AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I could buy the one next door when I’m rich,” I tell her with a smirk. “I’ll tell Gavin we have to do the same thing that you and Neils did, so we can have our own little place, and we can have a second little guest space because we don’t see each other nearly often enough.”
Erin laughed at this, but I knew it was all in good fun.
“You know, they say that imitation is the highest form of flattery,” she said. “And you and I always have been peas in a pod.”
“Exactly,” I told her. “And what better way for us to see each other more often than if we all just shared four houses?”
We both laughed at this, making plans of buying houses all over the world and when we would go see them and spend time in them. I knew it was just a fantasy, but it had its appeal. At least, dealing with the decision I had weighing on my mind left me open to the idea of not having to commit to any one place. There was something nice about the thought of being able to move again and again, always finding something new and exciting.
“I don’t think it’s a bad idea by any means,” Erin said. “How are things going for the two of you, anyway? I don’t want to pry, but we haven’t had the chance to talk without others around.”
“True,” I said. “I, well, I don’t know, I guess.”
“Uh-oh,” Erin said. “Trouble in paradise? The two of you seem so happy when you’re together.”
“That’s just it,” I admitted with a sigh. “I am happy with him, but there’s something I can’t put my finger on with this that I’m not happy about. I don’t really know how to say it, but it bothers me.”
“What do you mean?” she asked.
“It happened earlier this week. I got home from the interview and was going to go over and tell Gavin how I did. I found a note on the floor of my place when I got home, and it was asking if I wanted to come to Key West this weekend. So, I had two reasons to go to his place, which I did,” I said.
“Yeah?”
“We are close enough to each other that there’s no reason for us to have each other’s phone numbers. We just kind of show up when we want to hang out. It works for us. And he said to just come in the bungalow when he’s home if I want to, so again, that’s what I did,” I continued.
“Okay, and?” Erin asked.
“I didn’t see him anywhere in the place, so I went looking. I even called out for him, too,” I said.
“Did you knock before you went into the place?” Erin asked. “Or are you to the point you can just show up and just walk in?”
“No, I knocked,” I said. “He didn’t answer, so I let myself in. Then he didn’t answer when I yelled for him, either.”
“So, where did you find him?” Erin raised her eyebrows, and I knew she was confused about why I hadn’t mentioned this sooner. But, after talking to Kim about it and spending the night with Gavin that night, I did my best to push the whole thing out of my mind.
“He was in his bedroom on a video chat with someone,” I said.
“Who?”
“I don’t know,” I told her. “He apologized to whoever it was and literally pushed me out of the room. He wasn’t mean, but he walked me out and shut the door right in my face. I didn’t know what to make of it. He said he was going to find me when he had the chance, and I left.”
“Then what happened?” Erin pressed.
“Well, I talked with Kim; you met her, remember?” I asked.
“She’s so nice, yes,” Erin said with a smile. “I loved her.”
“I do, too,” I agreed. “And I told her what had happened. She said to not worry about it too much and to just let it go. Said something about there being mysteries in relationships and all that, and if it was important that he would come tell me about it when he was ready.”
“And I’m guessing he never did?” Erin asked.
I shook my head. “No. I took a nap, and when I woke up, there was a note on the floor asking me to come over. So I did, and we had sex and talked about coming to visit you. I still had the whole thing on my mind and wanted to talk about it, but I didn’t want to bring it up after we just had great sex and things were good. I was afraid it would start a fight or something.”
“Did he ever talk about it after?” Erin asked. “Or did you ask him about it?”
“No,” I said. “I keep thinking about what Kim said, how he’ll come to me if it’s important. But the fact that he pushed me out of the room like that made me feel like he’s hiding something from me. I don’t know what, and for the life of me, I can’t figure it out. It’s not like he’s the kind of guy who leaves clues around.”
Erin was silent for a moment. I could tell she was thinking, so I didn’t say anything. I didn’t want to interrupt. But, after another moment of silence, I couldn’t help but continue.
