Chapter 2

The waiter came over to take their order, and the conversation moved on.

After dinner, Eric got home. He slipped into his slippers and walked into the living room.

The house looked the same, but all traces of Claire were gone.

Her side of the closet was empty, and only his toothbrush remained on the sink. Her canvas sneakers, always dusted with flour, were gone from the shoe rack. The place was so spotless that it was as if she'd never lived there at all.

Eric stood in the middle of the living room for half a minute, lost in thought. Then he turned on the TV, switched to the financial channel, and leaned back on the couch, scrolling through his phone.

Everything was as it always had been, only quieter. Eric told himself, 'This is the quiet I wanted.'

*****

The next day, Eric went to work as usual.

As he walked into the office, his assistant, Oliver, approached him, looking a bit off. "Mr. Lane, a client called this morning. They wanted to end their partnership with us."

"Which client?" Eric asked.

"ClaireCrust Bakery."

Eric paused for a moment.

Of course, he knew ClaireCrust Bakery, a nationwide bakery chain that had been growing like crazy over the past three years.

Last year, they completed their Series B funding round, putting their valuation at two hundred and seventy million dollars.

At the end of last year, Eric's company finally landed a brand investment and financial management deal with ClaireCrust Bakery, worth ten million dollars.

"What's the reason?" Eric asked.

"They only said it was the founder's call, and to make it happen right away."

Eric frowned. "Who's the founder of ClaireCrust Bakery again? The guy's always kept things under wraps, never appeared in public."

"Yeah, everyone in the industry says the guy's super mysterious. No one's ever heard the real name, just the initials C. S."

Eric didn't dwell on it. He waved his hand. "Get in touch with their rep again and find out what's going on. We can't let this deal slip away."

"Will do."

Eric headed into his office, deciding to deal with it later.

What he didn't know was that C. S stood for Claire Sutton, the very woman he'd blocked in his contacts yesterday.

*****

Over the weekend, Eric's mom, Helen Lane, called. "Eric, did you get divorced?"

Word sure got around fast.

"Mom, I was planning to tell you when I came home this week..." Eric said.

"Are you out of your mind?" Helen's voice shot up. "What did Claire ever do to you? You..."

"Mom, don't get worked up," Eric said, leaning back in his chair. "We weren't right for each other. It was bound to happen sooner or later."

"Not right for each other? Claire looked after me for three years. When I was hospitalized, she stayed with me around the clock. It was her, not you."

"I know, Mom, but you have to understand that marriage isn't about taking care of the elders."

"Then tell me, what exactly do you have against her?"

"Mom, she only makes two thousand dollars a month. When I take her out, and people ask what she does, she says she owns a bakery. Your son's got a reputation in finance, and she..."

"Shut up!" Helen's voice exploded through the phone. "Did you forget who helped you pay back that two hundred and seventy thousand dollars you lost in 2019?

"Did you think it was your dad's inheritance? Let me tell you that money was your dad's..." She suddenly cut herself off, realizing she had almost said too much.

"What was Dad's?"

"Forget it. Anyway, remember, you wronged Claire."

The call ended. Eric sat there, feeling like something wasn't right.

He'd always believed that the two hundred and seventy thousand dollars he lost in 2019 had been made up by the savings his father left behind after he passed away.

Eric thought, 'But the way Mom stopped herself mid-sentence, like she was hiding something, what was she not telling me?'

He shook his head, refusing to think more about it. Claire and her bakery were out of his life.

Vivian moved in. After Eric cleared out everything that belonged to Claire, Vivian arrived with two suitcases and settled right in.

She gave the living room a makeover. She put up new curtains, got new sofa covers, and replaced all the dishes.

"Who designed this kitchen? The layout is awful," Vivian said, opening a cabinet and spotting a few jars of homemade jam from Claire. "What are these? Throw them out."

"Fine," Eric replied.

Vivian picked up a jar of blueberry jam, flipped it over, and glanced at the label. The handwriting was neat: [Blueberry Jam. 15, 3, 2024. Best within three months. For Eric.]

Vivian tossed it into the trash; it landed with a dull thud.

"By the way, how's your ClaireCrust Bakery client? Did you manage to keep the deal?" Vivian asked as she wiped down the table.

"No. They were really adamant and pulled the whole ten million dollars out."

"What's the reason?"

"No clue. They said it was the founder's personal decision and wouldn't say anything else."

Vivian frowned. "That's reckless. But really, how much ambition could a baker possibly have?"

Eric kept quiet.

That phrase, "a baker", struck a nerve, though he couldn't say why.

That night, Eric couldn't sleep. Vivian was already out cold beside him, her breathing steady. He stared up at the ceiling, remembering what it was like to have Claire sleeping next to him for three years.

She always got up at 4 a.m. The bakery opened at 6, so she had to be there by 5 to start prepping for the day.

She did it every single day for three years, never skipped once. And he had never gotten up at 4 for her.

He rolled over and told himself, 'Stop thinking about it.'

The company was in crisis.

At the Monday morning meeting, William Brooks, one of the partners, looked like he'd swallowed a lemon as he announced, "Everyone, the chain reaction from ClaireCrust Bakery pulling their funds has begun.

"Their affiliated brands, Grain & Harvest and Rise & Shine, have also decided to end their partnerships. Altogether, that's twenty-seven million dollars."

The conference room was so quiet. For a mid-sized fund company like theirs, twenty-seven million dollars was no small amount.

"And here's the kicker," William said, giving Eric a pointed look. "Word in the industry is that the founder of ClaireCrust Bakery personally called the shots. They're done working with us.

"Eric, who did you piss off? All three of these brands are on your client list."

"I didn't piss anyone off," Eric said, standing up. "I've never met the founder of ClaireCrust Bakery."

"Then why did they single you out?"

Eric had no answer.