Scott made a few more attempts to reach me through relatives and mutual acquaintances, but I changed my number and moved on.
Six months later I bought myself a simple gold ring with one word engraved inside. Mine.
Around that time my business grew quickly. I hired an assistant named Grace Miller and a junior designer named Jordan Patel. We worked from a small studio office near the Chicago River where sunlight spilled through tall windows.
One evening I attended an art gallery opening in the River North district and met a landscape architect named Ethan Walker. He was calm and thoughtful and listened when people spoke.
During our conversation he said, “Design is planning beauty so people can live inside it.”
I liked that sentence.
Our first few dates were simple. One night he cooked pasta in his apartment and said casually, “If you would rather go out instead, that is totally fine.”
The presence of choice surprised me in a way I had not expected.
Months later I ran into Scott at a hardware store in Oak Park while comparing pendant lights for a client kitchen.
“Rebecca,” he said awkwardly.
“Hello Scott.”
He shifted uncomfortably. “You look good.”
“Thank you.”