All Chapters of Love, signed in the City.: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

The espresso machine hissed like it was personally offended, spitting out another shot that smelled burnt before it even hit the cup. Evelyn Harper wiped her forehead with the back of her wrist, leaving a faint streak of steamed milk across her skin. Tuesday night crowd half tourists, half locals pretending they weren’t tourists and every single one of them wanted something complicated.“Extra-hot oat-milk latte with two pumps sugar-free vanilla and a sprinkle of cinnamon on top only, please,” the woman in front of her said, not looking up from her phone.Evelyn forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Got it.”She turned to steam the milk, catching her reflection in the shiny metal of the machine. Hair twisted up in a messy knot, apron stained with today’s roster of spills, dark circles that no amount of concealer could hide anymore. Twenty-seven looked a lot different when rent was three weeks late and your last painting sold for the price of a decent brunch.The café Bean & L

The Next day,Evelyn woke to the sound of her upstairs neighbor practicing drum solos at seven-thirty in the morning. Again!.She groaned, rolled over, and slapped her phone to silence the alarm she hadn’t even needed. Her studio apartment was already too loud, too cold, and too real. Sunlight leaked through the crooked blinds, striping the peeling hardwood floor in dusty gold. The air smelled faintly of turpentine and yesterday’s burnt toast.She lay there for a minute, staring at the ceiling crack that looked suspiciously like a lightning bolt. Same crack she’d been meaning to mention to her landlord for the last year. Same one who’d slipped that red FINAL NOTICE under her door two days ago.Rent due: December 1.Grace period ends: December 31.Current balance in checking: $312.47.She squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them again. No magic deposit had appeared overnight. Shocker.Her gaze drifted to the nightstand. The black card sat exactly where she’d left it, propped against h

The rain stopped sometime after midnight.Evelyn noticed because the constant drumming on her window finally went quiet, leaving the city strangely hushed. She’d been painting for hours brush in one hand, phone in the other, music low in her earbuds. Indigo and rose and gold spilling across the canvas like she was trying to exorcise the decision hanging over her.She’d started with anger—harsh strokes, dark edges. Then frustration. Then something softer. Hope, maybe. Or fear disguised as hope.By 2 a.m. the piece was nearly done. Not perfect. But honest.She stepped back. Wiped her hands on her thighs, leaving streaks on her old leggings.The contract sat on the kitchen counter, printed and annotated and staring at her like it had opinions.Lila had left around ten, after three hours of pros/cons, prosecco, and one tearful hug.“You don’t have to save the world, Ev,” she’d said at the door. “Just yourself. And if that means saying yes to the hot billionaire with the penthouse view, th

Evelyn didn’t sleep.She lay in the dark, staring at the ceiling, Alexander’s words looping in her head like a song she couldn’t shake.I need a wife.One year.One million dollars.Separate bedrooms.Separate lives.She rolled onto her side, pulled the blanket over her head like that could block it out. It didn’t.At 3:17 a.m. she gave up, padded to the kitchen, and made tea. Peppermint again. The cheap stuff that came in bulk boxes because it was all she could afford.She sat on the couch with her knees tucked under her, mug warming her hands, and opened her phone.The text thread was still there.No new messages.She opened Safari instead. Typed his name again.This time she went deeper.Articles about his childhood—father a gambler who lost everything, mother gone early, Alexander building his first real estate flip at twenty-one with money he’d saved from three jobs. Photos of him at twenty-five, already sharp-suited and serious. Headlines about hostile takeovers, record-breaking

The rain stopped sometime after midnight. Evelyn noticed because the constant drumming on her window finally went quiet, leaving the city strangely hushed. She’d been painting for hours—brush in one hand, phone in the other, music low in her earbuds. Indigo and rose and gold spilling across the canvas like she was trying to exorcise the decision hanging over her. She’d started with anger—harsh strokes, dark edges. Then frustration. Then something softer. Hope, maybe. Or fear disguised as hope. By 2 a.m. the piece was nearly done. Not perfect. But honest. She stepped back. Wiped her hands on her thighs, leaving streaks on her old leggings. The contract sat on the kitchen counter, printed and annotated and staring at her like it had opinions. Lila had left around ten, after three hours of pros/cons, prosecco, and one tearful hug. “You don’t have to save the world, Ev,” she’d said at the door. “Just yourself. And if that means saying yes to the hot billionaire with the penthouse