CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

She started working the same day she walked in. McKenna had loved her immediately. McKenna being
the older woman. She hired Lola. As a last minute decision, Lola had taken off her ring and lied that she
was Lola Deleman. Not really creative but it was all she could think of fast when the woman asked for
her name. And it had worked.

Working alongside Ashley was refreshing. The girl had taught her a few things she underestimated about
working the kitchen. A few things he had no idea about. In just 4hours before they closed Lola had
gotten a hang of it. She loved the smell of the kitchen. The aroma of baking. It reminded her of Dream
Lola’s life. The only difference here was whereas Dream Lola had owned her café, real Lola now worked
in one. Still it was something. It was refreshing. And it would be a nice escape from her husband.

That night she went to the hospital and stayed with Lois for a while. She was stable now sleeping. They
had put her to sleep. The nice doctor had assured Lola that she had no cause to be worried at the
moment. She should look for the money needed for the surgery before the available kidneys run out.

Lola drove back to the house. It looked abandoned but she knew Julian would be there. He would
probably be up working. She walked in and was greeted by the gentle whisper of silence. Walking up to
the master bedroom, it showed her its empty interior. She finally found him sleeping in his office,
recorder still active.

He had fallen asleep while working. That was the type of man she had married. A robot. A robot whose
only purpose in life was to function and serve his work.

She turned to leave finding her room with much needed joy. Lola wouldn’t mind a cuddle right now. She
would appreciate one even if it came from the lowliest life form. She just wanted someone to hold her
and whisper how everything was going to be okay in her ears. But it never happened. So instead, she
slept.

**

The next morning, Julian was out of the house early. He had to meet with John to discuss an important
merger. The elections was a month away. It was getting closer than ever now. Julian was under a lot of
pressure now.

He didn’t even have enough time to think about his wife. He didn’t even check on her before leaving the
house that morning. He felt more and more like the asshole he knew he was. The workload at the office
was a welcoming distraction and he happily let himself get distracted.

Lola got up to the smell of cooking. She knew it was Paula at work. She hadn’t seen much of the woman.
Now Paula barely spoke to her. The woman just bowed and scrambled off before Lola got the chance to
ask her about her kids. The scent of the food gave Lola the motivation she needed to drag her ass out of
the overly comfortable bed. She was in the kitchen before she even knew what she was doing.
Paula was shocked to see her bright face beaming from behind her. She forced herself to return a
cheerful smile.

“You have been avoiding me, old fox.” Lola joked, one eyebrow raised in a suspicious look.

The older woman laughed nervously acting like she was about to run into an open bottle and cock the lid
in place. Her eyes darting from one place to another as she said, “No ma’am. I’ve just been busy with
work. That’s all.”

Eventually they sat down to the roasted lamb Paula had made. Paula managed to ease up a little after a
while. She even agreed to have a taste of the lamb after refusing to touch the fork for so long.

Lola enjoyed her company. They talked about her kids and how the older one was about to apply for
college and didn’t know which one to pick. They laughed a lot. Lola noticed how she was a good mother
and that was when she remembered her mother.

Lola immediately got up eating the food half way and took the free car to the hospital. Costa had
insisted on driving her, fear making the man’s plea sound like a trapped mice. She had refused which
only made him tremble more. The guy was obviously scared of her after the last time they had crossed
paths. She could understand his fears. Sometimes she could be scary.

She got to the hospital and zipped into Lois’ room. Her mother was still in the sleep. The nurse told her
that Lois had come to in the night, very late. But they had to put her under again because the pain was
making her unstable. Dried tears softened the woman’s face and a little color had returned to her
complexion. She was gray as death when Lola had brought her in. Lola thanked the nurse and had a few
words with the doctor before she left. She had to go to work. She managed to get there a little bit early,
a little bit late. She picked up fast whipping back and forth the kitchen like she had been born for the
job. Ashley was impressed and so also was McKenna.

Everyone who came in loved the new cook immediately. She brought with her an assortment of pastries.
She could do a lot that age had stopped McKenna from doing. She handled the kitchen well that first day
so much so that the customers couldn’t stop polling in.

There was something about her face that just made everyone want to look at it for a long time without
end.

Meanwhile, Freddie had been travelling around exploring different exotic islands. This was his own
personal vacation. He loved New York and the people of New York fascinated him.

He flew in that same day and went straight to the Company to distract Julian a bit from all the
backbreaking work he had happily dived into.

Julian wasn’t all that happy to see him because he knew that meant the end of work for the day. John
didn’t mind the distraction. The three men sat in Julian’s office over a glass of exotic wine Freddie had
bright from his trip. They were drinking and laughing when Freddie said, “Guess who I saw on one of my
journeys?” his smile was mischievous as usual.

“Just say it. I can’t guess correct if you strapped me to an electric chair.” Julian sounded serious. And
slightly drunk. Slightly.

“Karla Serena Vans.” Freddie mentioned sounding as if he had just given both men the recipe for the
Krabby Patty formula.

Both John and Julian exchanged a look of confusion till the bell finally dropped for John. Julian still
looked confused. He still had problems remembering who that was and why the name sounded familiar.

John waited for Julian to remember but the look of confusion in his face only thicken. Freddie was tired
of waiting. It was starting to look like Julian would need the information surgically added to his brain for
him to remember.

“Serena Vans is the girl you would have gotten married to.” John spoke in a husky rich voice.

The look of confusion stayed on Julian’s face for a few seconds before finally dispersing into a cloud of
dust. What remained was an indifferent mask. He had totally forgotten about her existence.

“Oh, her.”

Freddie went ahead to tell them how Serena had asked after Julian. He had to explain to her that the
marriage between her and Julian had to have been cancelled because the campaign manager had
advised against it. The invisible yet existent campaign manager had advised Julian to get a girl that was
born and brought up in Prisvile too. She would easily be accepted and loved. He said that Serena had
been mature about it. They had spent a little of her money partying for a while till he had departed to a
new exotic location.

Julian tried to imagine what it would have been like being married to Serena Vans instead. The thought
had never occurred to him. Not even once. Thinking about it now, being married to Serena wouldn’t
have been any different with what he had right now with Lola. He was surprised in a way he preferred
Lola. When had he started preferring her?
That was the first indication that he should probably stop the wine now when he still had the chance. He
knew Freddie’s plan was to get him drunk enough so he could have a partner that would join him on
another up-to-no-good exploration of the city. Nice try Fred…nice try.

Julian sobered up a bit later that night after getting home. He was in bed and he considered his earlier
thought once more. Serena Vans or Lola ‘what was her last name again’.

He thought long and hard. He thought till sleep came to claim his exhausted mind and there was only
one name there.

Lola…