Amelia studied herself in the mirror and sighed. She looked good. She knew that. She wore a knee long, black, cocktail dress combined with black heels. She hated to dress up but sometimes it was needed. She had curled her long, honey brown hair and let it hang loose down her back. She caught the look in her cornflower blue eyes and sighed again. She looked good but her face gave away that she didn't feel good. She was fed up with Baron and their relationship. Tonight was his last chance and he knew it.
"You clean up nice," he said.
She turned around and looked at him. The little, sinister smile on his lips gave away the last four words of that sentence that he hadn't spoken out loud.
For a dessert maker.
He always tried to make her feel small when it came to her work. It was true she started out by helping in a bakery with some of the desserts. She had worked hard and built her way up. Now she owned the largest and best known bakery in town. Everyone knew of the bakery but not many people knew of the face running it which was why he could continue getting away with introducing her as someone who only decorated cakes as an extra helping hand in some random bakery. She hated that he did that and he knew it.
"Remember what I said, Baron," she gave him a stern look. "I meant it."
"Will you just fucking relax already?" He asked annoyed. "I'm the one invited. You're there as my guest. No one will care much about you anyway. Just hang back and drink some champagne, and the night will soon be over."
"I fucking hope so," she mumbled.
She walked past him and out to his car. He followed behind, locked up the house, and got in the car too. They drove to the event in silence. Their relationship was doomed. She had already accepted that but he hadn't. For so long he thought he was running the show but she was tired. She kept trying but got no respect back. That was why she had put her foot down. He would show her the proper respect tonight or they were done. Somewhere deep inside she already knew they were done but she hung on to that tiny hope of him seeing his flawed ways and correcting them so they didn't have to flush three years down the drain.
"Who the fuck am I kidding? Shit's already in the toilet waiting to be flushed," she mumbled.
"What was that?" He asked.
"I said it's a nice building. I like old buildings," she lied.
"I guess," he said. "Let's go mingle."
They walked inside and he immediately left her to go talk to some of his coworkers. She found the bar and grabbed a glass of champagne. She stood back for about 30 minutes, trying to enjoy a party where she hardly knew anyone. Her eyes found Baron and Drew. She had never met Drew but she recognized him from tv. They were both looking towards her. Baron raised his hand and waved her over. She left the empty glass of champagne on a table and walked over to them.
"So you're Baron's girlfriend Amelia. I can't believe I haven't met you before," Drew said.
"Well, it's only been three years," Amelia said dryly.
Drew laughed, thinking it was some sort of joke, but Baron gave her a look she knew all too well. He wasn't pleased. She didn't care what he thought. She was done standing in the shadows as if she didn't matter much.
"She's lovely, Baron," Drew said. "So what do you do for a living?"
"She's a dessert maker," Baron said.
It was Amelia's turn to give Baron a look. He knew better than to say that. He had just crossed the line he was never supposed to cross again. She had told him they would be done if he continued putting her down and lied about what she did for a living. Clearly he hadn't believed her.
"What does that mean exactly?" Drew asked.
"Kinda like an internship. She helps out in a bakery from time to time with decorating their cakes when they're busy," Baron said.
"He's lying," Amelia said.
Both men looked at her. She could feel the anger from Baron. He was giving her a look to tell her to shut up but she chose to ignore it and only focus on Drew.
"Have you heard of the bakery called Mirth?" Amelia asked.
"Of course I've heard of it. It's the best damn bakery in town. No one bakes like they do," Drew said.
"Hi," Amelia stuck her hand forward to shake Drew's hand. "I'm Amelia Mirth."
"You're the owner?" Drew asked.
"Yes, I am. I took a chance on myself and it paid off. For some reason Baron likes to only tell people how I started out because he doesn't like that I'm successful. I think he's jealous. What do you think?" Amelia asked.
"Shut up!" Baron growled.
"I think he's jealous too," Drew chuckled.
"Enough!" Baron growled. "We need to talk."
Baron grabbed Amelia's arm but she tore it free of his grip and shook her head no.
"I'm done talking. I tried talking for a long time but you refused to listen. I told you we would be done if you belittled me again. So thank you for three years, Baron, but we're done," Amelia said.
"You can't be serious," Baron said.
"Dead serious," Amelia said.
"But we live together. You fucking love me," Baron said.
"I used to," Amelia shook her head. "Not anymore, Baron. I fell out of love with you a while back. I kept trying to fix it but you refused to help. There's nothing left to fix. I expect you to move your things out of my house as soon as possible."
"Fuck you!" Baron almost yelled.
"Baron!" Drew said firmly. "Fucking get it together before someone higher up in the company sees you this way."
"Fuck you too, Drew!" Baron growled.
Baron turned around and walked fast out of the room. Amelia looked over at Drew who didn't know exactly what to do in the given moment.
"This is awkward," he said.
"Want me to leave and pretend we never met?" She asked.
"No, I..." He sighed. "He's always like this, isn't he?"
"Yeah," she sighed too. "I don't know why he refuses to let people know about my success."
"You said it best. He's jealous," he said. "Can I go get you another glass of champagne or something else?"
"I'll have what you're having," she said.
"I don't drink," he said.
"Guess I don't drink either," she said.
"I like you," he chuckled. "I'll be right back."
He walked up to the bar and got two non-alcoholic drinks. When he returned, she was on her phone with someone.
"Yeah, just like we talked about. He stormed off in anger so he'll stay away all night. Just get it done and then come pick me up," she said. "Thanks."
She hung up and accepted the drink with a smile.
"What was that about?" He asked.
"Backup plan," she smirked. "I have already bought new locks. I had a friend standing by in case they needed to be changed tonight. He's on his way to my house to do it, and then he'll pick me up."
"You had already broken up in your mind," he said.
"Pretty much," she said.
She took a sip of her drink and smiled again.
"You take big orders at your bakery, right?" He asked.
"As big as you need," she said.
"Our anniversary is coming up. My wife has a dream of cupcakes in different flavors. We're planning on inviting a lot of people so we're looking at a couple of hundred cupcakes probably."
"That won't be a problem. I got a lot of workers. Stop by the bakery and let's talk," she said.
"Really?" He broke out in a wide smile. "Kaitlyn's gonna love it. Thank you so much. We'll stop by Monday."
He downed half his drink and smiled again.
"You know, someone out there will appreciate you," he said.
"I know," she smiled. "He didn't break my spirit. The locks will be changed tonight and his stuff will be out of my house by the end of next week, or I'm leaving them out at the curb for people to take whatever they need. He's not getting back inside my house or my heart."