Everything That Glitters Ain't Gold, Danielle Martin [best books to read all time .TXT] 📗

Madison… Not anyone else…. but you…” He stroked her cheek, her limbs locking by her side as their chests brushed together. For some reason, her mind was telling her to pull away but her body wouldn’t react. Being in his arms felt so familiar.

“You are the woman for me baby. I’d give anything to have you back in my life…. You name it and I will do it…” he slyly slipped his hand down and wrapped his fingers in-between hers. Softly, he began to caress the palm of her hand, doing all the things that pulled her in the first time. He was attempting to woo her. She still had not pulled away. She was intrigued with what he had to say.

“I went to see Susan…” Blake hit her with another curveball.

Ava yanked back and immediately perked up hearing him mention a name that she hadn’t heard in a while, making the hairs stand up on the back of her neck. “Really???” she asked, silently floored. “You went to see Susan???”

He smiled, noticing she was breath taken and nodded his head. “She’s a great woman. I see her at least twice a month now... She said she’s upset she never got to see you again. You never came back for a second appointment. She really thought she could help you.”

Ava was voiceless. She couldn’t believe Blake actually kept his word and went to see her nor could she believe Susan actually remembered who she was. Shamefully she dropped her head, wandering how different her life could have been if she had received some sort of direction from her. She was so misguided back then. She wasn’t ready to give Susan a chance. But she was glad that Blake did.

“She’s brought a whole new meaning to my life, Ava.” He spoke excitedly while referring to Susan. “You did the right thing introducing me to her. I owe my life to you. You saved me… And I’m glad to say I have officially been drug free for 744 days.”

Ava was staggered. “Oh my God!” she exclaimed in excitement. Immediately, she began jumping up and down for joy. “Really? You’re clean???!!! That’s amazing Blake!” for the first time since seeing him, she smiled excitedly and clapped her hands together. Hearing that he turned his life around brought so much joy to her heart.

Blake laughed. “I’m glad your excited.” He wasn’t finished. Blake stroked her hand again, which immediately brought her back to her senses and calmed her down. She stopped jumping around and nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She was embarrassed that she had become too eager upon hearing his news. “Sorry…That’s great. I’m really happy for you.” She spoke more calmly and relaxed this time.

Blake smiled. He warmly continued pouring his heart out to hear. “I’m happy too… And it’s all thanks to you…” he brushed his finger against her cheek again. “Babe, you are like my rib. I can’t survive with you… The only way to complete this puzzle in my life was to find my missing piece.” he leaned in and quietly whispered into her ear underneath his breath.  “You are my missing piece. Now that I have found you, I can’t let you go without fighting for you… I’m never walking away from you again. That was the biggest mistake I ever made… I can’t make that mistake twice…”

She shuddered. He was going deep. Saying all the right things. All the things that she desperately needed to hear two years ago. Blake had shattered her. Broken her to pieces and surprisingly he was the only one in this world who could fix her.  But he didn’t. Instead, he walked away. He ran like a coward. And now, too much time had passed. Too many tears had fallen and his words didn’t hold the same value that they would have held back then. She guiltily looked away, feeling sick and tired of falling victim to her own emotions. Ava had pushed all memories of Blake far into the back of her mind a long time ago. Now everything was resurfacing like swallowed vomit and she couldn’t understand why. He’s hurt me so bad! He’s done so much in such little time! How do I forgive him? Why haven’t I let this go?? Why do I look into his eyes and still feel something??? Why???? Why???? Why????

 “I can’t do this…” her voice was shaky. She reached up and removed his hand from her cheek. “This is too much, Blake. I can’t handle this type of pressure! If you loved me, you would have never walked out on me! You would have stuck by my side! You would have------“

He interrupted her in mid-sentence and pulled her back in. Within seconds Blake firmly pressed his lips into hers, cutting her off with a sensational, captivating kiss before she could say another word. His sudden embrace was unexpected. Her eyes grew wider and her panties grew moist in the midst of his kiss. She clamped her legs shut as he kissed her passionately, holding her face and massaging her lips with his. Ava’s arm hung dryly by her side as his tongue danced around hers. Stupidly, she allowed him to kiss her with an open mouth She hadn’t tasted his lips in so long. They were still soft. His kisses were still slow and passionate. He pulled away and took two steps back. Within a matter of seconds, she had taken a scroll down memory lane. Just tasting his lips reminded her of how happy she was with him once upon a time. She remembered how much he drove her insides crazy each time he touched at her… Ava was shaking now.

“I’m sorry…” he apologized. “I don’t mean to over step my boundaries, but I had to. I missed the taste of your lips so much.”

