More Than This | THE WATTPAD DRAFT

Chapter 17

"Why?" His eyes saddened

I averted my eyes. Coming here last night was so selfish of me and now I was overcome with guilt. No matter how much I was dying to have him again, all I've done now was put us both through a continued heartbreak. It wasn't fair on him either. I was the one who walked out on him.

"Last night shouldn't have happened," I said softly

"That's not true," he objected

"I'm serious, Giovanni," I looked up to meet his eyes, "That was a mistake,"

He ran his hands through his hair, "You're lying to yourself, Isabella. You know that wasn't a mistake. We are meant to be together,"

He walked around the counter to me. I turned with my back against it as he stepped closer to me. My heart ached for him. Last night wasn't supposed to happen - it was a poor lapse of judgment and all I've done is broken my own heart over again knowing that we were still in this fucked up situation.

"This doesn't change anything," I murmured and slipped past him

I needed to get out of here. The continued tension was suffocating me and I didn't know how to handle it.

"How many times are you going to break my heart, Isabella?"

His voice was riddled with pain and it made the tears fill my eyes. I turned to face him.

"I never wanted to break your heart, Giovanni," I choked, "But what am I-,"

Before I could finish my sentence, the sound of the elevator opening made both of us turn towards the exit.

"Giovanni? Are you ready to go?" Casey shouted

She sauntered around the corner and a rush of nausea washed over me.

"Oh, you're here," she muttered, stopping in her tracks

I turned back to Giovanni and his eyes were screaming an apology from across the room. This was exactly the kind of situation I never wanted to find myself in again and yet, here I was.

"I was just leaving," I mumbled and turned towards the exit

"Isabella wait," Giovanni shouted and rushed over to me, "Casey, please can you just give us a moment,"

Casey scoffed and strolled into the living room. Her blonde hair falling effortlessly over her shoulder. She was wearing a large coat that hid her stomach and I wondered if she was starting to show.

Giovanni reached for my arm, stopping me from getting into the elevator, "Isabella, please don't leave like this. She's only here because we have a doctor's appointment,"

I didn't want to hear that. I didn't want to hear anything about them and their baby. I hated it.

"I should never have come here last night," I repeated

"Please don't say that," he murmured, "You know that last night wasn't a mistake. You and I being together is not a mistake, Isabella,"

"Nothing has changed, Giovanni," I repeated, "I want no part of this,"

I pulled my arm out of his hold and stepped into the elevator

"Isabella, please," he breathed

"I'm sorry,"

"If you walk away now then that's it," he took a deep breath in, "You either want to be with me or you don't but I can't keep watching you leave,"

My eyes met his and I could see I had hurt him again. Worse than I did before. All I wanted to do was get out of the elevator and wrap my arms around him. I wanted to comfort him and tell him how much I loved him.

But I didn't

Instead, I stayed silent and the elevator doors closed, shutting me off from him again. As soon as he was out of sight, I felt my heart break all over again. The tears spilled over and I couldn't hold them back any longer. I was so angry at myself for allowing this to happen. I was angry that this was our reality. I was so happy being in his arms last night. It felt like that was exactly where I belonged but that was short-lived. This morning reminded me exactly of why I needed to stay away from him. Casey walking in so casually made me feel sick. Every time I saw her, it reminded me of what she said at Mala Mía.

We always find our way back to each other

By the time I stepped out of the elevator, the sadness had slipped away and I was now overcome with a wave of all-consuming anger. I wiped away my tears. What good would crying do? Nothing was going to change and I had to accept that Casey has won. I turned to hail a taxi as my phone buzzed in my bag. I gave the driver my address and glanced down at my screen, surprised to find a text from Lorenzo

Hey Isabella, how about coffee?

Any other day I would have probably politely rejected his offer but after seeing Casey at Giovanni's apartment, I was reminded that I needed to start forgetting about Giovanni. He and I would never be end game and I was torturing myself here. I took a deep breath in and texted him back

Where should I meet you?