I stood up, and she had no choice but to follow since I hadn’t let go of her hand. Walking over to stand beside her, I saw the conflict in her eyes. Maybe Iwasreading her wrong all this time, despite what she’d just confessed. My heart raced. I couldn’t stand another rejection, not from her, but I needed to take the chance and speak my heart.
“I don’t want to just be your friend anymore. Yes, I want to be the friend you can continue to share your dreams with, share everything about your day, about your family. I know you want to travel and focuson your career. I want that for you, too. So much. I’ll never ask you to stop doing those things. I’m just asking, well, asking if you’d let me be the one beside you while you do it.”
There. I’d done it. Laid my heart bare for her to see. It wasn’t a declaration of love, but it was letting her know how much she meant to me.
Tears flowed down her face in rapid succession, which made my heart beat even faster.
“Wait, why are you crying? Listen, if you don’t feel as strongly as I do, you can tell me,” I said as I pulled her into my arms.
She murmured into my chest something about impossible dreams. She sniffled and looked up at me, eyes full of tears, but I saw it. Saw that she felt the same way. Would she deny it?
“Miles,” she choked out. “Yes, I feel the same way. Like I said,” she hiccupped, “I love being around you. Love that I can be myself. I feel like I’ve known you for years, not less than two months. It’s crazy, like something out of a book. Yes, I feel so many things about you.”
I kissed her forehead, forcing myself not to think about kissing her. If I did, I’d have to hold myself back from stealing her first kiss, something that I’d dreamed about more than I’d ever admit.
“It’s all so much, so soon,” she whispered. Alarm bells were ringing in my head at those words; the same words Katy had used. But I chose to ignore them because these two women were completely different, and so were our circumstances.
Vicky pulled away just enough to look up at me comfortably, even though I still held her around the waist, not willing to let go just yet. “What am I supposed todonow?” she asked, her brow furrowing again.
“Now? Now we figure out how to balance spending time together--alone and with MJ, and figure it all out,” I answered.
“Miles.”
“Listen, you’re doing great at work, getting more clients weekly. So proud of you, by the way. There’s no way Elena is going to let you go,” I said confidently, my smile wide.
When she closed her eyes like she was in pain, I realized there was something not right.
“What’s wrong? Did she say something about not extending your visa?”
“It’s what I’ve been trying to tell you,” she said quietly, opening her eyes and looking at me.
“Tell me what?”
She took a step back, pulling her hand from mine, making me frown.
“Miles, Elena called me on my way home. She’s offered me a full-time position,” she said, her voice shaking.
I huffed out a huge breath of relief. She wasn’t leaving.
“That’s amazing news. Congratulations!” When I went to hug her again, she shook her head.
“In Rome. She offered me a permanent position in Rome. I leave in two days.”
nineteen
. . .
Vicky
“Rome? She’s sending you back home? I don’t understand. You’ve done so well here,” Miles stammered. He’d reluctantly let me take a few steps away from him. I was glad for the space because if he pulled me into his arms again, I’d have to walk away from this career-changing opportunity.
When my call with Elena was interrupted and she had to call me back, it felt like a blessing. Before we hung up the first time, she mentioned something about an opening in her Rome office, and I nearly swerved off the road. When I hung up with her the second time, once I was back at my loft, I was left stunned.
I sat and prayed about it for a long time and felt God’s peace about my decision to take the job. I needed His peace because I was still conflicted about leaving San Diego. And Miles and MJ. But I knew that I needed to trust Him and the path He had me on. How Miles and MJ fit into His plan, I wasn’t sure. When I finished praying, I let the excitement of this opportunity take over.
Dancing around, squealing like a little girl, I hurried and called Mama. I added Corinna and Enzo to the video call and laughed at their happy screams of celebration.
“This is everything you’ve been dreaming of, tesoro. You did it. You did it,” Mama said.
