Chapter 3 #6
Kelly let out a small gasp. “Wait, seriously?”
“Dead serious,” Jake said, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “She’s been through so much lately. I want her to have something that’s just for her. Something that makes her feel alive again.”
There was a beat of silence, then Kelly’s voice softened. “Alright. I’ll make it work. She’s going to lose her mind.”
“Thanks, Kel. I owe you one.”
Then he picked up the phone and called Lillian.
“Hey, it’s Jake,” he said when she answered. “Are you free this afternoon? Around four?”
“Of course,” Lillian replied cheerfully. “Are you and Kylee going out?”
Jake exhaled, almost nervously. “Yeah. I’m surprising her with something. I want her to feel… appreciated.”
“I’ll be there,” Lillian said. “She’ll love that.”
He smiled. “Thanks, Lillian.”
As soon as he hung up, he pulled up his text messages and typed quickly.
Jake:
Put on your best outfit. Be ready by 4 p.m.
Lillian’s coming to watch the kids. You’re not allowed to ask questions, just trust me.
He hesitated before pressing send, then did it anyway. A few seconds passed before the message was marked read.
Kylee stared at the message, her stomach tightening with confusion, nerves, and something she hadn’t felt in a long time: anticipation. She re-read it twice. Best outfit. Four o’clock. A sitter?
Her first instinct was suspicion, part of her still aching, still raw. But something about the tone in Jake’s message felt different. There was no apology, no begging. Just… intention.
She looked down at her worn leggings, a trail of spit-up down one thigh, and blinked hard. A slow warmth stirred in her chest. Whatever he had planned… he was trying. Really trying. Maybe just maybe she was ready to see what came next.
Kylee stood in front of her closet, towel wrapped tightly around her body, the steam from her shower still clinging to the bathroom mirror.
Her phone buzzed again.
Lillian: On my way, be there in 10!
She stared at her reflection, damp curls falling down her shoulders, cheeks a little flushed, eyes tired but alive. The message from Jake still lingered in her mind. A knot twisted in her stomach.
He hadn’t said beautiful.
He hadn’t said sexy.
He just said best outfit.
She opened the closet and stared at the hangers, fingers brushing past jeans and tees, practical mom clothes, postpartum dresses, the uniform of the version of herself she’d become.
Then her hand landed on a silky, off-the-shoulder black jumpsuit she hadn’t worn in years. Sleek. Elegant. A little bold. She pulled it out slowly, heart thumping.
Why not?
Twenty minutes later, her makeup was soft and glowy, a touch of highlight on her cheekbones, lashes curled just right. She dabbed on her favorite berry lipstick. The one Jake used to say made her look like trouble and fastened delicate gold hoops in her ears.
Her hair was half-up, soft curls framing her face. She stepped into heels, something she hadn’t done in months, and caught a glimpse of herself in the full-length mirror.
She looked radiant! Not like a tired mother of three. Not like a woman dragging the weight of betrayal.
Like someone who might just steal hearts in a crowded room.
Kylee grabbed her small black purse, slid in her phone and a travel perfume, and took one last breath.She didn’t know where they were going. But for the first time in a long time, she was ready.
Kylee stood by the door, clutching her purse, heart pounding beneath the smooth neckline of her black jumpsuit. Lillian was inside with the kids, already distracted by snacks and a Disney movie.
Jake ran quickly to the shower when he got home.
He stepped out a moment later dressed in a crisp black button-down, sleeves rolled to his forearms, dark jeans, and a subtle leather cologne that reached her before he did.
His hair was styled like he still cared what she thought. And when his eyes landed on her…
He stopped. Like he’d forgotten how to breathe. “Damn,” he murmured under his breath, stepping closer. “You look incredible!”
Kylee swallowed the lump in her throat, forcing a smile, but there was heat in her cheeks and a flicker of something electric in her chest. “You said the best outfit,” she said, smoothing her hands down her sides. “I aim to follow directions.”
Jake let out a soft, almost nervous laugh and opened the passenger door for her. “And you passed. With honors.”
She raised an eyebrow but slid in, inhaling the familiar scent of his cologne mixed with leather and something new she couldn’t name, maybe hope.
As he walked around and climbed in beside her, neither of them said anything for a long moment.
He reached for her hand, hesitated then took it. “I know things haven’t been easy,” he said quietly as he pulled out of the driveway, “but tonight is not about that. I just want you to have something that’s yours. Something that makes you feel alive again.”
Kylee looked out the window, trying not to let the emotion bubble too quickly. But his words, the tone, the effort it chipped away at something cold she hadn’t realized she was holding onto.
She turned back to him. “Where are we going?”
Jake smirked, eyes on the road. “You’ll see.”
Walking into the restaurant felt like stepping into another world: warm candlelight flickered against gold-accented walls, and the soft hum of a live string quartet filled the air.
The host greeted them by name, a quiet sign that Jake had planned ahead.
They were led to a private corner table at Amorè, the most romantic restaurant in town, all velvet drapes and intimate shadows.
Kylee moved like a vision in black silk, her heels echoing softly on the polished floors. She felt eyes on her not just because she looked beautiful, but because she looked powerful. She didn’t feel like someone’s mom tonight. She felt sexy.
They sat across from each other at a table adorned with crystal glasses and a small bouquet of white roses.
“This place is…” Kylee looked around, awe in her voice. “Jake, this is too much.”
He shook his head. “It’s not even close to enough.”
The waiter brought wine, the good kind and their conversation slowly unraveled over plates of lobster risotto and seared duck. Jake asked about her day, actually listened. Kylee found herself laughing, leaning in, and feeling lighter with every passing minute.
