Chapter 58 Baked2

Zach had gone as far as to give his mother some very private information about her. Alicia stood outside her door waiting for him to come after her. Even while she did it, she knew it was stupid to expect it from him. Still, fifteen minutes went by before she actually decided to leave. She could hear the two of them inside the house laughing as if she hadn't just stormed out of the house. She missed the days when Zach actually cared about her feelings. Taking in a deep breath, Alicia decided she was going to let go. It was her thirtieth birthday and she was dammed if she wasn't going to enjoy herself. Alicia walked to her car deciding that she wasn't going to care about what Zach and his mother were doing to her. She went ice skating like she'd always wanted and had a great time. She couldn't remember the last time she'd enjoyed herself so much without anyone else's company. Next, she was going to try the food in that new Ethiopian restaurant. Alicia had always wanted to try Ethiopian food but had never mustered the courage to do it alone. Especially because Jake, who was her husband's best friend, worked there. She'd secretly had a crush on Jake for a while now. The Ethiopian restaurant wasn't far off. Alicia was famished so she drove crazily to the restaurant eager for a nice hot meal. Jake was the manager and owner there and since they were such good friends ushered her to the best table once she came in. She was looking through the menu when she decided to check the messages on her phone. There were a lot of calls from Zach which was strange since Zach only called her to know if she was making dinner. His mother was home so she practically served no purpose to him. It was strange how she had come from wife to the woman who waited on his every need. She placed the phone back into her purse not willing to have him ruin her mood. Alicia looked back to the menu. She didn't know any of the items offered and briefly wondered what she was going to do. Tears welled up in her eyes when she imagined how much fun it would have been if they were there together. She sucked them back in not willing to be weepy on her own birthday. With the staff's help, she was able to pick something and she only hoped she wouldn't regret it. She was waiting for her food when she saw Zach burst into the restaurant. He was still dressed in his pajamas. She froze wondering what on Earth had brought her husband all the way to the restaurant. Maybe there was an emergency with his mother. Alicia hated to say it but she wanted to wrap her arms around him in assurance. "What are you doing here Zach?" she asked fighting the urge to hold him. She had never seen him look so troubled. "I was trying to find you," he replied with difficulty. She could tell that he had been running from the way he was out of breath. "Why didn't you just call me?" she asked then remembered that he had in fact tried. "Is there something wrong with your mother?" "I found out about the divorce. Your lawyer called the house," he blurted out before she could come to any more conclusions. "I'm sorry Zach," she started to apologize, "I didn't mean for you to find out like that." "Don't be sorry. I should have seen this coming," he replied. She watched as he pulled out a seat and sat right across from her. He buried his head in his hands.