Italian Obsession

Chapter 53

Valentina

Even though Tom said it would only be a few months, it has turned into 6. It is flat out ridiculous. I don't mind spending time with my children, but I'm not a person to just sit around. Every time I tried to talk to him about it, he would just ignore me.

"You've got to be close to your due date."

"I'm due in September."

"Shit, it's almost July."

"Yeah."

"How is Tom?"

"Honestly, I don't know."

"Why?"

"He's changed, Micah."

"How so?"

"I don't know. He ignores me when he gets home, barely spends any time with my children and barely pays attention to me."

"Are you thinking about coming back to Austin?"

"I'm getting to the point where yes. I am thinking about it."

"That's a shame. You showed me photos of your house and it looks nice."

"It is, but money isn't everything."

"Is Danny the reason for your decision?"

"No."

"Do you miss him?"

"I don't know. Has he spoken about me?"

"I've heard some conversations here and there between him and Raul."

"Does he miss me?"

"By the sounds of it, I think he does."

"Well, I have to go. I'm taking the kids to the beach."

"Have fun!"

After I got off the phone with Micah, I saw Tom sitting in his office. "Tom?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm taking the kids to the beach. Do you want to come?"

"No thanks."

Sighing, I went in and sat on one of the chairs. "You barely spend any time with them."

"I have things that have to be finished, Val."

"When are you going to allow me to work?"

"You're a housewife. Remember?"

"You promised me that..."

"I didn't promise you shit!"

"Yes, you did."

He looked at me and scowled. "Here's your job: take care of the kids."

"I've been thinking that this was a mistake."

"What are you talking about?"

"Moving here."

"Why's that?"

"You don't spend any time with the kids and I."

"They aren't my problem."

I scowled. "You are the father figure now, Tom. But you're too busy, right? You have "work" to do."

"Yes, because I do."

Shaking my head, I stood up. "I made a mistake doing this. I'm taking the children to the beach, packing our shit when we get home, and I am getting them out of here."

Slamming the door shut, I went to the kids' rooms and got them in their swimsuits. "Is everything okay, mommy?"

I looked at Callie and nodded. "I'm fine, sweetheart."

"I miss daddy."

The look on Callie's face broke my heart. Danny was an asshole, but my children needed their father.

Danny

I didn't listen to Raul, telling me to get my mind off of her. Not hearing from Valentina has made each day hell. I have begun to miss the girl more and more every day.

I looked at the diamond ring I had just bought and sighed. Regardless of if Valentina accepts this if she comes home, I can only hope for the best. Despite originally proposing, I knew that I had to do it again. "Why the hell didn't you listen to me?"

"I still love her, Raul."

"If you loved her, you wouldn't have cheated on her."

"I feel like an asshole."

"As you should."

"I need to fix us. I miss her and my kids. Not seeing my kids hurts. I will do anything at this point to fix it."

"You guys are separated for a reason. You cheated on her with her best friend, and you expect her to forgive you just like that?"

"Well, no. But I would like to slowly earn her trust back."

"You sure got balls buying a ring like that. How do you know that she'll even come back?"

"She will. Just give it some time, man. She's coming home."

Being at work and not seeing Valentina next to Micah doesn't help me either. I had the urge for months to call her, but I had to stop myself. I knew how much she still hates me, but I need to contact her. Even to just check up on her.

Later that night, after I got home from drinking, I saw a missed call on my phone and a voicemail. "H-hey. I umm, I'm sorry for calling you but I'm leaving California. I miss living in Austin and the kids really miss you. I'm sorry I haven't spoken to you, but I figured the pain would slowly go away after a while, but it hasn't. Not for me anyways, but I'm sure you've found a couple of girls by now. I just wanted to call to see how you're doing."

The sound of her voice was exactly what I needed. Turning to the bottle for my problems did not change anything. Seeing her again is what I needed.

Taking a deep breath, I called, and it went to her voicemail. Shit.

"Hey, Val. You have no idea how much that voicemail meant to me. Call me when you can."

It was around 11 p.m. when my phone rang. "Val?"

"Hi."

"God, it is so fucking nice to hear your voice. How are you? It must be..."

"I'm leaving."

"What?"

"Tom has changed, and I belong with my family and friends."

"Are you being for real?"

"I was wondering if you could help me with something."

"Anything."

"I hate asking, but can you send me some money? I'm jobless and he hasn't given me a penny."

"Of course. How much do you need?"

"1,000 will be fine. I'll give back whatever is left over."

"Don't worry about that. You can keep it. When are you coming home?"

"I am trying to figure that out, but soon."

"Good."

"Alright."

"Oh, and Val?"

"Yeah?"

"I miss you." After she hung up, I smiled. She was coming back. I had my last chance to fix us.