Bella hurried out of the hotel room and into the hallway.
"Hi" she breathed out at Laura, who eyed her down like a dog that could smell sex.
"Did you just have sex in there?" she asked, amusement in her eyes.
"Maybe" Bella breathed out, taking Laura's hand and dragging her to the elevator. The whole walking distance to the Greek bistro, Laura tried to get details out of Bella, but she wouldn't budge.
"Come on, Bells. I already know it's Tom. Unless a hot guy just stumbled into your room" Laura groaned as they waited for their food, her gaze glued on her phone.
"Shut up. Who are you texting?" she pried as Laura furrowed her brows.
"No one" she mumbled as she closed her phone, taking a sip of her water.
"Hi" Bella heard from behind her, making her internally groan before even turning around.
"Thought I'd find you here. Thanks for the text, Laura" Tom smiled as he grabbed a chair and sat down.
Bella turned to Laura and glared at her. How could she betray her like this?
"So. How we doing?" Tom asked as the girls sat there in silence, Bella's gaze shooting daggers at Laura.
"Fine" she mumbled through gritted teeth.
"Oh, I just remembered. I have to go" Laura suddenly said, not at all convincingly as she hurried out of the restaurant. Bella realized she'd been set up.
"I guess I'll leave too" Bella mumbled, setting down her glass and starting to pick up her bag when Tom's hand went over hers.
"Come on. Give me one day. I'll show you what being with me would be like" he spoke softly as Bella stared at their hands.
"It's not a good idea" she mumbled.
"I don't care. Please?" Tom begged, looking very hopeful as Bella looked into his eyes.
"Fine" she gave in. Tom really did make her make bad decisions. Tom grinned as their food arrived. He ordered them both a glass of wine as well, making small talk as they ate.
"So... How's work been?" he asked her.
"Fine" Bella just mumbled, playing with her fork, not feeling like eating anymore.
"Bella. You really have to give this a chance. On a date you typically talk to the other person about stuff" Tom said, a smile grazing his lips.
"Fine" she sighed before clearing her throat.
"It's been tough. The rehearsals are hard to deal with sometimes" she spoke out softly. Tom was surprised at how soft her voice could sound. He fell even more in love with her in that moment.
"I can only imagine. Your show was amazing, though" he smiled.
"How about you?" Bella asked. She didn't really want to do this, but she'd promised she'd at least try.
"It's been good. I love acting. You get to create a whole another personality and I like that" he smiled as he took a bite of his food.
The rest of the lunch went on with them making small talk. Afterwards, Tom paid and took Bella's hand, dragging her along because he wanted to "take her somewhere". They walked along the beach before they reached a quiet spot on top of a hill, where Tom sat down and patted the ground next to himself. Bella hesitated before slowly sitting down, leaving a bit of distance between them.
"So... Tell me about your family" Tom spoke out, making Bella gulp.
"I don't want to talk about it" she said, drawing on the sand with her finger.
She heard Tom shuffling as he moved closer to her, putting an arm over her shoulders.
"Please" he breathed out, making Bella give in. He just had such a safe energy. Despite having a bunch of walls up that she'd built for decades, Tom started to knock them down.
"No dad. I have a mom and a sister as you know" Bella spoke out, still drawing on the sand.
"What happened with your dad?" Tom asked softly.
"My mom left him. He didn't really like being a dad" Bella spoke out, slightly smiling to herself as she drew a heart.
"I'm sorry" Tom spoke out, wanting Bella to share more.
"I always took care of my sister. It was a lot as a child. But you know, I'd do anything for her" she continued as Tom frowned at her words.
"You're amazing, you know that, right?" he spoke out, making Bella freeze as she turned to Tom and looked him in the eye. And she could tell he was not lying, he really felt that way about her.
"Not really" she stated, her eyes flickering to Tom's lips. He said nothing as he let his gaze fall to Bella's lips, his hand cupping her face softly as she brought her in for a gentle kiss. Bella's breath hitched as she felt his love through the kiss. She panted as they pulled apart.
"I guess that's why I have... panic attacks" she mumbled, leaning her head on Tom's chest. He hummed as his hand went into her hair, running his fingers through it softly.
"Did you have them as a child?" he asked, continuing his movements as they were clearly calming her down.
"No. They started when I was 16" she spoke out, burying her head in Tom's chest so she wouldn't have to look at him.
"You're so strong" he spoke out, making Bella chuckle.
"If you say so" she stated. The two sat there in a comfortable silence for a while, just watching the ocean before being interrupted by Bella's phone going off.
"Sorry" she mumbled as she moved away from Tom, making him frown.
"It's Laura. I agreed to go out with her tonight" she sighed, biting her lip.
"We could continue our date there?" Tom suggested. Bella stared at him for a while, hesitating before getting up and holding her hand out for Tom, making him grin.
