There was this fuzziness in Angela's stomach as she stepped out into the New York air again. She was carrying a small bag and one of the guards carried her carry-on. They had organised a car and put all of the luggage inside as soon as they reached it. Their flight was delayed and it was late in the evening when they had flown in and the sky was beginning to darken.

They arrived at Mike's apartment, where he insisted she could stay while she was there, and took the elevator. She knocked on the door and her heart skipped a beat once Adriano's face appeared in front of her instead of Mike's. He said nothing to her, just stepped aside so the guards could put her things inside and then leave.

Angela gulped at the sight of him as she sat down on the sofa. Mike was nowhere to be seen and she could tell Adriano was keeping his distance. She was unsure whether to talk or not but eventually had to say something. Adriano watched her every move like a hawk.

"Where's Mike?" she finally asked, her voice small and weak.

"He had to go out for a while, he was expecting you earlier."

"My flight was delayed."

She noticed how his tone was cold and his exterior like stone, it broke her heart. He could clearly see her discomfort but if he broke his promise he made to himself, he would soon regret it. They couldn't be together anymore, as much as he loved her, it wasn't possible without danger and he couldn't take risks with her.

He had plans, big plans, to leave the mafia but it was a difficult thing to do. Adriano was constantly trying to work out a way to leave, he needed something over his father to use and was still trying to figure out a couple of things. Until then, Angela would have to be kept as far away from him as possible- her visit to New York wasn't helping him at all.

"Why are you being like this?" he heard her gentle voice a lot closer to him than he thought. His head shot around to find her standing in front of him. He took a step back when she reached out to touch him.

"It's better this way Angela, you need to understand."

"But I can't understand. I want to be with you. I love you."

"Don't say that." His voice was just above a whisper and it seemed he had said it more to himself than to Angela.

"Why not?" she asked quickly.

"Because... because you shouldn't say things like that. It will only make it harder for yourself."

"Why are you acting like you don't care? I know you do, please..." she pleaded softly with him but he was still avoiding eye contact. He needed to say something to keep her away, but he didn't want to open his mouth to speak again.

"Your problem is that your heart is too big, it leaves you vulnerable and makes you weak." He spoke in such certainty that it brought tears to her eyes, because it was the truth. She was vulnerable and delicate, she was weak and let her guard down too much. "You put your heart on your sleeve. You are oblivious to evil and peoples capabilities because you cannot imagine a person like that, you are blinded by your good nature."

"What about yours?" Angela asked hesitantly, trying to keep the shake out of her voice. He looked at her with confusion for a second so she continued, "What about your heart?" she questioned. He looked at her with his dark eyes, his stare like stone.

"I haven't got one."

"That's not true, Adriano I know it's not. Why can't things just go back to how they used to be-" They both turned to look at the door because they heard a jingling of keys on the other side.

"That should be Mike." Adriano mumbled. He walked to the couch where he had thrown his coat over the arm and put it on. Angela tried desperately to wipe away the tears she had before they escaped her eyes and put on a happy face for Mike.

"Hey Shortcake!" Mike walked quickly over to her and enveloped her in a tight hug. Adriano watched carefully and couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy. He began to walk towards the door and mumbled to himself.

"I shouldn't have agreed to this in the first place."

"Where are you going?" Mike called after him.

"Home." He said gruffly before slamming Mike's door shut.

"Hey, don't be upset." Mike noticed Angela's teary eyes. "I'm sorry about him, I should've asked Franco to come over instead..." he said to himself quietly.

"It's fine. It's just- hard to take in."

"C'mon, let's sit down here and talk." Mike tried to change the subject and gave her a smile that she matched but he could still sense all of the pain behind it.

They sat down on the sofas and caught up. Mike wanted to know everything about her life back in Miami and how things were going since she had left New York a couple of weeks ago. She told him about her parents and how happy they were to finally see her again. She told him about her sister, Lucy, who was so grown up now since Angela had left and she explained her work situation now.

Angela was happy with the job she had, one that she was really enjoying. She had begun to play the piano a lot more at home too, after investing in a small electric one because she definitely couldn't afford or fit a huge one into her apartment. They talked into the early hours of the morning before realising the time and going to bed.

The next day they spent together and met up with Maria and Franco too. Angela was only staying in New York for three more days and she still had to organise meeting up with Trisha. Mike and Angela went out to dinner with Franco and Maria and their two children.

"Angela!" Amelia said, rather loudly, when she saw her first. She had turned a few heads in the restaurant.

"Shh Amelia." Maria laughed at her daughter.

"Hello Amelia." Angela bent down to give her a hug before standing up and greeting Maria, Franco and Michael who was in Maria's arms.

"She's missed you, she kept asking where you were since the last time you came over." The two women chuckled and joined Mike and Franco to sit down at their table.

Dinner was nice, she enjoyed talking to Angela and Franco again but she wished Adriano was there. Angela didn't think that she had cared this much before but being back in New York- so close to where he was- was killing her, especially since how things had ended yesterday with him when he walked out.

