Healing Touch

Chapter Nineteen

"I don't understand you, Andy."

"You wouldn't understand, Layla, because you never have to find out how it feels like to watch your person in such a compromising situation. Imagine seeing some woman touching and kissing Michael in the way only you're allowed to."

"Okay, first of all I'd cut her," Layla said, "but listen, you can't just walk away from Jaime when you clearly love her so much."

"My love for her is not in question, and anyways, it doesn't matter now because no one can undo the damage that's already been done."

Jaime may have been the first person Andy had fallen in love with, but it didn't necessarily mean they were meant to be together.

"Andy, but you're both hurting. I visited her at the hospital and she tearfully explained everything that had been going on. It was so clearly obvious that she loves you deeply. She didn't do any of this with the intention of hurting you."

"Right, she did it with the intention of hiding it from me."

"Look, I sympathize but put in the same position, wouldn't you take on such a wealthy client to build up your business? Mind you, initially she had no idea the client was connected to her crazy ex-girlfriend."

"If the so-called crazy ex revealed her true intentions, what would you do in a similar situation, Layla? Would you let her take advantage of you? Fully and callously disregard whatever boundaries set in place? And that is if boundaries were established to begin with."

"Jaime shouldn't have allowed Elsie to touch her like that, I fully agree with you. She should have considered how it would affect you, how it would make you feel, but she is remorsefully apologetic. You're just in such a deep state of hurt, that it's blinding you. You can't see anything else past the pain."

"I should pay you for these little sessions," Andy said in sarcasm.

"Seriously Andy, now what? You two are over? You won't see or speak to each other?"

"Of course not. This is not grade school. I'll see and speak to her as often as I'm able to. I need to know that she's okay. I need to know that she's always okay." It sucked, but it was the truth. She couldn't keep away from Jaime, especially when her health kept spiking up and down like that. She felt like she needed to keep an eye on her.

"You truly are in love with her."

Andy got to her feet, fed up with the conversation, and walked over to the large ceiling-to-floor office window exposing the generously green lovely view of the city.

"Layla, this conversation is really not helping me. It's not making anything easier. In fact, it's making everything worse. I'm battling myself every second. Don't you think if it was easy, I'd run back to the hospital, take her in my arms, and let her back in my life?"

"I guess I just don't understand how it hurts the same when you're together or apart, it's all. When I saw everything you did for Jaime, it made me want to be brave enough to want to try with Michael. Something I was terrified of doing. When I saw how in love you were, and how happy she made you, it made me want to risk it all to achieve the same if the end meant being so embarrassingly and ridiculously happy. And now, seeing this, an end I never imagined coming, it makes me want to guard my heart, pull away from him, because who is to say it won't turn out the same way?"

The words startled Andy. "Layla, Michael would never hurt you. He doesn't have some crazy ex who won't leave him alone." She laughed at the idea of it.

"If you weren't gay, your friendship with him would threaten me. He has given you a part of himself that can never belong to anyone else."