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Martin was on his way over. Nothing like squeezing in a breakup between a late business meeting and bedtime.
Sophie yawned as she stood by her floor-to-ceiling window and held her glass of Riesling. Not that she needed a cup of courage. She loved good wine, and if loosening her fear of confrontation was a by-product, then she wouldn’t turn it down.
Car lights cut through the darkness and slowly turned into her drive. Taking a sip, Sophie went to unlock her front door. She wasn’t nervous about breaking things off. There was no love, nothing that indicated she wanted a future with a man who put work above her. Besides, there were no sparks. Kissing him was just . . . a kiss.
Kissing Zach was an experience. An experience she didn’t have time to focus on right now.
Before Martin could knock, Sophie had gone to the foyer and opened the door just as he mounted the steps. Gripping the edge of the door in one hand and her wineglass in the other, Sophie offered a smile.
“Thanks for coming by,” she told him, feeling rather silly trying for small talk.
“Is everything okay? You sounded different earlier.” Martin stood just inside the threshold, but shifted as Sophie started to close the door. “I couldn’t get here any earlier, but I’ve been worried about you all evening.”
Which meant he’d actually thought about her during a business meeting. That would be a first.
“Why don’t you come in and sit down,” she suggested.
Before she could walk away, Martin stepped to the side, blocking her path. “Just tell me what’s wrong.”
Holding on to her glass with both hands now, Sophie tipped her chin up and looked into Martin’s worried eyes. She wanted to feel a connection, a spark . . . something to show her that these last six months had led them somewhere, but the longer she stared, the more she realized she’d been with Martin for the wrong reasons. She’d been with him for security and comfort. At first she’d been attracted to him, and they’d been on friendly terms. He’d asked her out and she’d been excited, but the longer they were together, the less he made her a priority.
Not that she was a needy female, but she would like to come before every other thing in a man’s life.
“Martin, I think we need a break.”
There. She said it. Sophie held her breath as she waited on his reaction. She didn’t need to wait long.
“I was waiting for this,” he said, shaking his head with a soft chuckle that held no humor whatsoever. “I knew once you started getting cozy with Zach over this project—”
“No.” Sophie held up her hand. “Zach has nothing to do with this.”
Seriously, he didn’t. She’d been having doubts about Martin and her for a while, but kissing Zach just confirmed that she had no feelings for Martin anymore.
“I just need to concentrate on some other things in my life now, and to be honest, I don’t feel like you’re putting a lot into this relationship.”
She wanted to cringe as those last words left her lips, but she wasn’t sorry she said them. He deserved to know the truth about how she felt.
“So you’re blaming me?” he asked, propping his hands on his hips. “I’m the one who rescheduled everything so I could take you out of town. You’re the one who canceled after you spent some time with those Monroe brothers. Y
ou never will break away from them, will you? You’d think after that accident . . .”
Martin trailed off, muttering a curse beneath his breath. “You know what? Fine. If you want to move on with a guy who doesn’t deserve your loyalty, then you two deserve each other.”
Sophie didn’t have time to say much else as Martin stormed out of her house, leaving her front door wide open. Warm evening air filled the foyer. Sounds from the neighbors filtered in. A car door slamming, kids screaming and playing, laughter. Life around her continued to go on as she stood there wondering how this breakup had turned on her, leaving her feeling guilty and like a terrible person.
On a sigh, Sophie closed the door and locked it. After setting her alarm for the night, she took her glass to the kitchen and finished off the wine, placing her glass in the sink. She wasn’t quite ready for bed, though it was getting late. No way could she sleep now, not when Martin’s parting shot still resounded in her head.
Sophie truly didn’t want to think that her breaking things off with Martin had anything to do with Zach, but she was lying to herself. The breakup with Martin would’ve inevitably come, but since Zach had been part of her life more recently, the split just came a bit sooner.
And mixed in with the guilt also came relief. She didn’t want to keep stringing Martin along, not when her heart wasn’t in their relationship. Anything between them had fizzled out long before Zach’s lips touched hers.
Still, she should’ve known, the moment she realized she’d never sleep with Martin, that he needed to be out of her life. She’d only been with two men in her life. Partly because of her scars from the accident, partly because she just didn’t feel a connection to many people. Intimacy wasn’t something she took lightly, but if she couldn’t be with someone that way, then she didn’t need to waste time dating him.
Sophie turned off the lights in the house and headed to her bedroom. She wanted to look through those binders Zach had left on her porch. She’d come home earlier and there they were on her porch swing. No note, nothing but the binders. Stupid jerk couldn’t even leave a note.
What would he say if he did write something? Sorry I’m a jerk. I’ve been this way since you’ve known me. Here are the binders.
But seriously, what did she expect? Zach was a man of few words when they were face-to-face. Did she honestly figure he’d pen something on a Post-it note?
