Where the hell is he?
My eyes sting. My chest tightens. Anxiety rips through me—relentless, raw, alive. My hands won’t stop shaking. I’m losing control.
I dial Gabriel.
No answer.
I call again.
Still nothing.
Fuck!
I shoot him a text, and my phone rings simultaneously in my hand, buzzing like it’s about to explode.
“Elijah, you called?” Gabriel’s voice is rough, breathless.
“He saw us,” I spit out into the phone.
“Who?”
“Alex!” I bark. The pitch of my voice cracks. I hate how it sounds.
“What did he see?”
Anger flares. “What thefuckdo you think he saw?”
“Us?” he presses, pissing me off even more.
“Yes, Gabriel! Fuckingyes! He saw us. Do I need to spell it out for you?”
“Elijah, stop.”
“Stop?Stop?Do you even understand what this means?” I’m pacing now, heart pounding like it’s trying to punch out of my chest. “You’re supposed to be in Spain, for Christ’s sake! Not here. Not with me.”
A silence falls between us.
My breath hitches.
I close my eyes.
“Oh god…”
He exhales sharply, frustrated. In the background, the faint sound of movement cuts off. He’s stopped whatever he was doing. He’s not out of breath anymore.
“Well, Elijah.” His voice comes back level but edged, “I told you that keeping this a secret wasn’t a good idea. What did you expect?”
“I wanted to surprise him.”
“Seriously? Surprise him?” His tone spikes. “For fuck’s sake, Elijah, what were you going to say? ‘Oh hey, guess what, Alex? I’m still fucking married—surprise!’What man’s going to want to hear that?”
I dig my heel into the hardwood floor, grounding myself. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.”
“Then what, Elijah? What?”
“Fuck!” My voice splinters, ragged. “I can’t do this! I can’t?—”
“Elijah, love.” His voice softens suddenly, slipping into the accent that always undoes me. “Would you like me to come back over? I can be there in ten.”
