Gina went by her parents house and found her mother in the garden, plucking roses. It didn't surprise Gina- Gianna Gray always liked nature and her self made bed of flowers was proof of that.
   Gina swallowed before she approached her mother whose back was turned towards her.

       "Hey mom," she softly said, trying not to startle her, but it did no good. The elderly woman slightly jumped from the unexpected greeting.

     "Oh, Gina you almost gave me a heart attack," she exclaimed, hand on her chest.

     "Sorry..."

     "It's ok," she said, giving her daughter a warm once over. "You look well." Stripping off her dirty gloves, Gianna walked to a small table with a pitcher of lemonade in the center. Gina followed behind.

     "Thanks, you don't look bad yourself," she complimented, wondering what she could say to get past the awkwardness from when they'd last spoken. "I saw your missed calls. I would have called back but figured it would be best to see you in person."

Gianna sat with a small sigh. "I heard about what happened. Is Knox OK?"

     "Yeah, his driver took the hit," she explained.

       "Oh. I hope he wasn't badly hurt," she said, briefly glancing at Gina. "Take a seat."

      "He's out of the E.R so he should be ok soon," she said while sitting.

Silence.

       "Mom, I-"

         "Gina-"

They both began to talk at the same time, stopping simultaneously.

   Gianna smiled. "I'll go first. I've been thinking a lot about what you said when last we spoke and I realised that my actions towards you might've been the reason for you to think that all I saw in you was a broken girl in need of fixing."

     "I admit I wasn't really there for you sweetheart when you needed me the most, because I was a weak mother and I just couldn't handle it at times when you did all those things. I thought it was easier to fix the things you did, rather than to reach out and try to connect with you and I'm sorry, Gina. I really am..." she said, her eyes glossy with tears.

Gina's heart tugged. "Mom..."

     "Honey, just hear me out," she said, reaching across to hold her hands. "I love you and your brother more than anything in this world. I'm sorry if I made you feel unloved and alone and I'm sorry for all the hurt that you hurt."

      "Mom, I don't blame you," she smiled shakily. "I've thought a lot over the past days and I came to realise that we live by the choices we make. I chose to be who I was when Knox left. There were better ways I could have dealt with my heartbreak and I chose that life. It's not your fault, ma."

Gianna smiled. "You really do look great, sweetheart."

     "Thanks mom. Knox and I have decided to give us another chance."

Gianna's smile expanded to a grin. "I'm happy to hear that, honey."

Gina slightly hung her head. "You know a lot of people might say I'm stupid for going back to him but I've ever loved only him, I want only him so why should I punish myself by holding him to his mistakes?"

      "That's the greatest part honey, love doesn't ask why, it knows no bounds and it makes no exclusions. If he makes you happy, then be happy with him."

     "Thanks mom. Where's dad?"

      "He went out of town on some business but he should be back in a day or two," she provided, pouring lemonade in a glass. "Lemonade?"

      "No thanks, I'm meeting Knox for lunch in awhile."

They continued light conversation, switching between topics until Gina decided to leave. She felt relieved having talked to her mother and looked forward to how their relationship would improve in the future. Once at the car, Sally called, ranting about her wedding plans and the great amount of things that needed to be done. The conversation lasted for almost an hour with the communication coming from mostly Sally's side. Gina ended the conversation reassuring her best friend that she would help, as promised.

Breathing out a sigh, Gina sent a text message to Knox and drove off.

She arrived at the cosy restaurant they agreed on and found Knox waving in a small corner. She smiled and went to approach him, while he stood to greet her, a small kiss on the lips.

     "Hey," Gina smiled, sitting in the chair he had pulled out for her.

     "How did it go with your mom?" he queried.

       "Great. A lot better than I'd expected."

       "Was Sergei there?"

       "No, he's out on business," she said, gaze dropping to the transparent table. "How's your driver doing?"

       "He'll be fine. He'll be released in a couple days."

    "That's great."

The waitress came and quickly took their orders, once again leaving them with some privacy. It was relaxing for both because although people stared, there weren't any camera flashes or paparrazzi hiding around to take a snap.

Gina cleared her throat as a thought came to her. "How's April?"

Surprised, Knox took a moment to gather himself and answer the question. "She um - she's fine. Her treatment is going well. The doctors believe she'll be good as new in no time," he smiled, Gina realising that even his face lit up at the mention of the child's name.

A knot twisted in her gut. "Knox, I don't want to be the reason there's distance between you and your little girl. I know you love and miss her so if...if you want her here with you, I'm absolutely fine with it."

Knox stared at her for passing moments, just struck by disbelief and the surreality of it all, allowing her words to repeatedly resonate in his head while he reveled in the feel.

    "Gina, are- are you sure?" he stuttered, looking deep within her eyes for the truth.

