Good night, guys. I'm sorry for the delay, it's been a few busy weeks. :) After writing this chapter I realized that I will probably finish the story in a few chapters. I have everything figured it out and I think 50 chapters are enough. :D I don't have time to comment your reviews right now, I'm exhausted and I wanted to publish this chapter tonight so you don't have to wait even more. Sorry, guys. ;) Thanks for your support, you're adorable. Have a nice day, buddies. :)

Enjoy!

MEANT TO BE

Chapter 48: Shocking

Emily's POV

I open my left eye and look around. I can feel the sunshine inside the bedroom. I turn in bed and suddenly realize that I'm sleeping with my girlfriend. It all happened so suddenly that I forgot that this is not a dream and it's really happening. I can't see Paige's face 'cause she has always slept on her side, but I can hear her breathing. I hug her from behind and she makes a noise, but I don't get to wake her up. She smells great, and that makes me hug her tighter and kiss her neck. She mumbles something incoherent and I can't help but laugh.

"What are you laughing at?" she mumbles, but using more understandable words this time and not just unintelligible noises. She turns to face me, her eyes are still sleepy, but she's as beautiful as always.

"You," I admit, kissing her neck again.

"Did you sleep well?" Her grin makes me smile. I can not think of a better way to start the day.

"Great." I'm not lying, but I have to admit I've been thinking about the way I treated my mom yesterday.

"What is wrong, Em?" she asks, placing her hands on my cheeks and caressing them with her thumbs. I guess she knows me better than I had thought, she realized something worries me.

"It's nothing," I lie.

"Lying to your girlfriend is a really bad decision," she teases me. I grin at her. "It's your mom, right?" I just gaze at her, I don't say a word though.

"I can't stop thinking about it, but I don't want to tell her the truth." Being honest to her is the best way of dealing this. Besides, she's always been a very understanding person.

She sighs. "I knew you'd be sorry because of the way you spoke to her," she exclaims. I open my eyes wide open. "You were trying to say that, right? Because I wasn't trying to say that you…" I stop her nervous talking by kissing her. "Does this mean that…?" I interrupt her again.

"I was really rude, I admit it. However, she was mean to me." I frown at her and she smirks at me.

"You're so cute when you get so defensive." She embraces me tighter and starts caressing my back, making me feel butterflies in my stomach.

"Can we be serious about this?" I ask once I notice that she already forgot about my mom.

"Okay, I'm sorry. You tempt me and then you want me to be serious and that's impossible." She still has a huge smirk on her face and I can't help but smile. "So… tell me." She places her elbow on the pillow and rests her head on her right hand, her eyes on me.

"I don't know what to do." That's the truth about my current feelings.

"You can call her and say that you're fine and that you need some time. If you tell her that calmly, she may understand that you need some space. She only wants to know you're okay."

"You don't know my mom. She won't accept that. She'll want to know where I am, who I'm with, and she will definitely want to meet me."

"That will be a little bit difficult," she jokes, trying to take some of the heat of the issue. "I can send the jet over again and reunite the family. I'd become a heroine." Her shy smirk makes an appearance on her face. I slap her lightly on her arm. "What?" she shouts.

"Asshole." She laughs hardly.

"Then just tell her you're okay and that you need to disconnect. If she tries to coax more information you can always say that you need to go. I know it's not the best way to end the call, but it will much better than your last conversation." I nod at her. "As you can see, I'm a clever asshole." I close the gap between our lips and I feel instant happiness.

Suddenly, her phone starts ringing, interrupting our kiss. She tries to pull away from the kiss, but I hold her tighter and continue kissing. I feel that she's smirking, but the phone keeps ringing and I finally give up.

