Chapter 10 Call Me Honey #2
Rose's frustration rose with his.
She looked at him steadily.
“I've already told you. You and I have nothing to do with each other anymore. How many times do I have to say it before you finally get it through your head? Stop acting like we're still together.”
Without waiting for his response, she turned and walked away.
Her car was already waiting near the entrance. She opened the door, climbed inside, and shut it behind her.
“Rose!” Ivan shouted after her. “Come back! Talk to me! Are you really going to keep acting like this?”
Rose didn't even look back.
The car pulled away from the curb and disappeared down the road.
Ivan stood there, his fury building with every passing second. He clenched his fist and slammed it against the hood of his car.
“Fuck!”
Jessica hurried toward him.
“Ivan—”
He didn't even let her finish.
He turned away from her and strode toward his car.
Jessica rushed after him, trying to catch up before he got inside, but Ivan was already behind the wheel. The engine roared to life.
“Ivan!” she shouted as he pulled away.
He didn't stop.
Jessica remained standing beside the road, staring after him as his car disappeared from sight. Her hands curled into fists at her sides, frustration and anger burning across her face.
Ivan drove several blocks before reaching for the car's built-in screen and calling Terrence.
The call connected after a few rings.
“Meet me at the bar. Right now. I'm fucking pissed.”
He ended the call before Terrence could respond.
A short while later, Ivan pulled up outside one of the bars he and Terrence frequented. He walked inside, took a seat at the counter, and immediately ordered whiskey.
He was already three glasses in when Terrence finally arrived.
Terrence slid onto the stool beside him and gave him a long look, one eyebrow lifting.
“What the fuck is wrong with you? Why are you drinking like that?”
Ivan turned toward him, irritation flashing across his face.
“What the fuck is wrong with Rose? That's what you should be asking me.”
He grabbed his glass and took another drink.
“She’s been acting like this for weeks. Something changed. I don't understand what the hell is wrong with her.”
His jaw tightened.
“She used to get jealous whenever I talked to Jessica. She'd lose her mind if I even spent time with her. But today? Nothing. Jessica was standing right beside me, and Rose didn't even react.”
He shook his head, clearly unable to understand it.
“She acted like she didn't care at all.”
Terrence stared at him for a moment before taking another drink.
“Maybe that's because she doesn't care about you anymore.”
Ivan went still.
Terrence shrugged.
“What else could it be?”
Ivan gripped the whiskey glass so tightly that his knuckles turned pale. He shook his head, refusing to accept what Terrence was saying.
“You're overreacting. It's not like that.
She can't just stop caring about me after one week. How could she?” he argued, his voice filled with disbelief.
“She’s liked me for an entire year. We were together all this time.
She was planning to marry me. How can you seriously think she suddenly doesn't care anymore?”
Terrence stared at him for a moment before letting out an exasperated sigh.
“What do you want from her, Ivan? Do you want her to keep crying over you?” He shook his head. “She has moved on. She doesn't want anything to do with you anymore, and you should start doing the same.”
Ivan's jaw tightened.
He slammed his glass onto the counter and turned toward Terrence with a furious glare.
“She loves me.”
His voice was filled with absolute conviction.
“She got together with me the moment I told her I wanted her. I asked her to be my girlfriend, and she said yes without even thinking twice. She did everything for me because she loved me. She followed every fucking word I said as if it were the only thing that mattered.”
He scoffed bitterly.
“And now she's pretending to have a husband? A fake marriage? She's doing all this because she wants me to chase after her. She wants me to apologize and give in first.”
His anger continued to build as he spoke.
“Fine. If that's what she wants so badly, I'll apologize. I'll give her what she wants. One last fucking time.”
Terrence stared at him in disbelief.
“You're delusional.”
He shook his head.
“Seriously, Ivan. Can you hear yourself? From what angle does it look like Rose is waiting for you to apologize? Has she even asked you for an apology?”
Ivan opened his mouth, but Terrence continued before he could answer.
“She hasn't. Not once. If she wanted you to apologize, she would've asked for it. Instead, she's telling you she wants nothing to do with you. That means you need to accept reality. You're history to her.”
Ivan's expression remained tense and agitated.
“You just don't understand.”
His voice dropped, almost as though he were trying to convince himself.
“She loves me. You don't understand how love works. How can she just move on? It's not like she had someone else waiting for her. I'm the man she's loved all this time. It's impossible for her to suddenly stop caring about me.”
He shook his head firmly.
“Trust me. She still loves me. She's just pretending. She's trying to make me jealous.”
Terrence finally lost his patience.
“See, this is your fucking problem!”
He finished his drink and slammed the glass onto the counter.
“She doesn’t want you anymore! How many times does she have to reject you before you get it? What the hell are you going to do now? Get down on your knees and propose to her again?”
Ivan went completely still.
Then something changed in his expression.
A determined look slowly appeared in his eyes.
He pushed himself to his feet, swaying slightly from the alcohol.
“Yeah.”
Terrence frowned.
Ivan pointed toward the door as though he'd just figured everything out.
“She wants me to propose to her.”
“What?”
“I canceled the wedding because of this fight between us.” Ivan nodded to himself, his words becoming increasingly convinced as the alcohol blurred his judgment. “That's the problem. I need to fix things with her first. I'll propose to her again. Then we'll get the wedding sorted out.”
A crooked smile appeared on his face.
“That'll fix everything. Once she realizes we're getting married, she'll stop this nonsense.”
He stumbled toward the exit.
“It's that simple.”
“Ivan!” Terrence shouted after him. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
Ivan didn't stop.
He staggered out of the bar, leaving Terrence staring after him in complete disbelief.
Terrence dragged a hand down his face and let out a long, frustrated breath.
“Unbelievable.”
***
Rose practically skipped up the steps as she entered Maverick’s house, a smile tugging at her lips as she carried her things inside. After spending almost a week without her favorite bags and perfumes, she had missed them so much she felt as though she could barely breathe without them.
But the moment she stepped farther inside, her heartbeat suddenly quickened.
A strange sense of intimidation swept through her, making her body tense. A chill ran down her spine, and she came to an abrupt stop.
She slowly looked around.
Then she saw him.
Maverick was standing a short distance away, his attention fixed entirely on her. The moment their eyes met, he walked toward her without hesitation, his long strides carrying him across the room until he stopped directly in front of her.
Rose's already-racing heart seemed to stop.
She could barely breathe as she looked up at him.
His gaze was calm, but there was something dangerous beneath it—the same look that always made her feel as though she were standing at the edge of a cliff, held there by nothing but his hand. One wrong move, and she would fall straight into the abyss.
Her smile slowly disappeared.
“You're back,” she managed.
One of his eyebrows lifted.
“We spoke less than half an hour ago. I told you to come home. How could I not be back when I was the one asking you to return?”
Rose swallowed and gave an awkward little laugh.
“Yeah. You're right. Well... welcome back to your house, then.”
She started to move past him.
“I'm going to the bedroom.”
She had barely taken a step when Maverick caught her by the arm and pulled her back.
Rose stumbled straight into him.
His gaze dropped to the things she was carrying before returning to her face. He took them from her arms and placed them on the couch beside them.
Then he looked back at her.
“Call me honey again.”
Rose froze.
“What?”
“On the phone.” His voice dropped lower. “You called me honey.”
Her cheeks immediately warmed.
Maverick stepped closer, deliberately invading her space until there was barely any distance left between them.
“What happened?” he murmured. “Why are you suddenly nervous? Weren't you so brave a little while ago?”
Rose's back nearly touched the wall.
“Why the sudden change?”