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“Hey.” I sit across from him. “I thought I’d stop by for a drink, but the place is dead.” I check the time on my watch, seeing that it’s only going on ten.
He nods. “Yeah, it was slow, so I shut it down. I was just about to head home for the night, but I needed to finish up the order for the week.”
“Have you eaten?”
He shakes his head. “Not since breakfast.”
I stand up. “Come on. Let’s go get some dinner.”
We leave the bar, stopping at the local gas station to grab a pizza before taking it back to his place. We eat on the couch and watch TV, talk, laugh, touch, and kiss. Everything feels easy. After dinner, we shower together. I stand back and watch as he rinses the shampoo from his dark hair. I watch the foamy bubbles as they roll down his pecs and abs, down between the V in his hips. When he opens his eyes, he finds me smiling.
He laughs. “What are you smiling at?”
“If seventeen-year-old me knew I’d be here right now…”
He laughs.
“I wanted you then, you know?”
“I wanted you then, too,” he tells me, placing his hands on my hips.
I roll my eyes. “You did not. You were with her, happy and in love.” I wrap my arms around his neck.
“I’ve been thinking about being inside of you long before it was legal,” he assures me.
I laugh. “You thought my parents would press charges?”
“I knew they wouldn’t have, but that wasn’t the point. I’m ten years older than you. I didn’t want to take advantage of you.”
“Trust me, you wouldn’t have.” I move my mouth to his, kissing him deeply.
* * *
It’sstrange how time flies when you’re enjoying life because before I know it, Travis and I had been secretly together for two months. The best part is that nobody knows. Ryan hasn’t shown his face since Travis chased him away. I was even surprised when I got served with divorce papers. I signed them and sent them back the same day, more than ready to get started on this process so I will be one-hundred percent ready when it’s time to move forward.
We’re still working together at the bar, and the customers are none the wiser. I think they’ve noticed that we no longer bicker the way we used to, but they think we’ve just gotten used to one another. Even John doesn’t know about the things we do in the office when the bar is full.
Things have slowly progressed between us. Even though I’ve saved enough money to find an apartment here in town, I haven’t made the move just yet. Right now, I’m spending more nights at Travis’s house than I am at my parents’, anyway. I figure I might as well suck it up while the help is there, and save more money so I’ll be able to furnish a place after I move in. While things are good with Travis and me, neither of us is in a hurry to change our current relationship. We’ve both been screwed over in the past, so we want to move forward slowly, playing it safe instead of jumping in head-first only to find we’ve made a big mistake.
I feel a little guilty for keeping secrets from Evie though. Travis and I have discussed it, and we agree that it’s better to keep everyone in the dark about what we’re doing until we’re sure that things will last. However, it’s hard to be sure of that when you’re still sneaking around.
By sneaking around, we’re staying locked into our own little bubble, and things rarely go wrong when you keep yourself from the rest of the world. The only way we’ll be able to be sure is by letting people in and being a real couple. I’ve been thinking lately, and I think I’m ready to take that step: Let people know we’re together so we can attend family functions, go out on dates instead of locking ourselves in his house, and enjoy spending time together outside of the house. The only problem is, I’m not sure he feels the same.
I’ve been meaning to talk to him about it, but when we get together, it’s the last thing on my mind as we’re usually too involved in touching, kissing, and making love. I can feel the changes inside of me, feel myself trusting him and falling for him. I hope he feels the same way. I’m scared to ruin everything we have going by talking about these things, but I know that eventually, they need to be discussed before someone gets hurt. I need to make sure we’re on the same page. I plan to meet him tonight, and that’s the number one topic for discussion. While I’m nervous about what may come of this conversation, I’m also excited and hopeful for more.
12
TRAVIS
I’m being the bar with John when the door opens and Riley walks in. “Hey, what are you doing here so early?” I check my watch, even though I know it’s barely past noon. She isn’t due for a shift until six tonight.
She gives me a breathtaking smile as she comes to a stop across the bar from me. “Can I talk to you in the office?”
“Yeah, sure,” I agree. I look back at John. “You need anything?”
“Nope, I’m good,” he tells me, starting to stock the beer cooler.
I follow Riley back to my office and shut the door behind us. “What’s up?”
