Free Coming Back To You by Donya Lynne Page A

aside the bowl. It had to sit at room temperature for an
hour.
    While they waited, they cleaned then wandered
into the front of the room with a few others to grab hors d’oeuvres
and chat. After making small talk about books and work, Brad told
her he’d been married for eleven years but that they’d gotten
divorced when his daughter, Jade, was nine.
    “What happened?”
    “We just grew apart.” He wiped his fingers on
his small, square paper napkin. “I think we got married too young,
before we knew what we wanted. As the years passed, we seemed to
have less and less in common.” He shrugged. “After a while, all we
did was argue. It wasn’t a healthy environment for Jade.”
    “Your ex-wife has custody?”
    “Yes, but I see her on the weekends and get
her for a month every summer and for a couple weeks during the
holidays. She may be a diva in the making, but she’s my angel.”
    Karma liked how he talked about his daughter.
Brad sounded like a good father.
    After an hour passed, they returned to the
kitchen, scooped out balls of ganache, and refrigerated them for
thirty minutes while prepping the garnishments for their truffles.
Then they rolled their balls of ganache into perfect spheres and
coated them with crushed almonds, powdered sugar, or chocolate
sprinkles.
    “Do we dare?” Brad said as he picked up a
finished truffle and held it toward her.
    “Why not?” She grabbed one covered in
powdered sugar and held it out for him.
    At the same time, they leaned in, took the
truffles in their mouths, and watched each other eat.
    The chocolate was still lumpy, so fail on the
ganache, but the flavor was good.
    “Well?” she said, covering her mouth with her
hand.
    He nodded and licked powdered sugar off his
lips. “Not perfect, but not bad for a first attempt.”
    Karma had been at Single Servings for over
three hours. And she hadn’t died. Honestly, she’d had a good time.
Maybe even a great one. She’d only thought about Mark a couple of
times, but for the most part, she’d kept herself in the moment. And
Brad was nice. She was glad she’d come and bumped into him.
    As the evening wound down and everyone
filtered out—some in pairs or groups, others alone—Brad helped her
into her coat.
    “I’m glad you came tonight,” he said.
    “Me, too.” She started for the door, carrying
her container of truffles.
    “Do you think you’ll be back next week?” He
followed her into the chilly night. The interest in his voice was
unmistakable.
    Was she ready to embark on another journey
with a man other than Mark? If she did this, she would be taking
her first step toward walking away from Mark for good…really saying
good-bye this time. Not like before, when she’d said good-bye but
hadn’t meant it.
    She glanced at Brad, and he smiled
hopefully.
    Brad didn’t seem afraid of commitment. He’d
been married once, and even though he’d been divorced, he was out
here trying to meet someone else, daring to try again despite past
failure, unlike Mark, who had never recovered from being jilted and
a lifetime of letting go of his heart only to have it squashed. If
she sat around waiting for Mark, she would only meet
disappointment. Mark wouldn’t come back. And if he did, he would
never marry her. He would never want a commitment. Brad seemed more
than ready for both.
    “Yes,” she said. “I’ll be back next week.
What about you?”
    His smile lit up his whole face. “I will be
now.” He walked her to her car. “Good night, Karma. Happy
Valentine’s Day. I’ll see you next week.”
    “Happy Valentine’s Day to you, too.” A tiny
bubble of excitement gurgled in her heart.
    As she drove home, she silently thanked Mark
for everything he’d taught her. Without his help, she wasn’t sure
she would have met Brad, and she wasn’t sure she would have felt
enough confidence to talk to him.
    Maybe Jan was right. Maybe Mark’s purpose had
merely been as a catalyst. A stepping-stone from one phase of