The One That Got Away by Danielle Martin (chrysanthemum read aloud TXT) 📖

something so hard on my life." Makaylas shoulders slouched across the bar as she ran her fingertip around the edge of her glass.Nya leaned against the counter, crossing her hands across her chest while shaking her head. "Things that you really want in life are not always going to come easy you know that." Nya eyed her a second time. "I just dont want you stringing nobody along. Neither one of them deserves that."
Makaylas head dropped, knowing what Nya was saying was true. In the past, Makayla did not know how to emotionally connect herself to a man, she could only do so physically. Due to her commitment issUes, break ups never affected her very much and hook ups were never difficult to book. Now here she was. Torn in between two men. She didnt know what to want. What to feel.
"I want to move on with Nathan so bad. Hes such a good guy and I feel like hes going to be a good fit for me. But i dont want to do him the same way I did Rodney. I wanna be completley healed before i start something with Nathan. And i know im not there yet. But the selfish side of me knows im falling apart and the other side doesnt care and wants to take him down with me." She was embarressed, ashamed that every relationship she ended up in always turned out to be a sob story. Makayla was sick and tired of getting everything wrong.
Nya shook her head, not knowing what to say to her bestfriend. Makayla always put herself in these sticky situations and she always found herself in the middle trying to help her come up with a plan. "So whats up with Nathan? Have you guys been talking?"
Makayla shook her head. "No. Im too afraid to come to him again if im not fully prepared."
"Hmph." Nya looked away as if she were thinking. "And Rodney? What about him?"
Makayla rolled her eyes, becoming overwhelmed and fustrated by hearing his name. Lately, Rodney had turned her into a real cyber stalker. She was able to find Baileys facebook account 2 days ago and she was completley heart broken and devasted by what she seen. Everything that girl claimed was true. Rodney indeed was living with her and had been staying there for a while now. She sucked her teeth as she began to think about the pictures . One was of a candelit dinner with two steak entrees and wine glasses sitting at the table. Makayla knew it was Rodney in the picture because of the rolex that he wore. She picked out that Rolex. Makayla slouched even further as she thought about the second picture Bailey posted of her feet kicked up on a bench over looking the beach with a man sitting beside her, his Timbaland boots sticking out the edge of the picture. She knew those boots all too well. They were custom made so they were hard to miss. Makayla waived her hand to the bartender signaling she needed another drink. She decided against telling Nya about Bailey or about the facebook pictures. Secretly, she was embaressed that this woman came into her life so sudden and took Rodney away from her like it was easy. She gritted her teeth, wondering if the love he claimed he had for her was ever real since he lied about everything else.

