Mike walked in the door and noticed how quiet it was in his house. He called out for Amanda. “Amanda, where are you?” he yelled as he looked around. He moved through each room and couldn’t find her.
He finally noticed that her suitcase was gone. “What the hell?” he asked out loud. “What’s going on?”
He dialed her number and waited for her to pick up. Perhaps something happened at home, and she had to fly back quickly. Her dad was having some sort of procedure in the next couple of weeks.
He hadn’t asked what it was, but perhaps he had a heart attack or something, and she flew back to be with him. Surely, she would have left him a note, or something, though. Unless, she was too upset and had hurried out the door to get home.
Mike paced as he waited for her to answer her phone. There was no answer. If she was on a flight though, she wouldn’t be able to answer. Would the call have even gone through? He was sure, he just knew that he had to know if she was okay.
He hadn’t meant to be gone all day long, however, the client had been extremely upset. It had taken him a while to smooth things over, he had to work on a new campaign and prepare him something that was much better, and that would keep the client with his company.
The man had been very difficult, not liking the first several ideas that Mike had come up with, and he had worked late into the night. He’d gotten home a bit after 11 at night. He had expected her to be up waiting for him or sleeping.
She had called him earlier in the night, just to make sure he was okay. Maybe he should have called her back? But, he had been busy trying to save his business, she should understand that.
**
Amanda looked at the phone as it rang, it was Mike. She didn’t want to talk to him, he’d hurt her today, and she had moved to a hotel. She was sure he hadn’t been working all day long. She looked at the time he had finally called, it was almost 11 at night. That meant he might have finally got back to his house.
“Fuck off,” she said as she threw the phone onto the bed. She wanted nothing to do with him. Her heart ached with the pressure of the fresh wounds of heartbreak. She hoped it wouldn’t last too long.
She called Janice and told her that she was in a hotel by the airport.
“Why, what happened?” Janice asked.
“I called him, and he answered it, he was breathing hard. I’m sure he was off having sex with another woman. He laughed at me when I said I had worried that he was on the roadside, dead. So, I hung up on him, he never called me… not until just now, at 11 at night. Fuck him! If I could I’d come back right now! But it is just too expensive to get a flight that quickly,” Amanda said.
“I’m sorry sweetie. Are you sure he was having sex? I mean there are other reasons people breathe heavily. Maybe, he was joking around with you. I don’t know. But, really, did he give you any reason to believe that he was sleeping with another woman?” Janice asked.
“No, not really. But he didn’t call me all day long, he didn’t let me know he was okay. He didn’t even see how I was doing. It was very inconsiderate of him,” Amanda said.
“Honey, you could be right. I mean, he didn’t call you all day long. For a guy who convinced you to stay for extra time and pleaded with you that he wanted to spend all this extra time with you.
“Yeah, I can understand getting called away for work. But, he should have taken the time to call you at least once,” Janice agreed. “I hate to think he was doing it, but really it makes sense. If you are with another woman, you don’t call another one.”
“Yeah, I know, and it explains why he didn’t call me back when I hung up. I didn’t want to admit it either. But, honestly, I don’t think there is any other explanation.”
“I could send you the money to buy the ticket to leave now. How much is it? Or I’ll just buy one, and you can pick it up at the counter. You can’t sit around by yourself for the next ten days and wallow in this misery. It would be best to come home and be with friends and family.”
“I will pay you back, I promise.”
“No need honey, I love you. I don’t want you to be hurting so much. I’ll call you back with the details. How close are you to the airport? Just so I don’t make it impossible for you to reach it in time for the flight,” Janice asked.
“No more than thirty minutes away,” Amanda said.
“Alright, I’ll call you right back.” Janice hung up the phone.
Amanda cried as she waited for Janice to call back. I thought he loved me. Her world crashed around her as her mind continued to play games with her heart.
Amanda picked up her phone when she saw Janice’s name on the display. “Hey Janice.”
“Okay, your flight is on United Airlines, and you leave from Terminal B at 1:45 am. You can pick the ticket up when you check in.”
“Thanks Janice, I will pay you back I promise. I got a new contract with Hope for Paws. They liked a project I did for the class.” She burst into tears as she remembered the seminar with Mike.
