Chapter 20 Favorite Kind of Trouble
Henry stared at his phone, rereading Emilia's last text for what had to be the tenth time, a slow grin overtaking his face. He was already falling for her-no, scratch that, he had fallen, hard. There was no stopping it now. Everything about her felt different, new, like seeing in color for the first time after a lifetime of black and white. It terrified him, but it also thrilled him in a way nothing else ever had.
Without thinking too hard, he shot back a text:
Henry: Great. Now I can't work anymore because you just made my heart explode. Hope you're happy. I need to see you right now. This is a medical emergency.
A few seconds later, his phone buzzed.
Emilia: Oh no. Did I break you??
Henry: Completely. You'll have to come kiss it better. Doctor's orders.
Emilia: Wow. You're just throwing in fake doctors now?
Henry: I'm desperate, Em. Desperate times, desperate measures. You did this to me.
Emilia: Mmm. I'll consider it. But only because I like watching you suffer a little first. ??
Henry chuckled, shaking his head. She was trouble, and he was so here for it.
Meanwhile, Emilia walked through the bustling city streets, heading back toward Travis's apartment. She had originally planned to keep staying there while their new home underwent renovations, and after the whirlwind of emotions from this morning with Henry, she needed a second to process it all.
Her phone buzzed again, but this time, it wasn't Henry. It was her best friend, Roxy.
Roxy: I'm back in town.
Emilia blinked at her screen, her pace slowing.
Emilia: WHAT. SINCE WHEN. WHERE ARE YOU?!
Roxy: Since this morning. And currently drowning my sorrows in overpriced airport wine. I need to see you. Also, I'm getting a divorce.
Emilia stopped in the middle of the sidewalk.
Emilia: EXCUSE ME???
Roxy: Oh, you heard me. Jonas is a cheating, lying, deceitful, garbage excuse of a human man. And I, my dear best friend, am officially free of his slimy, cologne-drenched presence.
Emilia: WHAT. THE. HELL. WHAT DID HE DO?!
Roxy: Oh, you know. The usual scumbag husband special-cheated on me with his assistant. Like some goddamn bad cliche. And not just any assistant. HIS FREAKING MALE ASSISTANT. Like, Jonas. Honey. If you wanted to explore, you could've just TALKED TO ME. But noooo, let's do the whole betrayal thing instead. I swear, men are allergic to communication.
Emilia: I-wow. That is a plot twist I did not see coming.
Roxy: Neither did I! Do you know how humiliating it is to be blindsided like that? I had suspicions, but I thought, 'No, Roxy, don't be crazy. You're overthinking. He loves you.' WELL, turns out I was NOT overthinking. I was UNDER-thinking.
Emilia: Oh my god, Roxy. I am so sorry. Are you okay??
Roxy: I will be. After I burn everything, he's ever touched and legally change my last name to 'Screw Men.' But first, I need my best friend and possibly a lot of tequila. Where are you??
Emilia sighed, shaking her head fondly.
Emilia: I'm heading back home now. Come over. I'll bring tequila, you bring the unhinged divorcee energy.
Roxy: Oh, babe. I'm bringing enough chaos to fuel a decade's worth of reality TV drama. See you soon.
Emilia couldn't help but laugh as she slid her phone back into her pocket. Well, this day had just taken a turn. And somehow, she had a feeling, things were about to get even wilder.
Emilia: I have a lot to tell you. Do you have any place to stay?
Roxy: Nope. Just me, my suitcase, and an overwhelming urge to punch something.
Emilia: Stay with me, then. At least until you figure things out.
Roxy: Are you serious? I love you. I'm buying you flowers and wine as a thank you. What should I get Chase?
Emilia sighed, her fingers hovering over her phone for a moment before she typed.
Emilia: We broke up. So, he needs nothing from you if you don't want to give him anything. I like literally moved out a few days ago, so not a jackass in sight.
There was a brief pause before Roxy responded.
Roxy: Oh. OH. Babe. We have SO MUCH to talk about. I'm bringing extra wine.
Emilia smiled ruefully, shoving her phone back in her pocket before pulling it out again to text Henry.
