#Chapter 379: What Comes Next

Abby As I step through the front doors of my restaurant, I’m met with the familiar, comforting sound of clinking tableware, voices, and soft music playing over the speakers. Chloe looks up from behind the bar, and her eyes widen as she sees me. “Abby!” she exclaims as I walk over to her. She pulls me into a tight hug, grinning from ear to ear. “Show me the ring! Show me the ring!” My cheeks flush red as I hold my hand out for her to see the sparkling engagement ring on my finger. The diamond catches and refracts the golden light that’s streaming in through the window, causing the little shimmery particles inside to seem to glow all on their own. “It’s so beautiful,” Chloe breathes, holding my hand in her palm and turning it this way and that. “Even more beautiful than the first one, if I may say so myself.” I blush, thinking back on the first engagement ring that Karl gave me leading up to our arranged marriage. That ring was just as beautiful, but this one holds even mo