"Hey!" I hear Paige saying. Her huge smile makes me want to kiss her even if she's speaking by the phone. "You're right, mister. I'm busy today." She winks at me. "Are you my mother now? Come on, Jason!" She rolls her eyes. So the famous Jason is calling my girlfriend. It's not that I'm jealous, I know he's supposedly dating Jess, but I have to admit he's annoyingly attractive. "Yeah, I knew you were probably the kidnapper. Okay, you take some notes for me in class and take care of her." She laughs loudly. They get along, that's for sure. I have to keep my jealousy under control, it doesn't get any sense to feel this way. She stares at me, like she realized I was thinking about something that is bothering me. "I have to leave you. I will tell you if we are meeting you later, okay? Have a nice day!" She ends the call and leaves her phone on the night table. She jumps out of the bed and walks towards the bedroom door. She's just wearing a tight t-shirt and some panties and I can admire her figure perfectly. I can't avert my gaze from her perfect body.

"My eyes are right here, baby." She points at her eyes while she smirks at me. I get redder than a tomato.

"I'm sorry. I just… you're gorgeous and I can't help it." She raises her eyebrows funnily. "Where are you going?"

"I need to pee, Em," she teases me. "Could you wait just a minute?" I shake my head, making her laugh. She disappears and leaves me alone with my thoughts. I grab my phone and I see a lot of missed calls. Hanna's and my mom's. I guess my mom is still trying to get something useful from Hanna. I have to end this, today. Hanna doesn't have to deal with my mess.

"Come here," I beg her, when I see her enter the bedroom again. Her smirk makes me the happiest girl in the world. She lies on the bed next to me and I lean to kiss her. "What did Jason want?" I curiously ask. I didn't forget the phone call she attended a few minutes ago.

She pulls away with that sexy smirk that defines her teasing personality. "Em… you're not jealous, right?" She is staring at me.

"No, I'm not. It's just that I'm curious." I avert her gaze, I know she will sense I'm a little bit jealous if she looks into my eyes. She knows me that well.

"I can't help but feel lucky that you're having those feelings. Does that make me a horrible person?" she jokes, a playful smile plastered on her face.

"You're evil," I tease her. "So… are you going to answer my question?" I insist. She chuckles.

"He wanted me to know if I was going to attend today's classes. I told him that I wasn't. My sister and her friends are going to hang out later and he invited us. I didn't confirm anything, that's up to you. You're the guest and I will do anything you want to."

"Best girlfriend ever." I wink at her. "I'd love to meet them, but first I'd want to visit the city with my girl."

"Okay. Then I'll get dressed and we'll go for a walk. You have to make a phone call first, am I right?" She raises her eyebrows and I nod at her. She jumps out of the bed and turns to look at me. "I can give you some privacy if…"

"That won't be necessary, Paige."

She puts some clothes on while I dial my mom. I can sense she's nervous because I won't say where I am. I don't want her to know, though. That would mean having to deal with too many questions that I don't want to answer. She knows I'm fine and that's all she needs to know for now. While I'm talking to her, I can't stop looking at my beautiful girlfriend, who's practically naked in front of me and makes it harder to focus on the conversation. Her perfect body and shapes make me drool, but I try to pretend that she doesn't have that effect on me. I notice by her look that she obviously knows what I'm thinking about and she's enjoying the moment. By the time I finish the call, she's already ready to leave. She's wearing tight jeans, a white blouse that fits her really well and black boots.

"How did it go?" she asks nicely.

"Fine. I mean… she wants to know more, but you know… It's not the right moment." She nods at me.

"I'm proud of you, Em." She leans to kiss me and my heart starts beating really fast. It's incredible that she still has that impact on me. "Get ready. I'll be waiting in the kitchen, okay?" I nod at her.

When I go downstairs, a really good smell fills my nostrils.

"Wow, it looks delicious. Thanks." She cooked again. It may look like this has no meaning at all, but I really appreciate when someone cooks for me. I always thought that added attractiveness to a person, and Paige is doing a really great job on that matter.

