“If anything happens to me, I’ll have Dayana step up and take care of things,” I corrected.
“Yeah, she’d be better at it than I would. Just know, if anything happens to you, I’m going on a killing spree.”
“I’m telling you now, I don’t want that,” I told her, not wanting her to put herself in danger for me and my foolish heart.
“Fuck what you want. It’s what I’m doing.”
There was no getting through to her when she was like this.
“Nothing is going to go wrong,” I assured her, ready for this conversation to end.
“Seriously, though, Blossom, you have to stay away from him,” Ivy told me, her expression filled with concern. “I mean it. Don’t hack him again. It’s not like the two of you can ever be together for real. Not even as one of those weird digital couples. What do they call it? E-dating? I think I saw someone call it nevermets. People who fall in love but never meet. You and Rome can’t do that. It’s too risky. You’ve got to let it go. Just... let it go.”
“I have.”
“Have you?”
“Yes!” I snapped, then immediately lowered my voice because I was irrationally getting worked up again. “I know I have to let it go.”
I really did know. I knew better than anyone what would happen if Rome found the wrong thread and followed it back to us. Back to Kelly. Back to this shop. Back to my mother. Back to me.
I knew how bad that would be for all of us. So... I was letting it go. Just like I was ready to let go of this conversation.
“I’m ordering the sandwiches now. I’ll get you your usual.”
Ivy stared at me for another second before finally nodding.
“Thanks,” she told me as she sat down in the chair behind the register and pulled her laptop closer. “I’m going to get back to working on the New York clearance issue.”
“Alright.”
I headed to our small breakroom. I sat down at the table and stared down at my phone. I didn’t place the order right away. I just sat there, mind reeling. Rome was back in the States.
Closer now.
Too close.
I closed my eyes and pressed my fingers against my temple as a headache started building behind my eyes. Why did life have to be so complicated? Ivy was right. We should end him. That would solve the problem.
No Rome, no investigation.
No risk of him finding the trail we were trying so damn hard to bury. No chance of him discovering Kelly’s part in it. No chance of him discovering any of us. One clean kill, and the threat would be gone.
That was the smart move. The safe move. The move I should be willing to make. Yet, instead of eliminating him, all I wanted was to talk to him. I wanted to hear his voice again. Not through the modulator. His real voice.
I wanted to know if he’d missed me. If he’d thought about me. If he’d wondered why I’d stopped sending messages. If he’d been tempted to hack me so he could send me a message.
Now that he was home, was he hoping to find me and make me his?Ugh!What the hell was I thinking? Opening my eyes, Istared down at my phone. I couldn’t believe I’d fallen for a man who could destroy everyone I loved.
A man who could turn my reality into hell. I never should’ve hacked him in the first place. I should’ve let one of the other Petals handle it. Taking a deep breath, I forced my mind off Rome and onto my lunch.
Unlocking my phone, I placed the order for Ivy and me. After lunch, I spent the rest of the day forcing myself to focus on work and not on the man who had us all on pins and needles. Unfortunately, thoughts of him followed me home.
That night, fresh out of the shower, I sat at the vanity in my bedroom. The scent of shea butter body wash clung to my skin as I rubbed lotion into my legs. I was dressed for comfort in black shorts and a pink t-shirt that readAnime Girlyacross the front.
My hair was pulled into a low ponytail that I'd wrapped around itself before covering my tresses with a pink and black bonnet. I was beyond exhausted and ready for bed. I’d gotten up this morning, thinking today would be a calm and relaxing day.
The appearance of Ms. Tina and the news she’d brought had ruined those plans. Sighing, I rubbed lotion onto my ankle as I allowed myself to think about the person I longed for. Here, in my bedroom, away from judging eyes, I was free to let myself think of him.
