"Gabi!" Antonio saw his sister-in-law round the corner near Meg's shop and called out to her. Gabi immediately tensed; she hadn't been heading the other way just by coincidence. She had actually been heading in the direction Antonio was coming from until she had seen him, and hastily turned around, hoping that he wouldn't see her. But he had…and she had no choice but to turn around and talk to him.
"Antonio…hi. What…what are you doing here?" She said uncomfortably.
"Coming to see you. And Ricardo, of course. He asked me to stop by…So what are you doing?" Antonio asked, trying to ignore her eagerness to get away from him, even though he was hurt by it. Gabi seemed to be avoiding him at every turn now.
"I was just visiting Meg. I got a few things from the shop…talked to her and Sara." Gabi said, then stopped. Suddenly she felt awful. She wasn't even attempting to disguise her unease and it was obviously clear to Antonio. She could see the confusion and pain in his eyes. But if Ricardo thought that she was meeting with Antonio in any way that he didn't know about…though this certainly wasn't on purpose. They had just run into each other.
After an extensive internal battle, she decided that hurting Antonio wasn't worth it. Ricardo loved her, he would understand.
"So," She started, "Since you're going to the loft, why don't you walk me back there? We can talk…it's been a while since we've talked."
He was a little surprised, and very happy with her sudden change of attitude. "Great."
He stepped up beside her and they started walking towards the loft. Suddenly, Antonio stopped. "Oh...Gabi, I'm sorry, but I can't go to the loft with you. I just remembered…I made an appointment with Father O'Brian. I completely forgot about it. I'll just stop by the loft when we're done. Sorry." He said, and he really was. He had been looking forward to spending a few minutes alone with Gabi.
"Oh, no, it's fine, Antonio!" She said, maybe a bit to quickly. She was relieved not to have to explain their being together to her husband.
"Okay, see you later. Say hi to Ricardo for me, will you, and that I'll see him a little later?" Antonio said, gazing at Gabi with an odd expression. He knew that she was anxious not to be alone with him, and he knew that she was hiding something from him. He didn't like it, either.
"Sure." Gabi said and Antonio began to walk away, leaving Gabi in more confusion and more guilty than ever. She felt like crying…she couldn't go home to Ricardo now!
After a moment's deliberation, Gabi headed
for the beach. She couldn't go home, Antonio was out of the question…there
was only one other place she went for comfort…
Antonio was on his way back to the mission when he realized that he couldn't go there. He had agreed to let a Boy Scout's meeting be held in his office, thinking that he would stay at his brother's house until the meeting was over. He had made up the meeting that he had said he had 'forgotten' so that Gabi wouldn’t be forced into doing something that she so obviously didn't want to do, be with him.
So he couldn't go see Ricardo…and he couldn't go back to the mission…there was only one place left that he could go. Somewhere he had been visiting since he was a child, and it always made him feel much better.
PART TWO
Half an hour later, Gabi was curled up on a blanket she had brought with her watching the waves crash upon the shoreline. She could lose herself in the soothing rhythm of the water foaming at each hit it made to the sand. The ocean was such a wonderful thing, dark and raging as night began to fall, the salty air turning damp and cool with rain that was sure to begin soon. Gabi knew she should leave before the storm started, but this felt so good…very relaxing. And god knows relaxation was something she got very precious little of these days.
Suddenly, Gabi heard footsteps. She sat up, surprised. She could have sworn that she was the only one that knew where this little haven was. "Hello? Is anyone there?" She asked.
"Gabi?" Antonio called out from the entrance to the cave. He couldn't believe the irony in finding her here – this was where he came to get away from her! "Gabi- what are you doing here?"
"I…what do you mean, what am I doing here? What are you doing here?" She rose to her feet and walked over to him. "I didn't think anyone else knew about this place."
"Neither did I…I thought it was so out of the way, I had to be the only one who knew where it was." Antonio said, glancing around. He didn't really want to have to look at Gabi. Things were so tense between them these days, and looking into those big black eyes of hers only made his recapture the pain at her obvious deception of late…she was so careful to guard herself near him, to keep him from finding out whatever it was that she was hiding.
"Oh…well…" Gabi said, unsure of what to do or say next. She was aching to just open up and spill all of her secrets to him, but she couldn't. She couldn't risk it…too much was at stake now.
