The Choice - Nicholas Sparks [71]
“I was thinking how natural this whole weekend has seemed.” Gabby looked at him. “Like we’ve known each other forever.”
“I guess that means a couple of my stories were boring, huh?”
“Don’t underestimate yourself,” she teased. “Lots of your stories were boring.”
He laughed, pulling her tighter. “The more I get to know you, the more you surprise me. I like that.”
“What are neighbors for?”
“Is that still all I am to you? Just a neighbor?”
She glanced away without responding, and Travis went on. “I know it makes you uncomfortable, but I can’t leave tonight without telling you that just being neighbors isn’t enough for me.”
“Travis . . .”
“Let me finish, okay?” he said. “Earlier today, when we talked, you told me how much you’d missed having friends around, and I’ve been thinking about that ever since, but not in the way that you probably imagine. It made me realize that even though I have friends, I’ve been missing something that all my friends do have. Laird and Allison, Joe and Megan, Matt and Liz, all have each other. I don’t have that in my life, and until you came along, I wasn’t sure I even wanted it. But now . . .”
She picked at the beadwork on her shirt, resisting his words and yet welcoming them, too.
“I don’t want to lose you, Gabby. I can’t imagine seeing you walk to your car in the morning and pretending that none of this ever happened. I can’t imagine not sitting here with you on the couch, like we’re doing now.” He swallowed. “And right now, I can’t imagine being in love with any other woman.”
Gabby wasn’t sure she’d heard him right, but when she saw the way he was staring at her, she knew he meant it. And with that, she felt the last of her defenses falling away and knew she had fallen in love with him as well.
The grandfather clock chimed in the background. Candlelight flickered on the walls, casting shadows around the room. Travis could sense the gentle rise and fall of her chest as she breathed, and they continued to stare at each other, neither one of them able to speak.
The phone rang, shattering her thoughts, and Travis turned away. Gabby leaned forward and reached for the portable phone. She answered, her voice betraying nothing.
“Oh, hey, how are you? . . . Not much . . . Uh-huh . . . I was running some errands. . . . What’s been going on there?”
As she listened to Kevin’s voice, a rush of guilt washed over her. Yet she found herself reaching over and placing a hand on Travis’s leg. He hadn’t moved or made a sound, and she could feel the muscles tense beneath his jeans as she ran her hand along his thigh.
“Oh, that’s great. Congratulations. I’m glad you won . . . sounds like you had fun. . . . Oh, me? Nothing too exciting.”
Hearing Kevin’s voice while being so close to Travis was pulling her in two directions. She tried to concentrate and listen to Kevin, while sorting through what had just happened with Travis. The situation was too surreal to absorb.
“I’m sorry to hear that. . . . I know, I get sunburned, too. . . . Uh-huh . . . uh-huh . . . Yes, I’ve thought about the trip to Miami, but I don’t get any vacation days until the end of the year. . . . Maybe, I don’t know. . . .”
She released Travis’s leg and leaned back against the couch, trying to keep her voice steady, wishing she hadn’t answered, wishing he hadn’t called. Knowing she was only becoming more confused. “We’ll see, okay? We’ll talk about it when you get back. . . . No, nothing’s wrong. I’m just tired, I guess. . . . No, nothing to worry about. It’s been a long weekend. . . .”
It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the truth, either, and she knew it, which made her feel even worse. Travis was staring downward, listening but pretending not to.
“I will,” she went on. “Yeah, you, too . . . Uh-huh . . . yeah, I should be around. . . . Okay . . . I do, too. And have fun tomorrow. Bye.”
Hanging up the phone, she seemed preoccupied for a moment before leaning forward and putting the handset on the table. Travis knew enough not to say anything.
“That was Kevin,” she finally