My Love Forgive by Anna Antonia Page B

you a massive problem at an inconvenient time.” My fingers stopped her nervous petting. “You don’t really want to leave me alone with her. Why are you pretending otherwise?”
    I know you’re scared, Risa. Don’t hide that from me.
    “I’m not pretending.” She stood on tip-toe and pecked my cheek. “Do what you need to do.” Risa swallowed and fumbled with her words. “If things, uh, change or, uh, well, if you change your mind about, uh, seeing me then don’t worry about it. No hard feelings, okay?”
    “I have to admit something, Risa.” I absolutely hated the wariness hiding behind her enthusiastic nod and salesman-worthy wattage smile. She should’ve never worn that look around me, not when I was being this civilized. “I can’t stand your ‘no hard feelings’ line.”
    “Really? Why?” she cut in before I could answer. “I just want you to know that we can still be cool with one another if things don’t exactly work out.”
    “For an Account Executive you give up so easily.”
    “I do not!”
    “Yes, you do.” I leaned over her and relished the thrill of physically overpowering Risa with my size alone. I’d never dated anyone this tiny in stature. I wondered how different it would be to bed her compared to the taller women I’d had in the past. “There’s no reason why we wouldn’t work out, little girl, so please refrain from giving me your conciliatory speeches.”
    Risa huffed. “It’s called being nice, Damian. Something I highly recommend you look into. Really.”
    I stopped her from walking away from me with one firm tug on her ponytail. “You don’t want nice. If you did, you would’ve punched me in the throat long before now.”
    “Really?”
    She thought I was joking. I was completely serious. “Really, really.”
    “You’re so arrogant.”
    “I’ll take that as truth.” I leaned down to whisper in her ear, “I really want you to wait for me.”
    “As you do what?” Risa kept her voice as soft as mine.
    She was thawing. This was good. “I’m going to walk Gretchen to her car and then I’m coming back to you so we can continue our evening.”
    Her head tilted in consideration. I could see the battle raging between what she really wanted and what her pride dictated. I imagined Risa’s heart must be trying to step outside her chest for all her stillness belied.
    She needed prodding and I was very good at that. “It’s not that difficult of a decision, is it? All you have to do is wait five minutes for me. That’s all.”
    Just do what I say, Risa, and you won’t regret it.
    “No, I’m just going to go home.”
    I knew then I’d lost my connection to her. I didn’t have to turn around to know why.
    “I’m ready to go back to my hotel, Damian, and I don’t feel up to driving.”
    “Gretchen, I asked that you wait for me.” I realized my colossal mistake as soon as the terse words broke into being.
    How could I say the same thing to her that I just said to Risa? Shit!
    Risa withdrew inside herself, leaving me standing on the outside of her surface indifference. She birthed another lying smile and turned away with a snappy salute. “I’ll leave you two alone. Thanks for dinner. See you tomorrow at the office!”
    “I’m sorry, Risa, for tonight.”
    “It’s no biggie!” she said over her shoulder. Heels clacked away into silence, leaving me alone with my past.
    “Nice girl. Is she why you left me?”
    “No. I left you long before I ever met her and more importantly, I left you because it was time.” Gretchen’s anguished huff communicated the need for me to minimize her suffering. “I’m sorry for how things turned out. I really am.”
    “Not sorry enough to keep from moving on.”
    “No, not sorry enough to keep from moving on.” I waited for Risa to come back. We had taken my car and her apartment was 3.16 miles away from mine.
    She can’t walk that far. Especially at night.
    “I hate her.”
    “No, you don’t.”
    “Yes, I do,