Prologue

Day 4.

Yes, day 4 of depression. Cindy sat in the restaurant staring into space as she waited for her friends to arrive. She sat in deep thought oblivious to her surroundings. She was still in shock.  To be honest that was the expected reaction after the ordeal that she had just gone through. Nothing ever prepared a woman for the betrayal she had just experienced. She was still in disbelief. Had there been any signs? She idly pondered. Surely they had been happy. She had thought they were in love. He had never complained or looked like he had wanted more. Clearly looks could be so deceiving. How had she not seen this coming. It had totally thrown her off balance.

Her boyfriend of four years had gone on to arrange a whole engagement party behind her back. Yes, absolutely shocking. More shocking was the fact that he got engaged and was marrying another woman! Yes, you heard right. He was getting engaged and it wasn't to her. The man didn't even have the courtesy to break up with her first. He hadn't even spared her a thought. Would she be forgiven for going crazy and doing unspeakable things? She had always wondered why women went berserk when their boyfriends or husbands cheated on them, now she knew why. She felt like throwing tantrums, getting into a catfight and screaming her head off. Cindy had toyed with the thought of keying his car .She needed to cause him as much pain as he had caused her.

The most humiliating thing was how she found out. 

I mean if she had gone to his house and found him in bed with the other woman, that would have allowed her to gather the pieces of her broken heart together with minimal humiliation. She would have gone on to heal in private. Jeffrey however never did things in a small way. He always had to do spectacular things and this time round, he was true to form. She found out about his shenanigans through social media.

Wipe that shocked look off your face. Yes,social media! She wasn't the only witness. Everyone else was there to witness her humiliation. Why did he have to humiliate her that way? She had spent three days in tears. Even then on day four she still had to rush to the washroom to cry a bit every now and then. This was absolutely horrible. She had spent time before the breakup envisioning a life together.

Who knew?!

She dabbed at her eyes a bit then looked up as she heard her friends check in. Sophie floated into the room nonchalantly. She was always the perfect looking one, not a hair out of place. At 5 feet 9 inches she stood taller than most ladies, and her lean body gave her an athletic look. Yes, she was a dedicated gym rat. 

Bessie bounced in smiling happily. She was the optimist in the bunch and had a sparkle in her eyes.

"Cindy!" She squealed happily as she made a beeline for the table Cindy sat at. Sophie followed her gliding round the other tables.

Cindy put a brave face on and smiled at her friends as they sat down. She sighed inwardly as she gathered the strength. It was tough.

" I love that you finally got out of the house." Bessie started.

"You did need some air."Sophie added quietly.

Cindy struggled with her composure.

" Oh girl what are you wearing?" Bessie asked as she took a good look at Cindy. " This will not do!" Bessie looked horrified. 

Cindy looked down at herself. She had to admit. She hadn't put much thought into what she was wearing.

" She does have a point Cindy. What are you wearing?" Sophie asked as she gave her longtime friend a critical look.

Bessie tooted in distress." They say the way to get over a relationship is to jump right into another one."

" Who said?!"Cindy and Sophie asked in unison.

" You ladies are not going to pin me down with semantics. Cindy, we are taking you home and you are going to get out of those sweats and into a sexy little number, after which we are going clubbing."

*

Cindy shrunk into her seat as she watched Bessie and Sophie dance crazily. Going clubbing clearly was a mistake. Clubbing had never really been her cup of tea. She hated crowds. The groping and the mingling used to give her a headache. Or maybe it was because she was an introvert she thought sadly. She sighed as she watched the mass of humanity writhing on the dance floor.

How did people find this fun? She couldn't hear herself think.  Cindy stood up. Her little black dress was wrinkled. She was in heels too high for her, they were almost six inches. She swayed unsteadily. How much alcohol had she taken? Usually she was able to keep strict count but this particular night, maybe her depression had caused her to overindulge? She decided to ponder this after she had used the washroom. She needed to pee and that she needed to do urgently. Cindy started off in the general direction of the washroom as the room swayed around her.

Luckily for her, there was no queue outside the washrooms. She finished up and decided to retouch her makeup. Cindy watched the other women walk in and also use the washroom mirrors to touch up their makeup. Then they left.

She stood staring at herself in the mirror.

The woman staring back at her was unrecognizable. When had she gotten so lifeless and dull? There were bags under her eyes. Which was to be expected she had been crying non stop since the breakup. Her friends had really tried to dress her for the occasion but nothing could hide the sadness behind her eyes.

Cindy sighed. She was done with these charades. It was time for her to go home. She turned and started to walk and almost tripped . Catching herself in good time and righting her posture, she cursed inwardly hoping that no one had seen that.

One foot in front of the other how hard could it be? She thought to herself as she tottered out of the washroom and headed back for her seat. She wanted out. She was leaving. She just needed to sit down send a quick text to her friends then she would leave and go back home to her sweats and her warm comfy bed. Cindy sighed happily. Now that was something to look forward to.

Oh if only.

If only.

Just as she got to her seat, Cindy stopped abruptly.

No. Oh no. 

It couldn't be.

