Standing in the Gap
"That will be all, Henry. I'm going to stay here tonight," I said to my driver as he pulled up in front of Justine's condo. It had been a month since I invited Destiny back to my hotel and made the sweetest love of my life. I missed her. I yearned to see her again, but, as a man in charge of a massive enterprise, many working nights and days flew by at the speed of light.
"Okay sir. I will see you in the morning, unless you call before then," Henry said with a tilt of his hat.
I exited the Bentley and Henry drove off. I walked up to my dear friend’s doorstep. Justine called me earlier sounding like she had been in a train wreck. I was in the middle of a meeting and couldn’t talk, but, when she said she felt like she wanted to commit suicide, I immediately dropped everything and came to her house.
I could’ve called her parents or an ambulance, but I knew she would freak out if I didn’t show up in person. Therefore, I cut my meeting short and rushed over to check on her.
I was no fool, though. She probably just wanted me to spend the night. She wanted me to make love to her. She wanted our relationship to be the way it was before I broke things off, when I realized that I loved her, but only as a friend.
In the last month, I attended hundreds of meetings about offices opening in Wyoming and Delaware, which were the only two states Turner Enterprises didn’t have a local office. It had been busy time for me with lots of activities going on at Turner, so I didn’t have time to talk to Justine. That was probably why she was in meltdown mode.
I preferred to finish my business for the day, but I had to be sure Justine was safe before I dismissed her suicide claim as just another one of her tricks to spend time with me. I didn’t know what to expect when she opened the door.
"How are you, Justine?" I asked as I stepped upon the doorstep.
"Better, now that you are here," she said, showing a glimpse of her flawless smile. "Come in."
She turned and walked away. I followed her into the living room that the best fashion designer in Miami crafted for the two of us, when we were a couple. A blend of white and beige colors matched Justine's regal personality. A splash of red and orange in a floral portrait over the fireplace fit her sometimes eccentric behavior perfectly.
"Justine, you called me like you had an emergency. What's going on?" I asked.
She sat down on the sofa and stared off into space.
"Talk to me, Justine!"
"Do you want something to drink?" she gestured toward two wine glasses and a bottle of Henri Jayer sitting on chill in the middle of the coffee table.
My mouth watered for my favorite wine, but I shook my head. "No, thanks. I don’t want anything to drink."
She lit a candle in the middle of the coffee table.
"Will you tell me what the matter with you is? You were in tears and saying you wanted to kill yourself when you called me, and that's why I’m here," I got straight to the point.
"You left me alone, Jacob. I can’t survive like this," she cried, tears welling up in her sky-blue eyes. "How could you just up and leave after all we shared? If nothing else, we were friends...and you…you," she wept as her words caught in her throat.
I ran my fingers through my hair and sighed.
I sat down beside her on the sofa.
"I didn't just up and leave you, Justine. We started out as friends and we will always be friends."
She sprang from her seat and wagged her finger in my face. "I don’t want to be just your friend! How can we just be friends, after what we shared? I gave you all of me and you left me alone!"
I stood up and looked at her anguished face. I loved her dearly and respected our friendship, but I didn’t have time to spare on this type of stress. If she had been anyone else, I would have had Henry double back so fast that her head would be spinning.
Justine meant something to me, though. She had been my best friend since kindergarten. She defended me when other kids picked on me, and she added acceptance to my life before I understood dividends and assets.
"Justine, stop crying." I hugged her close. "I’ll always be here for you. I love you, girl."
A sparkle of hope gleamed in her eyes. "If you love me, why are you treating me like this?”
She tilted her neck, and I knew she wanted a kiss. I gave it to her—a more than friendly kiss on her lips, then pulled away and kissed her forehead. I thought of the best way to tell her I was falling for another woman.
"I don't want to see you hurt like this. It's just that…"
"What, Jacob?" she asked as her light eyes darkened.