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at me but remained quiet.
    “I’ll take that as a yes.” I grabbed my purse and was about to open the door when he cleared his throat.
    “Sarah, I think you need to realize something.”
    I turned to look at him. “What do I need to realize?”
    “Max is still hung up on you. He still thinks you two have unfinished business.”
    “He said that to you?”
    “Not in those exact words, but I sensed he feels that way. I don’t want to tell you what to do about it, but maybe you need to make things a little clearer to him.”
    “He won’t return my emails. So how am I supposed to do that?”
    “Emails?” Carter said with a chuckle. “Why don’t you just call him? Or are you afraid to actually talk to him?”
    I was about to protest to that, but then I realized Carter was correct. I had been avoiding calling Max because I didn’t want to hear the hurt in his voice. “I thought I had made things perfectly clear to him the last time I saw him. It was his choice to move away. He never included me in that decision. He just assumed I’d uproot my life to follow him clear across the country.”
    “I understand, but he’s obviously still confused.”
    “Well, then,” I said. “I guess I’ll have to un-confuse him, won’t I?”
    Carter took my hand and brought it up to lightly graze his lips. “Do me a favor? Just call Max and settle things with him. Make him understand that it’s over.”
    “I thought I already did that, but I’ll do it again, for you.”
    He smiled. “Thank you.”
     
    When I got up to my apartment, I slipped into my pajamas and sat on the bed with phone in hand. I glanced at the clock; 9:56pm. California is three hours ahead, so it would be 6:56pm there. I dialed Max’s number and waited.
    After a few ring tones, the call went to voicemail and, I’ll admit, I was relieved.
    I left a short message. “Hey Max, it’s Sarah. Thought I might catch you, but you’re probably busy. Could you give me a call when you get the chance? I’d like to see how you’re doing and have a little chat. Bye for now.”
    When I ended the call, I let out a long sigh and collapsed on the bed. Why so nervous? Did it mean I still had feelings for Max? Of course, I knew that I did. You can’t just turn off those feelings like a light switch but I had known my time with Max was limited from the very beginning of our romance. He was seven years younger and wanted to get married and have a family. I had already done that and I didn’t want to start over. Not that Max ever came close to a proposal. I think he knew I wasn’t even a candidate. So why would he have an issue with letting go?
    I’m an analytical person by nature, so I’m constantly trying to figure out why people do the things they do. Sometimes the answers are obvious and sometimes there’s no rhyme or reason. I become fixated on finding a solution, an answer that explains why. I have also realized that sometimes there is no answer and I am wasting my time trying to invent one.
    After an hour with no return call from Max, I decided to turn my cell phone off.
    Wouldn’t it be ironic if Max were on a date?
     

 
    Chapter 9
    Monday, October 19
     
    The next morning, the first thing I did before getting out of bed, was check my phone. A message from Max was waiting for me. Came in at 6:45am.
    “Sarah, it’s me. I’m sorry I didn’t get right back to you last night. Just landed in New York City and saw you called. I’ll be tied up with business meetings this morning but maybe we can chat later this afternoon. I’m going to be in Boston tomorrow night. Maybe if you have time, we can get together for dinner or something. Call and let me know.”
    So, he’s in New York for business. I was under the impression that his new job wouldn’t require him to travel as much, which was one of the reasons he’d accepted the position.
    Hearing his voice again triggered something inside me. Not quite longing, but something close to it. I didn’t need this