But yet it was.

There right in front of her stood the one person she did not want to see, at least any time soon. 

Yes, you guessed it. Her ex Jeffrey.  He wasn't alone either. Cindy stared at her. Even with alcohol muddling her brain she could still recognize her from the photos. The photos didn't do her any justice. The woman was a stunner.

She stood at 5 feet 10 inches, blonde haired, toned lean body that looked athletic and tanned skin. She wore a beautiful red dress ending mid thigh that accentuated all her features. Was she a model? Cindy thought idly in a slightly distracted manner. She could bet a fortune on the fact that she probably was. She had to hand it to Jeffery. He had chosen well, she thought.

Had they spotted her? She really hoped that they hadn't. Cindy turned to make a getaway, but before she could tiptoe away, she heard his voice above the din.

" Cindy. Is that you?"

She cringed inwardly. Cindy took a deep breath to foster her courage.  Then she turned slowly. Surely New York city was not that small. What were the odds of of them meeting in that sea of humanity? However fate seemed to have other ideas. Right there before her stood her worst nightmare. Her unapologetic ex who appeared to be glowing, and his new bombshell fiancee.

" Hello Jeff. Fancy meeting you here."

" The shocker is meeting you here Cindy. This has never really been your scene."

Cindy ignored him and turned to the gorgeous lady standing in front of her.

" Hello, I am Cindy. You look absolutely gorgeous."

The lady looked disconcerted for a minute before raising her own hand to return the handshake.

" Pleased to meet you Cindy. I am Cordelia."

" Congratulations to the both of you. You make a lovely couple."

Jeff wrapped his arm around Cordelia's shoulder bringing her closer.

" Thanks. We will be sure to send you an invite."

Cindy smiled at the two politely.

" I will leave you to it. I have some errands to run." She said politely.

As she turned to leave, tears blurring her eyes, she walked right into a brick wall. A brick wall with arms attached to it that held her by the arms then pulled her in for a hug.

" Cindy. There you are. I was wondering where it was you got to." A voice drawled lazily.

Cindy swallowed her surprise and slowly looked up. He was tall. Really tall. She was 5 feet 6 inches and he looked at least 6 feet 5 inches. Even in her high heels she could not stand at his height. He grinned at Cindy's ex who squirmed. 

Who was this man who could only be called a Greek God? Cindy wondered idly. She noticed Bessie and Sophie. They had gravitated towards the unfolding spectacle and just in time too.

"And you are?" Jeffrey asked suspiciously.

Cordelia looked star struck.

"Call me Dimitri." The Greek god said with a slight accent.

European?  Cindy thought as he still held her. 

"Well Dimitri, i am Jeffrey. "

" Oh yes, the ex right? " Dimitri asked with a glint in his eyes.

Jeffrey looked chastised.

"I have to thank you for letting this gem go. Otherwise I would never have met her." Dimitri drawled lazily. "We will leave you to it, we have other things to do."

Cindy stared up at Dimitri in wonder.

Had this man just dismissed her arrogant ex boyfriend?  He clearly had because as she turned to look, Jeffrey looked annoyed. Cordelia still looked star struck. Sophie and Bessie were holding back their laughter.

" Let us go Cindy. The night is still young." Dimitri said in a lazy drawl as he took hold of her by the shoulders and steered her out of the club.

Once outside, Cindy took in gulps of air. She hadn't noticed just how suffocating the air was in the club. 

" This wasn't a good night for you was it? Dimitri asked her. He had a sympathetic look on his face.

She didn't want his pity. Surely not that. She wasn't that pathetic. She couldn't be that pathetic. Or did she look that pathetic? She idly wondered.

" No it wasn't. Thank you Dimitri. " Cindy said once she had cleared her system.

" No worries. You look like you had a lot to drink. Alcohol on an empty stomach is never a good idea. What do you say to a meal? Dinner on me?" He inquired hopefully.

" Ermmm.."

" I don't bite. Plus we both need to eat. "

Her stomach rumbled and she clutched at it in embarrassment.

"Ok. But I need to tell my friends the restaurant we are going to.

*

Cindy woke up slowly in the dark. The bed was lovely. It was definitely more comfortable than anything that she had ever slept in. She stretched her hands out then drew a breath as she winced. She was sore. 

She gasped silently as it registered. Next to her in the bed was her saviour Dimitri. He slumbered so deeply that he gave a small snore.

This was not happening. This should not have happened.  What had she been thinking?!

 Oh wait, she hadn't been thinking, if she had, she would not have ended up in his bed.  Cindy scheduled a self lecture in her mind for later. She needed to leave before he woke up. No one wanted to do the walk of shame and she in particular wasn't inclined to. Leaving early clearly meant that she would be able to avoid the morning awkwardness that ensued after one night stands. Cindy blushed as she recalled all that had happened the previous night. This would not do. She needed to leave.

She got out of bed quietly, collected everything of us and started to tiptoe. Then she remembered. She needed to leave a thank you note. It was the polite thing to do. She searched for note paper and scribbled something. Then she walked out into the night, hailed a taxi and was off.