.
I just can’t believe what’s happening. And Knox…
I can’t even hate him. The person responsible for all of this is Dad.
What I hate is that Knox kept his secrets from me. But what he’s doing isn’t exactly unreasonable. I can’t blame him for wanting to create a name for himself.
But it hurts. God, it hurts, that he won’t choose me.
I can’t be mad at him for that, either. That would make me the bad guy.
Tears sting my eyes again, and my vision blurs. I don’t even know what channel I land on, until the headline freezes me where I stand.
“Monroes Restaurant Set for Demolition: Community Reacts to Sudden Announcement.”
My knees almost give out.
God. I can’t escape. It’s on the news.
Footage of the restaurant fills the screen.
My restaurant.
My family’s legacy.
The camera pans across the cream awning, the mahogany doors, the outdoor planters my mother replants every spring. It looks so normal on TV. So beautiful. So heartbreakingly familiar.
It’s hard to believe that all of that will be gone. Demolished.
The reporter speaks. “In a surprising development, Vale Global Holdings has announced plans to demolish the beloved Monroes Restaurant on Park Avenue to make way for a luxury commercial project.”
The words hit me again like blunt-force trauma. Reading it in the newspaper was bad enough, but hearing someone say it…
It makes my heart hurt.
Tears stream down my cheeks. I wipe them away, but more come as I continue watching the news.
The footage cuts to a longtime customer I recognize: Mr. Grayson with his silver hair and kind eyes.
“My first date with my wife was at Monroes,” he says. “We celebrated every anniversary there. It feels like losing a family member.”
Another clip follows of a middle-aged woman wiping her eyes.
“I used to come here with my parents when I was little… before they passed. I don’t understand why they’re tearing it down. Some places should be protected.”
My throat closes. She’s right. Some places definitely should be protected.
The memories people form there are more than just sentiments.
They’re part of their lives. Monroes is over a hundred years old now.
That’s over a hundred years of memories, experiences, and events that became a part of people’s lives.
The screen shifts to a photo of Mom and me at the restaurant.
“The Monroe family could not be reached for comment,” the reporter remarks. “It’s interesting that Isla Monroe married Knox Vale only a handful of months ago and this has happened.”
Interesting…
People aren’t stupid. Many will put two and two together and come up with the answer.
Buyers have been after the restaurant for years. Granted, they wanted to keep it as a restaurant and would never dream of demolishing the place. Still, people will figure out that my marriage to Knox would have had something to do with this.
I sink onto the sofa because my legs won’t steady beneath me.
It feels surreal, watching my family’s history narrated like a tragedy in a documentary. And seeing strangers mourn something that’s still mine.
Mine, at least for now.
I turn off the TV and shut my eyes, tuning out everything and everyone.
“Isla?” My mother’s voice reaches me.
The chaos in my mind was so loud I never even heard her come in. The moment I look at her, I see it—the shock, the grief, the disappointment.
“Oh, sweetheart…” She comes to sit beside me, placing a hand on my back. “Are you okay?”
I lean into her, but she feels… weaker than usual. For a moment, her hand trembles on my shoulder, and something cold curls in my stomach.
“Mom. Are you okay?”
“No. Not at all.” She shakes her head.
“I’m right there with you. I feel like hell.”
“I know, sweetie. I know.” She holds my gaze. In her eyes, I can see her falling apart. “I know you already spoke to Knox, but I contacted William on the way. Just for some extra advice. He said there’s nothing we can do. We agreed to the new contract. Knox’s contract.”
“We? Mom. Not we, me. I did this, and I’m not even sure how I could have been more careful.”
She pulls me closer, giving me a reassuring squeeze. “Please don’t blame yourself. This isn’t anyone’s fault. And…” She pulls away and looks at me. “I think you need to put things in perspective where Knox is concerned. I genuinely believe he never meant to hurt you.”
I wince. “I know, but…he could have told me, Mom. He could have been upfront with me.”
“Maybe he thought you wouldn’t like him as much. Either way, I’m sure you would have been just as hurt.” She gives my arm another squeeze. “Let’s face it, yes, he should have told you his plans, but what’s upsetting you is the fact that he’s going to knock down the restaurant.”
I nod slowly. “And worse than that is the fact that Knox has so much power. I can’t imagine that there’s nothing he can do.”
When he said he couldn’t back out of the plan, hope died inside me. Not just hope that that he might change his mind. All hope.
Mom sighs. “I agree. But I guess there are some things from his world we just don’t understand.”
“I don’t think it’s as simple as that.” The fury that stirred in me earlier churns my stomach once more. “I think he could change his mind if he wanted to. But this real estate venture makes him look good in front of the people who matter.”
She bites the inside of her lip. I can tell from her hesitant expression that she knows I’m right. “The problem is… this started with your father. He should have never betrayed the Vales the way he did and set Knox up. We don’t have a leg to stand on because of him.”
I look away to gaze out the window.
My phone vibrates inside my bag. Thinking it’s Mia, I retrieve it.
My heart lurches when I see Knox’s name flashing on the screen. But all I do is stare at it. Usually, I’d answer his calls after the first ring.
I was expecting the call, but I think it’s best we don’t speak. Not while I feel like shit.
Mom glances at me with expectancy. “Sweetheart, aren’t you going to answer that?”
“I can’t. Not right now.”
I flip the phone facedown, and the call ends, but then the doorbell rings.
It would be just like Knox to call first while he’s outside waiting to come in.
“I’ll get it,” Mom offers, pushing herself off the couch.
“No,” I groan, stopping her. “I’ll do it. It’s… probably Knox.”
“Okay. If it is, just talk to him. I’m gonna go upstairs and lie down.”
I nod. She heads upstairs, and I move toward the door.
Dread fills me at the thought of seeing Knox. I don’t want to argue with him, and I don’t want this deep hurt I feel to metastasize into something worse. When I pull open the door, my dread quadruples when I find Chad standing on the threshold.
He seems to turn up at the worst times possible.
But this visit tops the rest.
“Isla.” He says my name carefully, as if testing it out.
“Chad, what are you doing here?” I’m in no mood for pleasantries. I can’t even muster a smile.
“I came as soon as I saw the news. Thought you might come here.” His gaze hardens. “I’m sure there’s no way you knew Knox planned to demolish the restaurant.”
“No. I didn’t know.”
“That’s what I thought. You love that place too much. Your entire family does.”
“Chad, I’m really not in the mood to talk right now. Maybe some other time.”
“Oh, I think we should talk now.” He pulls out a document from the folder he’s carrying and holds it up for me to see.
My heart slams into my ribs then comes to a complete stop when I realize what he’s showing me.
The contract.
Knox’s marriage contract.
It takes a full minute before my shock subsides and the air returns to my lungs.
Chad lifts his chin with defiance as he steps past me, marching into the house without waiting to be invited. I shut the door with trembling hands and turn to face him.
“Is your mom home?” He looks around.
“She’s upstairs. Where did you get that?” I cut to the chase.
“Same place I got everything else.”
It was him. Knox said he didn’t know how the press found out about the plans for the restaurant. I’m looking right at the answer. “You. You did this. You told the press about the restaurant.”
He laughs off-key. “You’re looking at me as if I’m the villain here. All I did was expose that son of a bitch for who he is. Thank God I listened to my gut and hired a PI to find dirt on him. And my God, did I find it.”
My stomach twists. “Chad… you hurt me. You hurt my mother. You blindsided me.”
“I did what I had to do to make you see the truth.” He steps closer. “I knew something was off with you two, and I was right. Now, I know everything, Isla.”
“You think that contract tells you everything?” A piece of paper can’t tell him what I feel.