Page 59 of One Last Chance

Silence falls, and just when I think he’s left, his voice is low. “Chloe, I love you.”

There’s a ruffling noise, and then it’s as if he’s also sat on the floor because he’s voice is coming through so close to my ears.

“I fucked up. I should have told Cassandra it was over sooner. But when she threatened to run to her dad and mess with my career, then it no longer became about just me, it was about my team and coach and how I’m a huge part of that.”

Have I heard correctly? Cassandra threatened Domenic that if he left her, she would run to her dad to release him from the team? No, she didn’t.

Standing, I wipe away my tears and unlock the door once again. When I open it, Domenic falls back on the floor.

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

He smiles and stands. Facing me, he rubs the back of his neck with his hand. Domenic looks tired. He hasn’t shaved, showing a couple of days of hair growth. He has dark circles around his eyes, probably mimicking mine, and his hair looks as if it needs a trim or, at the very least, a good comb.

“Sorry, was I interrupting something?”

Tightening my robe further, I open the door wider and reply, “No. I was just headed for a bath. Come in.”

“Thank you.” Stepping into my apartment, he walks to the center, looking around at my space. Suddenly, my apartment seems so small with him inside it. Marble white floors lead to the kitchen with a matching island and fitted with stainless steel appliances. To the right is my living room, where I have a smart television attached to the wall and plush couches. Wide floor-to-ceiling windows line the walls of the apartment. With the windows being tinted, there’s no need for drapes or curtains.

My apartment is new, and I was glad I was able to afford the luxury of living opposite Madison Square Garden. If you step out on my balcony, you can see people walking their dogs, jogging, or just people having lunch. It’s a beautiful scene, and I love spending time out there.

He picks up a picture frame from the side table, which is of my parents and me at one of our camping trips. He turns with the photograph in his hand, saying, “I remember you like this.”

Nodding. “Yes, that was junior year,” I reply, walking over to him and placing the picture frame back on the side table.

Folding my arms, I ask, “What are you doing here, Domenic?”

His smile fades as he straightens and clears his throat. “May I sit?”

Nodding, he walks over to the couch and sits, his knees almost touching the coffee table. Sitting opposite him, I cross my legs then uncross them when I see that my legs are showing through the split of my robe.

“Okay, I let you inside, so talk. Tell me what dragged you all the way to New York?”

Domenic clasps his hands together and lays them between his thighs. Hesitantly, Domenic looks up at me, and our eyes lock for the first time. Tingles run through my body, and my heart melts for him. I love him, and I doubt I’ll ever stop.

“Chloe, I… I don’t know where to begin.”

Rubbing my lips together to try and put some moisture in them, I take him in and respond, “You can start by what you said outside… about Cassandra’s father.”

“Right,” he replies, getting up off the couch and starting to pace the floor.

It occurs to me that he does this when he’s nervous. He stops and turns to me, his blue denim jeans low on his hips with a white linen shirt tucked into them. He’s also wearing his white Nike sneakers. The cuffs of his shirt are folded to his elbows, accentuating his muscular arms.

He stops and faces me. “Chloe, you need to believe me that my intention was to break up with Cassandra the night we went out to dinner with your friends. I went to her apartment, and she threatened that if I broke up with her, she would run to her dad and most likely get me off the team. At first, I was shocked. I couldn’t believe she do such a thing, but her father warned me when I started going out with her that if I broke her heart, then I would pay for it with my future in football. I didn’t think he really meant it. But when Cassandra threw those words at me, I got scared. I’ve worked so hard to get where I am, and to think I could lose my position on the team because of her, I guess I hurt her pride.”

He starts pacing again and continues, “She wouldn’t accept that I wanted to break it off and walked away from me. The next day was the game, and well… you weren’t there.”

“I was,” I whisper under my breath.

He stops and freezes.

“You were? But Sophia said you had a headache.”

“No,” I reply, shaking my head.

“I was there, that was until Cassandra surprised me and threw in my face that you two spent the night together discussing your engagement plans.”

Domenic’s eyes turn to rage, and he storms toward me. Placing his hands in mine, he begs, “Chloe, you have to believe me, that is a lie. I did not sleep with her. I went there to tell her it was over, and that was that. I left as soon as I could.”

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