Antonio looked at Gabi as she stood
in his office. She was so beautiful, so…vulnerable. The very thought of
her putting herself in any kind of danger made him heart race in fear.
"Ricardo told me about your new assignment, and I have to say I don't support it." He said, worry clouding his judgment. The judgment that otherwise would have told him that she didn't need to hear this from him.
"Really?" She said, touched and amused that he was worried about her. His concern only added to her suspicions
"Undercover work is pretty dangerous, Gabi." Then he added, to cover his tracks. "Ricardo is going to worry about you night and day."
He's not the only one, is he? Gabi added mentally. Aloud she said, "What about you?"
"What about me?" He answered, confused. This conversation was about Gabi, not him.
"Antonio, do you want to talk to me about Ricardo's concern for my safety, or yours?" She said, deciding to not beat around the bush any longer. She wanted to know is what she was thinking was true, and she wanted to know right now from Antonio.
"Well I... of course I'll be worried about you. I mean, I'm your friend and I care about what happens." He answered, and she felt a moment of anger that he wouldn't just come out and say what was so plainly there.
"Just stop it!" She demanded, tired of him not seeing what she was getting at.
"Stop what?!?" He asked, now thoroughly baffled by her bizarre actions. She was making no sense at all to him. Unless she was talking about…no, he decided. She couldn't possibly be talking about his feelings for her.
"Just don't play games with me Antonio. This isn't about one friend worried about another friend." She answered, her onyx eyes shining as she realized she had hit home. He knew exactly what she meant, even if he was denying it.
"What is it about Gabi?" He dared her to say the words to his face, a dare she readily accepted. This had been plaguing her since the idea had been planted in her mind. When she had kissed him, thinking he was Ricardo and he had responded so very passionately. A tremor ran through her body just remembering the sensations, all totally new and very appealing. When Antonio's lips had touched hers, Gabi felt something she had never felt before in her life. And she couldn't deny that it scared her a little, but her curiosity won over above that fear. She had to know what he felt for her. Maybe then she could determine exactly what it was that she felt for him.
Taking a deep breath, Gabi plunged ahead.
"You kissed me, we kissed Antonio. That answered a lot of questions."
"Not for me it didn't." Antonio answered, deciding to play her game finally and stop denying that he knew what she was talking about. But he also wasn't going to say what she wanted to hear. She stared at him and shook her head.
"I can't do this anymore, okay? You're leaving and I might never see you again. I need to know if you're ever going to tell me the truth about what you feel." Gabi said. Antonio looked her in the eye and saw that she was being honest, not just toying with his emotions like he had been afraid she would do when she found out. After taking a moment to collect his thoughts, he told her the words she had needed to hear.
"Yeah, I am. I care about you Gabi. I care about you a lot, and not just as a priest, and not just as a friend, and that's why I'm leaving Sunset Beach. But I also need to know something Gabi. I need to know if you feel the same way about me." He admitted. He felt strangely relieved; as if he had made his confession and was now ready to receive his penance.
Gabi was having a completely different reaction to his admission though. Her entire world, which she had been finally managed to get on the right track, was shattering. Antonio Torres…her best friend…brother of the man that she was supposed to be in love with…and priest…was in love with her. And she had no idea how to react. Or, at least her head told her she shouldn't. But her heart…that was something else altogether. As those deep brown eyes gazed into her heart, it was telling her to run straight into his arms and never get out. "Antonio…"
"Yes, Gabi?" He said gently, realizing that she was being overwhelmed by this knowledge. "You don't have to answer me now, Gabi. I can wait."
"No you can't, Antonio…you're leaving, remember?" She said with a bitter smile.
"Yeah…I am."
"So I guess it really doesn't matter, does it? You're going to be leaving no matter what I say."
"Of course it matters, Gabi." Antonio said
quietly, avoiding her
gaze.
"You mean you wouldn't go if I asked you not
to?" Gabi said
incredulously. She couldn't believe that Antonio
had had these feelings for her…that they were so strong…and she hadn't
known it for so long.
"Are you asking that, Gabi?" Even the way he said her name sounded different to her now, more special. More…lovingly.
"I don't know…," She said, as stepped closer to him as if she were being drawn to him. "Antonio…" Her voice was soft and throaty as she breathed softly her eyes locked on his lips. "Kiss me Antonio…"
His heart was about to jump out of his chest as she tilted her head up toward him, her eyes half closed and clouded with…something. Passion, lust, love…Antonio couldn't determine which one. "Wait, Gabi…I need your answer before I do something that we…could regret."
"All right. Antonio…I won't regret this…." She said and wrapping her arms around his neck pulled his face down to hers. Before he could pull away, not that he would have. Their kiss, the first real one, consented and fully knowing who each other was, kiss between them…it was amazing. A mixture of newly discovered and deeply buried love. A promise of many more passionate kisses to come, no matter what it would take for them to be together. This love that they were sharing for the first time...it wasn't something that could be ignored, and it wasn't something they wanted to ignore.