   She nodded. "But I honestly can't be like a mother figure to her - at least not yet. I'm just not ready for that leap as yet..."

     "I know and would never ask that of you. All I want is your approval," he said.

      "And you have it," she confirmed. Immediately Knox reached across the table to take her hand in his.

    "Thank you."

   Gina smiled, easing up to quickly kiss him on the lips.

     "What do you say we go away for the weekend?" Knox queried. "Just us, no media, no parents, no responsibilities... Just us?"

Gina's cheeks reddened with a blush, her senses hiked as Knox used his thumb to caress her hand. He maybe didn't know it, but his touch along with his invite were making her think of the most unceremonious of things.
    But judging by the glint in his eyes and the seductive smirk on his lips, Gina knew she wasn't the only one thinking naughty things.

       "Let's just skip lunch and get out of here," he suggested, causing a grin to break across Gina's mouth.

     "Let's. Right now I'm hungry for something else..." she put in, softly raising a brow.

    "You must've read my mind," he grinned, standing while he reached into his pocket and placed some money on the table for the waitress.

They got up and went out the restaurant, eager to get away seek pleasure from eachother. But as soon as they pushed the door open, a familiar face presented itself to them both.

The smile fell from both their faces as Fred Lawson made an appearance. He stared at them both, giving Knox a malicious look before his gaze settled to Gina.

      "Gina, you look happy," he said, slightly grinding his teeth.

Clearing her throat, Gina replied. "I am."

He scoffed. "And how long do you figure it'll last with this guy?" came his bitter remark.

     Reaching for Gina's hand, Knox attempted to step off. "Let's go," he said, wanting to avoid a scene, although every fibre of his being, tempted him to do the opposite.

Fred held Gina's other hand. "I left my wife for you and what am I left with now... Nothing!"

Knox paused, his brows knitting in curiosity. Gina's heart plummeted, fearing the worst from Fred's presence.

     "You didn't leave her for me. You were already separated when we met," sighing, she turned to Knox. "Give us five minutes please."

      "I'm not leaving you here alone with this psycho."

    "Please, I'll be fine."

Conceding, Knox went to lean against his car, still able to see what was happening.

Alone with Fred, Gina used the tip of her tongue to moisten her lips before she continued. "Why are you doing this, Fred?"

      "Doing what?"

      "Causing problems. You said you understood why I chose Knox and you understood love, so why-"

      "I did but seeing you with him, seeing how your face light up around him only made me realise that no matter how hard I tried I never could get a look like that from you. From the day we met you made it clear that it would be a no strings relationship and I was fine with it then but I thought that maybe somehow I could've changed your mind over time. But you never loved me, not even a small bit, did you?" he said, his voice softening to almost a whisper.

Gina swallowed as her heart tugged, seeing the defeated expression on Fred's face. "I cared about you..."

He scoffed and shook his head. "Why do women always go back to the assholes that treated them like crap and ignore the ones willing to do anything for them?" he asked before he said, "You'll never be happy with him, I promise you that." And With that said, he walked away and left Gina staring at the spot he'd occupied.

Using a moment to think about what he said, she then stepped away and walked towards Knox standing by the car.

  "Everything ok?" he asked.

   Gina managed a smile. "Yeah, let's go."

The drive home was silent for several minutes before Knox decided to break it.

      "What did he mean when he said he left his wife for you?" he queried, briefly looking at her to see her sigh.

      "He and I met when he was going through a separation. We agreed on no strings and we kicked things off when he came into town. He got divorced and then he moved here not long ago. His marriage was having problems before I came into the picture, it's not my fault they decided to end it."

       "Well it's obvious the guy's in love with you..." Knox murmured between clenched teeth.

        "It doesn't matter; I don't love him. Listen, do we have to wait until the weekend? How about tomorrow? Let's just get away as soon as possible...please."

Knox nodded. "Ok, sure. I'll get us booked when we get home and hopefully we can leave tomorrow."

Gina sighed and eased back in the seat. "Great." she was already looking forward to it.

Author's note:

Hey guys!! I'm getting bitchy with the updates, aren't I?
I know, I know and I'm sorry, my life has just become real busy and I always have to be in the mood to write so that's what caused the delay. I can't promise it'll get better yet, but I'm trying.

Thanks for sticking around, for always voting, commenting, sharing, adding to reading lists etc. It means a whole lot!!! ❤❤❤❤

Also, I've entered this book in the 2018 Wattys so wish me luck guys! Fingers crossed 🙌

Who's excited for the #Ginox getaway?? ✋
I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Feel free to drop a comment so i know what you think about it 😜

CONGRATS to all the French supporters for that worldcup win! 🏆⚽

Until next time,
Live good, love
Laters baby
Xoxo ❤🌸
Juju 😘