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Chapter six
Ava
I repeat the words over and over in my head.
Have dinner with me.
It isn’t a question. It’s phrased as a direct request. I know what I want to say. I want to scream yes. The question then becomes, what should I say. I should say no. I instantly turn on my defenses because I can feel that flutter inside of me saying, this could lead to a dangerous place for my heart.
“You don’t mean that,” I tell him out of surprise.
“Of course I do. Bella, I’ve never been more certain. It’s my last day in the States. I would like to spend some of it with you.”
My old habit of gnawing on my thumbnail makes a reappearance. I stare at the screen of my dashboard. The time ticking away second after second in stunned silence. My mouth is hanging open a bit, hoping my thoughts find their way out. He’s been able to sense many things before I’m able to find the words.
“Don’t overthink it,” he tells me. “I want to share a meal with you. Say you will, please?”
How does he know what I’m doing? Ava, you idiot. He’s clocked you since early on. I know I want to go. This is an invitation, if I’m honest, I’ve waited for. How will it work? Before I can even ask the question, the answer shows up.
“I will make you dinner in my home. I’m in the middle of packing up my rental. I will leave the address in our chat and hope to see you at seven. They are calling me back, Bella. I have to go. Ciao.”
I set my phone down on the dashboard of my car and stare at the screen as it goes black. I wrap my arms around myself in a subconscious effort to remind me this moment isn’t something I’m making up. It’s actually happening.
A knock on my car door window interrupts my inner back and forth battle. I finally open the door and get out. “Hey, girl. It’s four on a Friday. Why the hell are you still taking calls in the car? Turn on that voicemail.”
Oh…Sylvia.
I quickly close my car door and race inside.
“Whoa! Where’s the fire?” she hollers after me. Once she chases me down outside our apartment door, she stares at me while I struggle to get the key in the lock.
“That’s not a question I can easily answer,” I tell her.
Inside, I drop my purse and messenger bag and quietly pace back and forth with my bestie’s watchful eyes following me left and right. “You’re making me dizzy with all this pacing. What the hell happened?”
I make another couple laps before I confess what I’ve been dying to tell her for a couple of weeks. “You’re going to be pissed. I promise you this is the only time I’ve kept a secret like this.”
“Girl, start talking.”
I pull my hair over my right shoulder as I lean back against my desk. “I’ve been talking to Rafael. We’ve been messaging in Insta or in email since we got back from the bed-and-breakfast.”
“I knew it!” she screams.
“Shhhh. Keep your voice down. This has to stay on the down low. Neither one of us wants attention drawn to it. I think that’s what he likes most. I’m uncomplicated.”
Sylvia starts laughing. It’s not just like she heard a joke type laugh, but a full-on belly laugh that echoes off every pane of glass around us. “I don’t think you’ve ever been uncomplicated, Ava.”
I pull a pillow off the couch and toss it at her. “Nice. Thanks.”
“Oh, calm down. I think this is a good thing. Tell me one thing about it that’s bad?”
“You mean besides an ocean between us. The spotlight we both would hate. The fact that I’m just out of the longest relationship I’ve ever had, and three weeks later, I’m dreaming of all the things I want to do to him or have him do to me.”
I can feel a flush rise from my feet to my face. I’m more than sure I look like I’ve stepped into a sunburn instantly. “Mmm hmm. Tell me about those things.”
“Jesus, Syl.”
“Ava, look, you don’t owe me, or anyone, an explanation for what you’re thinking. He’s a man. You’re a woman, a hot one at that. Go get it.”
