"All of this to get Isadora out of the picture?" I shake my head. It's unreasonable and extreme. Granted, I don't like her, but there has to be a solution beyond him selling me out.
"I want her to start a new life away from here." He folds his arms over his chest. "She'd relocate to Washington. The past would finally be in the past and you and I can move forward without the threat of her over us."
"She's just an ex-girlfriend." I try and laugh it off. "She'll get over you eventually. It doesn't matter if she's sitting in the office next to you or in an office in D.C."
"You don't know her the way I do, Maya."
"I'm a woman. I know what it feels like to have my heart broken by someone I love." I hate dredging up my past but I feel the need to. "I wasn’t ready to let go of my ex either, Julian."
"You're nothing like Isadora." He clenches his hands into tight fists. "She was waiting for me outside my apartment the other night. She wanted to know who I was fucking. She will push and push until she pushes you away."
I finally see things clearly. This isn't all about his freedom from Isadora. This is about his fear of losing me.
"If you sign off on that deal, you are only prolonging the inevitable." My voice rises out of pure frustration. "She'll go to Washington and pine for you from afar. She'll still look at your social media accounts every day and pick apart every single post. She'll call you for no reason but to hear your voice. Sending her away won't change anything, Julian."
"It will give me breathing room." The exasperation in his tone is evident. "I don’t expect you to understand any of this, Maya. How could you?"
"I lived it," I say softly. "I was just like Isadora once."
I sipthe glass of water he got me. He hasn't said anything since I told him that I was like Isadora. I know he's waiting for an explanation and I have to give him one. I suck in a deep breath because this is going to take all the courage I possess.
"I moved to New York City because of a man."
Unease floats over his expression. He's sitting again now, next to me. He's stoic and silent.
"I fell in love with a man in San Francisco. He was the man I told you about."
"The man who left you for his ex." It's a statement, not a question. "I assumed that ended when he left you."
"It should have." I clench my hands together on the table. "I loved him or felt that I did at the time. I wasn't willing to accept his decision."
"So you followed him to New York?"
"I followed him and his wife to New York," I clarify. "I couldn't breathe knowing he was in a different state so I packed up my things and came here. I rented a small apartment and applied to college. I found a part-time job."
"Was he aware that you followed him across the country?" There's no readable inflection in his voice at all. I can't tell what he's thinking or feeling.
I shift in my seat, the restless energy I feel gnawing at me. "I sought him out often. I showed up at his work, followed him when he took her out. I essentially stalked them both."
It's difficult to admit. I was damn lucky at the time that neither of them called the police. If they had, my life would be much different.
"Why, Maya?" He studies my face. "Why did you do it?"
I hold his gaze while I answer. "I thought he was the only man I'd ever love. I wanted him with such force that it obliterated all common sense. I was determined to be the one he chose. I'd convinced myself that he'd realize his mistake and come back to me, so in my mind, being in New York made sense."
"How was this resolved?"
I chuckle because I could never have predicted the outcome. "I eventually gave up because he made it clear repeatedly that I was not the woman for him."
"Does he live here? Do you ever seek him out now?" He leans forward to rest both elbows on the table.
"I have no idea where he is now. I don't care." I look at the documents on the table. "The last time I saw him was years ago. He'd heard I was a rental agent and he needed a place to live. He split from his wife and he came to me."
I take a deep breath and go on, "I didn't feel a thing for him anymore but he told me he loved me and wanted me back."
His eyebrows lift with a silent question, so I answer it.
"I told him I didn't love him anymore and I couldn't help him."
