Page 9 of Once Upon a Star

I stopped moving toward her and leaned back. I tried to sound casual when I said, “Work. Yes, at the hospital. You made it. You’re a doctor. Congrats. I know how important that was to you.”

“I’m not going to stand here and discuss my life and my accomplishments, no matter how vast and great they may be. You lost that chance years ago. Have a good night.”

She brushed past me and I inhaled her intoxicating scent of cinnamon and honey. Overcome by the scent and the feelings that it evoked, I closed my eyes and savored her being so close to me. But I kept them closed for too long and when I opened them, she had moved past me. I tried to reach for her, to pull her back to me, but she must have been expecting it because she moved too fast.

“Ara. Wait. Please,” I called.

I could hear the desperation in my voice but I didn’t care. I had come to talk to her and I wasn’t going to let leave until we did. We had a lot to discuss. There was so much that I needed to explain. I could see that she was hurt and she didn’t want to talk to me but if I could tell her everything then maybe she would change her mind.

She didn’t turn around but she stopped. “Why?” she asked.

Her voice was barely above a whisper. She was trying to hide it but I could hear the hurt in that one word. I could also hear her resolve slipping. If I had been a better man, I would have let her go. I would have told her that we would talk another time. I would have said I just needed to know she was okay and I would leave her alone. But I couldn't or wouldn’t do any of those things.

“I missed you.” It was the truth. It was the most truthful I could be with her. I felt in those three words, I was telling her everything she meant to me and everything I thought we could be.

Ara dropped her head and let out a short laugh that almost turned into a sob. I wanted to pull her into my arms. I wanted to tell her that everything was going to be okay. I wanted to apologize for ever leaving her or making her think that I didn’t care. I wanted to tell her I was never going to leave her again. But she wouldn’t believe any of that. She would need more than words to convince her.

I had been foolish to believe otherwise.

“You could have fooled me,” she said.

“I messed up, royally. I know I did. I’m sorry. Please, let me make up for it.”

She turned back to look at me then. I could see the unshed tears in her eyes. In that moment, I could see not only all the hurt that I had caused her, but the anger, and how it fueled what she said. But underneath it, I could still see the slight glimmer of desire, or dare I hoped to call it, love, looking back at me.

It wasn’t much, but I would take anything she would give me. She might hate me right now, but there was a fine line between love and hate. I could work with that. I could find a chink in the armor that kept me at a distance and find a way in.

“No, Bash. It’s too late for that. I would say it is about seven years, three months, and two days too late.” She turned away from me and walked into her apartment complex. I let her go. She needed to have the last word. She needed to think that she had won.

She might have, but that was only the first round. I had come to New York City to win back the woman that I loved. Just because things didn’t go as well as I wanted tonight didn’t mean I was going to give up. Even with all the hate and hurt in Ara’s eyes, I also saw the love. She loved me; I knew she did, even if she wasn’t ready to admit it.

It was my job to show and prove to her that I did love her and she was the only woman for me. And that she loved me and I was the only man for her.

Let the games begin.

Chapter 6

Aracely

Seven years, three months, and two days.

I didn’t want it but the words went through my mind at all hours of the day. It wasn’t just the words that I could recall so easily as if they were just sitting there waiting to hear them, but it was the sound of Bash’s voice when he said them.

The words tore at my heart; they reminded me of the man he had been, the man I thought he would always be. It made me think of all the things that I hoped we could have had and that he might still want them, too.

It had been a week since Bash had come to my apartment. I had hoped he had gotten the hint. I had made it perfectly clear: I didn’t want to see him. I didn’t want to talk to him. I certainly didn’t want to hear how he had missed me for seven years, three months, and two days.

But with all things regarding me and Bash, he had done the exact opposite of what I wanted. He hadn’t left me alone; he certainly hadn’t gotten the hint. Well, he didn’t contact me again, but he certainly made his presence known and that he wasn’t going anywhere. As evident by all the stuff that was currently littered around my living room.

“This is a lot of shit,” Ella said as she stood in the middle of my apartment.

I laughed as Ella wasn’t one to curse but it seemed to be the perfect description of what we were seeing. I had brought home some of the flowers that he had delivered to my work, though after the fifth bouquet, I gave them to random patients and even the occasional co-worker. The chocolates were a huge success in the break room, as were the breakfast burritos he had delivered. I wasn’t sure how he had figured out what type of wine I liked, and I didn’t want to think too hard about how he had, but there had been a case delivered to my apartment a few days ago.

There were still more flowers delivered to my apartment, food that randomly showed up as soon as I got home from my shift, my favorite candies and fruits that were sitting on my kitchen counter. There were even a few articles of clothing. The silk scarves were fashionable and warm and I hated to admit it, but I loved them. They were the perfect coloring for me. There were other random gifts, like books and even theater tickets.

I wanted to send it all back. I wanted to tell him he couldn’t be doing this but I was sure that was half the reason he was doing it. He wanted contact with me, even if it was negative. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction. Hence, why Ella was there.

“Do you want some of the flowers? It’s starting to look like a floral shop exploded in here,” I said.