🐞MTOABB🐞

"Rossita. I don't want to leave, but I have to get home." We had been snuggled up in my bed for an hour or so now. But I wasn't trying to cave in and take three steps back from all the progress I had made. I didn't cry over him, but yes, I thought of him a lot.

"Okay," I whisper. The last thing I wanted was for him to catch on that I was bothered that he was leaving me again.

"Why does it sound like you don't care?" He elevated his eyebrows and stared at me with concerns.

"I do care, but like you said, you need to get home." I remove the duvet from my body.

"You could at least try to convince me to stay another hour or so." He was getting bothered. "You're showing me mixed signals right now, and I don't know if I like that." you don't like getting a taste of your own medicine, Gomes.'

We both get out of the bed and I move towards him. My hands make their way around his waist and I let my gaze drift to his lips and then cage themselves in his stare. "You're so pretty."

"I'm pretty, hmm," he chuckles, his hands trail down my back and stops at my butt. He gives it a gentle squeeze and leans in to capture my lips. I move my hands to touch his butt too and he moans in approval.

"Is Cincinnati parked outside?" I asked when he had stopped kissing me. He nods affirmatively. "You should get going, it's getting pretty late," I say.

"Right." He gives me one last peck before walking towards the door.

"Gomes," I called out to him. He stops his hand from turning the door handle and looks back at me, "Yes?"

"When are you going to tell her?" I ask him. It's true I turned him down, but the future is so uncertain. I want him to let Holly know that he won't be moving down to Miami and that she should move here with the baby.

"Soon."

"When is soon, Gomes?" He was being so vague again and I thought we were making progress but I fear that although we have taken one step forward, we might be taking three steps back.

"Rossita, trust me." That was the problem, I trusted him more than I trusted myself.

I gave him a smile and he turned, opened the door and left. I ran to my window to see me drive off. I watched as he placed the helmet on his head and then revved his engine. He turned to look at me and threw his one hand in the air. I waved back and watched as he drove off on Cincinnati.

What was going on with us? Does he truly want me to be his girlfriend? I had said no so why am I still thinking about it? I was about to lose it when Chloe suddenly walked in and saved me unknowingly.

"Any deed that might have or might have not happened that you would like to spill?" She asks.

"Chloe stop," I whine. We both jump on the bed and under the covers.

"Spill," she insisted.

"Well...," I trailed. I kept playing with my hair to avoid staring at her. "He finally asked me to be his girlfriend."

She squeals from beside me and I'm ready to roll my eyes. "I told him no."

"You did what?" She lets her jaw drop as she gives me the eye. "Isn't that what you had been wanting from him, that title of possession?"

"Don't say it like that," I tell her. "-but I knew it was what I wanted before we went to Miami. Being there made me realise that he has a whole life there without me."

"Okay, that's fair enough to say, but he wants to join the two worlds together

"He can't have the best of both worlds."

"Right," she says sarcastically. "So you want to not give him that pleasure while depriving yourself from your own happiness."

"My happiness around him isn't consistent either so what's the point?"

"The Prinse you describe to me is so different to the one I know," she admits.

"That's because you two are friends and him and I... we are whatever it is that we say we are."

"I'm so sorry, Rossita. Do whatever makes you happy and I will stand by it with no questions asked. Suddenly my phone began to ring abruptly. It's him.

"Should I answer?" I whisper to Chloe.

"Do you want to answer?" Don't we love the moments Chloe answers my questions with her own when I am in dire need of a solution.

"What would you do in this situation, Chloe?"

"I would answer," she admits, so I do the exact same thing.

"Hi. I just got home safely." I let his voice dance around the air before I let it resonate with me. He has never done that before, call to assure me that he is safe and at home. This was new to us, and I oddly liked it.

"Hey. I'm glad you got home safely." There was silence on his end, but I knew he was there. I listened to his raspy breathing up against my speaker.

"Rossita?" He called out. "I have something I want to admit to you out loud."

That can't possibly be good. I turn to look at Chloe in anticipation. "Gomes, please don't tell me you kissed Holly when we were both down there in Miami."

"I already knew you were going to jump to your own conclusion, but no, I didn't kiss Holly." I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. " I wrote you texts every day for the last week, but I couldn't get myself to press send," he whispers. I could tell from the shuffling in the background that he was getting on the bed.

"I don't believe you," I say and immediately get a pinch from Chloe. I silently squeal from the excruciating pain.

"I knew you would say that. I'll read you the first message I wrote but didn't send. But you need to promise me you won't ask me any questions."

"You saying that makes me itch to ask you questions."

"Rossita, that's the only way I will be able to say it."

I raise an eyebrow, and Chloe watches me carefully. "Okay, only because you know how curious I get," I say.

There was silence on his end and then he heaved a sigh of discomfort.

"Gomes?"

"I love you," he whispered. Both my eyes and Chloe's leave our socket as I am out of words.

He. Just. Said. What?