Chapter 7: The Parking Lot Ultimatum
The rain drummed a heavy, relentless rhythm against the roof of my sedan as it idled in the empty municipal parking lot behind the salon. I had walked out through the back alley while Julian and Elena were still shouting near the front registers, refusing to stay and watch the wreckage of their broken engagement spill over onto the staff. My hands were still shaking slightly on the steering wheel as I turned on the heater, letting the warm air thaw my freezing fingers.
A sharp tap on the driver’s side window made me jump. I turned my head and saw Julian standing in the rain, his dark hair plastered against his forehead, water dripping from the collar of his black suit jacket. He wasn't holding an umbrella. He looked tired, the shadows under his eyes deeper than they had been in years, but his gaze was fiercely resolute.
I rolled the window down an inch, letting the damp chill bleed into the cabin. "What do you want, Julian? Haven't you done enough damage for one week?"
"Open the door, Maya," he said, his voice subdued by the sound of the falling rain. "We can't talk through a cracked window."
"I have nothing to say to you. Your fiancée made it clear what happens to people who get in her way."
"She isn't my fiancée anymore," Julian replied sharply, resting his hand on the top of the door frame. "She walked out of the salon ten minutes ago after I told her the wedding is off permanently. Not postponed. Canceled."
I stared at him through the narrow gap in the glass, searching his face for any sign of his old corporate hedging, the careful balancing act he had maintained for two years. There was none left. The facade had burned down, leaving only the raw, messy truth of what we had built and abandoned.
I reached across the console and hit the unlock button. Julian pulled the door open, sliding into the passenger seat and bringing the smell of rain and cold asphalt into the small car. He closed the door quickly, shivering as the heater washed over him.
"You think canceling a wedding fixes a legal marriage?" I asked, turning to face him. "You think Elena’s father is just going to let you walk away from the merger because you had a change of heart in a bridal boutique?"
"No," Julian said, running a hand over his face. "Her father is already calling emergency board meetings. They're going to try to strip me of my shares, freeze my accounts, and push me out of the company by Friday. They play dirty, Maya. I knew that when I signed on with them."
"Then why did you do it?" My voice rose, cutting through the hum of the engine. "Why marry me in a quiet chapel in Jersey and then spend two years hiding me in an apartment while you played house with people like Elena?"
May you like
Julian looked over at me, his eyes dark and unfiltered. "Because I thought I could protect you from them while I built something of my own. I was wrong. Every day I spent trying to balance both worlds was a lie that hurt you more. I'm not asking you to forgive me today. But I need you to hold onto that certificate. Don't let their lawyers intimidate you into signing away what's ours."
"Ours?" I let out a dry, humorless laugh. "You don't get to use that word anymore, Julian."