After having a tasty meal, we leave the apartment. Paige is wearing a black hat and big sunglasses. Today it's cold, but not so much, I find this outfit a little bit confusing. Suddenly, she holds my hand. This is even odder. It's the first time that she does that in public since we started dating. I pull my hand away, a reaction I didn't plan on having.

"What is going on?" she exclaims, fixing her eyes on mine.

"I'm sorry. What happened with being cautious about our relationship?" I didn't know that our public behavior had changed.

"I don't care, Em. I'm sick of it. Besides, I'm unrecognizable." She points at her outfit, emphasizing the sunglasses that almost cover her face and her hat.

"So that's why you're wearing that, so people don't recognize you. I knew it did not fit your style."

"I like to wear these and people don't know who I am, so it's the perfect match." A smile shows on her face.

"You look sexier than ever, in case you were wondering," I tease her. I hold her hand again as we keep walking.

"So you're basically saying that I'm sexier when my face is practically covered."

"No, I'm not, stupid!" She chuckles. Holding her hand is a totally new experience, and I have to admit I love it. "That halo of mystery… you know… it's kind of hot."

"You don't need anything extra to look sexy." I blush at her compliment.

Paige's POV

After spending a great day with my girlfriend, it's time to meet Jess' friends. Emily loved the city and I enjoyed showing the spots of the city that I ended up loving. We had lunch in a very popular restaurant and then made a stop to grab a coffee and rest our achy legs. Being a tourist is really hard.

"You're sure you want to meet them? Do you feel like it?"

"I want to meet them, Paige. Don't worry about me."

"Okay. But promise me you will tell me the moment you want to leave. Besides, you must be tired." She nods at me with a shy smile on her face. I know I'm being persistent, but I don't want to push her into an awkward situation. Then I realize that she's not like me and she's open to meeting new people, unlike me.

Once we get inside, my sister approaches to say hello and she hugs Emily. I'm so lucky she's so supportive and loves Emily so much. It means a lot to me. Jason joins us and he welcomes Emily with a grin on his face, trying to overcome his shyness. That's one of many reasons why I think he's the perfect boyfriend for my sister. After saying hello to Jason and Jess, we get to the table where the other two boys and girl are waiting for us. I know one of the boys and the girl, but it's the first time I see the other blonde guy. We order drinks and they start asking questions to Emily. I stare at her as she speaks while everyone looks at her. I notice she's not nervous at all, and that makes me feel better. I suddenly see Jason gazing at me. I look at him, trying to erase the dumb face I had a few seconds ago so that he doesn't discover the truth about our relationship. He smiles at me. I understand Emily was feeling a little bit jealous over him, he's really attractive and my sister is lucky to have him. The reason why I don't want him to know about us yet is not that I don't trust him. I just prefer to be cautious. That lack of carefulness is why I'm here, sitting at a pub in London. A question made by the blonde guy makes me focus on the conversation again.

"So, do you have a boyfriend, Emily?" I notice Jess' stare on me. I don't say or do anything. I didn't see this coming and I don't know how Emily will react.

"Not exactly," she states, after a brief silence. I'm looking at her, but she doesn't look at me. She's trying to avoid eye contact. I realize she's nervous now.

"Does that mean I have a chance?" His cocky smile makes me sick. I didn't like him since the first minute I saw his face and now it's confirmed that I was right about him.

Emily blushes, but doesn't say a word. Ignoring him is probably the best decision.

"Did you know that Jason is going to go meet my parents on summer break?" My sister makes an attempt to change the topic. I'm grateful to her, because I don't think I can stand more stupid comments.

"Really?" Mary, the girl sitting next to Jason exclaims. Jason looks down, trying to escape from the spotlight. It's really funny that Jess made him feel a little bit awkward only to make that guy John stop harassing my girlfriend.

"Well… I'm going on vacation to the States and I guess I will meet them. It's not a big deal." Jess places her arm around his shoulder. Of course it's a big deal. They've been dating only a few months and Jess is inviting him to our house. It's so unfair that I can't do the same thing even if I've been dating Emily way longer. I'm really happy about them, but I can't help but feel a little bit of anger inside of me.

