"Aw, that's so romantic," Sage sighed, leaning down to inhale the floral scent.
Lauren stared at the flowers. They were beautiful. Expensive. Tom was being the perfect, thoughtful husband. If only any of it was real.
"Actually," Lauren heard herself say, “we’re… separated, I guess.”
Rina looked up from her screen, eyes wide.
“These flowers are his attempt to fix things," Lauren finished. She looked around at their shocked faces.
Lauren thought about the safe version she could tell—some vague story about growing apart, about needing space. But sitting there surrounded by her “I DESERVE BETTER” wreath and these expensive roses, she found she was tired of protecting Tom's image.
"He didn't like my quilt,” she said simply. "He thought it was too over the top.”
“Oh, Lauren,” Wren breathed.
"Hedidn't getmeanything." The words came out flat, matter-of-fact. “He just wrote me a check.”
She watched her colleagues process this information.
“A check? What—like, for services rendered?”
The corner of Lauren’s mouth twisted. “Pretty much. Five hundred dollars. Memo:‘Buy yourself something nice.’”
There was a beat of stunned silence—and then all hell broke loose.
“No!” Sage clapped both hands to her head.
“Unacceptable,” Wren declared.
“Men like that should come with warning labels,” Zoe said furiously.
“Tell me you threw him out,” Rina demanded.
“I did,” Lauren said before she could stop herself. “On Christmas night.”
The room erupted again, this time with cheers.
“My girl!” Sage whooped.
Lauren laughed—an unsteady, unfamiliar sound.
“That’s it,” Zoe said, grabbing her bag. “We’re taking you out. Early lunch.”
“It’s only eleven,” Rina pointed out, though she was already standing.
“That’s practically one in magazine time,” Sage said.
Before Lauren could argue, the glass door to the editor’s office swung open and Vivian appeared, wearing perfectly pressed cream trousers and an expression that could cut glass.
“Why,” she said sharply, surveying the gathered crowd, “is my staff discussing early lunch when our January edition is currently missing its feature?”
Zoe swiveled toward her. “Lauren’s left Tom!”
Vivian blinked. “Excuse me?”
“He gave her acheckfor Christmas,” Wren added helpfully.
Vivian’s eyebrows shot up.
