“Sorry, Lily. What is it?”
“Um…you have a call from someone in New York about an apartment?”
What the hell would anyone be calling me for? I’d already sold my apartment.
“Are you sure it’s the right name?”
“They asked for you specifically.”
I didn’t really have time for this, but hopefully, it would be a quick call to clear up any confusion. “Sure, put it through.”
She nodded and hustled back to her desk. Grabbing the phone, I hit the blinking button.
“This is Ryder Lawson.”
“Ryder,” Bianca breathed, her voice sending me into a swirling vortex I did not need right now.
“Bianca, why are you calling me?”
“Ryder, I need your help.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, holding back the urge to yell at her for contacting me. We’d already settled everything. There was nothing more to say.
But I’d spent years with this woman. I couldn’t walk away as easily as I wanted.
“What is it?”
“I’m having trouble getting home.”
“What do you mean? You said you were leaving months ago.”
“I know, but my passport is expired, and I…I don’t have any money.”
“Why the hell didn’t you renew it?”
“Because I didn’t think I would need it,” she snapped. “I thought I would be married by now.”
“That doesn’t mean you should neglect basic paperwork,” I argued. “What about your papers? Is everything in order?”
“I’m still waiting on something from the consulate. I can’t apply for a new passport without the proper documentation.”
“I thought you handled all this,” I bit out angrily. “You said you took care of all this.”
“I know, Ryder!” she cried. “I waited, though.”
“Why?”
“Because I thought I would be getting a marriage visa,” she snapped. “It seemed silly to apply for a residency card when we were going to get married. It’s so much paperwork and it takes forever to go through. I thought it would be easier just to wait.”
Getting pissed at her would not help anything right now, and even though I didn’t owe her a damn thing, I couldn’t just walk away either.
“Alright, when did you apply for the passport?”
“Two months ago.”
“What did your lawyer say?”
“He said it could take another few weeks. The embassy is asking for all this paperwork that I don’t have. I’m waiting for my parents to send it over, but it has to be the original documents, and all of that takes time.”
