Hopelessly Devoted To You

Chapter 34

New York, August 13, 2024.

"Are you sure you don't want anything to drink?" Scarlett asked again.

"A glass of water would be fine" I answered quickly.

When she came back with the glasses, she sat down on the couch and I sat down on the one in front of her.

"I'm going to be very honest with you, Scarlett" I said, letting out a sigh.

"I'm listening" She replied, settling down on the couch while crossing her arms.

"I kissed someone else" I began, staring at her "And it wasn't just a kiss. I didn't fuck her but something more than a kiss happened"

"Okay" She said in a neutral tone.

"And I'm going back home..." I continued "I'm going back to London"

I noticed Scarlett's eyes filling with tears as she frowned.

"It was never in my plans to stay in New York" I said in a soft tone.

"Not even for me?" She asked with a shaky voice.

"No" I answered quickly "My priority is my daughter and I want the best for her"

"Do you want the best for her or is it just an excuse to avoid telling me that you can't get over  your ex who, if I remember correctly, is dead?" She asked with venom in her voice.

I looked at her with hatred.

"I'm not going to let you talk to me like that" I said, annoyed.

"I don't owe you anything, Andrea" She replied, staring at me "You lost my respect when you told me you had kissed someone else"

There was a silence that could be cut with a knife.

"I realized you were going to tell me you loved me" She began to say and I looked at her confused "When we made that video call, you got scared because you almost said it and we changed the subject. I got scared too. Andy, you say you love the rain, but you open your umbrella. You say you love the sun, but you look for a shady place. You say you love the wind, but you close the window and that's why I was scared when you were going to tell me that you loved me, because in the end all my worries were real... You met someone else"

"It's not like I was looking to meet someone else" I answered sighing "It just happened"

"It's the same, Andy" Scarlett said in a sad tone "There's someone else"

"What about you?" I asked getting her attention "Are you going to be honest with me?"

Scarlett looked at me confused making me laugh.

"Don't make me look stupid" I started to say "I know perfectly well that the hickeys on your cleavage were made by the person who opened the door for me"

Scarlett was silent.

"You fucked her" I said biting my tongue.

"And you kissed someone else" She answered looking at me annoyed.

"Yes, but I wasn't between her legs" I answered settling myself on the couch.

"Maybe you needed to be high" She said it completely naturally.

It hurt.

But I bit my tongue since there was no point in fighting her over the same issue again.

"This was never going to work" I said, looking at her sadly "This happened too fast, we were in our bubble and it became toxic. Neither you nor I are capable of letting go of the past and I think it's best for each of us to move on"