The Way Back | ✓

8.5

She loved Andrew.

I love you, she wanted to say right there and then.

"How was Ipswich?" she asked, her hand sliding over his. "Really. Not the bullshit version."

He swallowed. His eyes zeroed on their hands as he adjusted their hands so his thumb could stroke the back of her hand. "It made me feel so lost."

His words felt raw and honest with how throaty his voice was. The tension that hung heavily in the room cleared slightly to give way to something even sadder. Her heart broke looking at him like this, but her heart had been breaking ever since Talia moved and took Aurora with her.

It had affected Andrew more than either of them imagined it would, ergo affecting London.

"Are you ready to talk about Talia, our relationship and your old ring?" London asked, her heart beating wildly in her chest.

He nodded.

"Okay then," she breathed, "Talk."

"I know you're frustrated with me extending my stay with Talia and Simon and I do feel like my vacation days were used up in vain because I got nowhere with Talia. You were right. She's frustrating me and I hate that she has the most control in all this. I loved seeing Aurora and spending time with her. I can't describe what it meant seeing her after a whole week and having her in my arms. Her little hugs are the best. She sends you one and says hi."

He looked at London, a breathy laugh passing his lips as his eyes glossed over. "I know I can't go over every weekend and that makes me so angry. I tried talking about it with Talia, trying to make her understand that I can't make it there every weekend, that the travel is unreasonable but I'd do it anyway if it was the only way to see my daughter. She understands. I know she does, but they're in a whole other town now. There's nothing I can do. I mentioned spending the summer with me and said I could spend a few days with Aurora but she had plans with Aurora in the summer too and it wasn't fair if I got all the other days. But how does that make sense when she gets to have Aurora almost all the time? I made no progress with her."

He looked back down at their hands and he brushed his thumb over the back of her hand again, the feathersoft touch sending tingles through her body. "Is this the part where I say I told you so?" she teased, getting out a somewhat strangled laugh from him.

Catching her eyes again, he leaned forward and she accepted the kiss, angling her head so his lips slid over hers. He kissed one corner of her mouth and then the other. Pecking her lips one last time he pulled back. She wanted to tell him to continue, to spend their night kissing every inch of each other but that was not right — not when there was a giant elephant that took up room between them; not when she knew she was going to end this night sooner than he'd hoped.

"I never intended to put Talia before you," he apologised. "I didn't think that was what I was doing but I do realise that I spend a lot of time arguing with her and trying to make my relationship with her work more than I focus on our relationship. I knew it would be worthless to use up those vacation days but I had to try. Talia refuses to see reason and I truly think she just wants to separate me from my daughter. We signed on joint custody. But this is not what I signed up for."

"Andrew, baby" London whispered, removing her hand from his and cupping one side of his face. "Talia sees you as competition. It's what I think. And I don't think she's fit to raise Aurora at this point. I, of course, don't know much on the matter but from that dinner weeks ago, when she announced her engagement — she seems to be dealing with her own problems and I do understand why she'd want to move away from all of this but she made everything much more complicated. You deserve your daughter and right now I think you'd be the perfect parent for Aurora."