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He bit down on his bottom lip in deep contemplation. She was already spiraling; he wasn't sure if she could handle his response. For a moment, he thought about lying to her, something he had never done, but he couldn't. "Six months to a year," he informed her.

A bitter chuckle drifted out of her. She returned to the bottle of vodka, pouring a good amount back into her wine glass. Priest watched as she downed the drink in hopes of it aiding her with coping. "Like last time?" she asked, referring to the half a year he stayed in Italy prior to meeting her.

Priest nodded his head. "This time would be different, though. I'm establishing myself over there. Temporary will eventually become permanent."

"You're making your home," she stated as if she had just come to the realization of what he was telling her.

He was creating the life he'd always wanted. He had never given himself a home, and now, with his trial ending, Priest was set to cater to his own needs. Italy was where he wanted to be and what his heart desired.

"Yeah, but I'm not sure if I can do that without you," he said to her in a somber tone.

Britain poured herself another shot of vodka, taking the drink to the head once more. "I'm not moving to Italy," she stated and shook her head.

"Why not?!" Priest asked, his voice rising with frustration.

"Because it's not for me!" Britain jeered at him. "That'syourdream, Priest! That'syourhappy place! I'm not about to uproot my life for you!"

Priest had never forced her into doing anything she didn't want to do. At this moment, she was beginning to feel pressured. Italy wasn't on her itinerary of life. Italy was just too out of touch for her. It was a new culture, a different language, a completely different way of life. How would she manage?

Priest stood from his position leaning on the wall and made his way toward her. Cupping her beautiful face in his hands, he steered her head up so she was looking at him. "Gioia, I understand your reservations and your concerns. I just want to build something for us. The life I promised to give you. The house, the ring, the career," he listed with the intentions of convincing her to agree to move with him.

"Priest—" She quickly shut her eyes to prevent her tears from getting the best of her. "I can't," she whimpered when she finally mustered up the courage to speak again.

"How do you know you can't if you won't even consider it,Gioia?" His eyes and tone had grown desperate. He was pleading.

Britain reached up, placing her hands over Priest's, who still had his hands cupped around her face. She pulled his hands from her face, cupping them in her grip. "P, you can't spring life plans on me and expect me to follow suit," she told him. "You didn't consider me and my wants in any way. Right now, you're thinking for you for the first time."Britain's voice cracked in pain. "I'm not upset with you for that. You're doing what I've been encouraging you to do for so long, but for something like this, you were supposed to think ofusnot only of you."

"Damned if I do, damned if I don’t, right?" Priest scoffed in defeat as he shook his head.

"No, no, no," she quickly shook her head, not wanting him to punish himself for doing what he had always needed to do. "This is a good thing, P. You're putting you and your needs first. What's for you won't always be meant for me, and that's okay.” Her eyes scorched with tears as her voice croaked in pain. It was hard putting on a brave face when all she really wanted to do was cry in anguish. "You're making yourself happy."

"Youmake me happy," he corrected Britain.

Britain smiled through her tears as she nodded. "You make me happy too, but our lives are about to go in two different directions."

"Britain, don't say that." Priest shook his head in despair. "We can make this shit work. This is us we're talking about," he encouraged her.

"We want two different things, Priest."

Priest pulled his hands from Britain’s, running them down his face in distress. "So, you expect me to go to Italy and just forget about you over night? That's impossible," he denied as he screwed up his face. "Meet me in the middle, Britain. Compromise with me. Make this shit work."

"Priest, I was so willing to stick it out with you if things went bad because I've already gone through my stage of just thinking for me and living for me. Right now, it’s your time, and I can't stop you from doing that," she explained to him. She felt she would’ve been selfish if she told him to stay in New York. Priest was unhappy there, and he would never be content. He was taking a big leap of faith, and Britain didn't want to come between that.

"Why can't you just trust me on this one?" he asked. "You really think I would take you to Italy for an unhappy life?"

"Priest, you can't give me everything. You telling me about a ring, house, and career right now feels like those are just incentives for me to follow you to Italy. I don't want you to feellike you owe me that, and I don't want to feel like I'm entitled to all those things because I gave up my life here," she expressed her concerns. "Iwantedthings to be organic for us."

"Youwant," Priest quickly corrected Britain. She was speaking in past tense as if she had already exiled him from her life.

Britain inhaled a deep breath, ordering her emotions as she nodded her head. "Right," she agreed. "Iwantthings to be organic for us.”

Priest sighed gravely as he leaned against the counter. His eyes shifted from Britain to the clock that decorated the wall. "We should start getting ready for dinner," he said, completely disregarding the conversation they were having. He was trying his hand at avoidance. Priest was never one to run from his problems, but at that moment, he couldn't bear to face them. Parting ways with Britain wasn't something he thought he could stomach and recover from easily.

Britain cleared her throat as she shook her head lightly. "I'll just meet you there,” her soft voice announced as she ran her fingers through her hair.

"You want me to send Cyro over to drive you?"

Britain shook her head. "I'll drive," she assured him with a tight-lipped smile.