I exhaled slowly through my nose trying to keep myself leveled because this wasn’t the moment to make it about my feelings. She was already overwhelmed enough. “What happened after?”
“Security stepped in. We left.” Her eyes dropped down into her lap. “I ruined everything.”
“You didn’t ruin anything,” I corrected immediately.
“Yes I did.” She shook her head harder now. “Your mama looked so disappointed in me when I told her I had still been seeing him.”
That made me pause.Still been seeing him?I leaned back slightly to get a better look at her face. “Gianna…”
Her eyes filled with tears. “I know.” She pressed her lips together tightly. “I know I should've told you.”
“How long?” I asked quietly.
She hesitated. “Just a week. He booked me for seven days, but I haven’t seen him since.”
Damn. Seven whole days.
I looked away for a second, dragging my hand slowly over my beard while I processed it. This was different because she knew he was becoming emotionally attached. She knew I was uncomfortable with it, and she knew he was escalating. But she kept seeing him anyway.
She lied to me.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.
Her face crumbled a little at the question. “Because I knew you wouldn’t like it.”
“That’s not a reason to hide it from me. I thought we agreed on transparency,” I pressed.
“I'm sorry, baby,” she replied quickly. “You're right. I just…I thought I could handle it myself.”
I stared at her quietly for a long moment. Then finally I nodded once. “That’s the problem though, beautiful,” I said softly. “You keep trying to carry dangerous shit by yourself. Look at what happens when you don’t let me know what's going on. I could’ve protected you, Gianna. That's what you have a man for."
She cupped my face in her hands. "I know, but I don't ever want to put you at risk because of me. I would devastated if something happened to you."
"And how do you think I would feel?" I challenged softly.
She opened her mouth then closed it, speechless.
“Protecting me ismyjob. Not yours.” I held her wrist. "You can't keep secrets from me, babe. I don’t like them and I don't want them affecting our relationship. I want you to trust me completely, but I gotta be able to trust you too, That's the only way this works."
She nodded slowly, sniffling away tears. "Do you hate me?"
My face softened. “Babe…" I shook my head pulling her closer against my chest again. “No. I don’t hate you.”
She let out a shaky breath, but I could still feel the tension in her body.
“I’m hurt,” I admitted honestly. “And I’m worried. But hate you—never.”
Her eyes closed briefly. “I underestimated his attention,” she whispered. “At first, he was just intense. Then it started becoming…more.” She swallowed. “He started booking more time. Spending more money. Pushing harder.”
“That sounds like obsession,” I replied quietly.
“I know that now.”
I brushed my thumb beneath her eye catching another tear before it could fall.
She rested her forehead against mine, her hands sliding around my neck while we sat there quietly for a moment.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered again. “Not just for today. For all of it.”
