Mariano answered my call at the first ring."Bella?""Hey.""Hey. I'm sorry. Am I forgiven?""Yes." I answered. I felt tears build up at the sound of his voice. I fucking hated that I could cry so easily. That I forgave him like this. "Am I?"God, I was so easy. I felt pathetic. Just forgiving him like this. He was in the wrong here. I should have not made this so easy for him. "Why are you apologising? You have done nothing wrong.""I was too dramatic. I overreacted.""It's okay, Bella."

I looked at Abra as she tilted her head at Mariano and grinned. "Hi, Mariano."If I grinned like that I'd look like a fucking hyena. She was really pretty, in that very conventional way. Blonde hair. Blue eyes. Super skinny. I wasn't that skinny. I had a tummy, and flabby arms, and a little bit of what you might call thunder thighs. I know it is okay to not be skinny, and all bodies are beautiful, but I find it hard to implement on my own self. It is easy to follow body positivity for others, not so much for yourself. Abra didn't seem like someone who needed to tell herself her body was beautiful as it is. Mariano has dated so many girls that look just like her. Like Firia. Firia had been super beautiful and skinny too. A deeply unsettling feeling settled in my che

There were certain things about Mariano that I didn't quite understand. I had thought I had him figured to the bone. There wasn't much to figure out, really. He was just a man who'd grown up seeing blood and gore, was a little dominating and possessive, and was an extremely passionate lover. But there were certain things that I couldn't figure out.Like his relationship with Abra.Or his relationship with Emilio.I wasn't the kind of girlfriend to prevent him from befriending other girls, but I just had such a bad feeling for Abra. I didn't like her at all.But I wouldn't say anything. I knew Mariano didn't like it when I hung out with Landon, or the fact that Aiden and I had seen each other naked a hundred times, even after growing u

After I was done crying, Aiden and I watched reruns of Game of Thrones on the TV. I lay on his lap, stuffing my face with popcorn. All the blood and gore put my mind off of what had happened. But then I started thinking about the blood that had been spilled when Mariano had shot that man, and I got sad again. Aiden changed the channel to watch football, and I sighed, stealing another look at my phone.There were 34 missed calls from Mariano, 117 texts, and a few voicemails. I quickly read the last string of messages he had sent.Isabelle?Its not what you think it is.Its only you. I'm yours.Talk to me.I think I deserve a chance to explain.Bella...I miss you already.I can't track your phone location. What's wrong? You're home, righ

"I slept with Landon."He stepped back. Away from me. "Oh."Now I was on my knees. We were both on our knees. I reached to touch his hand, but he flinched, pulling it back with a jerk. Like I burned him. Like my touch burned him. My eyes filled with tears suddenly. I blinked. "I'm sorry." I whispered. I had nothing else to say. Nothing that could justify it. "I'm sorry, Mariano."He looked down at the floor, his head hanging low. He nodded. God, it hurt to see him like this. This was not the Mariano I knew. The Mariano I knew did not do this. He didn't treat me like this. And he did not look so defeated. So sad. So dejected. "I'm sorry." I said again. I sounded like a broken record. But there was really nothing I could say, or do, that would make any of this better. "I know, Isabelle." He said. "Please, talk to me." "There is nothing to say." He looked up at me and smiled. His eyes wer