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“It was short, but I don’t regret going.”
That was good to hear. I didn’t want her to have regrets, not about us. “Good, because I don’t either. But that doesn’t change the fact it was cut short. Maybe while you’re on your cruise you can think about where you want me to take you next.”
That opened the door for us to see each other again. Something I should’ve done before leaving her the day before.
“Hmm. This is a ten-day cruise. It’ll give me plenty of time to think.”
“Ten days? Nice. I hope you really enjoy it,” I said.
I could almost hear her shrug. “The ship is nice, but...you’re not here.”
That brought a smile to my face. “I wish I could be.”Leaving you was as hard as fuck.
“My daughter called and asked if I would come to New York after the cruise was over. She...she said she’d like to meet you. I...I don’t know if you’d want to come to New York while I’m there?” she asked.
Hell yes!It had nothing to do with meeting MaKayla, but the fact Venus wanted me to meet her, said a lot. She was very protective of MaKayla. This was a statement. She trusted me wholeheartedly. And also that this hadn’t been something casual. It said there was a future, not sure what exactly, but we had one. And I wasn’t going to fuck it up. Even if it meant leaving my mother for a short time, I had to go to New York. I’d blown too many chances with Venus. Not blowing another.
“I’d love to. I’d say just message me when you get here, but I hope we talk long before that,” I stated.
“You know how the internet is on the ocean, but I’ll call you each time we get to port,” she replied. “And if your mother is too ill, then we can see each other another time. Or...if you need me to go to Portland, I can do that too. I just don’t want to intrude on your family time.”
“You’d never be an intrusion. And my mother would love to meet you.” Not sure I was ready for that, but if I was ever bringing a woman home, it was going to be Venus. “But honestly, it will depend on how she is doing at that time. Ten days make a lot of difference in recovery,” I said.
“It does, and if it doesn’t work out this trip, then I’m sure we’ll find a time that is convenient for all of us,” she replied.
She was right. We didn’t need to rush. We had time. But I just didn’t want so much time to pass that it didn’t feel important. Because it was. She was. I was going to do everything I could to show her that.
I might need my Dad to pull it off, but I’m going to New York. It’s time to tell her how I feel.
“I’ll see you in New York,” I said. The line started to become choppy, and I wasn’t even sure if she’d heard me. When I looked down at the cell phone, it said, the call had dropped.
There was no point in trying to call her back. But she promised to call when she got back in port. Maybe I would have a better plan for what I was going to say by then.
I sent her a quick text message that she at least would get when she got phone service again. ENJOY YOUR TRIP. TALK TO YOU SOON.
There was no response from her. Not that expected one. I lived on the ocean. I had a phone with the best satellite signal you could get, and even then, I lost service all the time.
Slipping my phone back into my pocket, I headed to visit with my mom again. If I wasn’t talking with Venus, then all my time was going to be spent with my mom. At least until she got sick of me and kicked my ass out.
CHAPTER14
Venus
Ten days gave me plenty of time to think. So why was it that I still had no idea as to what I wanted to do with my life? This was ridiculous. I’d always been able to plan ahead. What was stopping me now?
I had blamed it on MaKayla for relocating to New York, but that shouldn’t prevent me from planning my own life. But ever since leaving Halifax, walking away from the restaurant, it was as though too much had changed too quickly.
MaKayla had Damien, and together they were making a new life. I walked from my old one without a second thought. But it was more than just a restaurant. It had given me a purpose to get up each morning. Now I could stay in bed all day because I had absolutely no responsibility at all. It sucked. I couldn’t do this for the rest of my life. In theory, it sounded great, but after a couple of days of it and my joints started to ache, and I was bored out of my mind. I found myself jogging on the cruise ship just to keep moving.
The one good thing about being in New York was that people walked everywhere. I knew I’d get some much-needed exercise. Getting MaKayla to agree to let me off on my own was another story and for another day. There were other things to prepare for, like Declan arriving for dinner.
My cell phone rang, and I answered, “Hello MaKayla. It’s not six yet. We’re not late.” She had already called me four times. I had no idea why she was so nervous. It was just dinner. Granted I’d never taken a man home to meet her before, but she was not a little girl. She was making it more stressful than it needed to be.
“I was hoping that you and I could talk before Declan gets here,” she said.
“Did you want me to come to your apartment now? I could always text Declan your address and he could meet me there.” That wasn’t a problem.
“Would you mind?”
