Total pages in book: 98
Estimated words: 92777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 464(@200wpm)___ 371(@250wpm)___ 309(@300wpm)
I whistled as I jogged up the steps, letting myself in the front door and heading for the stairs. The music I’d heard was coming from the kitchen, and I caught Betty’s laughter, followed by Burt’s, and decided that rather than interrupt them, I’d head straight upstairs.
I knocked on Haven’s room door. “Come in,” she called, and when I opened the door, she was standing in front of the mirror that hung on the wall, securing a necklace behind her neck.
I smiled. “Hey, beautiful,” I said, coming up behind her and taking the necklace from her hands. I met her eyes in the mirror after I’d hooked the clasp. “What are you getting all ready for?”
Her gaze hung on mine for a second. “I have a date with Gage, remember?”
For a moment her words didn’t make sense. I struggled to rearrange them. I took a step back and she turned slowly. “You’re still going?” I asked, incredulous.
Her gaze skittered to the side and then back. There were two high points of color on her cheekbones. “Of course,” she said, stepping around me.
What is happening?
I frowned. My nerves suddenly felt like someone had lit the ends on fire. “This isn’t because Phoebe showed up this morning, is it?”
She slid a bracelet on her arm. “Of course not.”
“Because that was just about closure. We talked. That was all.”
She smiled distractedly as she slid another bracelet up her arm. “Closure’s good.”
“Because this week…it’s been amazing.”
“Yes. It…has.”
I was confused, caught off guard, at a loss. Why was she acting like this? I turned toward where she was picking up a small purse on the bed, giving my head a slight shake. “I thought…”
“You thought what?” she asked, not meeting my eyes.
I watched her as she opened the purse, rifling through whatever was inside. Had someone hit me over the head with a sledgehammer? What was I missing?
She closed the purse, stood straight, and took a deep breath. She smiled but it looked forced, as though she knew she was upsetting me and it made her uncomfortable.
But she was still going anyway.
I watched her, despair washing through me, an unfamiliar version of the emotion that made me want to beg.
I thought we had formed a connection. I…thought you wanted me.
“Didn’t we have an agreement, Travis?” she asked as if I’d voiced the thought in my head. “This shouldn’t be a surprise. You’re the one who scored me this date, remember?”
I watched her, my throat tight. Yes, I’d scored her a date with Gage because she’d wanted to have a fling with him. But now… Did what we were doing really change nothing? “If you wanted a fling, why not just stick to the one you’re already having with me?”
She laughed shortly, but there was zero humor in the sound. “Because I have feelings for Gage,” she said.
My muscles seized. It felt like a dagger was lodged in my spine. And if she was contemplating her feelings for Gage, then why did she look so miserable?
My jaw set, and for a moment we simply stared at each other, her chin lifting slightly. What could I do? There was nothing I could do, not in that moment. You could beg. It might work. I gritted my teeth harder. No. “Have fun, Haven. But if you get your…wish…if Gage wants to take things in a physical direction, I won’t share you. You should know that,” I said quietly.
No, I wouldn’t beg. The only promise we had made to each other was there would be no promises. She’d made it clear we were friends. So maybe I was the one being irrational. But I wouldn’t be waiting here to extend benefits to her when she returned.
Her gaze danced away again. “Of course I know that. I’m not…” She fidgeted with her purse. “I’m not interested in that either.”
I waited but she said no more. Then why bother going on a date with another man? That’s what I wanted to know. She could have a night with me. She didn’t need to see Gage, did she? For what purpose? My chest ached. My entire body ached.
Choose me. Say you don’t want him at all. Physical or otherwise. Say you won’t give me up for him.
I felt blindsided. I’d thought… What, Travis? That it’s something more than great sex? That because you want her, she automatically wants you too? Hasn’t she made it clear from the beginning that she does not? This is what you get.
God, it hurt. It killed me. And I’d put myself in this position. This is exactly why you never have. It was so incredibly clear now. In the past, I’d chosen those who couldn’t hurt me. Because I hadn’t truly handed them any portion of my heart.
But now…now…
The doorbell met my ears, ringing distantly from the floor below. Her eyes met mine again, those bright spots deepening before she turned, walking stiffly out the door.