Chapter 30

Maya’s P.O.V

I known to be dramatic, but I’m sure I didn’t hold a candle to Yolanda Heinz. In just under three days, she had turned virtually the whole household upside down…well, from my perspective. But I can safely say that she will not be missed, by me or the children. The next day, I woke up nice and early, and did my usual morning routine. I exited my room to make my way toward the kitchen, only to hear grunts and punching noises coming from down the hall.

I know exactly what that meant, I thought with a greedy smirk before letting my feet guide me to the home gym where Theodore was working out. This time around, he was wearing a red vest with a hood and some black short, kicking and punching the punching bag with all his might. His shoulders were tensed and his moves seemed sloppier than the last time I’d seen him to this.

Yeah, something was definitely not right with him.

I stepped into the room quietly and went to stand behind him, near a shelf of various dumbbells and a state-of-the-art treadmill to my other side. The gym was fully equipped as it could easily compete with those that had big names. Not once had I seen him using the other stuff though, just the punching bag. Perhaps this was more of a hobby rather than a mode to stay fit. Whatever the case, it was very hot and thanks to it, he had those delicious muscles bulging on his perfectly contoured body.

“Did you need something,” he asked gruffly, not once turning back to face me. I was a bit startled because I was certain that he hadn’t noticed my entrance. Guess I had been wrong.

I shrugged, like a complete idiot, before responding. “Not really. I just wanted to see you kickbox,” I replied colly, but my heart was basically doing pirouettes. I do, however, applaud myself for being able to construct a proper sentence without becoming a stuttering mess. In my books, it was a huge improvement.

He remained silent and stopped what he was doing, and leaned against the bag with his head downcast. He wasn’t being his normal self and it was bothering me. So, I took a step forward and placed my hands on his bare shoulders but he flinched under my touch…which has never happened before. Okay, now if I wasn’t positive that something was up, now I am.

“Is there something bothering you?” I whispered with a frown and when he didn’t again utter a single word, I cupped his face and directed his face to mine. His face was impassive, but his eyes spoke volumes. Sadness. Anger. Guilt. I had no idea how I could easily read this but I guess I’d learned to know him over the last two months. I also had no clue as to why he was looking like that.

Gently removing my hands from his face, he went over to the towel rack and took one to dry the sweat from his neck, face and arms. “Your terms of service have expired,” he spoke lowly, yet the words were loud enough to send my entire body into panic.

What? Had I heard that correctly? Did he just say my terms of service are up?

I blinked, and then I blinked again. He just continued to stand there and act as though he hadn’t just poured a bucket of ice water on me, not literally but hypothetically. “I beg your pardon?” I brusquely quipped, somehow the British vocabulary had engraved itself into my brain. That’s another issue for later because right now I’m trying to articulate why he had said those cruel, cruel words.

Finally, he looked at me but it wasn’t the same gaze that expressed fondness, this one just seemed indifferent, cold and unsympathetic. Just like the first time I’d met him. “Had you forgotten about our deal? I think you’ve worked long enough to cover the debt, thus there is no reason for you to stay here any longer. You’ll pack your bags and I’ll drop you off at the airport when I return from work later today,” he then added and I swear some trigger went off in my brain.

I marched up to him and stared him down square in the eyes. “Let me get this right; you’re telling me that even after everything that’s happened between us, you’re just going to send me back to Malibu…just like that?” I gritted out in his face, and a look of annoyance wiped across his face. The audacity of this bastard!

“What happened between us was just a manifestation of attraction, nothing more. You’re attracted to me, and vice versa but there’s nothing more to it. And this day was bound to come anyways, better now than later, right?” he said flippantly and I almost, almost punched him in the nose.

My temper flared. “You know what, Theodore, I know you’re lying because what you just said is absolute bullshit. Why don’t you quit the act and just tell me point blank what made you act this way? Was it Yolanda?” I inquired, and just for a split second, his resolve cracked. He wasn’t quick enough to subdue it. “Okay, so what did she say to you?”

He looked aside. “Nothing. This has nothing to do with her,” he remarked too quickly and I again cupped his cheek to make him face me. He sighed, seeing my adamance. “Aren’t I using you?” he asked me in a strained voice.

You think all this sneaking around you’ve been doing with him makes you any better than his casual flings? He’s using you but you are too blinded by infatuation to notice it. The man has commitment issues, but even if he didn’t, he wouldn’t settle for some college dropout.

Those words had ricocheted around every ventricle in my brain last night, and I pondered hard over them. Was he using? I really don’t feel used…but seriously, why were the words of a poisonous witch playing with my head this much. And what the hell did she say to him that has him this shaken up. I swear, if I ever see her again, I rearrange her facial muscles with my knuckles!

For once, I didn’t know how to respond. He must have noticed this and he stepped further away from you. “You see? I am using you and I feel like crap just thinking about it. I should have never kissed you and I shouldn’t have pursued you. I’m a man with a shattered heart…and yet for one nanosecond I thought I could try to-,” He groaned and punched the wall so hard it caved in. “What the hell was I thinking? You should have stopped me, before I got us into this bloody murky situation. Before things get worse, I need you to go back…where it’s safe,” he ran a hand through his damp hair. “Away from me.”

Silence prevailed around us for a few minutes. “What if I don’t want to be away from you?” I murmured, my heart feeling like someone had ripped it out and ran a chainsaw through it. I wasn’t at all afraid to air my thoughts anymore. I wanted to be here, in this unknown land with this man whom I was beginning to fall for.

He laughed bitterly. “I want you to be by my side but I can’t have you. Do you know what I am? I’m a broken man, who once believed in love until reality stepped in and ruined that absurd notion for me. What can I offer you, Maya?” he yelled at me, and I flinched at his harsh tone. “How can you want to be with someone who knows he doesn’t deserve you? I dragged you all the way here and changed your whole life just on mere whim. Don’t you hate me for it?” he added sharply, and I found myself shaking my head.

I rushed up to him, my legs feeling paraesthesia. He stopped me before I could get any closer. “I will see that you get back home. Pack your stuff and be read by the time I return this evening,” he said robotically and exited through the door.

Not only had he left me on a cliff, he had inadvertently walked out on what could have been. So many emotions coursed through me, and I actually didn’t know which one to settle on. I was feeling betrayed, unwanted, sorrowful and regretful. What the hell was I thinking when I let Theodore walk into my heart, only for him to shatter it like a piece of glass thrown on a concrete path? I’d never felt this much pain, despite all that I’ve gone through in my childhood. It was like my heart was internally bleeding.

Did he have any idea how much he hurt me? On another note, did he even care?

Will my heart ever recover from this?

______________________________

An early Christmas present from me...not really jovial, is it?

But Maya really needs to go home, doesn't she?

And Theo needs to overcome his fears too 🥺

Vote, Comment and Share. It's very encouraging when you do so ❤️

Happy Holidays 🎄🤗

~Deetronite 🤩