“Maybe… Maybe not.”
“Wanna let me in on your thoughts?” he asked.
They hadn’t known each other long enough for her to start spouting her flaws. What if she turned him off too?
“Tell me,” he encouraged her.
“I’ve wondered if I was lacking in something that caused my ex to stray. Was it something withme? Maybe I wasn’t exciting enough, interesting enough.”
“I’m willing to guess that you’re the same person he proposed to, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then it wasn’t you.”
She leaned against the counter. “When he left me, I realized I didn’t know him as well as I thought I did. And now, when I look at him, I don’t feel the same way for him. Could the same have happened to him?”
“I’m willing to bet that your feelings for him changed because of his actions. They revealed to you who he was—a side of him he hadn’t shown you before. Maybe he always would’ve strayed. I don’t know him so I can’t say.”
There was a tangible shift in the air, and she bit her lip. While Patrick made her feel better, she was probably ruining this lovely moment by ruminating on a relationship that wasn’t even worth the effort.
The click of a radio made her jump. She refocused on Patrick. He was twisting the volume up on a small radio next to the fridge.
“Let’s put you to the test. We’ll find out if you’re the issue,” he said.
“How?”
He took her hand, and her breath caught. Then he gave her a spin, both of them knocking into the cabinets in the small galley kitchen.
“Hang on. I can do better than that.” He led her into the living area and gave her another spin, his strong arm at her waist, making her laugh. He caught her, pulling her into him, the two of them staring into each other’s eyes. “Test one, you passed.”
“How did I pass?” she asked, breathless.
“You didn’t fight me off or anything. So you’re up for spontaneity. You were worried about that, right?”
She laughed. “You said ‘Test one.’ Is there another test?”
“You up for another?”
“Definitely.”
“All right. You asked for it.” He grabbed hold of her and threw her over his shoulder. Then he took off, flinging open the front door and running full speed toward the leaf pile. All of a sudden, they were both soaring through the air, landing with a puff of leaves all around them.
She giggled uncontrollably, still trying to catch her breath. “What wasthattesting?”
“You don’t mind getting messy.” He brushed a leaf from her hair, his finger trailing along her cheek. “You’re definitely not too formal.”
“Is there another test?” she asked, her heart drumming as she hoped he’d say yes.
His smile softened into seriousness. “You want the last test?”
“Mm hm.”
Slowly, he leaned down and licked his lips.
She held her breath.
“The last test,” he whispered, “is whether you’re a romantic.”
