Abby The next few days feel like a blur. I can barely sleep, I can barely eat, and my mind is consumed with thoughts of nothing but my poor restaurant. My phone is ringing off the hook with a combination of calls from worried friends and nosey journalists; I choose to ignore the latter. And all
Abby The next day passes by in a blur. I can’t bear to tell my friends about the call from the health department; not yet, at least. Not until I know for certain. My body feels heavy as I roll out of bed and make my way to the kitchen to make some coffee. It’s already eleven in the morning,
“There’s nothing to fess up to,” I hiss through my teeth, standing. “This is all bullshit!” Without thinking, I grab a nearby pillow and hurl it across the room in a fit of rage. The force of the impact knocks a fragile vase off a side table. It shatters into a thousand pieces on the floor.
Abby I approach the door cautiously, my heart pounding in my chest. The events of the past few days have left me on edge, and every unexpected sound or visitor sends a jolt of anxiety through me. I peer through the peephole, and my eyes widen in surprise when I see Officer Martinez standing on t
Karl I watch the screen of my phone go dark as Abby abruptly hangs up. My worry for her is only intensifying as time goes on, but I know I can’t rush to the city right now. I have a meeting scheduled to hire my election manager in ten minutes, and as much as I want to be by Abby’s side, I ha
Abby After letting Officer Martinez out the back door, the loneliness and fear begins to set in again. Even though there’s a police car keeping watch, I can’t help but feel on edge. The front of my house is a media frenzy, and I feel like a target in more ways than one. Finding myself unable to
I spend the rest of the afternoon pacing back and forth, trying to create some semblance of normalcy after everything. I try to occupy myself with reading, but I can’t focus on the words on the page. I try following a workout video, but I feel too tired. And I try to cook, but my hands shake as I tr
No matter how hard I try, I just can’t sleep. Between the noise of the reporters outside, the curious onlookers, the flash of the cameras and my own anxieties, I feel like I’m trapped in a state of exhaustion with no way out. I’ve tried tossing and turning. I’ve tried covering my head with my pill
Abby Intrigued, I let Karl take my hand and lead me discreetly away from the reception, weaving through the tables and out a back door into the gardens. A mischievous grin plays on his lips as we giggle like teenagers, ducking behind hedges and scurrying across the lush green lawns. “Where are w
As the music shifts to a slow ballad, I feel a familiar pair of strong arms circle my waist from behind. “There’s my beautiful wife,” Karl’s deep voice rumbles in my ear, sending shivers down my spine. He spins me around to face him, our bodies swaying in time to the soft music. I gaze up at him
Abby The reception hall is cast in a warm, romantic glow, with twinkling lights and the warm flickering of candles on every table. Soft music plays as Karl and I make our entrance, hand-in-hand to raucous applause and cheers from our guests. I can’t stop smiling as we wave to our loved ones gather
Abby The afternoon sun streaming in through the tall windows of the chapel casts the stones in a warm golden light, giving everything a sort of ethereal energy. I stand in the hallway, my arm linked with Anton’s, as the wedding coordinator prepares everyone to walk down the aisle. “Are you ready
Abby As I sit in front of the vanity mirror with the hair and makeup artist circling around me, I meet my friends’ gazes in the reflection; Chloe, Leah, Daisy, and even Elsie are here as my bridesmaids, each of them looking more beautiful than the last. “The seamstress really did do a great job
Abby With a gasp of excitement, I pull the wedding gown out of its box and hold it up in the light. Everything is perfect; the way the beadwork catches the light, the silky texture, the shape. I can’t wait to try it on now that it’s been altered to fit my body. Quickly, I slip out of my clothe
Abby “Abby, why don’t you sit down?” Karl looks up at me from where he’s sitting on the sofa, a look of concern on his face. He pats the spot next to him, but I shake my head. “I can’t,” I say, continuing to pace back and forth in our living room. “I won’t sit down until I hear back about that
Abby As I chop, stir, melt, and saute, the others stand around me, watching intently. The pasta simmers on the stove, the air smelling like warm butter and spices. It’s enough to make anyone’s mouth water. But my focus isn’t on the rumbling in my belly, nor is it even on the lingering pain in my
As we continue searching, I keep thinking back on our last harrowing hunt for black truffles; those poachers nearly shot us. Even now, I can still remember the sound of the bullets whizzing past my head, and the thuds they made when they careened into trees. “We got really lucky,” I say. “If we ha