ARIA’s POV
I looked over my shoulders, and he was seated right there watching me. My feet were buried in the sand, and my eyes watched the lake before me.
It was a chill night, and I could hear the insects and birds all around. Dennis took me to a house his father built in the past because of his mom. She was a writer and needed to be away from everyone to concentrate on her writing.
He assured me no one would find us here, and he was certain Matteo was on the lookout. I pulled myself off the dirt and made my way to him, my fist folded by my sides.
“Would you stop that”. I said, feigning anger.
“Stop what Riri”.
“Stop looking”. I said, and he chuckled.
“I can’t help it. You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve seen. You can’t blame me”.
I rolled my eyes and sighed.
“How long do we have to be here”. I asked
“Till Matteo cuts the crap”.
“What?!!”.
“When I went to get groceries, I saw men asking people if they saw a man and a woman and guess what?”. I kept shut. “They have our photos. They’re searching for us all over”.
“God”. I sighed.
“He’ll drop it soon, I know it, then we’ll be out of here”.
“What makes you think he’ll drop it? You don’t know him like I do. He won’t stop till he finds me. This was a bad idea. ”
Dennis stood up and faced me. His clean shaved face looked even better than what it was before.
“He won’t find you”. He said, and I could sense the cold in his tone.
“You think?”. I chuckled. “If we stay here, he’ll definitely find us in a short while. So we have to move”.
He looked at me like I just said something comedic.
“He’ll definitely find us if we move”. He squinted his eyes. “Or, do you want him to find us?”. He asked
“What”.
“Yeah, since you’ve known him for a while, I won’t be surprised if you actually miss him”.
“I could never miss such a cruel man”.
“Or maybe you want to go back into his arms”.
I looked at him for a complete minute and laughed. It sounded forced, but I was genuinely laughing.
“Now tell me, why would I want to do that”.
“Maybe cause you love him?”.
There was pure silence when he said this. The words pierced my heart in ways I couldn’t understand.
“I haven’t loved anyone since you, Dennis”.
I looked stunned for a few seconds, and then he smiled warmly at me.
The smile I saw the day he approached me at school.
“I’m guessing I lost that”.
I kept this answer to myself cause I wasn’t certain I still loved him, but one thing was sure, I cared about him even till now.
“I still love you, Aria”. He said, and I smiled at him. It felt genuine. He meant what he said.
“That’s why you went through all this fuss to have me back”. I said, and I could see he was hurt by my words.
The cold wind blew past us, and I saw his hair tussle in the wind. It was beautiful.
“I only did what I did so you could have a normal life. So you could be free to choose who you want to be with and if it’s me, I’ll happily take it and I won’t let you down”.
“Mm…”. I hummed
His phone rang, and he picked it up. His eyes were searching mine, and his lips curved to the side. He was smirking.
“Yes, I see. He’s searching already?”. He asked, his smile widening as he spoke. “He won’t find her. And yes, she’s safe and sound. You can talk to her tomorrow”. He said to the person on the other end. “I’ll call again”. He said and switched off his phone.
“Rose?”
“Yeah…”
“I see…”
He walked into the small house, and I followed him, watching how his head tilted to the side and hearing his chuckle as he thought of something.
“Thinking about rose?”. I asked, and he stopped dead in his tracks.
“Rose?”. He asked, still not turning around to look me in the eyes.
“Yeah Rose”. I said
“Mm…I see. You’re jealous”. He said, turning to face me.
“No, I could never be jealous of you and her”.
“So, what are you jealous of?”. He smirked. “Our love?”. He whispered, still holding unto that smirk, and I laughed. It was a full-blown laugh. My head leaned backward, and I laughed to my heart content.
“You’re so beautiful, Aria”. He said and quiet down with a smile on my face. “He doesn’t deserve you. You deserve so much more than him”.
“So I’ve been told”.
He made his way to me and held me by my waist, and this startled me
“He’ll never change Aria. He’ll always try to hurt you”.
“I know. Matteo’s different from all the men I’ve known”. I said, walking away from his hold.
“So you like him for that?”. I asked
“I do not like him, and it won’t happen”.
He sighed and approached me again, this time holding my gaze and wrapping his arm around me.
“Let me kiss you”. He cooed
“Dennis”.
“I still love you, Aria. More than you could ever know”. He said, his breath fanning my neck. “Please. I need you back. Life has been hell without you”. He whispered and placed a small kiss on my neck.
“Dennis”. I called out a bit louder this time.
“I searched everywhere for you”. He whispered while peppering kisses on my neck. “Everywhere”.
“I didn’t know he had you all along”. He said, and his grip on my waist tightened. I pushed him away, and he sighed.
“I’m sorry”. He said after a chuckle. “I didn’t mean to go that far”.
“I’m married, Dennis. No matter how absurd that sounds. He’s my husband. I have to respect that, don’t try this ever again. ”
“Then get a divorce”. He said, and I could see in his eyes that he wasn’t playing around.