Emilia: My friend really needs me tonight. I'm sorry I cause such trouble for you, but I promise to make it up to you when you return.
Henry: Trouble? You're my favorite kind of trouble.
Emilia: Good answer. I was worried you were going to start charging me for all these heart attacks I keep giving you.
Henry: Nah, I'll let you pay me back in kisses. Seems fair.
Emilia: Very fair. I'll be sure to start a payment plan soon. ??
Emilia: Goodnight, Henry. Safe travels. I'll miss you.
Henry: Sweet dreams, my wife. Try not to miss me too much. (I know, impossible.)
Emilia rolled her eyes with a laugh before ordering an Uber for Roxy.
Suddenly the penthouse door slammed open like a scene straight out of an action movie-except instead of a suave secret agent, it was Roxanne, stumbling in with the grace of a newborn giraffe on roller skates. Arms flailing, her oversized designer bag caught on the doorknob, nearly yanking her backward. She let out a shriek, did an awkward one-legged hop to regain balance, then dramatically posed as if she had just landed a flawless gymnastic routine.
"NAILED IT." She panted, then smoothed out her disheveled dress as if she hadn't just nearly face-planted into a very expensive-looking coffee table. "And that, my dear, is how you make an entrance."
Emilia burst out laughing, pulling her best friend into a tight hug. "God, I missed you."
Roxy sniffed dramatically. "I missed me too. I was lost, Em. Lost in the abyss of a failing marriage and mediocre sex."
"Okay, wow," Emilia choked out. "Come in, please."
She ushered Roxy inside, leading her to the spare bedroom, silently grateful Travis's penthouse had two.
Roxy plopped her suitcase down and spun around. "Okay, now let's get drunk and cry about men." Em, sitting on the couch, barely blinked. She looked exhausted-no, worse than exhausted. She looked like she had just been through emotional warfare, the kind that left deep scars and a sudden craving for ice cream straight from the carton.
"Chase," she said, her voice bitter and raw, "is an absolute nightmare of a human being."
Roxy kicked off her heels and flopped onto the couch beside her, instantly intrigued. "Ooooh, yes. Let's drag him. Give me every dirty, rage-inducing detail."
Em exhaled sharply. "I did everything for him, Roxy. Everything. I cooked for him, I helped him with work, I made sure he had everything he needed. And not once-not once-did I ask for anything. I never touched a dime of his money. I didn't expect gifts, vacations, nothing. All I wanted was him. But guess what?"
Roxy gasped, already knowing where this was going. "Let me guess... Hallie."
"Hallie." Em spat the name like it physically hurt to say. "Because no matter what I did, I could never be her. Never be the woman he put on a pedestal. I could have turned myself into the perfect girlfriend, and it still wouldn't have mattered. Because I wasn't Hallie."
Roxy snorted. "Oh please, Hallie is about as genuine as a three-dollar bill. That woman wouldn't know kindness if it smacked her in the face with a frying pan. She's just a pathetic, lying little parasite who sucks the life out of people and then cries victim when she gets caught. Her talent? Twisting the truth until she's suddenly the saint and everyone else is Satan. I mean, the girl probably rescues stray puppies just to post about it and then returns them like an Amazon package. She is not special. Just especially awful."
Em let out a small, bitter laugh. "Yeah, well, Chase thought she was."
Roxy rolled her eyes so hard it was a miracle they didn't get stuck. "Men. Their brains are basically two squirrels fighting over a peanut. And in his case, the peanut is rotted."
Em exhaled, her fingers drumming against her knee. "Anyway, it doesn't matter anymore because... well... my aunt introduced me to someone."
Roxy perked up. "Oh?"
"And I think... well, I know because... I'm engaged."
Silence.
Roxy blinked once. Then twice. Then threw herself off the couch in a dramatic sprawl onto the floor. "I-what-YOU'RE ENGAGED?! WHO? HOW?! DID YOU BLACKOUT AND WAKE UP WITH A RING?!"
Emilia burst out laughing. "No, Roxy, I did not black out!"