"Don't get nervous already. You have a few months to prepare the presentation." He blushes. She's not cruel, she's just teasing him, but I feel pity for Jason. I know this is my sister joking, Jason knows Jess enjoys doing this. A shy smile appears on his face and my sister kisses him on the cheek.

"So, Emily… How long are you staying? Any chance we could meet and get to know each other better?" John's arrogant attitude makes me want to throw up. I think is the first time I've ever felt this hate towards a person I just met.

"John… Don't you see you're making her feel uncomfortable?" Jason steps up to stop the blonde guy so he doesn't keep insisting.

"I don't think she's uncomfortable. I know she fancies me. Am I right, honey?" I've been trying to control myself, but this is too much.

"Why don't you shut the fuck up?" I knew I would explode. I can't allow some guy talk to my girl like that. By the time the words come out of my mouth, I realize everybody is flabbergasted. Even my sister, who knows me really well, didn't expect this reaction. When I look at Jason I see how much impact I made on him too. He knows that I'm really shy, so this reaction must have given him an idea of how important Emily is for me. The blonde guy doesn't say a word either. After a brief silence, I decide to stand up. "Come on. Let's go," I tell Emily, who already knew that I'd decide to leave. I don't want to spend one more minute with that stupid guy. It pains me that I'm not going to be able to have a nice time with the other people that I like, but I don't want to see his face after how he treated Emily.

"We'll talk later," Jess says, holding my arm so I don't leave before she says those words. I nod at her and I realize she smirks at me, it's like she's proud of me. I'm definitively not proud of myself though. I should have had more self-control. On the other hand, it feels great that I made him stop saying more bullshit.

When we get outside, I approach the edge of the sidewalk, waiting for a cab that will drive us home.

"What was that?" Emily asks, placing my hand on my shoulder. I turn around to look at her, her expression disturbs me. I thought she'd be mad at me, but a victorious smile shows on her face.

"He was being a jerk, that's all. I'm sorry I was rude, it wasn't my intention," I admit. I mean, it was really satisfying to shut him up after everything he said, but that's not like me.

"You don't have to apologize, Paige. It was actually kinda hot." She smirks at me and then holds me from the waist. I kiss her on the cheek.

"Even if you liked it a little bit, I don't feel good about that. I mean…" She interrupts me with a hug.

"Why don't you shut the fuck up?" She whispers sexily at the same time as she embraces me. I can't help but chuckle.

When I pull away, she squeezes my hand and I raise my spare hand so the cab that's approaching stops. We get inside and give him my address. That's when my sister calls me to know if I'm feeling better. She also asks if they can come over to have lunch at our apartment. I want to spend time with them and I want Jason to get to know Emily better, so we decide to meet at our apartment. Emily and I buy take-out food from the Japanese restaurant that's close to the apartment and wait for them to get home. They don't take long and we have a really nice dinner. This plan is way better than the one that involved John, that's for sure. When we finish, I start clearing the table and Jess helps me. That's our strategy to make Emily and Jason speak with each other. They seem to get along. I expected this was gonna happen, but when I see them having a good time with each other, it makes me really happy. I start putting the dirty dishes on the dishwasher and suddenly Jess' phone rings. She frowns at me and accepts the call. I don't know who is calling her. The conversation starts with a nice hello, but a few seconds later, the tone of the conversation suddenly changes.

"Are you kidding me? You must be joking." She sighs. I look at her, but she just rolls her eyes. "I didn't expect this from you. This is… unbelievable." Jess doesn't stop walking from one side of the kitchen to the other. She's really nervous. "Do you know how hard this is for her? It's really painful. You're despicable!" she shouts. She hangs up and stares at me.

"What?" I ask impatiently.

"Go pack everything. You're going back." I can't believe what my ears are hearing.

To be continued…