At First Sight - Nicholas Sparks [58]
“I put the balloons and banner up this morning,” she explained. “I thought it would be a nice surprise.”
“It is,” he said. He knew he should say more but didn’t.
Lexie shook her head, a tiny, almost imperceptible movement that spoke volumes. Without speaking, she opened the car door and stepped out. Jeremy watched her walk toward the house, noting that she neither waited for him nor glanced back.
Jeremy sensed she was as disappointed in him as he was with her; that his anger mirrored her own. He knew what had happened with Trevor Newland; she knew that he knew as well.
Still, she seemed to want to avoid talking about it.
Jeremy got out of the car. By that point, Lexie was standing on the front porch with her arms crossed, facing away from him, toward an ancient grove of cypress trees. Jeremy walked toward her, aware of the sound of his steps as he moved onto the porch. He stopped when he was close.
Her voice was almost a whisper.
“I had it all planned, you know? About today? I was so excited when I got the balloons and the banner from the store, and I had it all planned out in my mind. I figured that after we closed, I’d suggest a picnic and we’d grab some sandwiches and sodas at Herbs and I’d surprise you by bringing you here. To our house, on the first day we owned it. I thought we’d sit on the back porch and . . . I don’t know, just be excited because we both knew that a day like this would never come again.” She paused. “It’s not going to be like that, is it?”
Her words made him regret his actions, if only for an instant. But none of this was his fault; all he’d done was learn something about Lexie that she hadn’t trusted him enough to tell him. And he’d called her on it.
He heard her draw a long breath before she faced him. “Why do you want to know about Trevor Newland? I already told you about him. He showed up in town one summer a few years ago, we had a fling, and he left. That’s all.”
“That wasn’t what I asked. I asked what happened.”
“I don’t see why that matters,” she said. “I cared for him and he left and I never saw him again. I never heard from him again.”
“But something happened,” he pressed.
“Why are you doing this?” she demanded. “I was thirty-one before we ever met, Jeremy. I didn’t come out from under some rock, and I didn’t spend my life hiding in an attic. Yes, I dated people before you were around, okay? And yeah, I even cared for some people, too. But so did you, and you don’t see me asking about Maria or your old girlfriends. I don’t know what’s gotten into you lately. It’s like I have to tiptoe around every subject so I don’t offend you. Yeah, maybe I should have told you about Trevor, but with the way you’re acting lately, we still would have ended up fighting.”
“The way I’m acting?”
“Yeah,” she said, her voice rising. “A little jealousy is normal, but this is ridiculous. First Rodney, now Trevor? Where’s it going to stop? Are you going to ask me the names of every guy I dated in college? Do you want to know who I went to the prom with? Or how about the first boy I ever kissed? You want all the details? Like I said, when’s it going to stop?”
“This isn’t about jealousy!” he snapped.
“No? Then what’s it about?”
“It’s about trust.”
“Trust?” Her expression was incredulous. “How am I supposed to trust you if you don’t trust me? This whole week I’ve been afraid to even say hello to Rodney, especially since Rachel got back, for fear of what you might think. I still don’t know where she went or what’s going on with her, but I’ve been on pins and needles trying to keep you happy, so I haven’t even had time to ask. But just when I think things are getting back to normal between us, you start asking about Trevor. It’s like you’re looking for excuses to pick a fight, and I’m tired of it.”
“Don’t blame me for this.” Jeremy answered. “I’m not the one who keeps hiding things.”
“I’m not hiding anything.”
“I read Doris’s journal!” Jeremy retorted. “I saw your initials in there!”
“What are you talking about?”
“Her journal!” he said again. “It’s right