“I am not pushing any agenda, what are you even saying Rafael?”
Rafael let out a breath to calm himself, he was handling this the wrong way, it wasn’t his fault he was already in a bad mood and he couldn’t stop himself but still, he had to try.
“Listen, Josie, I like you, I like you a lot, but just as a friend, if I didn’t like you I won’t have gotten close to you, I mean aside from my wife, Caleb, the only other person I am this close to is you,”
“I thought you guys are divorced, you are still calling her your wife,”
She pointed out, he didn’t even notice, he didn’t correct himself because he wanted her to let go of this, whatever she thinks will happen with them is never going to happen, the sooner she knows that the better it will be for the both of them, he wasn’t ready to tolerate her and he damn well knew that she won’t like to be made a mockery of.
“Whatever, I was saying that I like you Josie but as a friend, I am sorry if I ever lead you to believe there will be more, it’s all on me that’s why I am telling you to stop right now, please, don’t push it or you might not even have me as a friend,”
He concluded, she was this close to crying and he wasn’t ready to be a witness of that.
“But you promised me, you told me I could wait,”
“That’s because I thought I was ready for that kind of thing but I am not, it’s not you, it is me,”
“Liar, it’s her, isn’t it?”
“Her? You wanna bring Nicole into this? Well here is the thing, I even have a question to ask you, why did you tell her we were in a relationship when we are not,”
He asked, he hadn’t wanted to ask but she had brought it up, she looked away avoiding his graze.
“Is that what she told you? The question should even be why did you meet up with her! I thought you guys are over,”
“It’s none of your business, why didn’t you tell me she called and why did you act like we are in a relationship?”
“So many questions, well for the call, I forgot to tell you, and for telling her we are in a relationship I didn’t tell her that, I don’t know why she assumed it,”
She explained he didn’t believe her, Nicole did not need to lie on her.
“Anyway, let’s just end this, here is the thing, stop showing up at my house uninvited, stop acting like you and I are a thing, we are friends, and that all we can ever be,”
Rafael said sternly.
“But I want us to be more, we can be more, I can’t be just friends with you Rafael, I can’t see you that way,”
“And I can’t be anything more to you, Josie, I am sorry, if you don’t want my friendship, there is nothing more I can offer you, if you feel I lead you on, feel free to blame me but just know you have to take responsibility for your feelings,”
“It’s all her fault, even after I told her we will be married, she can’t just stay away,”
She lamented and covered her mouth in shock afterward, he knew she hadn’t wanted him to know what she did but it was too late, she exposed herself.
“You told her we are getting married? You met with her?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about,”
“Yes you do, let me just tell you that those will only happen in your imagination Josie, I will never date you not to talk of marrying you,”
He fired at her.
“You are such a wicked person Rafael, I don’t even know how to fucking take all these, you told me it was okay to wait,”
“I didn’t, you misunderstood everything, and I a,***”
“Just spare me the details, Rafael, I am out of here, you clearly are not in a good mood and you are taking it out on me, I will get going, call me when you are thinking straight,”
She said dumping the apron and picking up her handbag, she was out of the door and off in her car before he knew it, he didn’t even feel any remorse instead he felt relief, well guess he would take some alcohol and not much, it wasn’t so bad spending New year’s eve alone, he should be used to it already, well that didn’t happen because Caleb showed up just when he thought he would be alone, he didn’t say it out but when he opened the door and met Caleb standing there, he was grateful.
“Shouldn’t you be somewhere else? Why did you decide to come here and disturb me, Caleb?”
Rafael asked even though he liked the fact that Caleb was here.
“Wow, what I get for coming to keep a lonely man company,”
“I am not lonely, okay?”
“Really? You seem pretty much lonely to me, I don’t get why you told Josie to go away, I thought you said you liked her.”
Caleb asked.
“She told you already? Wow,”
“Yes, I saw her car leaving when I was coming and called her on the phone, she was crying, you heart breaker, I honestly thought you liked her,”
He thought he did too, but he couldn’t keep up with her act, she was good in business and her career but she was too possessive, they weren’t even s couple yet and she was trying to claim him.
“I thought I liked her but, I can’t stand her behavior, she is too possessive and not in the right way,”
“Could you throw more light?”
“She told Nicole we were in a relationship and we are going to get married, I haven’t even asked her out,”
“Wow, but I think she just wanted to stake her claim, I don’t see anything bad in that,”
“No, you don’t, but that’s not all,”
“What else is there?”
“She keeps coming here and acting all domestic, I don’t want that,”
He said cringing at the thought.
“It’s not that you don’t want it, it’s just that you don’t want it with her, that’s just the truth,”
Caleb said, Rafael couldn’t deny it.
“See, you didn’t deny it,”
“Can we not talk about women into the new year because we both know we are bad at it,”
Rafael said not wanting the last conversation for the year to be about the area he flopped.
“Sure, there are many more things to talk about,”
Caleb agreed and they spent the rest of the day talking about everything and anything except women…