“All done.” While she’d said that lightly, she still ached every time she heard the word freedom.
Maeve studied her in a way only someone who’d known her long enough to see through every performance could. “You don’t sound thrilled.”
“Oh, I am.” Debra smiled. “Thrilled, liberated, euphoric.”
“Then why are you using your ‘please stop asking’ voice?”
“I suppose I just thought I’d feel…different.” Debra looked down into her cup, focusing on the ring of coffee at the bottom. “It’s strange. You spend years waiting for something to end, and then it does, and you don’t quite know what to do with what’s left behind.”
Maeve leaned forward and rested her chin in her palm. “You do what every freshly liberated woman does, darling. You get a haircut, buy yourself something scandalous, and start flirting with waiters half your age.”
Debra laughed and shook her head. “I can’t even flirt with the Sainsbury’s delivery driver without apologising for existing.”
“You need something to mark this huge change. Something that makes you feel good.” Maeve sipped her coffee and sighed. “Clothes are a good start. A suit, maybe.”
“A suit?” Debra repeated with amusement. “I think the last time I wore a suit was to Gerald’s company dinner, and even then, it was beige. Hardly a statement.”
“Exactly. That’s why you’re getting a proper one this time. Something that makes you look in the mirror and want to take on the world.”
Debra smiled against the rim of her cup. “I love you, but I don’t think it’s that easy.”
“It is. Trust me. You just need the right tailor.” Maeve grinned. “There’s that place on Savile Row. Brown & Co. You’ve heard of it, haven’t you?”
Debra burst out laughing at that. That wasnother kind of place. She was a divorced mother of two whose kids didn’t bother to call her lately unless they wanted something from her. “Maeve, that’s where celebrities go. And CEOs. People with red carpets in their future. I’m just trying to work out how to operate my new dishwasher without Gerald being there to explain the bloody manual.”
Maeve waved her off. “Oh, please. You could absolutely walk in there. They’d be lucky to have you. Besides, you’ve earned a little extravagance. That man drained twenty-odd years of your life and most of your patience. It’s time for something that gives back.”
Debra sighed, but she couldn’t quite shake the small spark that flared in her chest at the thought of a new suit. Something that wasn’t pickedforher or approved by someone else. Something she’d chosen herself. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
“Deadly. Book an appointment. Go in. Let them spoil you a bit.”
“I don’t need spoiling.”
Maeve rolled her eyes. “Maybe not, but I think you’d enjoy it. They do a full service, you know. Suitandlingerie. My cousin went after her divorce last year. I believe she said that her experience with the owner was life-changing.”
“Lingerie? I hardly think?—”
“Debra.” Maeve lifted a hand and cut her off. “When was the last time you bought lingerie for yourself? Not because Gerald expected it, not because it was Christmas or Valentine’s Day or some other performative nonsense, but just because it madeyoufeel good?”
“That’s not really the point. It’s not like anyone’s going to see it.”
“And that’s not the point either.” Maeve took another sip of her coffee. “You’llsee it. That’s enough. And apparently, the owner…what’s her name? Billie Brown? She’sknownfor making women feel good about themselves. Especially the ones who’ve had a rough time.”
“Feel good how?” Debra’s brows drew together.
“You’ll just have to find out, won’t you?”
Debra shook her head. “I don’t see the point. I really don’t.”
“I’ve already looked. They’ve got appointments this week. Go tomorrow. Take it as a post-divorce rite of passage.”
Debra hesitated as she traced the rim of her cup with one finger. The idea felt absurd, but not unpleasantly so. There was something indulgent about it, yes, but also something necessary. Something about choosing to be seen again, but on her own terms. “I’ll think about it.”
“That’s as good as a yes. I’ll text you the link.”
Debra narrowed her eyes. “Don’t you dare.IfI decide to go ahead with it, I’ll find the link myself.”
“Oh, I absolutely will send it.”
