The Choice - Nicholas Sparks [64]
Her mind flashed to the conversation she’d had with Kevin earlier. “What’s your interest?”
“I’m just making conversation.”
Gabby reached for an olive as well. “Then let’s talk about one of your previous girlfriends instead.”
“Which one?”
“Any of them.”
“All right. One of them gave me some movie posters.”
“Was she pretty?”
He considered his answer. “Most people would say she was.”
“And what would you say?”
“I would say . . . that you’re right. Maybe we shouldn’t talk about this.”
She laughed, then pointed to the olives. “These are great, by the way. Everything you brought is perfect.”
He added cheese to another cracker. “When does your boyfriend get back to town?”
“Are we back to this again?”
“I’m just thinking of you. I don’t want to get you in trouble.”
“I appreciate your concern, but I’m a big girl. And not that it matters, but he’ll be coming home on Wednesday. Why?”
“Because I’ve enjoyed getting to know you these last couple of days.”
“And I’ve enjoyed getting to know you.”
“But are you bummed it’s coming to an end?”
“It doesn’t have to come to an end. We’ll still be neighbors.”
“And I’m sure your boyfriend wouldn’t mind if I took you out for another motorcycle ride, or went for a picnic with you, or if you sat in the hot tub with me, right?”
The answer was obvious, and her expression became more serious. “He probably wouldn’t be too happy about it.”
“So it’ll be ending.”
“We can still be friends.”
He stared at her for a moment, then suddenly grabbed at his chest as if he’d been shot. “You really know how to hurt a guy.”
“What are you talking about?”
He shook his head. “There’s no such thing as being friends. Not with single men and women our age. It just doesn’t work like that, unless you’re talking about someone you’ve known for a very long time. Certainly not when it comes to strangers.”
Gabby opened her mouth to respond, but there was really nothing to say.
“And besides,” he went on, “I’m not sure I want to be friends.”
“Why not?”
“Because most likely I’d find myself wanting more than that.”
Again, she said nothing. Travis watched her, unable to read her expression. Finally he shrugged.
“I don’t think you’d want to be friends with me, either. It wouldn’t be good for your relationship, since there’s no doubt you’d probably end up falling for me, too, and in the end, you’d do something you’d regret. After that, you’d blame me for it, and then after a while, you’d probably end up moving, since the whole thing would be so uncomfortable for you.”
“Is that so?”
“It’s one of the curses of my life to be as charming as I am.”
“It sounds like you’ve got the whole thing figured out.”
“I do.”
“Except for the part about me falling for you.”
“You can’t see that happening?”
“I have a boyfriend.”
“And you’re going to marry him?”
“As soon as he asks. That’s why I moved here.”
“Why hasn’t he asked you yet?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“Do I know him?”
“Why are you so curious?”
“Because,” he said, his eyes steady on hers, “if I was him, and you moved up here to be with me, I would’ve already asked you.”
She heard something in his tone that made her realize he was telling the truth, and she looked away. When she spoke, her voice was soft. “Don’t ruin this for me, okay?”
“Ruin what?”
“This. Today. Yesterday. Last night. All of it. Don’t ruin it.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
She took a deep breath. “This weekend has meant a lot to me, if only because I finally felt I’d made a friend. A couple of them, actually. I didn’t realize how much I’d missed having friends in my life. Spending time with you and your sister reminded me of how much I left behind when I moved here. I mean, I knew what I was doing, and I’m not sorry I made the decision I did. Believe it or not, I do love Kevin.” She paused, struggling to order her thoughts. “But it’s hard sometimes. Weekends like this most likely won’t happen again, and I’m partly reconciled to that, because of Kevin. But there’s a part of me that doesn’t want to accept