Page 106 of The One That Got Away

‘Cheers for everything,’ Max said.

‘You’re welcome. I wish you two a long and happy future together.’

Max’s eyes connected with mine and I swallowed hard.

‘I take your cases?’ Simón, the Suitcase Superintendent, broke the silence.

‘Er, please. Thanks!’ I stuttered as he loaded them into the boot of the car. ‘Well, keep in touch and good luck.’

‘Good luck?’ Jasmine frowned.

‘Yeah. With your…friend,’ I smiled.

Jasmine’s gaze dropped and she fiddled with her blouse. She was always composed so seeing her flustered was strange. Her reaction confirmed what I suspected though. She definitely liked the chef.

‘Car’s ready,’ Jasmine changed the subject. ‘Safe journey home and I’ll be in touch soon to see how you’re both getting on.’

We waved goodbye, slid onto the back seat then shut the door.

As the driver set off, Max faced me.

‘So,’ he said, his face solemn. ‘We probably should havethe talk. About what happens when we get home.’

My stomach twisted.

If the look on Max’s face was anything to go by, this wasn’t going to be good.

43

MAX

‘Let me guess,’ Stella said. ‘You like me but you’re not ready for a relationship, right?’

Shit. She was spot on.

‘Yeah,’ I winced. ‘But it’s not so cut and dried. I wannabe with you, but I just don’t think it can work.’

‘Why?’ Her face crumpled and my heart squeezed.

‘The next few months are gonna be tricky. I’ve got a lot of travelling to do for work, so I don’t wanna promise anything then let you down.’

‘Travelling? Where to?’

‘Australia, America, around Europe… I’ve spent ages trying to grow our export business and I’ve finally had some breakthroughs. It’s too important not to pursue it.’

‘More important than a relationship.’

‘Yes. No. I…’ I blew out a breath. ‘It doesn’t mean you’re not important to me. You really are. It’s just… I need to get this done.’

‘Fair enough.’ She shrugged her shoulders like it was no big deal. I should’ve been relieved, but stupidly part of me was disappointed that she wasn’t bothered. Maybe she didn’t like meas much as I liked her. ‘Well, maybe drop me a line when you’re back and depending on the circumstances, we could meet up.’

‘Circumstances?’ My brows knitted together.

‘Y’know. Maybe you’ll meet someone. Or maybe I will.’

The thought of Stella with another man was like a knife to my gut. I didn’t want her to be with anyone else.

I didn’t want another man to touch her soft skin, to kiss her lips, to be inside her. But I had to accept that it was gonna happen because I couldn’t give her what she wanted.

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