"Well…" He repeated, still avoiding her gaze.
"I…uh, thought you said you had something to do at the mission?" Gabi asked with a suspicious look on her face. Antonio immediately became jumpy. He was an awful liar, he knew it.
"I…umm…did, but it got…uh…canceled. Father O'Brian…he said he could…take over." Antonio stumbled over his falsehoods and prayed that she wouldn't ask more questions.
"Oh." Gabi seemed satisfied with that answer, and walked over to where the blanket she had brought with her was laid across the hard ground. "Well…I guess I'll go. You know…get back to my husband." She stressed the last two words, more for her own sake than Antonio's.
As she gathered the blanket and prepared to leave, Antonio stopped her. "If you want to stay, you can. I'll go. I was going to go see Ricardo anyway, so you won't have to worry about that."
"No…no, I really should go to him. I am his wife, after all, right?" She said again, making him painfully aware of the fact that she wasn't his and would never be.
"Yeah…but it's starting to rain…why don't you let me drive you?" He offered, able to see that Gabi was anxious to get away from him but still not wanting her alone in the dark with a storm raging. He couldn't help but worry about her; it was something that seemed to be programmed in him. "It’s raining, the roads will be wet and it'll be hard to see…it would really be safer than you driving alone."
"I'll be fine, Antonio! Stop acting like that." Gabi said. "I'm leaving, I'll see you later." She said, and he grabbed her arm. "What, Antonio?"
"Gabi, what do you mean? What am I acting like?" He challenged her to speak what was on her mind.
"You're acting like my guardian or something." She said. "Like I'm a kid who needs constant supervision! It really annoys me, Antonio. I wish you would stop."
Antonio let her go and stepped, a pained expression flashing across his face. Trying to hide his hurt at her brash comment, he turned away. "I'm sorry. You can go."
"Antonio…" Gabi said, now ashamed at her rudeness. She knew that Antonio was only worrying because of what he felt for her, and to be truthful she was glad he still felt that way. Even the thought of Antonio not loving her was not a though that Gabi wanted to entertain, not even for a moment. "I'm sorry…"
"No, Gabi, I'm sorry. You don't have to apologize, I know I shouldn't act so protective of you. Don't worry, I won't be bothering you again. You go home to your husband…" Antonio said, hoping she would just go so he could wallow in his heartache in peace.
"Antonio, please don't-" Gabi said, then stopped, realizing if she said to much, if she went too far then she might do something that she wouldn't be able to take back. "I didn't mean to sound rude. I'm sorry. I'll…I'll leave now."
But before she could take a step out of the cave, a fierce rumbling stopped her. A questioning look crossed her face as she glanced back at Antonio to ask what it was when something jarred her off of her feet. She glanced back and could see the horrified look on Antonio's face as he lunged towards her, pulling her away from the entrance to the cave mere seconds before the rocks above the cliff the cave was tucked into came pouring down, filling the entire entryway and almost completely sealing them in. The ground continued to roar as Gabi clung to Antonio, the only stable thing she could find as the earth shifted underneath their feet. He held her just as tightly, pulling her underneath him to shield her from the torrent of dirt and debris. Protecting Gabi was the only thing on his mind; he could have cared less about his own safety as they fell to the ground together.
PART THREE
"Gabi? Gabi…are you all right?" Antonio asked as he stood up and brushed the dirt off of himself, allowing Gabi to move out from where she had been protectively pressed against him.
"I'm…fine, I think. No broken bones, at least…" She said, then turned around to look at Antonio. "My God…Antonio, you're…" She touched the front of his shirt and gasped when her fingers came back stained a dark red. "You're hurt, Antonio…you're bleeding…" Immediately concerned with taking care of Antonio, Gabi spoke with tenderness. "Sit down, Antonio…here, let me help you. Take off your shirt so I can see how bad the wound is…"
Antonio opened his mouth, about to argue and say that he was fine but seeing her look at him that way…well, he couldn't resist it. Lifting his uninjured arm, he tried to unbutton the black shirt, but clumsily failed.
"Here, let me." Gabi said and brushed his hand aside. As she slowly and surely unbuttoned each of the buttons her mind flashed back to when they had been together like this last…when she had slowly taken his shirt off…and the feel of his skin under her hands…the sights of his tanned chest…her heart began to race.
