Page 16 of The Divorce

She had made lamb shanks for our anniversary dinner, knowing it was my favourite meal. Since she had left, I ordered out or made steak with prepackaged salads. The doorbell rang, and I dropped the spoon in disgust before I grabbed my jacket.

I took a deep breath and fixed a fake smile on my face. She didn't need to take the brunt of my shitty mood because I was a failure at cooking. When I was waltzing around the supermarket aisles, looking down on other people's shopping trollies, I’d felt like a smug Michelin-starred chef waving my fresh herbs around like a sanctimonious cunt. I was Icarus, and I flew too close to the sun by overestimating my non-existent culinary skills.

All my anger, disappointment, and frustration vanished when I saw Katya. She wore a flesh-coloured knee-length dress with blue flowers over the straps and edges. The material clung to her breasts and waist but flared at the hips. Since she was much taller tonight, I glanced at her bare legs to see flesh-coloured high-heeled shoes. It made me glad that I had changed my clothes.

“Hi, baby, you look beautiful as ever,” I said, returning my eyes to hers.

Her hair was pinned up with a few curls left loose. I leaned in to kiss her cherry-red lips and caught the scent of my favourite perfume on her. She placed her hands on my cheeks and kissed me back. It was a soft, gentle kiss, and it highlighted the fact that on each date or meeting, I could feel her coming back to me. The distance between us was on the verge of vanishing.

“Good evening, Seth,” she whispered with a smile after she broke away from our kiss.

Raymond picked her up for me, but depending on how the evening went, I hoped she would stay the night. I was conscious that it was our home where all her bad memories were, but if I observed her carefully, perhaps we could tackle any issues that cropped up. I held her hand as she stepped into the house.

It was time to confess that my cooking skills were not great.

Chapter 11

Katya

I pulled the spoon out of the ‘gravy’. It was so thick it reminded me of hummus. He had put far too much flour into it. When I put my finger into the warm paste and brought it towards my lips, Seth grabbed my wrist.

“Don’t do it, baby. I need you alive,” he said with so much intensity that I paused.

How bad could it be?

I leaned in, licked my fingertip, and winced. Whatever this was, it was not salvageable. When I glanced at Seth, he looked ashamed of himself and quickly looked away.

“I wanted tonight to be perfect,” he muttered, still clutching my wrist.

“Why don't you grab me a glass of wine, and I can show you how to fix dinner? It was almost there. Well, not this,” I said, waving the spoon. “This would need to be destroyed as toxic waste in a hazmat suit.”

His dark eyes softened, and he released my wrist to take the spoon from me. He had trimmed his beard down and had a haircut since this morning's yoga fiasco. Every dirty little bitch in my class had been looking at my husband's dick. There was no denying the size of his package. I was too angry at them to be angry at him for flaunting his goods around.

The whole experience gave me an inkling of why Seth chased that guy away in the nightclub. I was ready to scratch out Jessica’s eyes, and she hadn't even touched him. She had been eyeing him up like a piece of meat, which was accurate but unacceptable.

“Teach me your ways,” he said with a grin before he kissed my cheek and went to get the wine glasses.

I watched him as he poured us some wine. He was excited at the prospect of me teaching him cooking tips. This was nothing like the old Seth. At best, he would grudgingly help with menial tasks in the kitchen, but most of the time, he was never home when I cooked.

Once, I had a glass of wine in my hand. I instructed him on how to assemble the meat and vegetables on a rack to pressure cook it all in the large Instant Pot. He was like my students firing a million questions. With the seasoning and herbs he’d used on the food, dinner was perfect. Neither of us missed the ‘gravy’.

I initially hesitated when we proceeded into the dining room, but his whispered apology and kiss softened the blow. The amount of times I’d sat and ate alone in the room was a stark reminder of why I’d left. It took me a few moments to shake it off before we enjoyed one another's company for the evening.

∞∞∞

He was attentive all night, like the perfect host. He had removed his jacket to reveal a plain white T-shirt, like the one he had worn this morning. We sat in the living room, and Seth had the fire burning. He held my hand against his chest.

“It feels good to have you home, Kat. Thank you for coming,” he said softly, breaking the silence.

“You're welcome,” I sighed and rested my head on his shoulder. Fear was the only thing stopping me from moving back in permanently. “It’s been nice dating and spending more time with you.”

His hand tightened around mine. We weren’t there yet, no matter how badly I needed his dick.

∞∞∞

I smiled at the selfie Seth put on his profile picture and hit like. We both looked like a normal couple in love. He tagged me on a post with the same image. The caption on it read, ‘My Queen and I’. He rarely posted on his social media. It was pointless for him to have it. I noticed a DM from him, and I opened it up.

My smile vanished when I saw the thirst trap grey shorts, only this time his dick was fully erect. I could see every detail from the curved tip to his balls because the loose material was bunched up between his thighs. I swallowed when I saw he was in bed.

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