Page 97 of Blue Gold

Taking it from me, she blew her nose before fisting the cloth.

“Who is she?”

“Would it help if I said?” I asked, genuinely meaning it.

She shook her head.

“No.”

Relief washed through me because, despite it all, I still couldn’t bring myself to tell her the whole truth. That the person I’d fallen for wasn’t a woman, but a man. A man who once worked for us and whom she knew all too well. And not just that. I couldn’t tell her that I was gay, and that our whole marriage was based on a lie.

“What about Maya?” she asked, snapping me back.

“I offered to have shared custody⁠—”

“Oh, screw you, Daniel.” She jumped to her feet, snatching the papers from the table. “There’s no way I’ll agree to that.”

“It’s not up for discussion. She’s my daughter just as much as she’s yours,” I answered back calmly, knowing it was her rage speaking right now. “I highly respect you, Claudia, and I understand I’ve wronged you. Yet, it has nothing to do with Maya, and while I hope to avoid it, if needed, we will settle this up in court.” Despite my sympathy for the situation and my responsibility for causing it, I would never give up on my daughter. Call me shameless if you would, but that was where I drew the line.

Fisting the papers in her hand, she stared at me with contempt. “To think I believed you were different from your father. It turns out the apple didn’t fall far from the tree after all.”

Claudia had enough class not to drag me through the mud, and even though I deserved a lot more, this was the only thing she tossed in my face before asking, “So what now?”

Standing up, I fixed my suit and cleared my throat. “Even though I’ve been more than fair, I’d still suggest you take the marital settlement to your lawyers and go over it. I’ll be waiting for your response, but in the meantime, I’ve bought a condo not far from my office.”

“Shit…” she hissed, shaking her head. “You really sorted it all out, huh?”

I exhaled. “I know it might not seem like it, but the last thing I wanted was to hurt you, and I’m sorry for that. I truly am.”

Brushing a hand over her cheek, she looked up, her eyes locked with mine. “But you’re not sorry, or else you would never have done it.” She looked down at the files. “I’ll go over this, but be sure I’ll do whatever it takes to protect our daughter.”

Standing next to the floor-to-ceiling window in my new condo with a view of Central Park, I listened to the phone ring, waiting for the call to be picked up.

“Allô?”

I let out a breath of relief once I heard his voice.

“I did it,” I said, one hand shoved into my trousers pocket while the other held the phone. “Claudia and I are officially separated.”

While it would still take a few more months for the divorce to be finalized, today, a month after I’d dropped it on her out of the blue, Claudia had signed the divorce papers, turning this matter official.

“How are you feeling about it?” he asked, and the softness of his voice made me wish he were here so I could hold him.

“I’m glad that it all worked out well, but⁠—”

“Maya?” he completed my sentence when I failed to do so.

With a sigh, I nodded. “Yes. I still think about her reaction.”

The day after I told Claudia I was leaving her and the house, we sat down with our five-year-old daughter. Explaining to her that Daddy and Mommy would no longer be together and that Daddy would now live in a new house was more difficult than I’d ever imagined. Now, almost four weeks into this, I realized how naive I’d been, thinking the divorce wouldn’t affect her. But it had. And my new task was to make this divorce as nontraumatic for her as possible.

“Is she still not wanting to see you?”

I held the phone tighter. “Yes.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“Me too, but the child therapist said it is a natural reaction and that I need to be there, even if Maya doesn’t want me to.” I brushed a hand over my face, exhausted. I knew I had no right to complain, considering I’d brought it upon myself, but the past few weeks had drained me of everything. Between Claudia and Maya, I also had to deal with my family, who, not surprisingly, were outraged by the news. On top of it all, I missed Elliot so much that the pain grew stronger with each passing day. His absence was now more evident than ever, increasing the loneliness I woke up to every day.