“Oh honey, just get to the airport. I’ll pick you up when you get here, and we will talk,” Janice said.
“Okay. I took one of his books. I’ll have to send it back to him later,” Amanda said.
“Don’t worry about these things now, okay. I’ll see you in a while. Try and get some sleep on the way home.”
“I’ll try,” Amanda replied.
**
“Oh, honey, you look horrible.” Janice wrapped her arms around Amanda when she picked her up at Sky Harbor International Airport in Phoenix, when her plan came in.
“Gee, thanks.” Amanda chuckled lightly, though she felt no laughter in her heart.
She had taken the Piers Anthony book from Mike’s house. She held it on the plane, like it was a cherished item. Something that held a piece of Mike in it. But, it hadn’t made her feel any better. Instead it had made her wonder if he had enjoyed the time with the woman, he had left her at home, to go and see.
No matter the betrayal, she still felt the love in her heart for him, and that angered her. She was mad at herself. She wanted to stop feeling anything for Mike. However, she couldn’t stop thinking about him, and wondering why he’d done what he had done.
“Come on, I’ll buy you some of that coffee that you love at the shop near your house,” Janice said.
“Okay.”
They were seated in a corner booth. Amanda had her hands wrapped around the cool coffee drink. She couldn’t have done this in London, it would have been far too cold. But, here in Arizona, it was the perfect drink. The sun was up high in the sky, and it beat down on the desert, the air was warmed to a skin-tingling 80 degrees early in the morning.
She felt a bit revitalized by the warm weather, it helped her feel just a bit better. The woman that sat across from her had made her smile more than once already.
“I missed you so much, Janice. I swear, I wish you could have been there with me.” Amanda smiled at her.
“I would have loved to come along with you. But, this damn merger, I’ve been busy. Too busy, John has been complaining about me not spending any time with him lately. Even though he works in the same office and knows how darn busy I’ve been.” Janice sighed loudly.
“Is everything okay between you two?”
“Yeah, he’s just not been as busy at work, and hasn’t gotten a new case yet. The next one that comes in should be his. Once that happens, he’ll forget about spending time with me!” Janice laughed lightly.
“Good, I’d hate to know everyone else’s life has turned to shit, like mine.” Amanda felt the tears well up as they threatened to spill from her eyes.
“Your life isn’t shit. Look at this new thing with Hope for Paws. That was something that you would have never picked up, if you hadn’t done that project in the seminar. How much are they going to pay you?” Janice asked.
“We still have to go over the details. I’m supposed to go to their corporate office this next week. I really hadn’t planned on getting paid for it, so I have no clue how much, to even try and get in the negotiation,” Amanda admitted.
“This depends on several things. Will you have time to work on other projects, or do they want you full-time? If so, you will need to make up for the money you would lose from the other clients you’ll have to drop, or that you can’t pick up? Make sure to make it worth the time. But, if you are able to still maintain your other business, just make it a nice amount that gives you a bonus.”
“Yeah, I’m not sure yet. Like I said, it was a pretty vague email. So, we will discuss it more when I go and visit the president of the company. I’m not sure if I would want to work with them full-time. I do have some other clients that I have a lot of fun working with, I would miss them.”
“Tell them that you only want to do it part-time then. You are in the driver’s seat with this. Use those amazing business smarts of yours and I’m sure you’ll walk away with a deal that will satisfy you.” Janice smiled.
“You know if it wasn’t for Mike, I would have never thought of this project,” Amanda said as the tears threatened to fall once more.
“How so?”
“I couldn’t think of a charity, when we first got the assignment. He told me, I’m shocked that you didn’t get the correlation. I picked this project and thought of a charity that had to do with animal rescue. Since I had told him about Bow Tie and how I had found her on the street.”
“Hmm, that is true. I would have thought you would have immediately gone with some sort of animal rescue too. Seems like he knew you pretty well, even after just a short time.”
Amanda choked back her tears. “Why did he have to do it, Janice?”
“Maybe he didn’t do anything. I’ve been thinking about this, and it’s not like you saw lipstick on his shirt or found a number in his pocket. So, maybe it was something else. You are going to have to call him one day soon, if for no other reason than to let him know you are sending the book back you borrowed from him.”
