by Jill Knapp
This was the first time he had ever faced the reality that he had been cheating on his girlfriend. Well, at the least the first time he had ever brought it up with me. He tried handing me the flowers, but I still wouldn’t take them.
“Michael, I am glad you came here to apologize. I really am,” I said. “But, I’m not really sure what you want me to say to all of this. I mean, it’s been about nine months already. Nine months of me lying to people and feeling sorry for myself, and I can’t do that anymore. I really care about you, but I wanted more. I can’t go back to just being your mistress and hope that one day you’ll leave her for me. It’s demeaning.”
Michael stood there for a second, and took all of this information in. I was proud of myself; I was getting better at saying my feelings. I was so over being passive aggressive.
“Marge and I broke up,” he said suddenly.
“Why?” I wasn’t sure what I was hoping for, but I was interested as to why they broke up.
“Because we weren’t right together.”
“Fair enough,” I offered, slightly disappointed by the answer. “When did this happen?”
“Three days ago.”
I nodded, taking all of this information in. They had literally just broken up the other day. I finally walked out of the doorway we had been standing in for about ten minutes, and sat down on the living room couch, the last remaining piece of furniture in there. Michael followed and sat next to me.
“This day just keeps getting weirder.” I put my head in my hands.
Michael placed the roses on the couch and immediately took my hands in his. He brushed the hair off my face and softly kissed me. I tried to move away from him, but he kept his hand on my back.
“What do you want, Michael?” I said softly. He was right up against me. I could smell his skin, his aftershave, his hair. Myriad feelings suddenly came rushing back to me, churning and mixing, the good and the bad. “Honestly, why are you here?”
“I’m here because I want you to stay,” he said, looking directly into my eyes. “I know that’s a selfish thing to say, but I had to say it. I’m not with Marge anymore, and I’m not saying I want to jump into another relationship right this second, but I don’t want you in another country right now either. Maybe we can try and work something out?”
This was a lot to take in.
“Just so I’m clear on this, you’re saying you don’t want me to leave? You don’t want me to go on my trip, you want me to stay here with you?” I said, still trying to wrap my head around this whole proposal.
“I want you to stay, yes. Stay and help me figure this all out.”
“Help you figure out what you want. Right?”
I was asking a lot of questions, but I had to know exactly what Michael was expecting from me. And I had to know exactly what to expect from him. I didn’t want to be unsure or confused by anything surrounding the two of us anymore.
“Yes, Amalia. That’s what I am asking from you,” he said softly. “Stay here, with me, and help me figure things out. I care about you.”
I was taken aback from this statement. I had wanted Michael for so long. When we first started up, I would have done anything to be with him. I looked into his eyes, ran my fingers through his soft brown hair, and lightly brushed his lips with mine.
“I care about you too, Michael.” I nuzzled under his chin.
“So then, what do you say?” he asked, still holding onto both of my hands. “Will you stay?”
Chapter 38
Chase
I hadn’t traveled much in my life. In fact, the first time I ever got on a plane was when I was fifteen. I took a family trip to Disney World, and standing under the giant globe in Epcot Center was the closest I ever got to a landmark until I lived in Manhattan. But that globe was nothing compared to the Cristo Redentor statue that watched over Rio. The sight of the giant effigy on the mountaintop sent chills down my spine and reassured me I had made the right choice. For the next few months, I was in for something really special.
The harsh truth was, Hayden was right. If you are supposed to be with someone, you won’t have to chase them. And although I did appreciate Michael’s apology, and even felt happy he had finally broken up with Marge, it wasn’t enough anymore. I couldn’t stay there and help him figure things out. I knew what I wanted out of our relationship – hell, out of my own life. Staying and being a proverbial contestant with the possibility of winning a relationship with him wasn’t good enough for me. Waiting for him to decide would have been a step backward. He was right about something, though. He needed time to figure things out. But he needed that time alone, and if we were meant to be, he’d be there when I returned.
After grabbing a stick of gum to fight the landing pressure, I dropped my purse onto the floor and kicked it under the seat in front of me. The flight attendants came around for the final time to collect any trash, and reminded us to pull our seats completely upright. Excitement and happiness filled me; I had no regrets. I stared out the window one last time and couldn’t help but smile as our pilot proudly announced, “Senhoras e Senhores, bem-vindo ao Rio.”
Amalia’s journey will continue in the next book in the ‘What Happens…’ series.
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First published in Great Britain by HarperImpulse 2014
Copyright © Jill Knapp 2014
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