"Oh…Antonio, that doesn't look too good." Gabi said as she pushed the shirt from his shoulders and surveyed the deep cut. She felt sick as she looked at the blood oozing from the jagged gash. "Does it hurt very bad?"
"No…can't hardly feel it at all…" Antonio said, mustering a tight grin, but Gabi could see that he was only hiding his pain so she wouldn't panic. "We need to get out of here, though…I'll see if I can move some of those rocks and clear out the entrance."
"No!" Gabi protested, "You shouldn't be up, you're bleeding…" Be he ignored her and tried to stand. Immediately, dizziness overcame him and he stumbled. Gabi grabbed onto his waist and steadied him, then gently lowered him back to the ground. "Antonio, I told you not to move. You'll only make it worse. I'll see if I can clear those rocks…"
Gabi walked over to where the solid wall of dirt and rock blocked them from the outside. She reached out for a large boulder and tried to push it aside. When she finally succeeded, she smiled proudly and turned to tell Antonio when she was assaulted with a barrage of debris. "Gabi!" Antonio shouted and she quickly back away as a new layer completely covered the progress she had just made.
"I'll try again…" Gabi began to say, but Antonio reached over and took her hand.
"No you won't. It's too dangerous. What we felt was obviously some kind of landslide, maybe a small earthquake or something. The ground, this cave isn't very stable and I don't want you to get caught under an avalanche of dirt trying to move things around. We'll just have to wait until someone comes for us." Antonio said as she sat down next to him.
"Who will come for us? No one knows where we are, not unless you told someone." She looked at him hopefully.
"No…everyone thinks I went to visit Ricardo…" Antonio said, and saw the hopelessness in her eyes. He reached over with his uninjured arm and caressed pushed a stray lock of hair out of her eyes. "Don't worry Gabi. We'll be okay."
"Just like last time…" Gabi whispered, and turned to look him in the eye. "I can't believe this is happening to us again, Antonio. Trapped in the rubble…for a second time."
"Well, we got out of it at the resort didn't we? And we'll get out here, too. Someone is bound to stumble upon us. We won't be here long, Gabi…" Antonio reassured her, but Gabi was already distracted,
"Has your arm stopped bleeding Antonio?" She asked. He lifted his shirt, which he was using as a makeshift bandage, and could see that the flow of blood had not stopped. "That's not good…you're losing a lot of blood, Antonio. And you look pale…"
"I'm fine, Gabi." Antonio insisted, though he was feeling a little lightheaded. He didn't want Gabi to worry about him, they had enough to worry about already.
"Oh Antonio…what are we going to do?" Gabi said, slumping down against the wall of the cave.
"We're going to sit tight and wait for someone to find us." He said, trying his best to be strong for Gabi. "Why don't we talk until then? Something to take our minds off everything."
"Okay…" Gabi said, knowing she could use a good distraction. "What do you want to talk about, Antonio?"
Sensing that this would be a good time to bring up the subject that they had both been avoiding lately, Antonio replied, "We can talk about whatever it is you're hiding from me, Gabi."
She immediately tensed. "How many times do I have to tell you I'm not hiding anything from you."
"And how many times do I have to tell you that I know you're lying to me. Gabi, look at me. "As hard as it was to do, Gabi lifted her eyes to his own. "I know you Gabi. I can see in your eyes that you're holding something back from me. I can also see that you want to tell me, but something's holding you back from it."
"Antonio…I can't…" Gabi protested weakly, her defenses wearing thin.
"Do you know how much it hurts to have you keep something from me? We mean a lot to each other Gabi, at least I hope we do…as friends if nothing else." He knew he was pushing all of the right buttons. "Please Gabi, tell me what it is…tell me what's hurting you so much so I can help you. I know I'll be able to help, if you'll let me."
"Antonio…" Gabi said, tearing filling her eyes. She shouldn't be doing this; she couldn't! But when he reached up to tenderly wipe away a tear, her last resolve slipped away. "He knows Antonio…"
"What do you mean? Who knows what?"
"Ricardo…he knows about us making love." Gabi said, looking down. How ironic, she thought…it all started with them trapped together, and now it would probably end that way…
PART FOUR
"What did you say, Gabi?" Antonio asked in a deathly calm voice. Gabi knew that Antonio's temper was unbelievably slow to rise, but extremely explosive once it did. She had a sinking feeling that she was about to see that explosion.
