Free Her Own Rules by Barbara Taylor Bradford

such a huge commitment to my business.”
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    “Oh don’t go on so, Meredith. I can’t believe for one moment that you’re such a dyed-in-the-wool career woman as you claim to be. I couldn’t love that kind of woman, and I do love you.”
    Meredith was silent.
    He repeated, “I love you.”
    “Oh Reed, I’m so sorry…but I just don’t feel the same way.”
    “That’s not what you led me to believe,” he said softly, his eyes narrowing.
    “I admit I was infatuated with you last fall, that’s true. But it was an infatuation , nothing stronger or more lasting. I can’t make a commitment to you, I just can’t.”
    “It’s been so good between us, Meredith. Why are you saying these things?”
    Taking a deep breath, Meredith plunged in. “I very quickly came to understand that you don’t take my life seriously. Not my personal family life with my children, and certainly not my work. I will not negate my children’s existence for you, or anyone else for that matter, and I will never give up my work. It’s far too important to me. I’ve put too many years and too much effort into my business.”
    “You’re not living up to my expectations of you, Meredith,” he said, his voice suddenly grown cold and disparaging. “Not at all. I thought you were different.
    I thought you were an old-fashioned woman with old-fashioned values. What a miscalculation on my part.
    I can’t believe my judgment was so flawed. Or perhaps you simply deceived me.” He raised a dark brow.
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    Slowly, and in a cold tone, Meredith answered, “You know, you’ve just put a finger on something of vital importance, Reed. I feel the weight of your expectations, and I just can’t handle that. I began to realize in November that you believe you come first in my life.
    I’m afraid you don’t. The reason I wanted to see you tonight was to explain this, to tell you about my feelings and to bring our relationship to an end.”
    Reed Jamison was speechless. In all of his forty-one years he had never been discarded by a woman. He had always been the one to end affairs or start them, controlling, manipulating, pulling the puppet’s strings and getting his own way.
    He continued to stare at Meredith. She was the only woman who had ever bested him, and a terrible rage began to fulminate in him. He leapt to his feet, glaring at her. “I’m glad I found out what kind of woman you really are! Before I made the terrible mistake of marry-ing you!” he shouted.
    Without another word Reed strode across the room, picked up his coat, and left, banging the door behind him with such ferocity the chandelier rattled and swayed on its chain.
    Meredith ran to the door and locked it; she leaned against it for a few seconds. She was shaking. Calming herself, she walked over to the desk, sat down, and dialed Patsy’s number. It rang and rang. She was just about to hang up, when she heard Patsy saying,
    “Hello?”
    “Patsy, it’s me. Reed was here, and I told him it Her Own Rules / 81
    was over between us. He’s gone…he marched out in a fury.”
    “Well, that’s a relief. That you told him, I mean.
    And naturally he left in a high dudgeon. He’s not used to getting dumped unceremoniously. That’s part of his problem, you know. He’s always been spoilt by women, and he thinks he’s God’s gift to everything that walks in skirts.”
    “Yes, I know what you mean. He’s also a male chauvinist pig, to use a very outdated phrase. However, it is appropriate. That’s something I guess I detected when he was last in New York. He doesn’t take my business seriously, or my life. He’s self-involved, and he just can’t imagine why I’m not rushing over here to set up house with him. He said he wanted me to marry him.”
    “He proposed! Good God! Well, I must say, you must’ve really gotten to him, Meredith my girl. Ever since his divorce from Tina Longdon, he’s been a hit-and-run man.”
    “I’m not