Craving Ava

6.2 - Time Apart

Ava

There was nothing I wanted more than to stay with Easton.

Waking up in his arms gave me unmeasurable happiness; a sense of purpose and belonging.

I was head over heels for Easton Maxwell.

And that thought terrified me beyond words, but excited me beyond measure.

I would give anything to have his presence, reading me, understanding me, touching me, feeling me, marking me in ways I never thought possible.

I only knew him for a week, but it felt like a lifetime.

Like two halves of the same lost soul who had found each other against all odds.

Maybe we were rushing ourselves by starting a relationship this early on. There was so much I didn't know about him.

But, I was learning so much just by staying with him.

Like how he always worked out after getting home, that he liked his steak medium rare, that he had a very specific night time routine that consisted in picking the tie he was going to wear the next day, to trimming his stubble, having a three-step skincare routine, washing his teeth not once, but twice, and flipping the pillow before he found what he called his 'sweet spot'.

He was a puzzle I was slowly finding all the pieces for; and they were all forming the most beautiful landscape I had ever seen.

And even though there was still a lot to learn, I was so sure I knew his heart. A strong and kind man who made sure to break down each and every one of his walls to find space for me.

So I took the leap. For the first time in my life, I wasn't scared of jumping.

All my failed relationships had led me to this one. And I couldn't be more thankful for the heartbreak I had been put through, because I couldn't imagine it could get any better than this.

The best kind of relationships are the ones that make you change. And I was changing him.

And he was changing me.

But as much as I loved this... Loved us, we both had to work, albeit for different reasons. He had to keep a whole empire running smoothly, and I... Well, I had bills to pay.

So Thursday morning, at 6 am, he drove me to work in one of the super fast cars he kept in the garage, to try and avoid rush hour and make sure I got to work on time for my 8 am shift.

He held my hand and kissed it the whole time. I think we were both feeling sad that we had to be apart for the time being. There was just so much to do, and so little time... And the bottom line was, his life was in the city, and mine was in Queens.

And for the first time in my life, I hated going back to it. The life that once comforted me was the life that was now holding me back.

I felt resentful, miserable, defeated.

But I knew that if I let him have his way, he would mold his life around mine. That would mean skipping work way too often. And as tempting as that was, he would end up resenting me for it. And I would end up blaming myself.

He never looked more in his element than in his window covered office overlooking Central Park, sat in his black leather chair, leaning on his mahogany desk, reading a stack of papers, running numbers through his mind faster than I could count them.