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Feeling the stab of reality lodge in her stupidly hopeful heart so suddenly, Nellie couldn’t help rolling her eyes in reaction "Geez, Roni," she said, sing back the infuriating lump in her throat, "I’m not a charity case"

Roni reached for her ar the apparently undeniable hurt in Nellie’s eyes, she hugged her "No, no, no! I didn’t mean it that way" She pulled back to look at her "I’m so sorry, honey I know you’re not I justfull well that it’s bound to get back to you, then why the hell should we keep your social life away from him quiet? You’re an exquisitely beautiful woman with a ton irls he goes around bagging I just want him to know that if he doesn’t see it others do" She crossed her heart quickly, glancing back toward the front roouys "I proh You’re brilliant, and you sees under control I need to trust that you knohat you’re doing If you’d rather not talk about it in front of hi father co to her that she shouldn’t already know Their agreement had been a very sis were irrational He’d never pro She knew betrayal of the worst kind and this wasn’t it This was just her heart getting one step ahead of itself, so she knew better than to let happen

"It’s already out there, so if it’s brought up, there’s no need to hide it Let’s just not openly flaunt it" She winked at her still-worried-looking friend "You’re right I do have a tonLet’s keep it that way"

Relief washed across Roni’s face It was so h "C’ the cake plates and utensils out to the front room Maybe she would take Sam up on his offer to have brunch with hie distraction to wean her off Abel Especially now that she knew she wasn’t going to be able handle continuing this with Abel if he was going to be bagging other woht was proof Her heart literally ached just before she walked through the door because she dreaded walking in and seeing Abel with Rachel It hy she’d really been late Her last-s story was bullshit She’d been so close to calling and canceling but was certain Roni would know she was lying and that things were already changing like she was so afraid of

Thankfully Abel hadn’t brought her, but that could change soon, and just seeing hiht that Rachel wasn’t sitting with hi the reality check that, in fact, she was alone in crossing the line and thinking there was so between them was further proof that she needed to ju her eh her soon, so she had to seriously consider the real possibility of cutting her losses very soon anda fork full of cheesecake in her ht about what Roni had said She was brilliant and had things under control Her wounded heart was proof of how under control she really had things Shoving ht about what she’d been trying to convince herself of all this ti done this and all that shit

Chapter 11

Walking out into the night’s cool fresh air, Nellie prayed Abel wouldn’t follow her, but her heart yearned to hear the door behind her open As she ht of the way Abel’s eyes had pierced through her all night and the gentle smiles he offered when their eyes would meet Each time her heart had fluttered like a butterfly on crack She was beyond over her head now

After Roni had let her in on Abel’s reconfirreed it would be fro her sorrows in cheesecake She’d eaten nearly three full slices Knowing that soon she’d be dealing with a pain she swore she’d never allow herself to get caught up in again, she wasn’t even worried about the astronoht She was certain that, like every time she’d had to deal with a dark

This shouldn’t be so dark Their relationship was very much physical It should be easy to move past it soon, but her head reminded her she’d known Abel for a while now Her attraction to hi for some time: The noble and loyal friend he was to Noah and Gio The overprotective brother he was to Hector and now even Charlee The way he didn’t care that the guys busted his balls for being a momma’s boy Theit Even being the celebrity he was now, he’d still run over in a heartbeat to help fix your car She’d seen and heard about hi just that froines and insisted that taking it to a mechanic was always a rip off

Add to all that the intensity Charlee talked about in Hector’s eyes Nellie knew exactly what Charlee was talking about because she’d seen the very thing in Abel--felt it in his kisses Itto understand that utterlyshe so often saw on Charlee’s face Charlee admitted it openly and as unabashedly as Hector did She was uy If Nellie didn’t put an end to this now, she too would be doomed to fall hopelessly in love with Abel, and that could ruin everything because this relationship was coirlfriend’s exclusive one