Mia's POV
The soft golden rays of the early afternoon sun filtered through the lace curtains of the small café tucked behind a row of bookstores downtown. I sipped slowly on my lavender tea, trying to calm the quiet war going on in my head. Things with Ryan had been… complicated. Almost too complicated.
Just as I was about to spiral again, a familiar voice jolted me back to the present.
"MIA WALLS! You look like someone stole your last plushie!" Paula Deen's laughter rang through the air before she slid into the seat across from me.
I blinked, startled. Then the weight lifted from my chest, and I jumped up and hugged her tightly. "Paula! You're back!"
"Yup! Tokyo was a whirlwind, and so was the conference. I even brought you the cutest bento box ever," she said with a wink, pulling a panda-themed lunchbox from her tote.
I laughed. "You never change."
"And you're still giving kids plushies and being the sunshine of pediatrics, aren't you?" she teased before leaning in. "But seriously… spill. You look like your brain has been doing backflips since I sat down."
I bit my lip, hesitating. "It's… a lot. There's this man. And… a marriage."
Paula blinked once. Then twice.
"You're married?! You—Mia Walls?! And I missed the wedding?! Wait. Is it that icy-hot jerk who drives the limited-edition Maybach?!"
I nearly choked on my tea. "Paula!"
"What?! You always mention the guy in your rants. Cold. Arrogant. Makes you want to stab your pen into a pillow… but also stupidly hot? That one?"
I groaned, covering my face. "It's not what you think. It's… complicated. Really complicated."
Paula stared at me for a beat, then reached across the table and squeezed my hand. "Whatever it is, I'm here. And I'm not judging. But if he hurts you, I know how to stitch up wounds and punch hard. Just saying."
I laughed through my tears, grateful. Somehow, Paula always knew when to come back into my life—right when I needed her most.