On The Rocks

Fuck, I’m not sure what I am turning into, but I’m not fighting it. No, I’m surrendering to it.

The minute I made the absolute decision to stay here, I made the decision in my mind that Gabby was the only one for me, and that there was no sense in slowing down where she was concerned. While I don’t believe the last five years without her were wasted, because let’s face it, I’ve had a pretty amazing career, I don’t want to waste another minute.

A knock at my door causes my adrenaline to spike, because I immediately know it’s Gabby, although for the life of me, I can’t figure why she doesn’t just walk in. She has a key.

Setting my beer on the coffee table, I hop the back of the couch and open the door with almost giddy excitement, man card be damned.

There she stands… golden-kissed skin, hazel eyes, and chocolate hair, framing the most beautiful face I’ve ever beheld.

“Hey baby,” I murmur as I snag her by the hips and pull her into to me. She steps forward, caught off guard, her hands coming up to my biceps. I bend down to touch my mouth to hers, but her head turns to the side and I end up grazing her cheekbone.

Pulling back, I look at her in curiosity because she turned away from my kiss, and now I am very much aware that she is pushing back from me. I drop my hold and she steps by me, walking into my house.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, closing the door and turning to her.

Her shoulders are tense as she walks into the living room, so I follow behind in trepidation. When she turns, her face isn’t one I recognize. It’s hard and her eyes are cold, causing my stomach to bottom out.

“I repeat. What’s wrong?” My voice sounds oddly detached and fear-tinged.

“We need to talk,” she says, her eyes firmly rooted to the carpet.

Taking three long strides around the couch, I walk right up to her, placing my hand under her chin and lifting her face to mine. “So talk, but do it while you look me in the eye.”

Her eyes fill with sadness for a moment, a light sheen of moisture coating the green-gold brilliance. It kills me to see that look and I start to wrap my arms around her, but she’s having none of it. It happens so quickly, I’m sure maybe I even imagined it, but the sadness is gone and replaced by a hard glint as she steps away.

“We’re over,” she says.

Of all the things I thought she might say, that never crossed my mind. Blinking at her hard, because surely I heard wrong, I say, “What?”

She takes a few more steps to put distance between us, coming to stand in front of the TV. Crossing her arms over her chest, she says, “We’re over. It’s done.”

“You’re breaking up with me?” I ask incredulously.

“Yes.”

Her words are tinged in ice, her backbone ramrod straight. Defiance pours out of her eyes, daring me to argue with her.

Fuck that… I’m arguing.

“Want to clue me in on why we are over? Because as far as I remember, this morning you were crawling into my bed, telling me you loved me.” My words are just as icy as hers, my anger building fiercely inside.

“Does it matter?” she asks with aggression.

“Fuck yeah, it matters,” I snarl at her. “You break up with the person you supposedly love, you better have a fucking good reason.”

Her eyes dart away from mine, once again sad and uncertain. I can’t put my finger on it, but there’s something going on inside of her that is fueling this ridiculousness. If I can figure out what it is, grab ahold and pull it out of her, I can salvage this fiasco.

Taking a step toward her, I soften my voice, “Gabs… please tell me what’s wrong. We can fix it.”

It’s still there… for just a brief moment, the look of uncertainty and sorrow, but then it’s gone—vanished. When her eyes meet mine again, I know it’s gone for good. In its place is resolve and determination, such as I’ve never seen on her face before, and dread overwhelms me.