Julian

 

 

"Why would I leave the organization?" Isadora doesn't glance up from where she's sitting in her usual perch behind her desk. "I built this company up just as you did. I have every right to be here."

I curse under my breath with an exasperated sigh. This discussion began via text last night near the end of my dinner meeting with Chloe. Isadora sent me a text asking me to meet her for a drink to discuss a contract related to the Bishop Hotel in Paris.

She'd received a call from our lawyer there yesterday morning and instead of asking me about it during office hours; she waited until the evening when she knew I'd be more prone to agree to a meeting over a drink.

I refused.

When she pressed, I shut her down with a quick response that I was at dinner.

She asked if I was with a woman. I answered honestly that I was and then the floodgates opened.

We spent much of last night in a heated text exchange about the breakdown of our relationship.

I suggested she think about finding a new job. She told me to fuck off. At that point, it was near two a.m., so I shut my phone off and tried to sleep.

"It's clear that co-existing here isn't going to be a viable option." I work to keep my tone even, calm and controlled. "I'm prepared to offer you a generous severance package, Isadora. I think it's best for both of us."

She lets out a huff of frustration. "I don't give a shit about what's best for you. I'm on my own now, aren't I? I have worked day and night for over three years to make this hotel chain what it is and now you're going to tell me that I have to give that up too? I won't. It's not happening, Julian."

"We can't continue to work together." I push a hand through my hair. "After last night, I think that's obvious."

"We've been broken up all of three days and you're already fucking someone else." Her voice raises to a level that I know will carry through the door and into the common space beyond where employees gather to drink coffee and brainstorm.

"Lower your voice." The words come out darker than I intend.

"Or what?" She pushes to her feet, her hands jumping to the middle of her chest. "Are you threatening me?"

"Of course not." I brush off her words with a wave of my hand in the air. "This is a personal matter that has no place in the office. I'm not going to discuss it with you here again."

"Do you know how painful it is to see you each day?" Her voice cracks. "I thought we'd spend the rest of our lives together. I thought we'd have a son and a daughter and raise them to take over the company."

I don't feel the pain she does. I've only felt the weight of the world being lifted from my shoulders since our relationship ended.

I was never satisfied with her. I may have tricked myself into believing I was based on the growth of the business, but personally, I was stifled.

"I'm sorry," I say softly. "I want you to be happy. I do, Isadora. I want you to find someone who can love you the way you deserve."

A sob bubbles up from her throat. "You can be that man, Julian. You can."

"I can't." I take a step toward her but stop myself. If I touch her to offer comfort, she'll misinterpret it as more. That can't happen.

"I have nowhere to go." She drops back into her chair. "I can't tell which way is up anymore."

I have no comforting words to offer her. I won't confuse her with anything that could be misconstrued as hope for a future between us.

"I'm going to take some time for myself." She looks up and into my face. "I'll go to Philadelphia to see some old friends this weekend. I'll catch a flight this afternoon."

I nod. I'm grateful for the brief reprieve but the tension between us won't dissipate because she's leaving the state for a few days. "Stay as long as you need to. We'll discuss your future with Bishop when you return."

"You can't fire me, Julian," she says that with a chuckle. "I prepared my contract, remember? If I ever decide I want to leave, it's going to cost you."

I know and at this point, I'm willing to pay the price, however high it may be.

 

***

 

I have no doubt that Maya witnessed Isadora's spontaneous public display of affection outside the door to my office.

It caught me completely off guard.

After I walked out of Isadora's office to head to my own, she called from behind me. I turned just as I approached the open door of my office. That's the moment when Isadora decided to race toward me to throw herself into my arms. Her lips met mine before I was able to turn away.

Maya was standing directly in my line of sight, her hands on her hips and her left eyebrow cocked in surprise.

I ushered Isadora into the empty office next to mine and told her to keep her hands off of me in the future. Her response was another 'fuck you, Julian,' before she stormed out.

I took a second to control my agitation before I walked into my office to greet Maya.

"You have a little lipstick right there." Maya's finger slides over the left corner of her mouth.

I wipe the back of my hand over my lips.

"No, wait." She leans forward to circle her finger in the air near my mouth. "It's on that side. My left. Your right."

Fuck.

I reach for a tissue from the table next to the window and gingerly wipe the entire area around my mouth. I glance down at the red streak before I bunch the tissue into a ball and toss it in the wastebasket.

"Please have a seat, Maya." I nod toward the two leather chairs in front of my desk. "I'm sorry you had to witness that."

"Love is a complicated thing," she says as she lowers herself into one of the chairs. "I've never worked with someone I cared about before."

"Isadora was out of line." I take the seat next to her after I unbutton my black suit jacket. "She's having difficulty adjusting to our break up."

She doesn't acknowledge those words with a response. Instead, she gets right down to business. "I'm hopeful that you asked to meet me to discuss the residential suites in Bishop Chelsea."

I lean back in my chair. "I did. The board has been considering several brokers, including you."

"I'm the most digitally connected broker in this city," she goes on confidentially, "I have a large social media presence. That alone has helped me sell several properties in the past few months."

I'm well aware of that. I check her accounts on a daily basis. She engages her followers with professional quality photographs of the properties she's listed mixed in with personal images of her life in New York. She has a pulse on the future of real estate, which is why I pushed the board into giving her this chance.

I may have the final say but having the board's backing is essential on a project of this magnitude. The residential suites in Bishop Chelsea are an experiment of sorts. If they sell quickly and at the price I want, I expect to incorporate residences in every future hotel we launch.

"Your reputation precedes you." I smile. "I'm prepared to offer you the exclusive listing, Maya."

"You are?" She slides forward in her chair, her hands darting to her lap. "Thank you so much. Oh my god, thank you."

"There's one condition." I inch forward until my knees are almost brushing against hers.

"Of course." Her gaze trails over my body, stopping once her eyes meet mine. "What's the condition?"

That you have dinner with me. At my place, tonight. Clothing optional.

Those words dance on the tip of my tongue, but I push them back. I have no fucking idea how I'm going to work with this woman. I don't understand why Charlie Warton deserves her attention.

"The condition, Julian?" Her voice is soft. "Please tell me what it is."

"You have thirty days to sell the penthouse, Maya."

Her brow bunches in confusion. "Thirty days to sell the penthouse?"

"I want that sold in thirty days. If you can accomplish that, the remaining eleven units are yours to sell. If you can't, I'll find another broker."

It's a near-impossible task but the board insisted and I agreed. I may want Maya in my bed, but I'm not going to allow my better judgment to be clouded by my selfish needs.

Those residences have to be sold quickly and as close to list price as possible.

"You have a deal." She holds out her delicate hand in the air between us.

I take it in mine. "I'll have legal prepare the contract, Maya. Welcome onboard."