Romance: The Billionaire's Choice - Contemporary Romance (Romance, Contemporary Romance Book 1) (3 page)

By the time Isabel made it up the stairs and into her apartment, her face was red and soaked with tears. Her mascara was running down her cheeks. She tossed her bag unceremoniously onto the ground and walked into the living room. She kicked off her shoes and threw herself down onto the couch.

“I am so stupid,” she muttered to herself.

She felt her phone vibrate in her pocket.

“Not now, Cara,” she said out loud.

She stared forward at the wall and rubbed her eyes. Finally she leaned back to pull her phone from her jeans’ pocket. She looked down and saw that she had five new messages. She unlocked her phone.

“Cara. Cara. Cara. Cara… Andrew,” she whispered.

Her heart skipped when she saw his name. She had seen it so many thousands of times before but it had never meant so much. Her mind flood with possibilities.
Is he going to apologize?
she wondered. Her hands were shaking as she held the phone. She was too nervous to open it. She searched the walls of the room with her eyes as if some answer would be written there. Finally, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She clicked on his name and opened the message.

“I am so sorry. I’m sorry that this weekend was a disaster and I am sorry for anything that I have done to hurt you. You are my best friend and I will always love you. I don’t want to have our relationship dragged through the mud. We are both in such different places right now and are embarking on such exciting journeys. You are so dear to me but I don’t see how our lives fit together right now,” Andrew had written.

Isabel could barely see the phone. Her face was soaked with tears. Her hands were shaking. She held out her finger tentatively to scroll down to the rest of the message.

“Rather than fighting it out, I think we should just take a break from each other right now. Let’s get through our growing pains and see where life takes us. I will miss you so much but I really do think it’s for the best. Lots of love. XOXO,” Andrew said.

Isabel dropped the phone. She pushed her face into the couch cushion and sobbed. After what seemed like hours, she reached her hand out and grabbed the phone. She clicked on the screen then jammed the phone against her face.

“Hey, there you are,” Cara answered. “I was wondering when you’d finally be getting back in.

Isabel was silent.

“Hey? Isabel?” she asked. “Can you hear me? I think we have a bad connection.”

She opened her mouth to speak then started to sob again.

“Oh, Izzie,” Cara said quietly. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

Isabel only cried.

“Are you at home? I am not far away. I can leave right now and I’ll be there in less than ten minutes. Just sit tight. Is that where you are?” Cara asked.

Isabel didn’t rely.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” she asked. “Just take a deep breath.”

Her breath shook as she tried to inhale. “No,” she said between sobs.

“Alright, good, everything will be fine. Are you home?” she asked.

“Yeah,” Isabel replied quietly.

“Okay,” Cara said. “I am already on my way over there. I’ll be there in a just a few minutes. I’ve got your keys on me so don’t even worry about letting me in. Why don’t you put some coffee on? Or should I bring some on the way? Do you want a croissant? I’m about to walk by that bakery.”

Isabel smiled a little as tears ran over her lips. “I am okay. Just get here,” she said.

“I will be there in no time,” Cara replied. “Do you want to stay on the phone?”

She chuckled. “It’s not a 911 call. It’s okay. I’ll see you soon,” she said.

“Okay,” she replied. “I am on my way.”

Isabel pulled the phone away from her ear and tossed it back down on the couch.

“Franklin,” she shouted.

She looked around the room.

“Franklin,” she repeated.

She smiled when she saw her big tiger striped cat walk across the room. He jumped on her lap and she hugged him.

“Hi, kitty,” she said. “I’m sorry I didn’t say hello sooner.”

She lied down on the couch and curled her body around him. “At least I’ve still got you,” she murmured.

Isabel closed her eyes and sighed. She was resting her eyes when she heard keys jingling in front of the front door. She looked over and wiped the tears off of her face with her sleeve.

“Hey,” she yelled out as she heard Cara unlocking and opening the door.

“Hi,” Cara replied as she got into the living. She walked over to the couch and sat down beside Isabel.

“You got here really quickly,” Isabel said.

