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I dropped a quick kiss on her lips, then let go of her hand and watched her safely enter the building.
Next, I’d hit the gym and take out my anger on a punching bag before seeing my brother. The way I was feeling, I might use his face instead for getting us into this whole fucking situation with Abram Morosov.
21 Simone
SOMETHING WASN’T RIGHT with Axel. I felt it in my heart. While I loved this new side to him, this talkative, unbidden side, it just didn’t feel right. Maybe I was overthinking it. If Axel loved me as he said he did, he’d share his past and dreams with me. That was what couples did, right?
I chewed on my nail as my eyes flitted around my living room. Last Saturday had been magical. Everything from the fairy lights to the food, to the mind-numbing sex we had, was spectacular. There weren’t really any words to describe what was in my heart.
And then there was the bracelet with the diamond infinity symbol. It was the most precious gift I’d ever received. So personal and intimate, his words were seared into my memory: “My love has no beginning or ending, like the infinity symbol. It’s boundless, limitless…eternal.”
Eternal. Why did my body tremble and my heart palpitate over the word? Eternal… Though his heartfelt speech blew me away, it was also haunting. I chalked it up to it just being Axel and not having known him on this level before. But I felt it was so much more. I just couldn’t put my finger on it.
Maybe Lily could help me. I opened my contacts on my cell phone and called her. It was after eight o’clock, so I hoped she was available and not working late. I knew Thursdays at LA Premier were busier than usual.
“Give me all the deets.” Lily answered without preamble on the first ring.
I giggled, feeling a little lighter. “I can’t even describe how I feel right now. Like, who is this guy I once called a big oaf?” I laughed again.
“Girl, I have no idea. He’s done a total one-eighty. I don’t even recognize him.”
Her comment sobered me. “Do you think that’s strange? Him being unrecognizable, I mean. Should I have alarms blaring inside me? Should I be running for my life?”
“Hey, where’s all this coming from? Seconds ago, you sounded deliriously happy and, dare I say it, in love. Has something happened?”
“Nothing awful has happened. I don’t think… I’m just overwhelmed, I guess. Axel has rocked my world. I’m in love with him, Lily. Totally, disgustingly, madly in love with him. Maybe that’s where this is all coming from. Axel has the power to break my heart.”
“Aww, that’s not going to happen. No guy goes to all the trouble of surprising a woman as he did if he planned to break her heart. I saw your living room. Oh my God, it was breathtaking. Tessa did a fantastic job.”
“Everything was phenomenal: the food, the dancing, the sex. But he also gave me a gift.”
“Ooh, what kind of gift?”
“A bracelet with a diamond infinity symbol on it.”
“See, right there, he’s telling you, you’re it for him for all of eternity.”
“He told me, and I quote, ‘My love has no beginning or ending, like the infinity symbol. It’s boundless, limitless…eternal.’ Every time I hear or think the wordeternal, I get this haunting feeling in the pit of my stomach.”
“Hmm, maybe he just chose the wrong word to express his love for you. Wow, I can’t believe he told you he loved you. Amazing.”
“The moment was incredible. I wish I’d known sooner it could be this good with him. All the time we wasted denying our desires. We can’t get it back.”
“Don’t get all dramatic. You both have the rest of your lives to be together. A few months lost is nothing in the grand scheme of it all.”
“You’re so right. But there’s something else that’s gnawing at me.”
“What?”
“We were at Santa Monica Pier earlier and he asked me to name something I wanted to do before I die. It totally took me by surprise. Isn’t that a strange question?” I chewed on my nail again. “Maybe I’m reading into stuff.”
Lily was suddenly quiet.
“Hello? Did we get disconnected?” I checked my phone, finding us still connected. “Lily?”
“I’m here.”
“Are you okay?”