Roxy squinted at her suspiciously. "Are you sure? Because, honestly, that would be the only explanation that makes sense right now!"
Em just shook her head, still grinning, and pulled out her phone. "Okay, okay, so it's not the best picture, but look at this."
She turned the screen toward Roxy, revealing a candid shot of Henry, mid-bite, devouring a cone of melting vanilla ice cream. His brows were furrowed in concentration, his lips parted just enough to make the moment unintentionally adorable.
Roxy's eyes widened as she leaned in for a closer look. "Excuse me, what? Em, what the hell—why didn't you lead with the fact that your new man is ridiculously good-looking?" She snatched the phone, mouth hanging open. "And this is a bad picture? I'd sell my soul for this man's worst angle."
Emilia smirked. "I told you."
"Okay, okay, breathe," Roxy said, waving a hand in the air as if physically steadying herself. "Give me all the details before I start hyperventilating into a paper bag."
Emilia hesitated, a small, nervous smile tugging at her lips. "His name is Henry," she started softly. "He's... different. He makes me feel safe and appreciated. Like I'm not constantly competing with some ghost of a relationship."
Roxy's playful energy dimmed just a little as she took that in. "Okay, I'll allow this," she declared. Then, pointing a serious finger at Emilia, she added, "But let's be clear—if he so much as thinks about hurting you, I will personally ruin his life. I will turn his existence into a tragic country song, complete with a lost dog and a burnt-down house."
Em chuckled, nudging her. "Duly noted."
"Good." With that, Roxy threw an arm around her in dramatic sisterly fashion. "Alright, sister dearest. We have so much to discuss—wedding plans, a bachelorette party that better involve at least one ridiculous theme, and—most importantly—me making an absolutely inappropriate speech at your wedding."
Em rolled her eyes, but the grin on her face was impossible to suppress. "Of course, you wouldn't miss that for the world."
"Damn right," Roxy smirked. Then suddenly, as if struck by divine inspiration, she clapped her hands together. "Oh! Speaking of absolute disasters, let's talk about Jonas."
Em groaned, already regretting asking. "Oh no. Explain it all from the beginning, please."
Roxy leaned in, lowering her voice like she was about to drop the most scandalous gossip of the century. "So, you remember my ex-husband—the one who pretended to be Prince Charming but was actually a frog with a Gucci addiction?"
Em nodded, taking a sip of her wine. "Vividly."
"Well, turns out, dear Jonas was not just unfaithful. Oh no. He went above and beyond in his betrayal. The man cheated on me multiple times... with his male assistant."
Emilia blinked, her wineglass pausing halfway to her lips as she processed Roxy's words. A beat of silence passed before she arched an eyebrow. "You're joking."
Roxy let out a short, dry laugh. "Oh, I wish I was. But nope, dear Jonas wasn't just unfaithful—he went above and beyond in his betrayal."
Em set her glass down carefully, fingers tightening around the stem. "Wow. Okay. That's... a plot twist I didn't see coming."
"Oh, and it gets better," Roxy continued, waving her glass dramatically. "Not only was he screwing around behind my back, but he was also racking up a massive amount of debt. Apparently, Mr. Big Shot forgot that designer suits and luxury vacations don't pay for themselves. And now? Now, I have to go back to acting because guess what? The judge overruled me, and I got stuck with a huge chunk of his mess. Can you believe that?"
Em stared at her for a moment, then burst into laughter. "Roxy, that is insane."
"Oh, it's beyond insane," Roxy huffed. "It's ludicrous. It's sitcom-level ridiculous. I mean, I always knew Jonas was an idiot, but I never expected to be funding his secret midlife crisis romance."
Em wiped tears from her eyes, still laughing. "Okay, but in all honesty... are you okay?"
Roxy sighed, then smiled. "You know what? Yeah. Because for the first time in forever, I actually feel free. And broke. But mostly free."
Em wrapped an arm around her. "You're going to be fine, Roxy. You always land on your feet."
Roxy smirked. "Damn right. Now, let's drink to new beginnings—and your shocking engagement. And I swear to God, if Henry has any secret assistants, I will personally investigate."