"The fights were my sort of twisted fucked up idea of therapy." He informed while turning his head to the side and not meeting my eye "Litora Bello started a few years back in San Francisco. It was small and it was only meant to keep the fighting in the area to a minimum. There was a set time and place where us guys could fight and take out our anger. It was the one time and place I could just let it all out."

I listened intently as he told me the history of his fighting with a look of shame on his harsh features.

"That was until I met you. I could be on the brink of hell but as soon as I seen your face then it would all change." He continued, his gruff voice lowering "You alone are my salvation. Ella venit primus."

I remembered what the Latin meant. Ella comes first.

At the last line, I felt myself start to feel suffocated again "Can we talk about something else?"

Stone nodded "My dad had this theory."

"I would have got on well with him." I smiled sadly.

"Yeah. You would have." He agreed before speaking again "He had a firm belief about love."

Part of me did not want him to tell me. The other stronger part needed to know.

I asked, "What did he say?"

"He said that Stone is a suiting name for us. We do not move for nobody, and we don’t let ourselves feel easy." He told me "It takes a strong force to move a stone. The men in the Stone family only love once."

"I can’t believe that. I can't." I muttered sadly, tears starting to roll down my face again.

"It is true." Stone stated like it was undeniable.

I knew what I had to do next, so I breathed out so harshly that it felt like my lungs were going to collapse.

Rubbing my eyes, I told him "I meant what I said on the beach. It is over. We can't—"

"No." He growled.

I tried again "We can't—"

He interrupted again with another gnarl "No."

"We cannot be together." I rushed out.

Another soft growl emerged from him "Wrong."

"We both know that this is not just a high school fling." I voiced "This is so much more and whatever it is, I know that it is not going to end well."

His anger did not seem like it was aimed at me as he looked away and barked "Why?"

I loved him. Too much. If I got hurt by him then I did not I would survive it. I also did not want to hurt him again. I was so scared that I would not be able to piece myself together and that would affect him.