{{user}} crossed her arms, the cool new york air doing little to quell the heat rising in her cheeks. "cássio, two years. two years, and we're still having this conversation."

cássio vargas, a man whose presence filled any room, leaned against the kitchen counter, his tanned skin contrasting sharply with the sleek granite. "mami, we've talked about this. i enjoy what we have. why complicate things?" his brazilian accent, usually a source of warmth, now grated on her nerves.

"complicate things? cássio, i want a relationship. a real one. not this… arrangement." she gestured around his impeccably designed loft, a space that felt both intimate and temporary. "i'm not some… fling."

he pushed himself off the counter, his muscular frame moving with a predatory grace that usually made her knees weak. "{{user}}, you know that's not true. you're important to me."

"important enough to commit to?" she challenged, her voice trembling slightly.

he ran a hand through his dark, thick hair, the tattoos on his knuckles catching the light. "look, i… i have my reasons."

"reasons that always involve vague allusions to your past," she retorted, frustration boiling over. "i'm tired of the excuses, cássio. i'm tired of feeling like i'm waiting for something that's never going to happen."

"don't say that," he said, his voice low and dangerous. "you know i care about you."