“Oh, yeah,” she replied. “I was just down the street having dinner at DiMaggio’s so it didn’t take too long.”

Isabel blushed. “Oh, no,” she said. “Did I interrupt your dinner? I am so sorry. It’s really not even that big of a deal.”

“Don’t worry about it. Really,” she said. “My sister set me up on a blind date and it was a total nightmare,”

“You didn’t tell me about that! The food there is delicious though, isn’t it? Who was the guy?” Isabel asked.

“Come on,” Cara replied. “We aren’t here to talk about me. I want to hear about you. Anyway, you saved me from having to sit through dinner with him. Anyway, we’ll order some takeout.”

“Oh God. I’m a terrible friend,” Isabel said. “We are always talking about me and now I pulled you out of a date. Whether it was a bad or not, that is awful! I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. Seriously! Tell me what happened,” she said.

Isabel looked at her and sighed. She could feel her eyes starting to well up with tears again. Cara leaned over and hugged her.

“Come on,” she said. “Whatever it is, it can be so bad. Tell me and we will get it sorted out.”

Isabel leaned over and grabbed the phone from off of the couch behind them. She clicked on Andrew’s message again then looked away. She stared up at Cara then handed her the phone. She grimaced then took a hold of it.

“Andrew?” Cara asked without taking her eyes of Isabel.

“Andrew,” Isabel repeated.

Cara bit her lip then looked down at the phone. Isabel stared at the ground as she slowly scrolled through the message. Cara shook her head then set the phone down on the coffee table in front of them.

“You know what?” she asked.

“What?” Isabel replied.

“Screw him,” she said. “Forget about him. Do you know what his problem is?”

Isabel shrugged.

“His problem is that he just can’t deal with being in a relationship. When have you ever seen him get serious with anyone? He leads you on and brings you as his plus one to everything so that he never has to deal with actually getting a girlfriend. He has no idea how to even deal with being in a serious adult relationship,” she said.

Isabel stared forward at Cara.

“Forget him. Seriously,” Cara said as she walked into the tiny kitchen and grabbed a bottle of wine off of the counter. “You are going to move on and meet an amazing guy. In the meantime, we are going to sit here, drink this and get some Chinese.”

Andrew stood in the garage and watched the door slowly slide closed. He let out a deep sigh as he walked inside. He dropped his bag on the ground then looked around the big empty house. He started to take off his shoes then slid them back on. He walked through the house and out the front door. He followed the sidewalk over to his neighbor’s house and rang the doorbell. He tapped his foot impatiently against the door mat as he wait for an answer.

“Hi, Andy,” a woman said as she opened the door.

Andrew looked up at her. She was in a jogging suit but her hair and makeup was impeccable. She looked at him and laughed.

“You look exhausted,” she said. “Come on in.”

He followed her through the massive foyer and into the living room.

“Have a seat,” she said. “David is just up in the shower. He should be down in a minute.”

“Okay, great,” he said as he sat down.

“And Lucy is just in the kitchen,” she said.

Andrew smiled. “Lucy,” he called.

A happy golden retriever raced into the living room.

“Hey girl,” he said as he reached down to pet her.

“She has been an angel,” the woman said.

“Thanks so much for watching her while I was away,” he said. “I really appreciate it. It’s so much nicer to have her next door rather than hauling her off to a dogsitter.”

“It’s not a problem. We were thrilled to have her,” she replied.

“Beth,” a man called from a distance.

“Hey, babe, I’m downstairs,” she shouted behind her. “Andy is here to pick up Lucy.”

She turned back around and smiled at Andrew. “We were actually just about to have dinner. I made my famous crab legs so you have to stay,” she said.

“Oh, that sounds great but I am wiped out,” he replied. “It was such a long drive back here.”

“Nonsense,” she said. “That is all the more reason for staying here and getting a decent meal in you.”

Andrew smiled.

“And don’t think that we aren’t interested to hear about what happened on this long awaited trip,” a man said as he approached the entryway to the living room.