For a little while, the weight of everything faded. There was still tension between them, unspoken truths but tonight, he wasn’t the man who’d broken her heart.
Jake didn’t tell her where they were going next. The car pulled into a side lot beside a park she barely recognized until she saw the glow.
Thousands of string lights wove through the trees like stars pulled from the sky. Giant paper lanterns floated above the walking paths. Music played softly somewhere in the background, and people strolled through the dreamy scene hand in hand.
Kylee stepped out of the car slowly, her breath catching.
“Jake…”
He came around and took her hand. “Come on. It’s even better inside.”
They walked the winding path in silence, fingers laced. The light reflected in the soft waves of her hair, and he couldn’t stop glancing over at her.
When they reached the center of the park where the lights made a canopy above a small clearing Jake pulled a white envelope from his coat pocket.
Kylee blinked. “What’s this?”
He handed it to her without a word.
Kylee stared at the envelope in her hands, her fingers trembling slightly as she pulled out the glossy concert tickets. The logo Bleeding Halo shimmered beneath the soft park lights, and she froze as her eyes took in the words: VIP, Front Row, and Backstage Access.
Her lips parted, but nothing came out at first. Then she looked up at Jake, her heart racing. “Are you… serious right now!?”
He nodded, a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “You and Kelly. I booked you two a suite at The Ritz-Carlton. You leave in two weeks.”
She blinked fast, trying to process all of it, the band she used to blast in her bedroom, the one that got her through her angsty years and pregnancies and heartbreaks.
The idea of being in New Orleans again. Of laughing with her sister, wine in hand, music pulsing through her chest. Of being herself.
Tears stung her eyes. She couldn’t stop smiling.
“Oh my God,” she breathed. “Jake… this is… this is amazing!”
He stepped closer, brushing a thumb along her jaw. “I wanted to give you something that reminded you of who you are. Not as a wife. Not as a mom. Just… Kylee.”
She laughed through a teary smile, pressing the tickets against her chest. “Seeing Kelly again, the two of us together in New Orleans… I can’t even remember the last time I felt this excited.”
Jake nodded slowly, and for once, his eyes weren’t guarded. “You deserve this. Every second of it.”
She threw her arms around him again, holding him tightly under the canopy of golden lights. For the first time in a long time, her heart beat with something other than heaviness.
On the way home Kylee sat with the envelope still clutched in her lap, her eyes fixed on the window, watching lights blur past like soft neon ghosts. The magic of the evening lingered the dinner, the lights, the feeling of being seen. But beneath it, something else stirred.
She glanced sideways at Jake. One hand on the wheel. The other resting on his thigh. Calm. Her voice broke the silence soft, but razor-sharp. “So… are you doing this to send me away?” she asked, still staring out the window.
Jake’s eyes flicked to her, brows knitting slightly. “What?”
She turned to face him fully, her expression unreadable now. “Are you doing all of this the trip, the hotel, the tickets so you can stay behind and keep fucking Rachel while I’m gone?”
The air between them snapped taut.
Jake’s hands gripped the steering wheel tighter. “Kylee…”
“Just answer the question,” she said, not angrily, but with a kind of cold exhaustion. “Because if this is guilt, if this is your way of making me feel better while you keep sneaking around, just tell me now.”
His jaw clenched. He didn’t speak right away. “No,” he finally said, voice low. “That’s not what this is.”
She looked back out the window, heart pounding, fingers curling tighter around the envelope. She didn’t know if she believed him. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
But the truth was, part of her had been waiting to ask that all night. Waiting to see if the sparkle and the gestures were just a distraction. A bribe.
He sighed, one hand briefly lifting from the wheel to run through his hair. “I know I don’t deserve your trust right now. But I meant what I said. I wanted you to have something that will cheer you up.”
Kylee didn’t reply. She just stared out the window again, eyes damp, her chest tight. Somewhere inside, part of her wanted to believe him. But another part still felt the weight of betrayal like a bruise that hadn’t fully healed.
By the time they pulled into the driveway, the tension between them had thinned but not disappeared. The porch light glowed softly against the snow, and Lillian waved from the front window before letting herself out with a quiet goodbye. The kids were already asleep.
Kylee didn’t say much to Jake as she kicked off her heels and slipped into the kitchen. She needed a second to breathe, to process but she also couldn’t hold it in any longer.
She pulled out her phone and dialed.
“Kelly,” she said, the second her sister picked up, breathless and giddy, “you are not gunna believe what just happened.”
Kelly laughed. “Oh, I think I might. He called me.”
“Shut up! You knew?!”
“Of course I knew. He asked if I’d go with you. I didn’t think he’d actually pull it off though!”
Kylee paced the living room barefoot, hand pressed over her heart. “Front row, backstage passes, The Ritz-Carlton, Kelly. It doesn’t even feel real.”
“You deserve every second of it,” Kelly said warmly. “You’ve needed something like this for a long time.”
“I know,” Kylee whispered, eyes misting again. “It just… it means so much. And seeing you again. Just us. Like we used to be.”
Kelly chuckled. “Oh, girl, we’re getting drunk and screaming every word of those songs. Prepare your vocal cords!”
Kylee laughed through a lump in her throat, wiping a tear off her cheek. “God, I’ve missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too,” Kelly said softly. “I’ll see you in two weeks. Get ready, babe. It’s gunna be the time of our lives.”
Kylee ended the call and held the phone to her chest for a long moment, smiling to herself in the quiet.Behind her, she heard the creak of the stairs Jake heading to bed without a word.
She stayed in the living room a while longer, alone with the soft buzz of anticipation in her chest. For the first time in a long time, she had something to look forward to.
Not something tied to him.
Not to the kids.
Just her.