She shrugged one shoulder. “Never say never, Della. Forever isn’t always easy.”
My eyebrow shot up, Mia’s insight shocking me into silence. I guess if I thought about it, she was right. Forever isn’t always easy; it rarely is for most people. Most people don’t get a happily ever after without putting some kind of effort into it. God knows Justin and I have had plenty of roadblocks along the way. I shook my head, clearing any thoughts about that situation away.
“I guess you’re right, Mia. That still doesn’t mean I forgive you for lying about everything. You actually let Justin think I was pregnant? I just don’t get that. But I can understand wanting to lash out at people. I know I did plenty of that myself. So just know that whatever you’re going through will eventually get better. But you have to actually try.”
She swallowed thickly, nodding her head at me. “I think I can do that. So, what do you think about the whole living situation?”
“I don’t know, Mia. Give me some time to think about everything.” I tilted my head toward the stairs. “I need to get ready. Whatever I decide, though, I promise I’m not going to throw all of your shit out on the street.”
She laughed lightly. “Well, at least I have that going for me.”
WOW. I DON’T think I could’ve made a bigger mess of that if I actually tried. I thought showing up at the gym today was a good idea. No, I wasn’t stalking Della, watching her every move, but I was keeping tabs on her. For whatever reason, Mia thought we needed to be friends. Apparently, I was her only one. And I was pissed at her.
So, she offered to keep me updated on Della, so maybe I’d give our friendship another shot. Mia called to let me know the news about her dad and Della’s mom getting a divorce, and pointing out the fact that Della was into running lately. So, the rec center was my first guess, and it was the right one.
Della was beyond pissed, and really, I couldn’t blame her. I was doing exactly the same thing I had done last time, even though I didn’t mean to, I just caught up in the moment. Things weren’t serious with Blaire; we had only known each other for a short amount of time. Yes, she was a great girl: smart, beautiful—the list was endless, I’m sure.
But she wasn’t Della.
What in the hell was I supposed to do?
I already had a date set up with Blaire, and I guess we would still meet up. But I would tell her that there was someone else in my life, even if Della didn’t want me.
My phone rang as I drove across town and I took it out of my cup holder to answer it.
“So, if I get kicked out of the house, do you think I can move in with you? Pretty please?”
“Mia.” I blew out a breath, rolling my neck as I flipped on my turn signal. I was off tonight, but all I felt like doing was going home and shutting down my brain for a while. That would stop me from thinking about Della, the taste of her still on my lips. The way her body molded perfectly to mine. The feel of her falling apart while she rode my fingers—see? I had to turn it off, or I was going to drive myself insane with the need to have Della again. I would be fine with just having her in my bed, even if it were only to sleep.
“Don’t worry.” She laughed lightly, bringing me back to the here and now. “I’m sure I can find somewhere.”
“Della isn’t going to kick you out, Mia. You two might not get along, but she has a heart, even if she doesn’t always act like it.” I pulled into my driveway, cradling the phone against my shoulder as I got out of the car and headed inside.
“Really…so does that mean she had a heart and finally took you back?”
I grunted a response as I kicked off my shoes. Mia was one of the last people that I wanted to talk to about Della right now. Really, I didn’t want to talk about it with anyone.
“I’ll take that as a no. What happened? Did she kick you in the balls when you showed up?”
“Not exactly.”
There was a long silence before she started laughing uncontrollably. “Oh my….” More laughing. “You didn’t….” She hiccupped loudly, and I collapsed onto the couch, not seeing what exactly was so funny.
After Mia was finally able to calm down, she cleared her throat. “So, let me guess. Something happened between the two of you, what I really don’t want to know, and then you just had to bring up that you started dating someone. Am I right?”
“Maybe.”
“Why would you do that?” she shrieked. “You’re such a dumbass. Did she kick you in the balls after that? I feel like kicking you in the balls for her.”
“Whatever, Mia. Things ended between us last time because of me not telling the truth. I didn’t want to lie to her again.”
“So, when exactly did you tell her?”
I sighed deeply as I stood up to head toward my bedroom.