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“You need to be happy, Abs. You need to do what makes you happy, and you’re suffocating yourself in that town, in that job, in that damn apartment.”
“That’s why you don’t visit?”
“That’s not it.”
“It is. You can’t deal with who I am because I’m not your ideal and for some reason you suddenly think you can mold me however you want. Well, you’re wrong, you can’t. Go back to whoever it was you broke up with last, or hell, go local. We’re still here, I’m sure Dominique would clear her schedule for you. I’m sure she’s just salivating over the idea bagging herself a hot shot lawyer. Go ahead...”
“Don’t—”
“Oh, go on, you don’t need my permission. It’s not like we were ever anything official, go—”
I walked out.
I wasn’t proud. But I wasn’t about to keep opening my mouth. She had an argument for every word I said, and I knew both of us needed to cool off. I took a walk around the neighborhood. A few houses had lights on their gates; I could hear music streaming from one of the backyards. Laughter. The sounds of people enjoying themselves in a pool. Someone had small fireworks they were setting off at the end of the street.
That was what we should have had on our last night there. We should have been creating memories…we should have been happy, in love…because I was. Completely and totally in love with her no matter how hardheaded and stubborn she was…
This wasn’t one of those love them and leave them things.
This wasn’t a fling.
I wasn’t trying to figure out how to break it off with her, trying to escape...
I wasn’t feeling uneasy; I wasn’t searching for reasons to end it.
I wasn’t feeling suffocated.
Instead, I’d been thinking about that ring at home.
The one my mother had practically forced on me. The one she said any woman would love to have. Hell, I’d been imagining it on Abbie’s finger for the last few days...and now, here we were... I just had to convince her she was worth more than that shell of a life she was living.
Rejections... Everyone had been rejected at some point or another, she should know that.
I rounded the corner and spotted the house in the distance.
I took a couple deep breaths while getting nearer. I hoped I’d calmed down enough, and maybe she had, too. Maybe we could talk about this rationally. Fine, if she didn’t want to leave, we could do long-distance. There were planes and flights and weekends and vacations. We’d make it work. We had to try to make it work.
Because I wasn’t going to give up that easy.
I walked back to the house and peeked through the balcony door into the main floor. The main level was dark, and there was no sign of her anywhere. I knew she hadn’t left. I kept walking. Closer to her room, I could hear music playing.
That was her angry music playlist she had up on full volume.
She was there.
She was angry.
I got it.
So was I.
I turned and headed back around to the pool, picking up one of the towels we’d left there, then went down to the sand of the private beach. I kicked my sandals off, tossed the towel down, and peeled off my shirt before diving into the water. I needed something to comfort me. I should be elated my dream was coming true, shouldn’t I?
But all I could think of was that look on Abbie’s face when those words had come out of my mouth. I hadn’t meant to say all that. I didn’t want to ever hurt her, and somehow, I’d managed to do that in five minutes or less.
I Just had to hope when she calmed down, we could make this work.
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