“Setting an alarm. I give it ten minutes before you fall asleep on me. My bed and my arms are very comfortable.”
She rolled her eyes, but I had been lectured more than once about bringing Cassidy home late when we had fallen asleep watching a movie. Mr. Bianco would be much tougher on me, I suspected.
“Would you just get in bed already?”
Laughing, I switched on the television and turned onStranger Things. I was excited to see if she would like it. I settled next to her, wrapping her in my arms. It had been a long time since I had a woman lying next to me. There was absolutely no way my hope of finding a spark would fail me. I was sure of it.
Isabella
Okay, so I’m guilty. I mean, if we are ever going to find a spark, we have to up the game.
Cuddling was the perfect idea, and I had come up with the best excuse to make sure I got to be wrapped up with him for hours. I was sure that as soon as he wrapped his arms around me, our fireworks would finally happen.
He was doing everything right. Our bodies were all warm and cozy. He caressed my arm and stroked my hair. At some point, he even started to press tiny kisses onto my shoulder. And guess what? Nothing. I wanted to cry. Was I really that broken? I mean, what girl was immune to a gorgeous, sweet-hearted, amazing guy kissing her neck? This was unacceptable.
After a while, I gave up trying to focus on the show and turned to face him. He adjusted quickly and soon our legs entwined. His one arm was sort of stuck beneath me, but he started twirling my hair with his free hand. I wrapped my arms around him and closed my eyes. He smelled wonderful. He pressed his forehead to mine, and the air between us grew thin. Finally, he rolled us slightly so I was mostly beneath him. His hand gripped my thigh and his lips found mine.
My fingers dove into his hair as I gripped his back to pull him closer. Our mouths seemed to fit perfectly together, and this time we even used our tongues to explore each other. It was a completely intimate moment. Well, it should have been, at least.
“Ughhhhhhh!”
Liam lifted his lips and threw his body to the empty side of the bed in frustration. I rose on my elbows. I tried my best to make it better, but I was just as frustrated as he was.
“Maybe it’s just not our time yet. Like, we have to let go of our pasts a little bit more before we are ready to move forward.”
Completely defeated, Liam looked at me.
“What if we can’t let go?”
I collapsed on the bed and looked at the ceiling.
“Then we weren’t meant to be more than we are now.”
His face reappeared over mine, and he whispered, “Which is what, Bella?”
Which a shrug, I responded, “Friends?”
His eyes were so dark they were almost black. Through gritted teeth, he shook his head.
“Best friends.”
I smiled softly. I was in the market for a best friend. Nodding, I whispered, “Migliori amici.”
He sighed heavily and lay on his back next to me. Our fingers entwined as we both stared at the ceiling.
“I’m not giving up, by the way. This is not me saying I’m done trying.”
I squeezed his hand and nodded.
“Me either.”
We sat there, Netflix playing in the background for what seemed like hours before the sound of Liam’s alarm filled the room. We both sat up, and I pushed back some more tears I was refusing to shed. This was the last time I would come up with some brilliant plan to try to find a spark. I mean, seriously, how much more did the universe want from me? What was having a future with Liam going to cost me? Because right now, I was pretty sure I would pay anything.
The cost of a future with Liam: whatever the universe demanded of me.
Chapter 14
Week3–Friday