"Ricardo knows that we made love. He's seen the tape." She said, and continued, not wanting to prolong the unbearably painful moment. "Ricardo told me about two months ago, he made me swear not to tell you. He said out marriage wouldn't work if I did. I hope you understand why I kept it from you, Antonio. It wasn't easy but it was something I had to do."
"Had to do? He forced you to? Gave you no choice?" Antonio said, barely reigning in his fury. "Gabi, do you know how much I've suffered wondering what it was that you were keeping from me? Damnit, Gabi, how could you do this, not tell me such an important thing! For God's sake, I lo-" Then he stopped abruptly…but it was too late. Gabi's eyes widened at the realization of what he had been about to say to her.
"Antonio?" Gabi whispered incredulously. Her heart was racing, she looked up at him. He had been about to say he loved, her she knew it. "Do you still…love me?"
Antonio looked at her, a little surprised and embarrassed. He steadied his gaze on his lap and answered in a soft voice that Gabi had to strain to hear. "Of course I do, Gabi. I'll never stop. I told you that before, remember? I love you, and I always will." Gabi's breath caught as he spoke, tears filling her eyes.
"But I thought…" Gabi couldn't believe that he still loved her, she had thought that his feelings had surely went away by now. "I thought you didn't…"
"Love you anymore?" Antonio grinned bitterly. "That’s never going to happen, Gabi. I'll never stop loving you. But…I know that you love Ricardo…he's you husband, that’s the way it should be, right?"
"No!" Gabi exclaimed before she could stop herself. This time it was Antonio looking curious. She pondered her next words for a moment…should she go ahead and spill the whole truth? There was a chance they wouldn't even make it out of here…so why not? "Ricardo is my husband…but I don't love him Antonio. Not the way that I love you."
They sat in silence, carefully regarding each other. This wasn't like last time; nothing at all like when they were trapped in the explosion at the resort. Things were clearer now. They had just declared their mutual love for each other and had no idea what they should do or say next.
"Well-" Gabi began to say.
"Gabi-" Antonio started at the same time, and they both stopped simultaneously. "You go."
"I was just going to say-hey," She tilted her head a little. "Is that footsteps?"
"I think it is…" Antonio agreed. He gripped the wall with one hand and began to stand. "I'll see if I can…"
"No, Antonio, you won't do anything! Sit down, I'll see if I can get their attention…" She said and walked over to the blocked entrance and began shouting. "HELLO? CAN YOU HEAR ME?" As the footsteps slowly began to face, Gabi shouted even louder. "HELLO!!! WE'RE STUCK IN HERE, PLEASE HELP!!!!"
"They're gone." Antonio said dejectedly as Gabi continued to shout. "Gabi, you can stop…oh!" He gasped abruptly and reached for his shoulder. Immediately Gabi was at his side.
"Are you okay? Is it still bleeding?" Gabi asked, gently lifting the makeshift bandage and wincing at the open wound. "It must hurt a lot, I don't see how you can stand it."
"It's fine Gabi." Antonio insisted.
"Don't do that, Antonio. I can see that it hurts, you don't have to hide it from me." She said, then looked up at him. "Antonio, you look so pale…are you really feeling okay?"
"A little lightheaded…" He admitted, and Gabi frowned. "I'm really okay though. You don't have to worry about me. I don't want you to."
"Too bad. I'm going to worry about you whether you like it or not, it comes with the rest." She said as she carefully folded the shirt until she had found a part of it untouched by the blood and then reapplied dressing.
"Comes with the rest of what?" He asked softly, their gazes meeting as she settled down next to him. Her hand was still resting on his arm and they could both feel the electricity pulsing between them.
"The rest of…me…loving you…" She answered and slanted her head slightly until her lips were merely inches away from his. Her small pink tongue darted out to moisten her lips as her eyes closed gently. As he moved in to closer to seal the space between them, she could feel his warm breath fanning her lips. With a gentle, but roaring passion they kissed, sinking into the moment, living it up to the fullest. Sensations raced through them unbidden, the feel of something completely new yet totally familiar as they eased into the embrace, her being careful not to brush against his wound.
Both were breathless and a little giddy when
they parted. Antonio reached over and ran his fingers through her hair
before leaning over and placing a feathery kiss on her lips. "I'm glad
you love me, Gabi."