Roses & Ruin

Chapter 19 (Anthony)

She told me how she took him back, but that they're working on themselves. She specifically said, "Please don't judge me for taking him back. I know it was weak of me to do so, but it was with the promise to work on ourselves and he's kept the promise thus far."

"I'm not judging you" was all I could think to say. I don't wanna talk about how much I think she made a mistake. It's not my place to tell her she could've had better. I said it once back then and that's enough.

        "I guess the reason why I'm still feeling so upset about all this is because it was something that really hurt me. And it's something I feared so deeply. That if she were pregnant she'd be starting this life with Dom that'd ruin everything we had...and she is pregnant, but it isn't his, so I should be content. But I'm not...is that selfish?" She asked me.

She's good at taking over a conversation. I sat and genuinely listened to her, but I also watched her. I didn't mean to do it, but I watched how her mouth moved when she talked. The cute expressions she makes when she becomes really passionate about what she's saying.

I watched her chesnut hair hang around her little petite shoulders and pictured my fist around it, tugging it while I fucked her from behind.

She's a beautiful and honestly good person. She's smart and she's talented. She deserves the world.

        "That isn't selfish. I would feel the same in your shoes" I told her. If I was a girl and my boyfriend potentially had someone else pregnant because of some deranged revenge fuck I wouldn't feel great about it either.

Even if you thought she wasn't pregnant, then found out she was pregnant, but the baby isn't his. Still leaves a sour taste in your mouth.

Finally Mia just shivered and shook her head clear. "Anyways," she said, making it known she wanted to move on.

        "Answer my other question. How are you in general?" I asked her. The widening smile she gave me slayed me. "So good. I was just off a couple weeks ago doing some photo shoots for Fendi in Europe. And Karl and I are talking through some ideas...yeah, things are really good" she told me.

I shouldn't have stayed here. I keep feeling this annoying, embarrassing flutter in my gut while I'm talking to her. When she smiles or absentmindedly touches me as she talks on. I should tell her I have to go.

"What about you Anthony Rizzo?" She said my full name the way she knows I like it. Damn her. She always made my name sound so good. "What about me?" I asked her.

"Tell me what's going on in your life" she waved for me to say something. For the life of me I had no idea what. "Any girls?" She peeked up at me through her lashes and I couldn't do it. I quickly muttered a no and looked away from her. To change subjects she quickly asked a different question.

        "I heard you run illegal fights. You'd never told me that, but I heard my brother mentioning that the other day" she randomly said. "Uh, yeah, have been for years" I told her. She gave me this soft smile and said, "No wonder you're such a heavy hitter."

I forgot that Mia had even seen me in action before. I knocked a man out cold with one well placed punch the first time I went out drinking with her and Sophia. Another time when I fought the bouncers at Dom's club, when Dom had me kicked out. The prick.

I looked down at my hands and flexed them.

        "I guess so. I've been doing this a long time"  I told her. "I wanna come," she suddenly added. I did a double take. "That's not really your scene. Trust me, sweetheart" I didn't mean the pet name, but that's what I call everybody. "Why not? Soph would totally come with me. I wouldn't be the only girl" she pressed this.