“Hey, David,” Andrew said as he looked over at the man.

“Good to see you,” he replied with a smile. “I’m glad to see that you made it back in one piece.”

Andrew laughed. “Oh, come on, I’m not that bad of a driver.”

Beth smiled. “But seriously, you know what a terrible gossip this guy is. He will die if he doesn’t get to hear about what happened this weekend,” she said.

David laughed.

“No, really,” she continued. “You are worse than any woman I know. You can’t bear to miss out on the latest hot gossip.”

“Well, I don’t know if it’s really hot gossip,” Andrew said.

“Sure, it is,” she said. “You are the most eligible bachelor in New York. Your love life should be front page news.”

Andrew shrugged and smiled.

“We won’t take no for an answer. I just got back from a run and I am famished. We need to eat immediate and you need to dish the dirt,” she said as she stood up from the couch.

He looked up at both of them and laughed. “You two are impossible,” he said. “I haven’t even unpacked yet.”

“How about we get you full of crab and scotch and the unpacking waits for tomorrow?” David asked. “I just got a new bottle of scotch that is better than anything you have ever had.”

“You know my weakness,” Andrew replied.

“Indeed. You know that I do,” David said.

Andrew smiled as he stood up from the couch. “Alright, I’m in,” he said.

Beth clapped. “Fantastic. David, you are pouring. I’ll get the food dished up. And, Andy, it’s time for you to start spilling. What happened this weekend?” she asked.

Andrew followed them into the kitchen and sat down at the sprawling glass table in front of the window. “Well, it wasn’t great,” he said. “Honestly, the whole weekend was kind of a nightmare. We were so uncomfortable around each other. It was like we had never even met before.”

“Oh,” Beth groaned. “The poor girl. Why did you even put her through that?”

“I didn’t want to put her through anything. I guess I just didn’t know what to do. Somehow I just thought that it would be like old times,” he said.

“Come on, man,” David said. “You already admitted before the trip that you have outgrown her.”

“Hey now,” Andrew said. “I don’t think that is quite what I said.”

“Well, more or less,” Beth chimed in. “I know you two were great friends and you have an important history together but what do you really have in common now?”

Andrew shrugged. “I guess that’s the problem. I honestly don’t know. She’s there in the city with her cramped little apartment and these big dreams of becoming a designer. I guess that was endearing when we were 20 years old but I just can’t relate to it anymore. It’s like our lifestyles are the complete opposite,” he said.

Beth nodded. “Yeah, she’s a great girl,” she said. “But she is just living in a totally different world. It’s cool that she is into the whole art and fashion scene but that’s just not you. Especially if you want to move forward with this charity.”

“I know. I do think her line is really taking off but I don’t see how she’d fit in with everything. I can’t imagine taking her to a fundraiser with a bunch of women who have never worked a day in their lives. She just doesn’t relate to that,” he said. “I guess part of me hopes that we will be able to reconnect but I just don’t feel anything between us right now. There is just a complete disconnect every time that we talk.”

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” David said. “You are just at totally different places.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “I guess I have known that for a long time. And, for a long time, it wasn’t that big of a deal but then when she wanted to take things to the next level-”

“Really, I think that you made the right choice,” Beth said. “It’s not fair to lead her on. Maybe later on down the line when she has met a new guy and isn’t so focused on this fashion thing, you can become friends again.”

“Agreed,” David said. “It’d be great if we could all stay connected with our childhood friends but that just isn’t life. There’s no reason to beat a dead horse.”

Andrew shrugged.

David walked over to the table and set down a glass of scotch in front of him. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s relax. This should be a time of celebration for you. You are closing the book on your old life and moving on.”

Beth grabbed another glass from off of the counter and joined them at the table. “Really, Andy, we are so proud of you,” she said. “You’re really getting things on track. Your parents would be so proud.”

Andrew looked over at her and smiled.

“So, here’s to new beginnings,” David said as he lifted his glass in the air.

Beth and Andrew leaned forward to touch their glasses to his.

“Cheers,” they said in unison.