Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 85569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 85569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 428(@200wpm)___ 342(@250wpm)___ 285(@300wpm)
Chapter 45
Cole
The time for Montana to leave came much too soon.
Anya was seated on the couch, wide awake and watching a new animated movie she had selected for all of us, but neither Montana nor I had any interest in watching it.
“Anya, wave goodbye to Miss Moore,” I said.
Anya put her movie on hold and ran over to the front door. “Bye, Miss Moore. See you tomorrow at school.”
“Good night, Anya. Thank you for this evening. It was lovely, and I especially loved the cupcakes.
Anya went back to her movie and I closed the door and headed out with Montana.
“Thank you for a great evening. I really enjoyed being with you and Anya,” she said, nodding as we walked down the steps. We went over to where her old Volvo was parked. It was a charming green, though thoroughly scuffed and old. She stood against the door and it took everything in me to keep from kissing her.
“Was this your dad’s?” I asked, simply because I didn’t want to let her go yet.
“Yeah. When I turned sixteen, he wanted to get me something fancy, and I refused. I told him to hand this over to me while he got what he wanted, which was a newer truck. It was a whole battle, but eventually, he conceded. The main issue was that it wasn’t safe, so he worked on it for months and installed an airbag at least to the steering wheel.”
This immensely amused me. “So there’s only one airbag? The passenger's seat has none?”
“Absolutely none.”
“Do you tell your passengers that when they get into the front seat?”
“It depends on who the passenger is and how much I like or dislike them,” she replied.
I laughed out loud. She made me want to try even harder to resolve my feud with Paganini so I could get back to living life the way I wanted … with her, hopefully.
She smiled then and briefly lowered her head in thought. Then she lifted it once again, her face was pale, and those enchanting eyes of hers were sad.
“I … I think maybe we should end things here.”
My heart seemed to stop for a moment. Obviously, I knew this moment could happen, but I had not expected it right now. It had come out of the blue and was a monumental blow.
“I understand, but what brought this on? You were fine a moment ago.” My voice sounded strange.
“I know, I must sound like some ditzy female, but I’ve never been in this kind of situation before, and I honestly thought I could go on this way ... casually, I mean, just taking the pleasure and not wanting more, but ... I realize now, I can’t.”
She looked at the house, her gaze soft but distant.
“You and Anya, and this is me being honest, maybe too honest, you two paint the prettiest picture … and I want to be a part of that picture. That meal we had tonight was everything I ever wanted, but now you’re walking me out. And it doesn’t feel good to know that, that’s what all our meals are going to be like. Me leaving.
“Even now, I cannot trust myself not to start wanting far more than you're willing to offer, let alone as I start to feel more and more for you. You've been straight with me from the very beginning; you can't offer more, and I think it’s time for me to take your warning seriously. For my sake … and for Anya's as well. She’s starting to get too close to me.
“So now, while we’re still on good terms, while I can still walk away without too much heartbreak, I think it's best to. It's also a good thing to give you two the time and space needed to settle down and actually get the change that you both need right now. To find solid ground.”
She looked at me then, and I couldn’t help but stare desperately at her. It was such an incredibly sad moment, but I knew it was what we both needed at the time. It was the right thing to do for now. She didn’t know it, but there was no way I was letting her go. I would solve my problem and I would be back to claim my beauty.
“One last kiss?” I asked. “One last time?”
She smiled then, but it was too bright, almost dishonest. She was trying her very best to shield her hurt, but I could see it too clearly."
“Of course,” she said, tears slightly pooling in her eyes. “No hard feelings.”
“No hard feelings,” I nodded. I leaned forward and sealed my lips over hers. Shutting my eyes, I savored her taste one more time. No matter how painful and bittersweet this moment was, I knew in my gut that for the sake of my daughter, and her too, this was the right decision.