I hurried to the door, which swung open immediately. Standing there were my boyfriend, Vlad, Max’s wife, Larisa, and our mutual friend, Mira, who was supposed to have arrived an hour ago.
My eyes darted to Larisa, who was a real stunner. This woman had deep auburn hair that shimmered with fiery hues in the sunlight, striking tiger-like eyes, and an incredible figure. With her natural assets, she could’ve been a model, but her height held her back—she was barely over five foot three.
A sudden knot twisted in my stomach. Why was Max showing interest in me when I was nothing like his wife?
My face wasn’t sculpted by angels but by clumsy amateurs. They did an okay job, I guess, but my nose could’ve been narrower, my lips fuller, and my eyes much bigger.
Not that I had any real insecurities. Over the years, I’d gotten plenty of compliments from guys, but I always kept a level head—there were definitely prettier girls out there than me.
“Didn’t miss us too much, did you?” Larisa asked as she stepped into the apartment first.
“Nope,” I replied, feeling my tongue grow heavy, like it was made of lead. My body’s reaction scared me.
“Good, because the lines at the store were insane. And don’t even get me started on the old lady in front of us who insisted on checking if the herring was fresh…”
“Larisa, don’t remind me. It was a total mess,” Vlad chimed in as he followed her inside. The scent of the cologne I’d given him that morning hit my nose, along with the sight of his dark hair and gray eyes.
He was the reason for tonight’s gathering—it was his birthday again. We’d initially planned a quiet celebration, but then decided to invite friends over and have some fun.
“What happened?” I asked.
“She opened the package with the fish and started making everyone around her smell it to confirm it was okay,” Mira answered, a curvy blonde with a bob haircut.
She and I had gone to college together. Mira was super sweet and funny, never shy about cracking jokes at her own expense regarding her weight, and always the first to approach guys. Surprisingly, they often reciprocated. And let’s just say Mira had a type—buff, good-looking guys whom she’d inexplicably dump after a month.
“That’s awful,” I said, shaking my head while my eyes tracked Larisa. She walked over to her husband, sat beside him, and started hugging and kissing him on the lips. If only she knew what had almost happened just a minute ago...
“Zoe, what’s up with you?” Vlad asked, pulling bottles of liquor out of a big bag. They’d gone to get drinks half an hour ago.
I looked into the steely eyes of my boyfriend of five years. A faint wave of shame rocked through me. My hands, which had just been holding Max’s, started to tremble. But why was I so worked up? I hadn’t cheated on him...
Why these doubts? I didn’t know...
But I loved Vlad and would always be with him. That much I knew for sure. A fleeting moment of passion couldn’t destroy a relationship we’d built over so many years, through so many challenges.
When we first started dating, everything was like a fairy tale—flowers almost every day, chocolates, the works. But after two years, when we moved in together, things didn’t quite go as I’d imagined.
We started having frequent arguments over little things. Someone didn’t do the dishes, left clothes lying around, forgot to put the soup in the fridge—stuff like that.
It was tough at first, but we got through those rough patches. Now, we didn’t have those kinds of issues anymore, though one thing still bothered me. After all these years together, Vlad still hadn’t proposed.
I get that in today’s world, marriage is just a formality. What matters is love and mutual understanding. But still, I wanted to wear a white dress and feel like a princess.
“I’m fine,” I finally answered.
“You seem upset about something,” he pressed.
“Oh, she’s just bummed because no one’s poured her a drink in a while,” Mira interjected, lightening the mood as she set a bottle of wine on the table. “Enough moping around. Let’s raise a glass to the birthday boy!”
I forced a smile, and Vlad bought it. We all sat back down at the table and started celebrating. No one suspected a thing about what had happened here, but Max’s glances from across the table kept reminding me.