Page 55 of One More Round

“I doubt that. That boy loves you,” she says. I laugh at that.

“Mm-hm.”

Chuckling she leans back on the couch and says, “No, he really does. Now that I know the history between you two, I should have seen it from the start. The anger and heat in the looks he used to give you are so eerily similar to the way he looks at you now.”

“And how does he look at me now?” I ask, turning my face toward her.

“With love and a shit ton of lust,” she says matter-of-factly.

My insides heat and I know I start to flush. Just hearing the word lust when talking about Simon gets me going. Now that I’m thinking about what Simon likes to do with all that lust he has, it makes me shift in my seat.

“And I can tell by your reaction that you know it. Not to mention it’s the same way you look at him, like he hung the moon.”

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“What has you the most anxious? That you’re going to have to tell Simon that you are leaving or that you’re going to have to leave Simon?” she asks.

“Both,” I reply.

“So, to be clear, you do still want to take the job, right?” she asks.

“Yes, I do still want the job, but I’m also not as excited about it as I was a couple of months ago,” I tell her honestly.

She is quiet in thought for a moment.

“I think that you need to talk to Simon about this, as soon as possible,” she says tartly.

“I know, I know I do. But he’s smack dab in the middle of this Race event. I’m going to have to wait until that is over.”

She sighs, “That’s a good point. But don’t wait any longer than that.” She eyes me. “I’m gonna be stuck on you like glue, asking you about it until you tell him. So, don’t expect me to let you get off easy.”

I roll my eyes with a good-natured chuckle.

“Well, for what it’s worth, I’m sad that you are moving away, but I’m also really excited for you. I know this has been your dream job for a while now. All your hard work paid off.” She smiles at me genuinely.

“Thank you, Mo. That means a lot to me.” I take a breath. Reality: a hard pill to swallow. “I’m gonna miss you so damn much.”

I can see her eyes start to water, she’s a crier, but shit just got real and I’m probably leaving. Soon.

“It’s going to be really hard being here without you, Gia. We’ve been together, had each other’s backs for almost a decade,” she says, fighting back the tears.

“I’ll always have your back, Morgan, even if I’m not right here,” I say, leaning forward and reaching to grab her hand. We sit like that for a second, both fighting tears, holding each other’s hands.

“OK, just give me another minute or two to be sad and teary-eyed, then I promise I will be nothing but supportive and happy from here on out. Well, until the day you leave. I reserve the right to be a crybaby the day I send you off on your own,” she sniffles.

I laugh and nod as she wipes away some of the tears that just sprang free.

After a few more minutes, we turn back to the stream. Simon and Dex are on similar schedules, so they are currently both running the show.

“Oh my gosh. Isn’t ComicGem68 Ruby’s screen name?” Morgan asks looking at the TV.

“Yeah, she’s been trolling Link whenever he stops by. It’s actually been quite entertaining,” I reply. I look closer at the TV and see that she called Simon out on the mistake he just made. Dex is taking the supporting seat this round and is interacting with the fans. He laughs and reads her comment out loud to Simon. He looks slightly annoyed until Dex tells him who exactly thinks he should throw in the towel and give up—to go take a break because he’s obviously too tired to be playing. His face loses all trace of annoyance and he chuckles, looks right at the screen, making me feel that he's looking right at me and speaks.

“She’s your friend.” I can’t help but let out a bark of a laugh.

“So, I take it the guys know it’s Ruby as well?” Morgan chuckles. I shake my head and smile as I watch the handsome man that I’ve loved for so long in his element. A rush of sadness overtakes me with the thought that in less than a month he probably won’t be happy and joking around with me anymore. That at least, if I want to see him again in the future, I’ll always be able to watch as a fan. And probably nothing more.

Chapter Twenty-Six

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