Page 47 of What Broke First
Matt stood near the host stand, adjusting his sleeves like it made a difference, heart pounding harder than it should for a dinner he already knew wouldn’t end in fireworks.
Tyler waved him over from a booth near the back. Jules beamed, and next to her sat Marley.
She stood to shake Matt’s hand, her smile confident and her eyes sharp. She wore black jeans, a fitted green blouse, and a necklace shaped like a tiny set of scales.
“You must be the infamous Matt,” she said, her voice smooth. “Tyler said you were cute, but he undersold it.”
Matt smiled politely, glancing at Tyler who just shrugged with a smug grin.
Marley was hot. Objectively. Her lipstick was bold, her eyeliner sharper than his last three arguments with Sarah, and when she laughed, it was the kind of sound that turned heads.
But she wasn’t Sarah.
Dinner went better than expected. Marley was a paralegal who clearly loved her job, especially the messy litigation cases. She could quote court decisions and Supreme Court dissents with more passion than most people reserved for music or movies. When Matt brought up his law school days and almost-career path before switching to finance, her eyes lit up.
“So you traded motions and depositions for spreadsheets and client reports,” she teased. “I respect it, but I also think you’d make a killer litigator.”
Matt grinned, surprised by how easily the conversation flowed. “I liked the arguments. The logic puzzles. The pressure. But I guess I didn’t want to build a life where I was always preparing for war.”
Marley sipped her drink. “Fair. I, on the other hand, love the fight.”
Tyler and Jules were ridiculous together—feeding each other fries and whisper-laughing like teenagers—which should’ve made Matt uncomfortable, but weirdly, it didn’t. For once, he didn’t feel like a third wheel. Just... a guy trying.
After dinner, they headed to a bowling alley down the block. Jules insisted they use fake names on the scoreboard. Tyler was “Sir Strikes-A-Lot.” Matt, not to be outdone, went with “Pinchelor.” Marley, naturally, chose “Justice is Served.”
Matt bowled a solid 162, but his mind wandered constantly.
To Sarah’s laugh.
To the way she used to dance while folding laundry.
To the way she had looked at him the last time they had dinner. Like maybe, just maybe, she wasn’t completely done.
By the second game, Marley had noticed.
She leaned against the table between turns, arms crossed playfully. “Okay, confession. I know this was a setup. And I’m cool with that. But I’m also not blind.”
Matt looked at her, apologetic. “You’re amazing. Seriously. I had a great time tonight.”
“But...” she prompted.
“But I’m still in love with my ex-wife. And she’s kind of everywhere. Even in here.” He gestured around the bowling alley.
Marley didn’t flinch. Instead, she smiled, slow and deliberate. “I could make you forget her. For a night. No expectations. No feelings. Just... a little peace.”
Matt looked at her, tempted for the briefest moment. The idea of escape. Of silence. Of not feeling so damn haunted.
But then he shook his head. “I can’t. I think that kind of forgetting would break me more.”
Marley nodded, not offended. “Didn’t think you’d say yes. But it was worth a shot.”
When the girls went to the bathroom, Matt found himself standing beside Tyler at the bar, nursing a ginger ale and watching a group of teens argue over whose turn it was in lane seven.
“She’s cool,” Tyler said, glancing toward the bathrooms. “Smart. Funny. Way out of your league.”
Matt chuckled. “Thanks.”
Tyler bumped his shoulder. “You okay?”
