I met this awesome Sag gal about 6 months ago while ordering food at a small restaurant in my town (she’s a waitress there). We both were very physically and emotionally attracted to each other from the start, and when I asked her for her number she got really excited and gave it to me right away. The problem is, I found out soon after that she’s in a somewhat abusive and stagnant rent to own living situation with her ex which has prevented her from meeting up with me. She’s also been recovering from the trauma of her mother passing away last January which as I understand has been another factor in her being unable to move into a new phase of life emotionally. Although she’s told me several times since we met that she would like to visit me on a certain day, she has not followed through on any of those times. The first time; she left me a long voicemail essentially confessing her crush on me and said she understands if I didn’t want to wait for her but that if I stuck around she would definitely see me, she just wasn’t sure when exactly and didn’t want to dash my hopes again. I tried to take it easy over the next few months, just seeing her while ordering food and checking in. But then I told her I was leaving town for a few weeks and she said she wanted to try and see me before I left. Me being a person of my word, I normally expect that from people I bring close, but due to what she’d been going through this year and how awesome she always is in person, I gave her a break on this behavior. Of course she didn’t show and I had to message her to find out she mixed up the days she was able to go into town and wouldn't have her vehicle back from the shop yet. Eventually I pushed her to admit this last time that her ex reads her messages which is why she couldn't always respond and that she felt a lot of pressure from me which is why she didn't want to start anything with anyone until she was able to exit her current situation completely. She told this to me last week and I'll be away on my trip for the next 3 weeks. I feel bad that I pushed things too much and that it's detracted from future prospects with her. I already apologized to her but she didnt read the message probably because of what she said about her ex reading her messages I assume.

I guess I’m just trying to understand how to keep the door open with her but also manage my expectations and give her space. Her birthday is coming up on Dec 7 and I had wanted to give her a small gift from my travels (she specifically told me her birthday would be when I was gone, and requested a seashell when I offered to bring her something) but I also want to respect her space and not make her feel any further pressure from me.

Any advice appreciated 🙏🏼

And yes I realize I’m a doofus and die hard romantic 😂😭 I just really like this gal and feel a really special connection with her due to some shared commonalities that are pretty rare.