"I dont care what he does anymore." Makayla lied while turning her head, attempting to mask her guilt. Nya smacked her lips, not buying her story for one second. "Now we all know thats not true Makayla. You still love him."
Makayla rolled her eyes while reaching for the drink that the bartender placed in front of her. Immediatly, she placed the rims to her lip without using a straw the way she usually does. Yes, she was still in love with Rodney, but he was moving on and there was nothing she could do about it. Her insides boiled because she felt deep down inside, he was moving on way too fast. It had only been a few weeks and he was already in a new relationship while she was here struggling to move on and forget this whole ordeal ever happened. She despised him for making things difficult for her and she was angry Nathan came into her life so sudden causing all of this confusion. Sometimes she just wanted to pack her bags and run away from all of her problems. But Makayla knew running away was not the answer. She was going to deal with this situation head on.
Makayla continued to sip her drink slowly, enjoying the smooth taste as the liquid slid down her throat. Tequila tasted so grand whenever she was stressed out. "I dont know." She shrugged her shoulders. "Sometimes I just want to forget all about Rodney. Im getting to the point now where i feel like hes holding me back."
Nya titled her head to the side, "We all know you will never forget Rodney. But that doesnt mean you cant move on with your life."
Makayla nodded, knowing she was making excuses for herself. She was only stuck on Rodney because she wasnt allowing herself to let go. Here she had the perfect oppurtunity to build something real with a good man, and again she was pushing him away because she was still holding on to her past. "You might be right bestfriend." Makayla continued to sip her drink, suddenly feeling like she was starting to make sense with her life.
"Okay, so if im right, I want you to go home, delete Rodneys number and remove all contact with him from your life. Hes already moved out. Hes gotten all of this things out of the house. You have no reason to keep contact with him."
Makaylas heart beat quickened as she began to think about what life would be like not having any contact with Rodney at all. He played such a huge part in her life, she didnt know if she was ready or able to cut him out of her life for good. "I dont know." Makayla shrugged her shoulders again.
Nya rolled her eyes, knowing that Makayla was holding herself back, "See, look at yourself. Your holding on." Nye reached forward, grabbing the drink out of Makaylas hands right when she was preparing to swallow the last drop. "Heyyyyyyyy." Makayla defensively reached for her drink, feeling as if she hadnt had enough,
"Nope." Nya took the glass, placing it in the sink so it could be washed, "You got to drive home."
Makayla sighed, collecting her belongings knowing Nya was right. She had been here long enough. It was time to go home and get ready for work tomorrow. Makayla knew if she didnt start heading home now, she wasnt going to have the strength to get out of the bed in the morning. "Okay." Makayla grabbed her purse swinging it over her arm. "Thanks for listening to me blabber all night."
"Ofcourse." Nya grabbed her arm. "Your my bestfriend. You know im going to always have your back.
Makayla smiled, thankful she had a friend like Nya in her life. Even though they were complete opposites, that girl helped her keep her head on straight. She was a very well put together woman. Nya never seemed to have any issues or problems in her life. Her hair was always done, her bills were always paid and she never have any men problems the way Makayla always seemed to have. But Makayla was thankful that she had someone like Nya in her life, and little did she know, she looked up to her. "I will see you at work." She hugged her bestfriend goodbye then began to trot across the bar, knowing all eyes were on her as she reached the exit. One thing she hated about the men here, they always stared at you. Look you up and down like your a piece of raw meat. Never had she seen one man in that bar that she would be interested.

 Swinging open the door, Makayla stepped outside. The light breeze hit her in the face immediatly placing her in a peaceful state of mind. She was in love with this fall weather. It wasnt hot, wasnt cold and the light chill felt amazing each time she stepped outside. She took in a deep breath, feeling as if she wanted to go home to someone there waiting for her. Someone she cared about. She was tired of being alone and tired of being confused about what she wanted in life. Makayla stepped off the curb, walking across the street towards her car. She didnt mean to leave out this late. She sat here at this bar for almost 3 hours spilling her guts to Nya as if she were her personal diary. Makayla had no other friends or family to go to, and she really needed someone to just listen to her.

Approaching her car, she fished inside of her purse to retrieve her cellphone so she could check the time. Pulling out her iphone, she swiped the unlock screen and was immediatly greeted by an unread text message from an unknown number. Curiously, she slowed her pace while tapping her finger on the screen to read the text. The message read: HI MAKAYLA. JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW I BEEN THINKING OF YOU. I HOPE YOU DONT MAKE ME WAIT A LONG TIME FOR YOU. HAVE A GOOD NIGHT. THIS IS NATHAN SAVE MY NUMBER.

Her heart stopped and her eyes widened as she immediatly read the text message a second time. She couldnt believe it. How did he get her number? Her heart began to race as she began to think of what to text back. Nervously biting her lip, Makayla swiped her fingers across the keyboard: WOW IM SO SURPRISED TO HEAR FROM YOU. HOW DID YOU GET MY NUMBER.

Her anxiety caused her to immediatly shut the screen off as soon as she sent the text. Quickening her pace, she walked to her audi, clicking the lock and sliding in the drivers seat. Closing the door shut, she took a deep breath as she felt the phone vibrate again. It didnt take him very long to respond: LETS JUST SAY WE BOTH HAVE KATHY TO THANK.

Makayla couldnt help but smile, feeling some sort of relief that the man she had been desiring was also showing affection for her in return. There was no denying the feelings were mutual now. Her grin spread ear to ear as she responded: YOU ALWAYS POP UP AT THE RIGHT TIMES. I CANT WAIT TO SEE YOU NATHAN. AND IT WONT BE LONG. I PROMISE.......

 

Chapter 20

Chapter 20.
  "How do you think this looks on me?'' Makayla turned to the side, examining herself from head to toe in the full length mirror. She wore a Karen Kane black lace dress with spaghetti straps laced across the shoulders and down the back.  Again, she checked the price tag for the 50th time. $272.00. It was a new release and probably would be alot cheaper around Christmas time. Makayla began to contemplate wether or