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I sit down on the edge of the bed. “Not particularly.”
She takes the chair and studies me as she takes a sip. “Mm. This is good stuff. Look, I know you don’t want to hear this, but Zoe isn’t right for you.”
Rubbing a hand over my face, I say, “You’re right. I don’t want to hear it.”
“She doesn’t have what it takes to be with a man like you. She needs regular. You know? A nice guy with a nine-to-five job.”
“I am a nice guy with a nine-to-five job.”
She snorts. “You gave it all up for her, and this is how she treats you.”
My muscles tense, tightening my shoulders. “Did you come here to criticize my wife?”
“I knew this was going to happen. I knew she was going to dump you and throw it all back into your face.”
“So,” I lean back on an arm, “you came here to tell me I told you so?”
She leaves the glass on the table and gets to her feet. Walking over to me, she unzips the dress. “I came here to offer you consolation.”
Her perfume makes my nostrils itch. It’s young and sophisticated like green apples and cherry blossoms. It’s nothing like roses.
Stepping out of her panties, she bunches them in a fist and drags them over my chin before bending down and bundling them in my jacket pocket while whispering in my ear, “You can even keep the trophy.”
I shove her away. “Stop it, Fran. Don’t embarrass yourself.”
She stumbles a step. Hurt twists with tears in her eyes. “I waited for you. I waited for you, Maxime. I waited for this day.”
“For the day Zoe kicks me out?”
She reaches for me. “For the day you realize how wrong you’ve been about her.”
Catching her wrist, I stand. “I’ve been wrong about some things, but Zoe isn’t one of them.”
She yanks free of my hold. “How can you be so blind? You used to be the boss. What are you now, Max? Huh? What have you become for her? A weak man, a pussy. With me, that would’ve never happened.”
Her words run off me like water. They don’t move me. They don’t spark anger. They don’t matter. I don’t care. I do see now that keeping Fran on my payroll was a mistake.
“I thought you’d moved on,” I say. “Clearly, that was my error.”
“What?” Nostrils flaring, she locks her fingers into fists. “What are you saying?”
“It’ll be better that you hand in your resignation than letting me fire you.”
Her face goes white. “I need that job.”
“I’ll give you a good letter of recommendation. I can even put in a good word for you with a few of my contacts.”
She grabs the lapels of my jacket. “No, Maxime. Please!”
Taking her wrists, I move her hands away. “This has gone on for too long. I let it go too far. As I said, it’s my mistake. I’ll carry the blame.”
“I have bills to pay!”
“I’ll pay you six months’ salary. That should tie you over until you find another job.”
“Six months?” she cries out. “That’s what I’m worth to you?”
“You’re an employee. Nothing more. I’m treating you more than fairly.”
Wiping her nose with her hand, she says, “Okay, look, I understand.”
“That’s a mature approach.”
“Just let me finish this month. Give me time to get my ducks in a row. You know how it will look if you make me walk before the month is over.”
It will spell out in capital letters that she’s been fired. “At the end of this month, you’re out.”
Pulling her shoulders square, she says, “Your loss.”
“You should go now.”
She stares up at me. At one time, I thought she was attractive. The only pretty I see now is Zoe. My wife. The irony is too funny not to laugh. The sound is hollow. I married the woman who doesn’t want me and am throwing out the one who does.
She pinches her lips together. “You’re an asshole.”
“I know. If it makes you feel any better, I’m not laughing at you. The joke is on me.”
Her green eyes soften. “You really feel for her, don’t you?”
“More than I’ve ever felt. So much, it’s fucking frightening.” Which is why I’m here. To get my shit together. To find my control. Maybe to punish Zoe a little in a disgustingly immature way.
She sniffs. “It’s cold. May I please borrow your jacket? I’ll drop it off when I come in to work tomorrow.”
Shrugging out of the pinstripe, I hand it to her. “Want me to call you a taxi?”
She slips on the jacket without bothering to zip up the dress. “I’m good.” Pulling the sides of the jacket around her, she walks from the room.
I’m left alone once more with these feelings, and fuck me if I can make any sense of anything better than before.
Chapter 13
Zoe
“What do you want, Alexis?” I ask, backing into the kitchen. The phone Maxime gave me is still in my hand. I clutch it tightly.
