AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He’s fulfilled his part of the bargain. Now you do yours and let him go.
Somehow, I dragged my feet toward him. He only noticed me when I was about a foot away from him. He looked preoccupied and a little confused.
“How’d it go?” He flicked his joint off to the street.
“Well, I think.”
“Good. Good.”
Pause. Blink. Gulp. Repeat.
“When are you gonna hear back from them?” Riggs ran a hand through his hair.
“Ten to fifteen working days,” I chirped.
“Nice.”
“Yeah.”
Another silence. It was my turn to keep the conversation going.
“I found a job.”
“You did?” He looked jaded and distracted.
I nodded. “Junior producer for a local news channel.”
I couldn’t muster any excitement for the new role, which I would be starting after Christmas, by which time my visa would arrive. The truth was that I made the news because it was familiar territory, not because I loved it. I quite loved helping Riggs with his photography, but now that I knew about his financial situation, I was aware there was no such role as a photographer’s assistant, and even if there was, you don’t get paid two K a day for it.
“That’s amazing.” He grabbed me by the waist and lifted me up, spinning me in the air, laughing. “I’m so proud of you, Poppins.”
“I couldn’t have done it without you. Like,literally.”
I contemplated begging him not to leave, but I wanted to spare myself the humiliation and him the trouble. He didn’t want me anymore. And me? I had to figure out what I wanted to do with my life.
Before he left, a tear escaped his right eye, rolling down his sculpted cheek. He made no move to wipe it away, which was even worse somehow than if he’d tried to conceal it. This was classic Riggs. He didn’t hide how he felt. He just strongly preferred not to.
After the next awkward silence, I finally mustered the courage to make a move. It wasn’t like I had any choice.
“So ... it should take me around two years before I actually get my permanent green card, but I know you said you didn’t want—”
“I’ll wait,” he said, cutting me off. “There’s no rush on my end. I’m not planning to marry anyone else.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Trust me, I do. You’re the real deal. The end game. If we didn’t stick, no one else would.”
I wanted to die. For the earth to crack and swallow me whole.
“Maybe in another life?” I sniffled.
He smiled. “I’ll hold you to it, Poppins.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
DUFFY
Three months later