“I don’t want to talk to him, though. He hurt me by not letting me know he was okay,” Amanda said. She held up her hand to stop Janice before she talked and added, “I know, it sounds ridiculous. But, I was worried about him, and it was very inconsiderate. I can’t be with someone who doesn’t think about my feelings. After I called him, he should have called me back… but he didn’t!”
Janice shook her head. “You know that I am nothing but honest with you… right?”
Amanda shook her head.
“You really haven’t given him a fair chance. You jumped to conclusions and assumed what you wanted to about this situation. To tell you the truth, I think you were looking for a reason to do what you did. That way you could leave, and not feel bad.
“You could blame him for the failure of the relationship, and not have to try and make it work. That’s what I think. I think you are being a bonehead, and that you need to call him and talk to him. Let him explain his side of the situation, and at least see what he has to say,” Janice said.
“Why didn’t you tell me that while I was still in London? Not that I would have listened,” Amanda answered her own question.
“Exactly right, you would have argued with me, and swore you were right. You wouldn’t have wanted to face that you could be wrong. Because, that would mean that you would still have a long-distance relationship with him.
“That would mean that you would have had to not see him for several months, and I don’t know if you were ever really seriously thinking about if that would work out or not. From the start you kept thinking the only way that it would work was if one of you moved.
“Dear, I have to tell you that there are people all over the world who have been in a long-distance relationship, and they do just fine. You know why? Because they don’t run away from the other person, but they face their problems together. Even when they are separated by thousands of miles.”
Janice took a deep breath. “LOOK, I’m sorry to sound so rude, but I told you that I would never lie to you, and I won’t begin today just to make you feel better.”
Amanda shook her head. “I know. I think I want to go home now.”
“Fine, I’ll take you home, but please at least think of everything I just said to you. I mean… really think about it, and call Mike,” Janice said.
“I’ll think about what you said. As far as calling Mike, maybe… but… not yet. I need to heal a bit before I hear his voice. Right now, I’d believe any lie that he told me, just because my heart aches so much. I want to have given myself a little time, so that I’ll be thinking clearly, and won’t fall for anything.”
“He may not be lying, you just may be lying to yourself about it and what you think happened. Just remember that, okay?”
“I’ll try, but if he doesn’t come up with a good reason for the heavy breathing, well… I’ll just hang up.”
“Damn it, you are one of the most stubborn people I’ve ever met in my life Amanda Sue Cousins.”
Amanda chuckled at the use of her full name. “You know when you say that you remind me of my mom, anytime she would get upset at me!”
“I can see where she was coming from right now!” Janice stated. “Come on, I’ll take you home.”
Amanda stopped by Janice’s car when they got outside and sucked up the heat. “Did I tell you how cold it was there in London? I really missed the sun, I think I saw it one time, for maybe 20 minutes, the whole time I was there.
“The day we went on the boat cruise to the London Eye, it was so cold, Mike held me to keep me warm on the boat.” She stopped talking, she didn’t want to remember this right now. It shot a sharp arrow of pain right into her heart, and her chest ached like she could barely breathe. “Take me home now, please,” she asked Janice.
Janice looked at her. “I’m sorry you feel this way. I really wish you would have just stayed and talked to him. I know, I should have told you this when you were still there. All I could think of when I heard you crying was to get you back so that I could help you feel better. Forgive me for wanting to help my sister.”
Amanda sighed. “I’m not mad at you honey. I’m just disappointed.”
“About what?”
“I thought we had something special. But, that last day before I left, I didn’t feel anywhere close to special. I felt forgotten like a past memory. Like I had already left and he had moved on with his life, and I wouldn’t be a part of it ever again. I was scared, yes, but I was hurt too.
“Yeah, I might have jumped to conclusions, and ran. I just really didn’t know what to do. If he would have come home, I would have freaked out on him. I would have yelled and cried, and he would have sent me away, anyway,” Amanda said.
“You have no idea what his reaction would have been! Now, if you had taken the time to explain how you felt...” Janice pointed out.
“Maybe not,” Amanda admitted.