Just when I thought I’d get her to answer honestly, Brooke calls and interrupts our game. While Belle makes our plans for tonight, I slide off the stool and grab two bottles of water from the fridge. I can’t help but think back to a few hours ago when Belle thought I was sleeping on the sofa. I did end up sleeping a little but not as long as she thinks. For about forty minutes I sat there staring at the wall, thinking. It was mindless thoughts, but they were still significant. Not to mention I need to break the news that I’m leaving in the morning. My boss emailed while she was in the shower, sending me a new itinerary for the upcoming shoot that needs to be taken care of. I was hoping for something stateside. With no luck this time, I’m taking off to the Ethiopian Highlands. The shoot is to capture the “bleeding heart” monkeys. It’s a place I’ve never been to, so that’s exciting. I should be doing some research on the place instead of trying to find a way to get Belle to open up to me. Research can be done at the airport and in mid-flight. The rest of today and tonight my focus is on my Belle.

“Sorry about that,” she says as she turns toward me.

“Not a problem,” I state as I glance at my watch to gauge how much time we have left before she darts off to get ready.

“You know Brooke could never keep a secret on the phone. She’s like a megaphone.”

Belle laughs before shaking her head yes. “Now, where were we?” I ask as I watch her shift in her seat.

“Oh, I thought maybe we could take a rain check. I need to get ready.”

“Not happening, Belle. We have plenty of time.”

The corner of her lip draws in through her teeth as she looks down at the board and back up at me.

“Yes, I’ve been in love.” As the words fall from her lips, I want her to explain. I want her to tell me who, but that’ll seem too evading for now. I watch as she places a well-thought-out O. Before she’s done circling it around, Belle doesn’t even look up at me as she asks, “Have you ever been in love?”

“Yes,” is all I say as I place my next move down on the paper. I’ve never mentioned being in love before to her. Before she can ask or think about my answer for too long, I ask my next one. “Why don’t you date?”

“I date, it’s just hard to find someone that I can relate to.”

“When was your last date?”

“Sorry, not your turn. You’ll have to wait,” Belle responds as she places another O down. “When was your last date, Pax?”

“A few years ago,” I say, and I swear her breath hitches in her throat. It’s been an ongoing joke between them all that I have women all over the world. Which couldn’t be farther from the truth. I’m not saying that I’m celibate. I just don’t go around sleeping with anyone and everyone. Hell, at times there’s not a person within miles of our camp.

“What do you want out of life?” is my next question.

“Honestly, I’m not sure how to answer that one.”

“Give it a shot,” I say with a wink.

“I used to want the prince with all the hearts and flowers. Now, I just want my career and maybe a guy that I can come home to and have a decent conversation with. Things changed over the years. I grew up and realized that princes are just a thing for the movies.”

My chest restricts from the pain that’s laced in her voice. It’s the first time in as long as I can remember that my Belle sounds alone. It’s not from the fact that she’s trying to convince me that she doesn’t want the fairy tale. It’s the fact that she sounds like she’s giving up. Tossing in the towel on love. I can’t help but wonder if I’m to blame for this. Did pushing her away all this time change her outlook on love?

We’re down to the final play, and we both notice at the same time that I have the winning spot.

“Belle, before I win this one, I need you to agree to something first.”

“What is it, Pax?”

“Tonight, you open up, let go of your ambitions. Be the person who once believed in us.”

“Paxton, I believe in our friendship. I love you, but it’s hard with you gone. It’s not our fault that time seems to be pulling us in different directions.”

“Not what I mean.”

“You know, you’ve been really weird since you arrived. I don’t know what’s going on with you. There used to be a time when you told me everything, and I mean everything.”

She’s right.

I used to tell Belle everything.

I sit here, staring at her flawless skin. Taking in the way that not only is she beautiful, but how she’s naturally gorgeous from the inside out. The next question isn’t even in my thoughts as I stand and inch closer to her. Grabbing both sides of her face with my hands, I stare deep into her eyes, taking in the way little bits of hazel flicker throughout the forest green. My mouth opens to speak but closes again. This is the moment I want to tell her she’s the one I love, but I decide to do something else. Leaning in closer, my lips hover just above hers. I caress her cheeks with my thumbs. Giving in to the temptation, I can’t stop myself from tasting her lips. It starts with one small kiss before I pull away for a brief second. My hands slide behind her neck, pulling her closer to me. It’s then that our mouths meet at the same time with the same amount of hunger as the next person. It’s not two strangers kissing for the first time. This is more. This is a connection of years built up in one moment. One where neither of us wants to break away, but we have to before it goes too far. I release her mouth from mine, pulling back to see if I can figure out her expression. I should’ve known that Belle wouldn’t be an open book. In all the years, it’s always been a kiss on the head, the top of a hand, or even a cheek; never directly on the mouth and with passion.

“I… I… I’m going to, yeah… go get ready,” she says as she pushes away. When she stands, her eyes catch mine, stalling for just a moment before she walks away. Running my hands through my hair, I lean back to stare up at the stark white ceiling. At some point, before I leave tomorrow we’ll address the kiss and the massive elephant in the room. I can’t help but wonder if I might have just made a mess of everything. Either way, it needs to come out. It was bound to happen. When two people know each other the way we do, it’s natural to want to explore the feelings we have for each other. I just hope that I wasn’t wrong and those same feelings go both ways. If not, I’m thankful that I’ll be leaving tomorrow.