20. Veronica #3
The roar is so loud, I shoot up in bed, quickly scrambling out of the covers and to the door. I don’t know what’s waiting for me down the steps, so I creak the door open slowly and slip out of the room.
I go down the stairs as quietly as possible, and once I reach the final step, the voice becomes clearer, and I realize it’s Gabe’s.
He seems to be on the phone because I can’t hear anyone talking back.
I look around and don’t see Noah anywhere.
He must be out for a jog. I know he’s not with Trinity, because he told me we’d go together later.
When I look toward the kitchen, I find Gabe with his back to me. His hand is pulling at his hair brutally, and the other holds the phone to his ear. He’s pacing back and forth, head tilted downwards.
The penthouse is practically all open-spaced, and the railing to the stairs is glass. If he turns around, he’ll spot me right away. But I have a feeling this conversation might be the key to what has been going on with Gabe.
So instead of making my presence known, I quickly take the few steps toward the foyer and hide behind the wall. From here, he won’t be able to see me, but I’ll be able to hear him. And if Noah gets back before I hear the end of the phone call, the elevator will signal me.
“I fucking told you I would be out of town for two weeks and that I couldn’t be reached! What the fuck don’t you understand?!” Gabe growls into the phone as I peek around the corner.
“It’s not your fucking money! You aren’t the reason I made it big; I don’t owe you shit!” He stops pacing, turning around now. He seems distressed, or like he’s seconds away from going on a rampage.
“Thanking you? I SHOULD BE THANKING YOU?! You didn’t keep me alive; you nearly killed me more than a dozen times! You wanted nothing to do with me. You wanted me gone!”
He picks up a glass from the counter that still contains some of his green smoothie and whips it into the sink, the green liquid splashing all over with shards of glass. The crash makes me jump in place, and I quickly cover my mouth with both hands to hold in my gasp.
“Well, I fucking left! I got out of your shitty fucking life and made my own! You were finally fucking free of me, so why couldn’t you just forget I exist like you wanted for so long?!” He paces again, listening to the other person on the line.
“No! I want it. No more of this bullshit. How much is it gonna take for you to give it to me and lose my number?” His eyes widen.
“Are you fucking kidding me?! I don’t have that kind of money!
And even if I did, I can’t just withdraw that kind of sum!
” He walks around the kitchen island and takes a few steps in my direction but stops as I quickly glue myself to the wall, hoping he won’t come closer.
It’s quiet for a full minute, and I start to wonder if maybe he ended the call. I’m afraid to look in case he’s much closer than I think, but then his yell shakes my core. “DON’T FUCKING CALL ME SON!” His voice cracks. “You don’t get to play the mom card with me. You’re no longer my mother…”
Oh, Gabriel…
My heart breaks for him. He’s losing this battle; I can hear it in his voice.
Despite what he just said, it’s hard for any child to fully let go of their mother, no matter how horrible they may be.
A mother is supposed to be a part of your life, supposed to love you and cherish you.
Not do whatever this is. I can’t let her break him.
He keeps saying he’ll protect me, well it’s my turn to protect him.
I push off the wall and step around the corner. When he sees me come into view, his eyes widen in shock, and he freezes. I quickly march over to him, rip the phone out of his hand, and end the call.
He snaps out of it and tries to grab it out of my hands. “No, Vixen! Don’t—”
“That’s enough, Gabriel!” I bark out as I step back and hold the phone away. “I don’t know what the hell that call was, but I heard enough to know that it’s wrong. Whatever they asked for, you’re not doing it. End of story.”
“You don’t understand, I don’t have a choice!” he cries out.
“Then help me understand!” I throw the phone onto the couch a few feet away and take a step into him, my hands holding his cheeks.
“Please, Gabriel. Talk to me. I hate seeing you like this and not being able to help because you shut me out. Please don’t shut me out.” I kiss his lips softly before whispering against them. “Please…”
His arms wrap around me. “It’s not a pretty story…”
I pull my head back, looking into his eyes. “Neither was mine, but you still listened to it. Now I want to listen to yours.”
He breathes out, some of the tension leaving his body. “Are you sure?”
“Isn’t that what couples are supposed to do? Support and be there for each other?”
A smile appears on his lips. “So, we’re a couple? Does that mean I get to call you my girlfriend? Because I’d really like that.”
“Of course, you would.” I smirk. “But wouldn’t it be called a throuple? Is there an actual term for a three-person relationship?”
“I think they call it a polyamorous relationship.” He chuckles. His mood already greatly shifting from mere seconds ago. “So, do I?”
“Only if you tell me what’s going on,” I answer.
I’ll let him call me his girlfriend even if he doesn’t, but I’d really like to know. I don’t like seeing him this way; he’s supposed to be my happy, goofy boyfriend. Not the sad, seconds-away-from-breaking-down one.
He pulls me back in, placing his hand at the back of my head for me to lean onto his shoulder. For a moment, I’m afraid he won’t do it. That he’ll say he’s fine and act like I didn’t just hear everything he said. But then his soothing voice filters through the quiet surrounding us.
“Okay.”
I look up at him and smile. It’s one of those rare moments when I’m actually shorter than him rather than standing almost as tall, since I’m barefoot and not in heels. “Really?”
He gives me a hesitant smile in return. “Yeah. But can we go up to my room?”
My features shift to unimpressed. “Is that your way of trying to get me alone in bed?”
He chuckles. “No, but that’s not a bad idea.” I smack his chest, and he sighs. “I just… I don’t want you to look at me with pity in your eyes. I couldn’t stand having you look at me like that. It’s dark in my room, it will make it easier for me…”
I place my hand on his chest, watching the vulnerability swim through his eyes. “I get it.” I kiss him one last time and take his hand in mine, leading him up the stairs and into his room.