AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“It’s kind of the same thing, isn’t it?” Bash asked and Sofi had to look up and meet his gaze. Doing anything else was cowardly. “You knew I cared for you, a lot. But you needed to see if there was anything between you and Austin. If I took you back now . . . ” Bash paused and met Sofi’s eyes, the longing in them clear. He shook his head before speaking once more. “Austin knew you cared for him. He needed to make sure he really could give you his whole heart to you. Be worthy of you. If anything, you should be grateful he went on that one last date. Seeing you run out of that bar . . . that’s when he truly knew he couldn’t be without you.”
Sofi’s hand clenched the sides of her jeans. Her mind had been circling the same conclusion but her pride hadn’t allowed her to land on it.
But as much as Bash had a point, she had to argue her side. If she could make him see it, maybe she still had a reason to keep Austin at arm’s length.
“But why did heneedthat one last date? Couldn’t he have known I was enough when I basically fell at his feet?” Sofi asked, unable to keep the agony she’d experienced in the last couple of months out of her voice.
Bash’s eyes filled with concern, but he didn’t hold back when he spoke. “What does any of that matter when you’re right where you wanted to be now? You’re filled with fear that he has only chosen you because he’s afraid to lose you, not because he really loves you. But doesn’t the fact that he ran after you, abandoning that last date, choosing you over the person that personified every other future woman in his life, mean something?”
“I guess,” Sofi admitted. “But . . . ” her voice trailed off and Bash continued.
“He’s still pursuing you even as he respects your need for space . . . isn’t that enough for you? You’ve given him chance upon chance to walk away. Austin said he didn’t think he could give any woman forever.”
Bash paused and Sofi bit her lip, hanging on his words.
“But if he still felt that way, would he be pursuing you so hard? The last thing he wants to do is hurt you again. And he’s still here. Day after day. What else could that mean, except that he's ready to give you forever? He’s sure of his love for you. His actions are speaking so loudly, how can you not hear them?”
“Oh,” Sofi breathed. When Bash put it like that . . .
Sofi had been so intent on nursing her pride she hadn’t been able to closely observe Austin’s actions. She’d been hurt—and rightly so. When she’d seen Austin at that sports bar, she’d thought he was there for her and her heart had leaped with joy, only to be crushed at the sight of his date. In her shock and disappointment, she’d overreacted. Blinded by pride and pain, she hadn’t been able to see the truth. Austin had gone on that date to make sure that he never gave Sofi reason to doubt his love for her. And instead she’d told him he’d broken her trust. Which wasn’t fair, considering she didn’t know how things would have played out had she not witnessed the date. Knowing Austin, if he’d really gone through with the date and hated every minute because he wanted to be with Sofi, he would have come clean—told her every detail. And she would have loved him for it. But because she saw him during the date instead of after, everything had changed. She remembered the way his date snuggled up to him, the moment when her heart had gone cold, but she now recalled that she’d also seen Austin move away. She hadn’t let herself consider his action because the fact that he was on the date had been betrayal enough. At least in that moment it had felt like it. But now . . . seeing it through Bash’s eyes had given her a different perspective. Bash was right.
“What was I doing? Telling him I needed time . . . ” Sofi began to pace and Bash stood, resting a calming hand on her shoulder.
“Hold up. This isn’t all your fault. Austin still went MIA from your life for four weeks, and he could have—should have—given you a heads-up before the date,” Bash was now where Sofi had thought he’d start. Firmly on team Give-Austin-Heck-To-Pay.
“True.” Sofi’s pacing slowed.
“And you needed this time. You didn’t take it to get back at him. You took it because you were hurt. And you were hurt for a myriad of reasons. The date foremost, but that doesn’t mean you had no reason to take your space. You did so and now you’re able to approach the situation with fresh eyes.”
“Are you a therapist in your free time or something?” Sofi asked, astounded.
“Five sisters, remember?” Bash raised a perfunctory eyebrow.
“Right,” Sofi replied, unable to imagine a life with five sisters since she didn’t even have one. Sometimes she’d felt like she’d missed out, but Holland had in many ways been the little sister Sofi had never had. And she appreciated that she got to choose the women in her closest circle. Well, for the most part. The Tías would always have seats in that circle no matter what Sofi wanted. Thankfully Sofi would always want them.
Why was Sofi thinking about the Tías? Her mind had gone on a tangent and she needed to get back to the matter at hand. Austin really did love her. She’d been blinded by her injuries, but now that she could finally see it, she had to do something.
“So what do I do now?” Sofi turned to Bash. He had yet to lead her astray, although it was more than a little weird to ask him for relationship advice. But then she remembered why Bash had come. She’d become so consumed by the whole Austin situation that she’d forgotten Bash’s initial query. He wanted her. What if she’d gone to Austin and he’d asked her to help him win a woman back? She recalled that Bash had been the one to start the conversation about Austin, but still, enough was enough. Sofi needed to end it. “Don’t answer that,” she said hastily.
Bash nodded as if he too was just realizing who they were and what they were doing. He’d been a good friend to her, better than she’d deserved.
“Thank you,” Sofi said as she opened the door to let Bash out of the stock room. She had a feeling she wouldn’t be seeing him again since their paths had never crossed before their first date. She realized that she’d miss him. Not in the way he wished she’d miss him, but she would.
Bash nodded once more as he started for the door. “Make sure he treats you well, Sofi,” he said before turning and heading straight for the mercado’s exit.
“I will,” she whispered to Bash’s back, wishing him the best in her mind. She knew he’d find someone, a woman who was head over heels for him. He was too good not to. And she hoped they’d find one another soon.
Sofi slumped into the rolling chair Bash had vacated, sliding until she hit the back wall of the store room.
“He’s a good man,” Tía Rosa said, coming out from behind a row of boxes.
“Ah!” Sofi screeched.
What in the world?
“Did you really think we wouldn’t sneak in here from your dad’s office?” Tía Melinda laughed as she joined Tía Rosa.
Sofi’s mom was the last to enter as Sofi still clutched her racing heart. The Tías were going to be the death of her. She absolutely took back her thought about wanting them in her circle. At least for the moment.
