Chasing That Desire | Danny Amendola

Chapter 1

"Hey, Gene, I'm making dinner," I called from the kitchen when the front door opened. I began to put some broccoli and chicken on two plates for us.

It was around nine, and he was finally home after a 12 hour day at the office. Gene says that they've been working on a new deal with a company that's been demanding a lot of time from him and his coworkers. He'd usually be home late, and I'd make sure he had dinner each night that I possibly could.

He sighed as he walked into our bedroom, and loosened his tie from around his neck. "I've already had dinner, Juliet. I'm just going to go to bed. I need to be up really early tomorrow so I can head into the office. Goodnight," he mumbled.

I sighed, but nodded. He worked too much. "O-Okay," I mumbled quietly. I wasn't necessarily surprised, but I was disappointed. I put some foil over his plate and slid it into the fridge before I sat down at the island and slowly ate off my own plate in silence, like I've done too many times to count in the past month.

When I finished, I did all of the dishes and then slowly made my way over to the couch where I popped down and pulled my phone out. My thumb hovered over Danny's contact.

This was day 15 of no seeing Danny. I've never gone more than 10 days without seeing him in the past year and a half— and it's been hell.

On days like today, when he'd come home moody, I'd crave to be held in Danny's arms, craved to feel warm and comfortable.

I shook my head. I couldn't just run to Danny whenever I felt unappreciated, because that was a lot... And I really needed to actually respect what Gene and I had. That's even if he did blow up on me sometimes.

My mind began to drift off to the last time I saw Danny. 15 days felt so long, felt like an eternity.

We woke up that morning, my bare back to his bare chest, and his stubbly face nestled into the crook of my neck. I let out a soft sigh and put my hand on top of his, squeezing it tightly.

His hand on top of my stomach flinched and he pulled me closer to him and his warmth. Danny's hot breath brushed against my skin, and then his warm lips met my collarbone. "Morning," his rough morning voice mumbled.

"Morning," I whispered back. My voice was small.

Within the next hour, I'd be up and on my way to work— not in bed where I felt I belonged.

He contently held me for the next ten minutes, which didn't seem long enough.

I let out a long huff and pulled from his grip. I instantly leaned down to grab my clothes and began to put them on. When I looked over toward him, his big brown eyes were looking back at me and the tips of his mouth were tilted down in a small pout. "Do you have to go," he asked as he sat up and let the sheets pool at his waist.

"Yeah, I do. I have a job," I mumbled as I pulled my shirt over my head, then scurried off to the bathroom.

When I came out, he was officially out of bed and pulling a hoodie over his head. I walked over to the night stand and grabbed my phone. "Well," I said and let out a long breath, "Thank you for everything, Danny." I moved over to him and wrapped my arms around him tightly.

He hugged me even tighter than I was hugging him. "It's not a problem," he mumbled into my hair and placed a kiss on my forehead. "If you ever need anything, anything at all, you've got my number. The door is always open."

I nodded and pulled back, looking into his beautiful brown eyes one last time. "Thank you, Dola." I leaned in and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

I was in his arms one minute, and out his door the next.

My phone screen going black shook me out of my thoughts. I stood up and slowly made my way to the bedroom, where Gene's soft snores filled the room. I stripped from my clothes then reached down to grab my phone out of my pocket. No notifications. I slid into bed and looked down at the picture on my lock screen. It was a picture of the studio that I took before one of the biggest interviews in my career.

The day I got hired at NESN as a reporter, was one of the best days of my life. Not only has it given me the chance to do what I love, but it's also me the chance to prove people wrong, to show I could do what I went to school to do.

I put my phone down on the bedside table and shimmied down in the bed so I could finally lie down and let my eyes fall shut.

Gene's snores came to a stop before his hand reached over and was placed on my upper arm. "I forgot, Juliet, I've got dinner planned for us tomorrow," his sleep laced voice mumbled. "Seven o'clock. Be ready. We need to talk."

I nodded and let out a long breath. "Okay, Gene. Sleep well. I'll be ready tomorrow. Love you."

He never answered, his snores just filled the room again, causing me to sigh. I let my eyes fall shut and began to think about why he could possibly want to talk about at dinner. The last time he planned a nice dinner for the two of us, he asked me to move in with him... And that was two years ago.

I sighed and rolled to my side. Two years ago— Two. We've been together nearly four years now... Could it possibly be what I'm thinking? Could he finally be proposing?

It'd make sense, he's been so busy, so distant since his last business trip to New York.

I let out a few more breaths before I was finally asleep.