Good afternoon! :) This weekend update is here. ;) I'm sorry the chapter is shorter than ever, but I had no time for more. I thought about making it longer, but I wanted to update today and not tomorrow, 'cause I know some of you would be waiting for the Sunday update. :D Thank you for all your support, guys! You make me really happy and every review provokes a smile on me. ;) I hope you enjoy this one and have a nice week you all! ;)

Tns729: Thank you! ;)

CaliGrlFoLife: Thank you so much! I can assure you Paige will come eventually. :D

Guest 1: I know, it was a fluffy chapter. xD

MJ: I'm glad you liked it. I really enjoyed writing the last chapter and after reading your reviews I see you loved it. That's the whole point of writing this story, so I'm really happy with the result. I don't usually drink that much. I don't want you to have that idea about me. LOL I went out to have dinner at a restaurant and after that we partied, and that means drinking. xD I'm sorry about your loss. :( Have a nice week you too. Thanks!

jofi: I have to admit the last one was the best chapter so far from the writer point of view. :)

Guest 2: Hahaha. There must be a balance between the talking and not talking, am I right? ;)

Guest3: Thanks! Enjoy this chapter!

Herhers: Thank you! I'm already brainstorming about the development of the storyline, so I hope I can maintain the level of interest or even make it better. Anyway, I have a few ideas about the upcoming chapters in order to keep it interesting. I hope I don't let you down. ;)

Enjoy the chapter, guys!

IT'S NEVER TOO LATE

: Chapter 19 – Awkward Encounters:

"I'll see you later, beautiful," she whispers in my ear, giving me that sexy look as she walks by me to head the door of the office.

"Bye, Paige," I respond, trying not to draw attention because we're working.

It's actually nice to see her so relaxed with the whole relationship thing. I mean, she told me she was afraid of people knowing about us only a week ago. She is somehow cautious when we're out having a coffee or dinner, but I also realized she is becoming more confident about herself and she's starting to touch me or even kiss me when we're in public. It's not a huge step, but she's showing a change in her attitude towards me and I'm loving it 'cause she's making a huge effort. She just showed it to me with those words she whispered when we supposedly in the worst place to be affectionate to each other. That's another issue we have in our hands. Her dad wasn't happy when she started dating Jason because of the lack of professionalism he associates to dating a workmate. Most importantly, I wonder what he would think if he knew that person is not only the person that works side by side with her, but also a woman. I don't want to discover that however. I'm happy working here and I know what I would chose if I had to. Anyway, I don't think worrying about these stuff is going to do me good, so I should focus on the positive.

Paige left the office earlier because the doctors are still keeping a close eye on her mom's state of health and performing some tests on her. Spencer and Paige both told me that it was nothing serious, just consequences of being in comma for a long time. However, they don't want to take a risk and she was being examined today at the hospital. Caleb was supposed to stay with her in the morning and Paige in the afternoon. That's why we're meeting later in the afternoon when she leaves the hospital. The only thing I didn't tell her was that I'm meeting Maya before. It's not that I'm hiding it from her, but I didn't have time to tell her due to the workload we have at this moment. I'm going to tell her afterwards, though. We decided we're not going to hide any secret and I intend to keep the promise.

I know you all are wondering why I accepted meeting Maya. It's not what you think. She insisted on meeting for a coffee and I couldn't reject her. I know she was a bitch to me, but I guess I don't know how to say no and I'm a good person. I hope she doesn't make a move, because I intend on telling her that we need to stop meeting. I mean, I won't be back with her and if she still thinks that's going to happen I need to make that clear in order to avoid more suffering. Even if she says she only wants to be friends, I sense those are not her real intentions, and she showed it when she got really jealous when Paige kissed me.

"I didn't remember you being so punctual when we were together" I joke. I want to make a good start, because this probably will end badly. "Hi," I add, sitting in front of her.

"Hi. I already ordered a cappuccino for you. I hope you didn't change the old habits," she answers, a grin covering her face. I nod at her.

"So…" I say, trying to make her speak. The last time I saw her was a week ago, the day Paige kissed me. She hadn't called me since then, that's why I'm wondering why she wanted to meet today.