The next two days Angela spent in New York exploring and going out with Mike. She made contact with Trisha again and they both decided to go out together for lunch on her last day before flying back to Miami.

She met Trisha outside a subway station, along with her guards who were a few steps behind. Trisha hugged her friend and then held her at arm's length.

"You have so much to tell me Angela, this is going to be a very long day." The pair laughed before Trisha led them down the street and into a place to eat. It was very quiet but the food was amazing- or so Trisha had said.

"So..." She looked up from her food at Angela before taking a sip of her drink. "Why the move back to Miami?"

"I finally decided to go back to my family. Adriano helped me; I wouldn't have been able to do it without him I guess." Angel shrugged but Trisha could sense there was something else there Angela hadn't voiced.

"So how's life back home then?" Trisha eyed her with curiosity.

"It's great actually." Angela gave Trisha a sad smile. "I forgot how good it is to have your family so close. My sister's so supportive and understanding. She's really grown up and I wasn't there to see that. My jobs great, I love it. And my apartment- I love that too."

"But?" Trisha was waiting for her friend to give her the reason why she seemed to be so gloomy when talking about her life back home again. Angela gave her a look of confusion. "You're telling me all of these things that are supposed to be happy but you don't sound happy. You sound like you're still looking for something." Trisha added. Angela nodded slowly at her but hesitated.

"I guess something is missing, I'm just not sure whether I'm going to get it back or not."

"And what's that?"

"Adriano." There was a short silence as Trisha looked into Angela's teary eyes.

"What happened?"

"He couldn't come with me. We can't be together, even if he stayed here and I went back to Miami."

"Why?"

"Because things are...complicated. I know what you might be thinking, I'm sure you're going to call me crazy but I love him Trisha. My history with relationships and men haven't been, well, amazing but I can tell there's just something about Adriano. I can't explain it. Whenever I dreamed about going home, I thought it would be different. I thought I would be happier than I am now."

She wanted Trisha to know about what was going on in her head right at that moment, but she was unable to do so. It was confusing for her. She nodded at Angela from across the table before speaking again.

"I understand Angela, honestly. Love sometimes can... It can make us view things differently- like your vision of going back home. It can change us."

"I don't know what to do. He told me he loved me but then I flew back here and he just pushed me away, he keeps pushing me away."

"Well, you're going back home tomorrow Angela, I think if you really love him you should just go for it one last time. If you don't talk about it and sort things out, whether you end up being together or not- it will leave you unsure about everything like you are right now."

"I don't know... I'm mad but I'm really upset too, I just don't know what to do."

"What are you going to lose if you do? Just think about what I said, please."

Angela let out a long sigh in the car on the way back to Mike's house. It was her last night her and tomorrow evening she would be flying back to Miami. Trisha's words of wisdom about her and Adriano were still playing over and over again in Angela's mind.

Angela couldn't leave things between her and Adriano the way they were before she left. She wanted to sort things out; it was at the point where every part of her was yelling on the inside that she should go to see him. But Angela was afraid; she didn't want to feel rejected again by him despite all of her very real feelings. She was unsure as to whether going to speak with Adriano again would make her feel better or worse but then, she made up her mind.

"Wait, I want to go somewhere before we go back to Mike's." she said quickly to the two guards who were sitting in the front of the car. Santino turned around to look at her, an eyebrow quirked.

"Where?" he asked. There was a short pause before Angela spoke.

"Adriano's apartment."

"Are you sure kid?" Kenny, who was driving, asked in a voice full of warning and concern.

"Yes, I'm sure." She nodded.

It didn't take them long to get there and as soon as they did, they went inside and took the elevator up to his floor. The doors to the elevator pinged open and the three met a pair of dark eyes standing in front of them. Angela gulped as the woman, tall and blonde stood into the elevator. She was frozen in her spot, knowing where she had come from. Kenny and Santino caught her attention again and told her to step out of the elevator.

The guards from Adriano's floor recognised her and gave her a small. Kenny and Santino looked down at her with deep concern, knowing exactly what she was thinking.

"Hey look, Angela's back." One said as she walked towards Adriano's door. "I'll get that for you." He said before knocking on Adriano's door. Angela wanted to turn around and run out of the building, she didn't want to have to face Adriano right now. She was crushed and confused at the same time. But as soon as the guard knocked on the door, it was too late.

"Are you sure you still want to do this?" Kenny asked her quietly.

But before she could reply, Adriano had already opened the door and was standing there, looking down at her. He didn't speak, but looked annoyed. He just stepped out of the way so she could come in. She gave Kenny a small nod before walking slowly inside, still in a daze. Adriano slammed the door behind her before walking into the kitchen, his back to her. She noticed how he was in only his underwear, each and every tattoo on his body out on display. He got himself a drink from inside the kitchen and spoke with his back to her.

"Why are you here Angela?" annoyance and angry clear in his voice.

