I Crossed the World for Him, But He Chose Her Chapter 07
The color drained from his face. He staggered back. It took several deep breaths before he steadied himself.
“I’ll respect your decision. I won’t contact you again.”
But I’ll wait for you. Forever.
That stubborn old look was carved into his face. I frowned, ready to talk him out of it, but he turned and walked away. His tall frame hunched under the streetlights. Alone.
He kept his word. He vanished.
But a month later, Mia resurfaced.
“What did you say to him?” Her scream had lost every trace of its former poise. “He blocked me! Changed his address! If you don’t even want him, why can’t you just let us be?”
She choked on a sob. “I love him, Jo. I really love him.”
Irrelevant.
“You brought this on yourself,” I said coldly.
“Please! Make him unblock me! He’ll listen to you! Just just fix this!”
I actually laughed. “Why would I do that?”
“I’ll do anything! Whatever you want! Just let us be together!”
—
I sighed. “He doesn’t love you, Mia.”
“Liar! He let me touch him! He never pushed me away!”
She scrambled for evidence, her voice climbing higher with every example. I listened with the same detachment I’d felt standing in that freezing station.
“Can’t you see?” I interrupted softly. “He only let you close when he wanted to hurt me.”
Just as he’d said: “She’s basically one of the guys. Not my type.”
Exactly. Mia was never what he wanted. That was why I’d never taken his games with her seriously.
“Shut up! Stop lying to yourself!” Mia shrieked. Then her cries turned hysterical. Twenty-seven years of loneliness, and the first thing she’d ever truly wanted turned out to be a mirage.
Humiliation and heartbreak warped her voice into something ugly.
I hung up.
Months passed. My contract in France wrapped up smoothly. I returned to New York and stepped into a senior position.
That night, friends showered me with gifts and champagne well past midnight.
As I walked into my brownstone, a ringtone filled the air.
—
Soft jazz. My favorite song.
I stood in the dark hallway and let it ring until it stopped.
Then I drank a glass of water, set the glass down, walked into the bathroom, and gently closed the door behind me.