Ricardo hesitated, and in that hesitation, she already knew. "Val… I can't see you anymore."
Stunned didn't even begin to cover it.
They had been good. No—perfect. They had built a small, quiet bubble together. In that bubble, he had been hers.
"Are you seeing someone else?" she asked.
Ricardo's head snapped up. "No. I swear, Val, no. It's not that."
"Then what is it?" she demanded. "You're ending what we have… for work?"
He stepped closer, his expression pained. "I can't put you through that. I can barely make time to see you as it is. It's not fair to you."
She admired the excuse. It sounded noble, considerate even selfless.
And yet, it was also complete bullshit.
"Oh my God…" she whispered, shaking her head slowly. "This is not happening."
But it was.
"I'm truly sorry, Val," Ricardo said. "I am. I am. I… I will always love you."
"You may go," she said simply.
Ricardo blinked, thrown off by the sudden shift. "Val, let me at least drop you off at home."
