Page 119 of The Fallacy of True Love
He looked into my eyes, and the sincerity in his gaze nearly obliterated my resistance. “Are you sure you want to get on that bus?”
“I need to get on that bus.” I wasn’t lying. He’d unlocked a spectrum of emotions within me that I’d never glimpsed before—never imagined I would be capable of feeling. Between that and my overstimulation from days of socializing, I needed to recharge. Needed to clear my head.
As though he could read my mind, he nodded slowly. “Okay. There are things I need to say, but I know now isn’t the time. You’ll see me soon though.”
“Going to make noise in Nikki’s café again?”
“You bet. I’ll miss you, Maya.”
“It was five days.”
“And yet, look at us.”
I opened my mouth to argue, but what for? He was right, and we only had so much time left.
Giving in to my impulse, I unbuckled my seatbelt and leaned across the console to kiss him. One last kiss to tide me over until our paths crossed again.
He chased my lips as I moved away, but his seatbelt tugged him back.
“Thanks for the ride.” I swung the door open. “See ya, Manila.”
If my eyes had a camera, I would have captured him smiling like he did at this very moment. But the image would be emblazoned in my memory even without one.
“I can deal with that,” he said. “Take care, Maya. No goodbyes.”
My eyes stung, and I took that as my cue to go. Stepping out, I gave him one last wave and forced myself to close the door and walk away.
After two steps, a honk sounded behind me. He’d put the passenger window down and shouted, “I’ll miss your ass too.”
I barked out a laugh. And damn, but I could also say the same about him.
Chapter Forty-Two
Alonzo
I hit the horn as a driver cut narrowly into my lane and didn’t let up until my jaw ached from gritting it.
Maya’s revelation haunted me, and I vacillated between wanting to find the jerks that had made Maya’s life here miserable and chasing her bus all the way to Juana. Since I didn’t have their names and I understood Maya’s need for space, I resigned myself to driving back to Tala’s condo in the thick of Friday night traffic.
Energy pumped through my veins and my brain whirred on triple speed, trying to reconcile facts with emotions, all of them revolving around one woman.
I wondered what Maya was doing right at this moment. She’d texted when she got on the bus and told me she planned to sleep. Was she sleeping now? Had she seen what I’d put in the bag?
Suppressing the need to call Maya, I dialed Tala.
“Lonzo.” Tala’s voice came over the line, and I put the phone on speaker. “Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, I’m on my way there. Thanks again for lending me your car.”
“Anytime. Have you eaten?”
“No.” Food was the last thing on my mind, even though I hadn’t had any since lunch.
“Okay, you can eat with me then.”
The invitation sent a lump to my throat. She couldn’t have known how much I needed someone to talk to. “Alright. I’ll be there in around thirty minutes.”
“Got it. Take care, Lonz.”
