Jones sat alone in his living room, or rather, an airbnb he had rented to stay at for the next couple of days as he could now afford these little luxuries.

The divorce papers were still in the drawer—unsigned, unfiled, but inevitable. He could feel it the way he felt a storm coming in his knees. He knew he could no longer afford this, if anything, it had become an impossibility as Aiysha wasn't backing down this time.

His wife, Aiysha, had already checked out. Not because of another man. Not because of abuse or neglect. She just didn't feel that deep, longing connection anymore. Jones knew he was partly responsible. He had driven her to this. But he also knew something else.

This only became relevant when she started interacting with Kyle.

He couldn't blame Kyle. That wasn't fair. Kyle hadn't done anything wrong—hadn't made a move, hadn't crossed a line. But Jones noticed. The little moments. The way Aiysha laughed at something Kyle said. The way she mentioned his name randomly in conversations as well with a smile on her face. Now, all of this in itself didn't mean much as this was the sort of person she was at the end of the day.

She had even gotten Kyle into the gym as a favor. A personal relationship, growing in plain sight, not behind his back.

If anything, Jones thought, Kyle probably helped them last as long as they did which was true as he gave Aiysha advice that ultimately favored Jones.

Because before Kyle, Aiysha had already been drifting. Kyle just made her realize how far gone she really was.

Jones picked up his phone. Scrolling aimlessly. Then he saw it.

A story. Kyle's story. Plane windows, clouds, a coffee cup with a London skyline in the background.

"He left the country?" Jones was speechless.

No warning. No mention. Just gone.

Jones stared at the post for a long time. Unlike Aiysha, who had probably just stared and said nothing, Jones did something different.

He opened the chat.

His thumbs hovered over the keyboard. Then he typed.

[[Jones: Hey. Saw your story. You in London?]]

Three dots appeared. Then stopped. Then appeared again.

[[Kyle: Yeah. Just got here. Quick trip.]]

[[Jones: You never mentioned you were leaving.]]

A pause.

[[Kyle: Didn't think anyone would notice.]]

Jones almost laughed. Anyone?

[[Jones: My wife must have noticed. She's been... different lately.]]

He regretted sending it immediately. Too honest. Too vulnerable.

But Kyle's response came fast.

[[Kyle: Different how?]]

[[Jones: Hard to explain. She just seems distant. Has been for a while. Started around when you two started talking more.]]

He added quickly:

[[Jones: Not blaming you. Just an observation.]]

Another pause. Longer this time.

[[Kyle: I get it. Relationships are complicated. I'm sorry you're going through that.]]

Kyle didn't want to try and solve their marriage drama over the phone but a brief replay of his semen all over Aiysha's face did play in his head.

Either way, their marriage problems could wait until he got back.

Jones stared at the screen. Complicated. That was one word for it.

[[Jones: Thanks. Anyway, enjoy your trip. Sorry for the random message.]]

[[Kyle: No need to apologize. Take care of yourself, Jones.]]

Jones set the phone down. The conversation was over, but the thoughts weren't.

He's not the reason, Jones told himself. But he was there. And that meant something.

He looked toward the bedroom where Aiysha was should have been on but this wasn't the cass unflrtunately.

The distance between them felt like miles.

Jones picked up his phone again. Scrolled past Kyle's story. Then put it back down.

Some questions didn't have answers. And some answers didn't matter anymore.

-

It had been almost a day+ since the flight and they had left the country which meant they had arrived.

Kyle made sure they were checked into the best of hotels, The Lanesborough hotel's exclusive Royal Suite.

It was crazy expensive but it wasn't something that moved Kyle, money was just an accessory to him right now. It was easily $40,000 a night.

The ladies were all checked in, Kyle was in the heart of London which made it easier to move.

The ladies were all settled in, they were suffering from the time-zone change, not to mention the exhaustion in their bodies despite being on first class.

Kyle had a bizarre conversation with Jones but he didn't think nothing of it, he wondered if Aiysha had told him what happened but doubted they had even spoken ever since their little fight.

Kyle took the picture Nakamura gave him of Angelica, he knew it could wait but before Kyle could speak, a man in his sixties appeared out of nowhere.

He startled Kyle nonetheless, but Kyle was staring at a harmless looking man.

"Trouble with the wife?" The man asked but Kyle raised a brow because he wasn't sensing any accent in this man's voice.

"Is he a foreigner like me?" Kyle thought to himself but the man offered him a cigarette.

Kyle wasn't a smoker and knew this must be a friendly gesutre.

"I'm sorry. I don't smoke," Kyle turned him down politely.

"Oh? Neither do I but you would be surprised by how many conversations can be started with a cigarette in this country," The man said and Kyle wondered if he carried cigarettes everywhere he went just to start a conversation.

"I'm Anthony but my friends call me Tony," The man finally introduced himself.

"I guess I will be calling you Anthony," Kyle said outright. He had a lot on his mind, this interaction was the least of his trouble.

This man was bothering, he probably had nothing else to do with his time.

"Hahahah! You are funny!" Anthony laughed his ass out, Kyle was taken aback by it because it sounded so childlike.

"What the hell..." Kyle thought to himself but this man had a vibe that felt infectious.

And judging from the look of things, he was another resident in this luxurious hotel.

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