The Last Phone Booth in Manhattan

by Beth Merlin

My heart and my head were now locked in a fierce battle, the Adam I’d loved for six years and thought I knew better than anyone versus the stranger I saw being led from the elevator, the one who wouldn’t even look at me as he was pulled from our apartment.

“Honey, did you ever stop to think that when things seem to be falling apart, they may actually be falling into place?”

Actually, they say it’s the very last phone booth in New York City.

And remember, no space of regret can make amends for one life’s opportunity misused.”

“Mambo No. 5” . . . A little bit of Daulton in my life, a little McDaniels by my side, a little bit of Fields in his prime, a little bit of Adam serving time.

I couldn’t believe I’d allowed myself to be blinded by a fugazi—a very shiny, dazzling, expensive fake—and I wasn’t just talking about the diamond now.

“No, he’s just trying to impress you, Avery. It’s weird. Why does he feel like he has to work so damn hard?”

“Don’t blame me for your shortcomings, Marley. You were the one who didn’t choose, who didn’t have enough backbone to stand up for yourself. You allowed others to make your decisions for you.”