32
C aleb and I meet up at the Path of the Gods, a rugged pathway that connects Positano to smaller villages, offering panoramic views of the coast and the little villages and their quintessential pastel-colored buildings. The path is beautiful, filled with wildflowers and lush greenery. It takes a solid three hours to complete, giving us plenty of time to talk.
We ease in, spending the first half of the hike catching up. He tells me all about his adventures with Freddie in Naples, and I recount our time in Tuscany—or at least, a sanitized version.
“All right, so let’s be serious for five minutes,” he says, flashing me that sunny smile. It reminds me why I liked him so much to begin with. He parks himself on a flat rock, patting the space next to him.
“My record is four, but let’s try,” I say with a sly smile. I relish the feeling of the coastal air on my face, a welcome reprieve from the blazing sun.
“All right, I’ll make it quick. I owe you an apology. I’m sorrier than you’ll ever know,” he says over the echo of a group of hikers ahead.
“You don’t. You already apologized,” I remind him. I don’t feel at liberty to be mad, considering what happened with Teller. I’m the one who’s committed the ultimate betrayal. I’ll have to tell him eventually, if I don’t screw this up yet again.
“I know. But I don’t think one sorry is enough. I mean, I ditched you in Florence right after you told me all of this stuff about your family, your mom. All that history. I just straight-up left without telling you, like a complete coward. If I were you, I’d never talk to me again.”
I get the feeling he needs to get this off his chest, so I let him.
He hangs his head, letting his feet drag in the dirt. “Like I said yesterday, I got scared.”
“I did drop a pretty big bomb on you. The whole soulmate thing is a touch terrifying to the average person,” I say over the rustle of the lemon tree above us.
“Maybe. But I’m grateful you did. You forced me to stop and think about how I’m living my life. I always thought while I’m young and traveling, I had to be alone. I couldn’t be tied down. But when I was on the train to Naples, I realized that it would be nice to have someone by my side. And truthfully, the time I spent with you was some of the best I’ve had.”
I let it all sink in, studying the uneven path, kicking a small rock between my feet. He’s taken full accountability for what he’s done, no excuses. He’s also admitted that his feelings for me aren’t just casual. In fact, they’re pretty freakin’ big. Still, I’m hesitant.
“I have to ask, though, are you still scared? Monogamy isn’t really something that’s negotiable for me.”
“I won’t lie—I am, a little bit,” he admits. “I’ve never actually been in love. I’ve never even had a relationship longer than two months.”
“Me either, actually.”
“Maybe we can learn together?” He gives me an earnest look that nearly knocks me off my feet. It’s the same jolt I got when our eyes locked for the first time.
“I—I’d like to, but I’m leaving. In a few days,” I say before I get too carried away.
He leans into me and plants soft kisses on my shoulder. “I think you should stay. Please? I’ve never had a connection like this with anyone. It feels big for me too. Even if you never told me we were supposed to be together, I’d still feel like there was something different about us. Something bigger.”
“I wish I could stay.” I can’t help but think this is how it should have been the first time around, when I first told him he was The One. Things could have been so different if he hadn’t left. Teller and I never would have—
“Seriously, I mean, you said yourself you were thinking of deferring. You could stay a couple extra weeks and travel around with me. Stay as long as you want.”
The prospect sounds amazing in theory. But I’ve only budgeted enough for one month. “I don’t know. I mean, I don’t know if I can afford it.”
“I travel extremely cheap, as you know,” he says. “Plus, we’d be splitting a room.”
I’ve fixed in my mind that this is just a monthlong adventure. That I’d inevitably go home, back to reality. It never occurred to me that I could stay. At least, I think I could.
“I’ll have to think about that. My dad might have a heart attack,” I say. Then again, he doesn’t have to agree. I am an adult. I don’t need his permission to stay.
Caleb goes quiet. “Ah, think your dad will hate my guts?”
“Absolutely not. He’s just ... overprotective. He doesn’t want us rushing into anything.”
“That’s understandable. I wouldn’t want my daughter rushing into a relationship with a strange guy she met abroad.”
“Well, when you put it that way,” I say with a laugh.
As we head back to Positano, I stop to take in the view. The blue sea stretches beneath the dramatic cliffs and hillsides. I’m not sure I’m ready to leave this.