He hired a second mechanic, upgraded equipment, started thinking about expansion in concrete terms instead of impossible dreams. Sophie adjusted to having Viven around with the easy acceptance of children who haven't learned to be skeptical yet. She taught Viven about penguins and card games and the proper way to organize kitchen cabinets. Viven taught Sophie about business and negotiation and the importance of knowing your worth. Sarah remained skeptical for exactly 2 weeks before declaring that Viven was acceptable, assuming she doesn't break my brother's heart.
Viven accepted this with grace and won Sarah over completely by helping her navigate a complicated school district bureaucracy issue using corporate contacts and sheer determination. 6 months after the board meeting where Viven had announced her resignation, she officially stepped down as CEO of Heart Industries. The company threw a farewell party that Viven attended with Ethan and Sophie, making small talk with board members while Sophie entertained herself by rating the appetizers on a scale she'd invented. "The little sandwiches are a seven," Sophie informed a beused board member. "But the shrimp things are a two.
Too squishy. " "Sophie, inside voice," Ethan reminded her. This is my inside voice. My outside voice is much louder. Viven gave her farewell speech at 9:00 p.m. Thanking everyone for their support and introducing her replacement, a brilliant woman from their Singapore office who'd been Vivien's first choice.
Then she found Ethan and Sophie near the dessert table. "Can we leave? " she asked. "I've smiled at enough people for a lifetime. " "Please," Ethan agreed. "Sophie's been eating cake for 20 minutes. We need to leave before she discovers what a sugar high is.
They escaped through a side door. Sophie carrying a plate of cookies she'd somehow convinced a waiter to give her and drove back to Viven's apartment. On the way, Vivien's phone buzzed constantly with congratulations messages and interview requests that she ignored. "You're really done," Ethan said. "I'm really done. " She sounded lighter than he'd ever heard her.
As of midnight tonight, I'm officially unemployed. How does it feel? Terrifying and amazing. Ask me tomorrow if I regret it. But tomorrow came and the day after and the weeks that followed.
And Vivian never regretted it. She spent a month doing absolutely nothing except sleeping late and taking Sophie to school and learning to cook things that didn't come from takeout containers. Then she started volunteering at a local nonprofit that helped small businesses get financing. Using her corporate knowledge for something that felt meaningful, she and Ethan settled into a rhythm that worked for them. Some nights at his apartment, some at hers.
Sunday morning pancakes with Sophie. Friday date nights that sometimes involved fancy restaurants, but more often involved Thai food and bad movies. Normal, messy, imperfect life that neither of them had experienced before. 8 months after that rainy night, when Ethan had stopped to help a stranger, he woke up in Viven's bed. Their bed now, really, since he spent more nights here than at his own apartment, and found her already awake watching him.
This is creepy, he said. How long have you been staring at me? 5 minutes. You snore. I do not.
You absolutely do. It's adorable. He pulled her close, breathing in her shampoo and the coffee she'd clearly already had. What time is it? 7.
Sophie has that field trip today. We need to get her to school early. Right. The zoo. He sat up, running a hand through his hair.
You're still coming to the shop thing this afternoon? The ribbon cutting. Of course, I wouldn't miss you officially opening the second bay. The expansion had taken 4 months, permits and construction, and Ethan's constant anxiety about whether he was making the right choice. But the shop needed it, and he could finally afford it, and today was the official opening.
They picked up Sophie, who spent the entire drive to school explaining everything she knew about penguins in preparation for seeing the real ones at the zoo. When they dropped her off, she hugged them both and ran toward her waiting class. She called me we. Vivien said quietly. "What? " When she was talking about the penguins, she said, "We're going to see them. " She included me.
Ethan took her hand. You're part of the Wii now. Get used to it. The ribbon cutting that afternoon was small, just Sarah and Sophie, Marcus and the shop's other employees, a few regular customers, and Viven. The local news had offered to cover it, but Ethan had declined.