"How are you?" Her question surprises me.

"I'm good, thanks. How about you?" I want to keep it brief and simple. I guess I have to ask if she's okay because of the good manners, but I'd rather ask her why the hell she called.

"I could be better, but I'm fine." I don't want to know why she's saying that.

"Your call surprised me." I need to get straight to the point.

She frowns at me. "I just wanted to meet a friend." She says these words and avoids my gaze at the same time.

"Maya…" I make a pause in order to get her attention. I continue speaking when I see she's looking at me. "I know I told you we could still be friends, but I'm pretty sure you want something more, and I'm not interested in that. I mean, it doesn't make any sense to continue hanging out if we are not in the same page. This won't make any good on you." I realize she's starting to frown her eyebrow, she's about to explode. I knew she wouldn't like to hear it, but I needed to make things clear.

"Is it because of that girl?" I refuse to answer her question.

"Does it really matter?" I mean, even if Paige didn't exist, I wouldn't throw myself into a toxic relationship.

"It does," she adds. I can see anger in her eyes. "So you decided to start dating a straight girl. That's not really wise." I tried to be civil, but she crossed the line. I won't allow her speaking like that.

"Was it wise to spend years of my life investing on a relationship with a lesbian that had the nasty habit of cheating me with anyone with a vagina?" I know I shouldn't stoop to the same low tactics of my ex, but she pissed me off.

"That's low, Em. I just care about you and I know how that will end up." I huff.

"You don't know shit about Paige." She leaves a few bills that she had on her pocket and leaves then on the table. She stands up and stares at me. I don't say a word.

"You can call me when you open your eyes, okay? She's just experimenting, Em. She will get bored of you and she will crush your heart. Just think about the difference between the two of us. She's just curious about dating a girl. I, on the other side, love you."

I've never felt so much rage inside me, but I need to stay calm. I don't want her to think she has that kind of impact on me. That's why I choose a more polite sentence to say goodbye to my past. "Don't call me again." Her words were really painful. I know Paige is not playing with me. She wants me, she told me so. However, the insecure part of me doubts if Maya is actually right about Paige's sudden interest on me when she ignored me for a long time. I hate that she has such strong influence on me.

I walk towards the hospital and I text Paige once I get to the entrance. I won't go inside, I'll just wait here. I got five minutes before, so she will be here in any minute. I guess I will have to tell her about meeting Maya. Besides, this was definitely the last time I'm going to see her and I know she will be happy about that, 'cause she doesn't put up her. While I'm waiting, I write Hanna too. We're having dinner with Caleb and Hanna and she already made a reservation at an Italian restaurant that we both love. I guess we will be spending a lot of time together now that I'm dating Paige and she's dating her brother. I really enjoy their company, so I'm all about any joint plan they propose.

"Hi, Emily! What are you doing here?" I'm staring at the screen of the cellphone, so I don't know who's talking to me, but I recognize the voice from somewhere.

My body becomes tense when I raise my head to look at the man that's standing in front of me.

"Hello, Mr. McCullers. I'm just…" I hesitate about the answer, and awkward silence making me even more nervous. "I had an appointment with my gynecologist." I can see his surprise face. I'm stupid, that's the first thing that came into my mind. I could have told him the truth. I mean, he knows Paige and I are friends and there's nothing suspicious about waiting for her and going to have a coffee. However, I got so nervous that I said the stupidest thing ever.

"That's fine," he finally replies, still surprised at my answer. "Are you waiting for someone?" He understood the whole gynecologist thing but wants to know why I'm still here. He has a point.

"I'm waiting for my friend Spencer." Another lie, even if it's not necessary.

"Dr. Hastings?" I nod at him. "She's brilliant."

"Yeah, she is," I briefly add, trying to end the conversation.

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow at work. Have a nice afternoon." He leaves with a smile on his face. He must be smiling because of what I said, I'm sure about that.

"You too, sir," I politely say, although it's impossible to salvage the situation I created.

