ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟝𝟝
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Because Cameron and I had agreed on giving each other some time for us, I woke up in the master bedroom entirely by myself.
Cameron had been sleeping in the guest room. I guess it was a good thing, right? He had listened to me, and done action.
I just didn't know why I felt a pit in my stomach.
I rub my eyes, stretching my arms, glancing at the alarm clock. It was 5:28 in the morning.
I stared at it for a few seconds before letting my head fall back against the pillow. Way too early.
I rolled onto my side, staring at the empty space beside me. Cameron hadn't slept here.
I knew that- but then why did the empty side of the bed bother me so much?
I pulled the blanket closer and sighed.
I had spent weeks begging for space, and now that I had it, I had to complain about that too.
I sat up slowly, rubbing my eyes. The house was completely quiet.
Cameron wasn't beside the wardrobe putting on his noisy firefighter gear. Now that we had been apart, I forgot what that sounded like.
For once, I had the entire bedroom to myself.
I don't know why I couldn't enjoy it.
I got out of bed and grabbed my phone from the nightstand. To my surprise, there were several notifications waiting for me.
A whole bunch of news articles, emails and missed messages.
I immediately locked the screen. Not at 5:30 in the morning.
I wasn't too prepared to find out that some random reporter had decided to write a 3000-word article about my marriage before sunrise. People have too much time on their hands these days.
Now that I thought about it, it would be interesting to hear how the West's sounded to everyone outside.
I walked into the bathroom and turned on the light. I looked worn out.
Even after a good night's sleep, apparently.
I reached for my toothbrush, then my phone started ringing.
I glanced at the screen. Dannah.
I smiled slightly before answering. "Hey, good morning."
"Good morninggg!"
I pulled the phone away from my ear. "Good grief, Dannah, it's too early for all that."
"I don't care. You're home!"
"Yes...yes, I am." I laughed quietly.
"I knew that you'd go back."
I stared at myself in the mirror. "Well..."
"What?" I could already hear the suspicion in her voice.
"Nothing. I came back. That's all I'm saying."
"Oh no..are you and Cameron okay?"
I hesitated for a while.
"Dixie?"
"We're working on it."
"Sounds like an excuse." She muttered.
"I'm a lawyer. We're basically trained to avoid answering questions."
She laughed. "Okay, fine. I won't interrogate you for now."
I rolled my eyes though she couldn't see me.
"So," she continued, "are you going back to the firm today?"
My smile disappeared. I looked toward the bedroom. The thought of walking back into that building made my stomach twist.
Everyone I did not want to see would be there.
Everyone would know about the Justin Deyes case, they'd know I'd been on the news.
And Ted still hadn't responded to my email.
I'd spent days wondering whether my job was gone for good, but then I remembered Justin walking free. That would have to count for something.
I did something big- the entire country supposedly watching me do it.
I couldn't hide from it forever. "I think so."
"Yes!" Dannah gasped.
I winced. "Dannah, for the love of all things holy, please stop yelling into my ear."
"Sorry. I'm just excited."
"I can see that." I stared at my reflection. "I'll call you later."
"You better."
We hung up. I set my phone down and started getting ready.
By six o'clock sharp, I had showered, styled my curls, applied enough makeup to make myself look awake, and slipped into a tailored black skirt with a white blouse.
I stared at myself in the mirror. I looked decent, compared to the past couple of weeks. I looked less like a Dixie, and more likeDixie West.
Perfect.
I reached for my blazer, but then the bathroom door opened.
I turned. Cameron stood in the doorway. He had a toothbrush hanging from the corner of his mouth.
We stared at each other. Seeing him first thing in the morning felt strangely intimate, even though we'd been married for years.
Maybe because everything was different now.
"Morning," he said around the toothbrush.
"Morning."
He gave me a small smile. I returned it, but awkwardly. He walked toward the sink and started brushing his teeth again.
I picked up my earrings from off the counter.
Neither of us said anything for a long time. I finally glanced at him through the mirror.
He was watching me.
"What?" I asked.
He shook his head.
"Then why are you staring at me?"
"I was just thinking you looked nice."
I sighed. "Well then just say that next time instead of staring at me like I did something wrong."
Cameron spit his paste out, and cleaned around his mouth.
I put my earring in. "Did you sleep okay?"
"Yeah. You?" He nodded.
I actually slept better than I did most days.
"Fine."
Cameron rinsed his mouth once again and wiped his face with a towel. "So what are you getting ready for?"
"The firm."