Ava pushed back on his chest and backed away staring at him as if he had lost his mind. She shuddered. Her entire body was now frail and weak. " Why would you do that??? Are you insane??? " she shouted at him.

Calmly, Blake shook his head. He was such an even-tempered man. So tranquil. As if nothing bothered him at all. Against her will, flashbacks began to appear inside her mind. Flashbacks of that horrid day. Flashbacks of Madison. She could still remember the look on his face when he opened that door. That moment he saw her face standing on the doorstep. Ava had never seen so much horror in his expression. That day, he wasn’t the peaceful, untroubled man that she had once fallen for. He was a different person and she couldn’t shake that image out of her had no matter how hard she tried. She had been scarred too deeply. Ava continued staring at him with a deranged look on his face. She couldn't believe he had the audacity to kiss her. Then again, she couldn’t believe her body had the audacity to react to it. Her lips still tingled where he kissed her. Her pussy was dripping wet underneath her clothes. After all the time that passed, she couldn’t believe Blake’s touch still had the same effect on her. After everything he had done to her. After everything she had been through. She took a deep breath, ignoring the advance he just made while calming herself before speaking. “I am a different woman now…” her voice was low, swallowing her weaknesses as she finally said something.

Blake nodded his head, preparing himself for her rebuttal. “Yes, I know you are… I can see it… But-----“

She quickly held her hand up shushing him, adamant on finishing before he regained control. She could not let him have the upper hand anymore. “I get it, Blake… I understand why you left… And as much as I hated you for it back then, I just want to tell you now… I’m happy you did what you did… Losing you was the best thing that ever happened to me… Thank you….”

Instantly Blake frowned, his jaw dropping in anstoundment. She had thrown him for a loop. “Thankyou???” he repeated her confusingly.

She nodded her head and forced herself to smile although she felt extremely weak in her heart. She had been afraid to do this for so long. As difficult as it was, she had too. Ava had received closure from all of her deceivers except one. There was only one page left to read before finally closing this chapter and putting this book on the shelf. Finally, she was letting go of what she had been holding onto for so long. She walked close to him. His stature was slightly uneasy now as she spoke. She sighed then looked up at him. “Blake…. when I fell for you, I fell hard… I loved you so much and I was really heartbroken after we broke up…. I didn’t know how I was going to make it. I didn’t know how I would survive without you. But I did...”

He looked in the opposite direction. Her words were beginning to get to him. But it didn’t stop her. She finished before she could choke on her words again.

 “If you never left, I never would have known what it felt like to finally heal myself without depending on a man to fix me. I never would have started my own business. I never would have discovered self-dependence.” She reached down and grabbed his hand. Blake accepted with his shoulders slumped. He looked defeated as if reading her mind. He knew exactly where this was going. She continued.

 “I’d be lying if I said things were all bad. They weren’t… You were special to me… You were like a breath of fresh air. You came to me at a very damaged time in my life and you taught me how to let my guard down… You taught me how to love… And most importantly Blake…” she squeezed his hand tighter. “You also taught me how to let go….” To prove her point, she let his hand go. Ava took two steps back and examined him. A look of sadness had spread across his face.

“Damn…” He cursed underneath his breath. He was in disbelief. There was no reversing the irreversible. Ava couldn’t take it. Seeing the pained look on his face hurt her badly even though she pretended it didn’t. She had a soft spot for him that refused to subside. They stared at each other silently for what could be the last time. Ava’s heart fluttered just thinking about all the good times they shared over the last 13 years. There was so many mixed emotions floating around. I want to walk away… But I love him… I need to leave this in the past… But I love him… After all we could just be friends… But I still love him…

“I’m still in love with you...” Ava admitted to him.

Blake shot his head up, a twinkle of hope showing up in his eyes. “You are?” he asked

 She sighed and nodded her head, shamefully being honest. “Yes.” She answered. “It may take a while for me to get over this fully. But I will…. I’m happy with life right now. I don’t want to do anything to mess that up. If you are truly meant to be in my future, God will show me the way…”

Blake’s expression saddened once again. She could tell his mind was registering the fact that they were really over. “So this is what you want???” he asked in a disappointed tone.

She nodded her head in response.

Blake nodded his head calmly and respectfully. “Okay…” he answered. “If this is what you want, Ava… I’ll let you go… It hurts bad, but it’s the right thing to do…”

Unknowingly, her heart weakened even more and tears brimmed in the corner of her eyes. He was letting her go. Seeing him so hurt about it killed her on the inside. She never wanted to hurt him. She wanted to do the exact opposite. She wanted