I take a deep breath, trying to get rid of all the nerves I've been accumulating since my encounter with Maya and my boss. I send another text to Paige. I hate waiting.

I hear her voice right after she hugs me from behind. "You're really impatient." I smile at her. She's in a good mood.

"How is your mom?"

"She's healthier than ever. All the test came negative, so feeling dizzy was nothing to worry about." Her beautiful smile makes me want to kiss her, but I know I should control my feelings. "So, I talked to Caleb and we still have half an hour to be alone before meeting with them. What do you want to do?"

"I would love to kiss you non-stop," I flirtatiously say. She gets closer to me as we walk away from the hospital.

"Like this?" She gives me a chaste kiss, and then grins at me.

"Did you just kiss me in public?" She teasingly nods at me and holds my hand as we keep walking. "This is kind of nice, you know."

"So, what do you want to do? You didn't answer," she jokingly says.

"Can we just do this? Just walk."

"Perfect." She smiles at me. "How was your day?" This is the moment to be honest about Maya.

"It was good. I had coffee with Maya." She leaves my hand go, she stops walking and stares at me.

"Maya? Why?" The joy disappears from her face.

"She called and she wanted to meet. I thought it was a good idea. I wanted to let her know nothing will happen between the two of us. I wanted to cut off the contact with her."

"She will never give up. I hope this means you're not going to see her anymore." She takes a deep breath and looks away.

I raise her chin and look her in the eye. "Hey, she's my past and you're my present and future." She shyly smiles, but doesn't say a word. I still have the words Maya said stuck in my head. "I hope we're at the same page."

"Why do you say that?"

I sigh. She frowns at me. "Did she put confuse your mind? Of course she did." She shakes her head. "Let me guess. She said that I was going to leave you."

"She was trying to mess with me."

"Forget about everything she said, okay? I want you and I won't leave you. You're not an experiment. This is serious." She places her hands on my cheeks and looks me in the eye. She's close to me that I can smell her sweet scent. "I've never been so sure about my feelings, I need you to know that." I know she's being sincere and I'm loving it.

"I don't want to lose you," I add.

"I'm not going anywhere, Em." She puts a smile on my lips. She hugs me, sending shivers down my spine. I suddenly feel better.

"You're five minutes late, girls," Hanna says, pointing at the watch. "I'm hungry." I laugh at her. She's always hungry.

"Hi, Caleb." I wave at the guy that's sitting next to Hanna. He winks at me.

"Hi. Excuse the girls sitting next to me," he jokingly adds, making Hanna elbow him.

We take a seat and read the menu. Once we decide what we're having, we order the dinner.

"So, how was your day, Em?" Hanna asks, making Paige laugh.

I look at Paige and raise my eyebrows.

"Emily was just telling me a really funny thing that happened to her. Right, Em?" I frown at my girlfriend.

"Don't you dare…" I start saying, but both Hanna and Caleb are curious about it and there's nothing I can do to stop this situation.

"I was at the hospital and I was meeting Emily there. She was waiting for me at the hospital entrance and dad saw her." Paige looks at Caleb and he starts laughing, even if he still doesn't know what happened afterwards. He already guesses something awkward happened. Hanna and Caleb are paying attention to Paige. She's enjoying this.

"Your boss and father-in-law. This looks good," Hanna adds, grinning at me and making me feel ashamed.

"Dad asked her what she was doing there and she told him she had an appointment with the gynecologist." Caleb bursts into laughter.

"I got nervous, he commands respect as my boss and my girlfriend's dad. I mean, I don't know why I said that, but it was really embarrassing." The three of them are still laughing loudly.

"Why didn't you say the truth?" Hanna is right.

"I don't know. I just… Stop laughing about me!" At least they're having a good time.

"It's really cute, honey." Paige kisses me in the cheek. "She was defending my honor." I burst into laughter.

"And I destroyed my honor to achieve that." We all laugh.

I hope this dinner is the beginning of a new era for me. I have to forget about Maya and start thinking about my new life with Paige. I have a feeling my life is going to get even better and it feels really good.

To be continued…

Stay tuned! ;)