Obsession Falls(2)

But right as I started to say her name, she spoke.

“Josiah, I think we should talk.”

I was not known for being in touch with my feelings—or having feelings—but that was a phrase that could make any man’s stomach clench with an icy spasm of dread.

“About what?”

She took a deep breath. “I got a job offer. It’s a promotion. A big one.”

“That’s great.” It was good news. So why did I still feel so tense?

“Thanks.” She smiled. “I didn’t even tell you I was applying because I assumed I didn’t have a chance.”

“Why would you assume that? You’re amazing.”

“I don’t know. It just seemed like such a long shot. There had to have been so many applicants.”

I reached across the table and took her hand. “Then they made the right choice.”

Her smile grew but just as quickly, it faded. She pulled her hand away. “The thing is, it’s outside San Francisco.”

It took a second for the implications to register. “So it’s not remote? You have to move?”

She nodded.

My problem-solving brain kicked in, a list of options with pros and cons already forming. “Okay. When?”

“They want me there as soon as possible. I’ll stay in corporate housing until I find a place. So, next week.”

I leaned back. “That fast?”

She nodded again.

“Okay.” I tapped a finger on the table. The server came back but I gave him a hard glare and he backed away. “San Francisco isn’t Mars. We can make it work.”

“Oh, Josiah.”

“What? It’s not ideal but we can figure it out.”

She pressed her lips together but didn’t say anything.

The icy dread settled over me, like a chill freezing me from the inside. “You don’t want to figure it out, do you?”

“I just don’t see how. Your whole life is here. Your work and your family. Could you really see yourself relocating to a different state?”

“Were you going to give me the chance to answer that question for myself?”

“I know you. You wouldn’t be happy in San Francisco.”

I stared at her for a moment. “So you didn’t think we should talk about it? You already accepted the position.”

“Of course I did. I couldn’t pass this up.”

I nodded slowly. I supported her career—always had. It made her happy and that was great.

But I’d kind of thought I made her happy, too.

My hand skimmed over the outside of my pants pocket, the outline of the ring indistinct through the fabric. Maybe I shouldn’t have thought she’d choose me over a promotion. But I realized as I looked at her that I had. I’d thought we would be in this together.

Apparently I’d been wrong.

The hollow ache in my chest made it hard to breathe. Cassandra hadn’t put the ache there—she hadn’t given me that wound. But she was sure as hell ripping it wide open again.

“I knew you wouldn’t understand.” Her tone took on a hint of defensiveness. “You grew up here so this is just normal life to you. But this town is too small for me. I can’t stay here for the rest of my life.”

“No, I get it.” I turned my gaze toward the front door; I couldn’t look her in the eyes anymore. “You need to do what’s best for you. And what’s best for you isn’t me.”

“Don’t make this about you. This is about my career, my dreams. I’m finally getting somewhere.”

For a moment, I thought about taking the ring out and setting it on the table, so she’d know. So she’d see what she was giving up.

But I didn’t. It wouldn’t matter. She didn’t want that life, and more importantly, she didn’t want me.

I got up and tossed some money on the table to cover what we’d ordered. She started to protest, telling me to sit down. I ignored her. I was done. Without a word, I walked out and didn’t look back.

She was wrong about one thing. I did understand. She wasn’t the first woman to make that choice where I was concerned.

But she was sure as hell going to be the last. I wouldn’t give someone else that chance again.





CHAPTER 2





Audrey





One glance at the half-circle driveway and I couldn’t help but think this was all a huge mistake.

“What do you think, Max?”

His bushy tail thumped against the passenger seat as he looked out the window.

“Of course you’re excited. You’re a dog. Everything is fun.”

He kept wagging his tail while his tongue lolled out of his mouth.

My childhood home looked oddly cold in the June sun. It was stately and imposing, with a stone fa?ade and tall double doors. The landscaping added to the look of formality—precisely trimmed shrubs lined the driveway and the lawn could have doubled as a golf course.

It had always been important to my parents that everything be just so. Especially on the outside.

“Here goes nothing.”

I turned onto the driveway and parked, trying to ignore how this felt like failure.

Almost every inch of my little Honda Civic was packed with stuff. Spatial abilities weren’t exactly my thing, so I was impressed that I’d fit as much as I had.