"Oh, you're going back today?" His eyebrows lifted.
Something in the way he said it immediately irritated me.
"Yes, is that a problem?"
He looked confused by my expression. "What?"
"You sound surprised."
"I am surprised."
I turned toward him. "Why? I am capable enough to overcome some things, you know."
"Dixie, that's not what I meant," He sighed. "I thought you might want more time."
"I've already had time, and I need my job. Why are you surprised?"
He stepped closer, but stopped before getting too close.
"Because you've been through a lot. The reporters, the press. Everything that happened between us. I didn't know if you were ready to walk back into that building and deal with all of it."
I stared at him.
That calmed my nerves down.
"Oh." I looked down at my hands. "Well, I have to go back eventually."
"Yeah, of course."
His voice was soft as he listened.
I nodded. "I'm going."
"Okay."
Cameron cleared his throat. "There is something else. I made plans for tonight."
My eyebrows lifted. "For what?"
He leaned against the bathroom counter, watching me get ready. "I got dinner reservations."
"With who?"
His eyebrows rose. "With you."
I blinked. "Oh."
"I thought since theprivate investigators showed up on our anniversary, and everything got completely ruined, I thought we could try again." He rubbed the back of his neck.
I stared at him.
Our anniversary. I had almost forgotten. So much had happened that the date had gotten buried beneath everything else.
"When did you plan the dinner?"
"A few days ago."
My eyes widened. "You planned it before I came back?"
He nodded.
"I didn't know if you'd come home...but I figured if you did, I'd ask."
There was something painfully sweet about that, but also incredibly terrifying.
Dinner meant sitting across from Cameron, and actually talking to him after what seemed like forever between us.
I wasn't sure I knew how to be us anymore.
Still, I forced a small smile. "I'll go."
"Okay...yeah, that's good." His face softened, and he smiled as well.
I looked away first. "Right, but I should finish getting ready."
"Right." He nodded, and started walking toward the door.
"Good luck today." He turned back.
I smiled faintly. "Thanks."
He smiled back, then he left.
I watched the bathroom door close behind him.
My smile quickly disappeared.
Dinner tonight with my husband after weeks apart. After the worst argument we'd ever had, and after divorce had actually come out of my mouth.
I looked at myself in the mirror again.
I didn't feel nearly as confident as I had five minutes ago.
Going back to the firm and facing Ted was one thing, but sitting across from the man I wasn't sure I could keep up with tonight was terrifying.
I picked up my lip gloss.
Okay, Dixie..you can do this.
~
A few younger associates glanced up from their desks before whispering to each other.
One of them actually smiled. "Ms. West?"
I stopped. A young associate hurried over, looking slightly nervous.
"Hi."
"Hi, can I help you?"
"I just wanted to say...I saw you on the news," He smiled. "I mean, wow- that case was incredible."
"Thank you." I forced a polite smile.
Another associate looked up from behind him. "You really got the conviction overturned? That's insane."
I laughed softly. "Again, thank you. It means a whole lot."
I walked away with a small smile on my face.
This was what I needed.
I could still do this, and I could still be Dixie West.
She was a lawyer. An attorney. Not just the woman who'd been crying at Dannah's house for two weeks.
I belonged here.
I straightened my blazer and walked toward Ted's office. Josh surprisingly wasn't there, so I knocked once.
There was no answer. I knocked again before opening the door. "Excuse me, I-"
I stopped. Georgia was standing across from Ted's desk. Apparently, I'd interrupted something.
Georgia slowly turned toward me. Her eyes traveled from my heels to my blazer before landing on my face.
"Well, well. Ms. Big Shot is here." Her voice dripped with sarcasm.
I forced a smile. "Georgia."
"Enjoying your newfound fame?"
"Georgia, uh...I'll see you next time, okay?" Ted looked up from his desk.
She rolled her eyes. "Whatever."
She grabbed her purse from the chair beside her. As she passed me, her shoulder deliberately bumped mine hard.
I stumbled half a step. I slowly turned my head. Georgia didn't even look back.
I imagined grabbing her by the hair and slapping her across the face just enough to make a point.
Then I remembered I was an attorney, and lawyers tended to frown upon assaulting coworkers.
I looked back at Ted. He hadn't said anything. That irritated me more than Georgia's little outbreak.
I closed the door behind her.
"What brings you here?" Ted asked.
I stared at him. "Uh...what do you mean?"
"I mean, what can I do for you, Ms West." He leaned back in his chair.