The next day at work, I was excited to see Michael again, but I knew we wouldn’t get much time to talk. He was in and out of meetings all day. There was a new client deal coming up. The only times I saw Michael were when he was in the presence of others. I had to act normal and professional, and he did the same. There were no stolen glances or loving smiles exchanged, but I couldn’t blame him. He was at work.

At six, I knocked on his door to ask if he needed me. I wanted to go home early so I could get ready for the party later. Michael was in a meeting with his team, and he dismissed me quickly. I itched to ask him about the party – for any hint of whether he remembered – but I didn’t have a chance.

On my way home, I texted him instead.

Will I see you later? We didn’t really get a chance to talk today

I knew he wouldn’t have the chance to see or reply to my text for a while – not until the meeting was over. I wouldn’t mind if he was late, just as long as he turned up. Just so he could finally meet my friends.

I was looking forward to the evening. More than just turning twenty-five, I was excited about this new turn in my life.

***

It was nine o’clock and all my friends were at MacCauley’s.

I dressed up for the occasion in a new blue dress I thought Michael would like. Suzy, Clara and three of my other friends were surrounding me at our table, trying to keep me distracted. They were all aware that my new boyfriend was supposed to join us.

I checked my phone repeatedly, but there was no response from Michael. I considered calling him or texting him again, but Suzy told me not to. She suggested that I wait for another half hour and see how it goes.

Then, it was nine-thirty and I was about to get up from the table and call him. I was hopeful that maybe it was just a lengthy meeting and he hadn’t been able to get out of it yet. That maybe he was just on his way.

My phone beeped and I saw it was Michael.

Hey, I have to go for drinks with a new client. I’ll see you at work tomorrow.

I read the message three times before I finally looked up from my phone. My friends could see the distress on my face.

“Oh, honey!” Clara moved from her chair and came to sit down beside me. I flung my arms around her, hiding my face in her shoulder with shame.

“I don’t know what I was thinking!” I whimpered. Suzy came over to sit beside me too.

“What’s going on?” my friend, Janie, asked.

Clara took my phone from me and read Michael’s message.

“He’s not coming. He has some client-entertainment to do!” she spat the words out, rolling her eyes in disgust.

“I should have known . . . ” I sniffled, pulling away from them. “I should have known he wouldn’t change. Everything he told me was a lie. He said all those things just to get me in his bed.” I started to cry.

My friends closed in on me, but none of their soothing words were helping. This was all my fault. I’d brought it upon myself. I was foolish enough to think that he could change. The truth was that Michael Sole would never care about anything other than his work. I was never going to be important enough to him.

“Aria, you need to break out of this cycle,” Clara said firmly.

I looked up to see her glaring at me.

“Do you understand what I’m saying? You need to quit that job and get away from him,” she insisted. Suzy was shaking her head behind Clara.

“He’s going to seduce you again. He’ll find a way to do it. You have feelings for him, and he’s taking advantage of that,” Suzy agreed.

I wiped the tears away from my cheeks and nodded. “Yes, you’re right. You guys have been right all along. I need to get out of there before he ruins me!” I cried.

“Aria, if you’re looking for a new job, I have a lead you can follow up on,” Janie interjected. I looked at her with crossed brows. “My aunt is the principal at a school for disabled children. She’s looking for a new office manager and I’m sure you’d be the perfect fit,” Janie informed us. My heart skipped a beat. A new job. A world outside of Michael Sole.

“Yes. I’m interested. When can I meet your aunt?” I asked. The tears were subsiding. There was still hope for me.

“Tomorrow, if you want. The only thing is, the school is not in Chicago. It’s in Wisconsin – a small town called Lake Geneva,” Janie said. I’d heard of Lake Geneva. It was a beautiful quiet town some hours away from Chicago. The farther from Michael, the better!

“She’ll go!” Suzy spoke for me.

Janie smiled. “Great! I’ll let my aunt know that you’ll drive down to meet her tomorrow. Trust me, Aria, you’ll love it there,” Janie exclaimed. 

Clara and Suzy were hugging me tightly again.

“If you get the job . . . which we know you will . . . we will miss you, Aria,” Clara said, teary-eyed.

“But this is best for you. A fresh start in a new place, away from all the things that have been going on in your life,” Suzy said and I nodded my head, still wiping tears from my eyes.

“Thank you, guys. Thanks, Janie. I’ll miss you guys too, but we’ll see each other often, I’m sure. I just need to get out of here. I need to make a fresh start and I can’t rely on a man to do it for me,” I said, holding my head high.