"D-did you..." Angela's voice wavered as she tried to collect herself. Tears pricked her eyes. Adriano knew exactly what her question was going to be and couldn't lie to her.

"No." he said shortly before turning around. "I couldn't, the thought of you stopped me." He said this a lot quieter, seeming like he was reassuring himself more than talking to her.

"Maybe I should go." She said, regretting ever coming here in the first place.

"Yeah maybe you should." His words ripped at her chest. She walked towards the door, about to open it when she stopped.

"No, I can't go until we sort this out...W-why?" she asked, almost on the brink of tears.

"Why?" he questioned. "What do you want me to do? You've clearly moved on."

"What are you talking about?" she asked, her brows furrowed in confusion. The penny soon dropped in her mind but she waited for him to say it.

"You and that guy you were with before you left Miami." Adriano almost growled at her and she let out a sound of exasperation.

"So I go out for coffee with a guy you've never saw before and you jump into bed with some woman?" Her voice was raised now.

"A guy you used to date." Jealously dripped from his voice and he hated it but couldn't help how he was feeling.

"How do you know that? I never told you that." There was a silence for a moment before he looked away from her.

"I checked him out, made sure he was okay."

"Adriano..." she warned.

"What? I didn't want you getting hurt. And I didn't jump into bed with anyone. I told you I couldn't do it."

"But you still tried..." Angela's voice trailed off, pain evident. "And how do I know that? How do I know you couldn't do it?" She narrowed her eyes, knowing that she shouldn't be acting like this but she couldn't help it right now.

"No, Angie no." his voice was panicked as he walked quickly towards her. "I didn't okay? I-I couldn't. You have to trust me with this." He looked into her eyes now and she didn't say it but she had believed him.

"You never called. You never made any contact at all." Her small voice was the only thing filling the room. His chest ached at the grimness of her expression and tone.

"I couldn't, it would make things worse- for the two of us."

"Why can't we just be together? We could make things work Adriano, I know we could, even if I was in Miami and you were in New York. Why did you cart me off to Miami on my own? Didn't you want to know how things were?"

"Angela I can't do this." He put his palms to his face, not being able to look at her heart-breaking expression. Her every word was ripping him apart as he added more things onto the long list of what he had done wrong.

"I really should go now." She was disappointed things hadn't worked out how she had planned when she thought about visiting Adriano.

"No, you can't go now. We're still talking." He rushed out his words as she began to walk towards the door again for a second time tonight. "I don't want you to go yet, please..." He begged, taking her hand.

"I don't think I can deal with all of this right now. I'm confused and upset." She let out a sigh of frustration. Everything felt like it was being piled up on top of Angela right now and as much as she wanted to stay here, with him, she was unsure as to whether it was the right thing to do or not.

"Not matter what I do, I just keep fucking up." He admitted to her. "I don't think I've ever felt like this before, about anyone. It's hard to explain it Angie. You're special, I know you are. You deserve so much more than what I've given you so far. I'm trying but all I've been doing is all the wrong things."

"But after you being so hot and cold with me- I'm still here? I've come all this way, yes- because Mike asked me to, but you were always in the back of my mind. I came here tonight despite everything you said the other day. You keep making bad decisions and fighting what is demanding to be felt, and I keep staying? I keep coming back, after everything that's happened. That must mean something mustn't it?" Her eyes showed him so much: there was hope and despair, there was this anger and fear what her words might bring next. He could tell she was getting agitated and he could tell.

"I just-"

"And I don't know how long I'll keep coming back. I don't know how much more of this my heart can take because I care about you, so much, but if it gets to the point where it's hurting me I need to let go."

"I'm sorry." he whispered, taking both her hands now in between the two of his and holding them closer to him. Tears began to fall down her cheek and he wiped them away before wrapping her in a tight, warm hug. She missed him, the feel and smell of him, the closeness.

"I know you said it would be better this way, with me in Miami and you here but I've tried it and I don't like it. I don't feel any better." Her voice was muffled but he could still hear what she was saying.

"Neither do I."

"Adriano I need to know, I need you to make up your mind now. Because if you don't want us to try and be together, despite where we are, then I have to go. You can't keep pushing me away, I'm trying to understand you but it's getting very difficult." Adriano gulped and closed his eyes for a moment before opening them and speaking.

"Angela, I missed you so much when you were gone. I felt so horrible about how I made you leave but I care about you and I wanted you to be safe, I need you to be safe. If anything happened to you I- I don't know what I'd do. I love you, I really do. My life hasn't worked out the way I'd planned and I'm not good. But you are. You're the most pure, beautiful person I've ever met. I just wish I could take back everything I've ever done, I wish we could've met a different way." He wiped away another tear from her cheek and held her face close to his now.

"But what does that all mean?" she needed a straight answer.

"I want to make this work for us."

****** I know some of you mightn't agree with Angela being so forgiving but that's just her personality, I don't know what I would do in her situation. What would you do? Let me know what you think of this chapter and as always, thanks for reading,

Autumn xo