AllFreeNovel
Share Us
We sit at a small table, across from one another.
Maddison glues her eyes to her bagel. “I guess—I guess we are sort of gossip worthy, lately.” She plucks a piece free and pops it in her mouth.
“The staff here at the clinic seems to think so.”
“And my family. And your neighbor.”
“What do you think they’re all saying?”
“I don’t have to guess, Nick. I think they’re saying we like each other. They probably think all this time we’re spending together—that it means something.”
She lowers her eyes and tears off another bite. Instead of eating it she says, “Can’t they just accept the fact that we’re friends? My life was a wreck when I came back to town. You’ve been a total angel. Super supportive. A good listener. Encouraging about my movie, too. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”
Yeah, but we’re more than friends, I think, as memories of last night fill me up.
I draw in a breath. “Maddie—maybe they’re saying this stuff about us because it’s true. Maybe my feelings for you aren’t totally?—”
“Wait,” she says, her cheeks flushed. Her big eyes meet mine. “Don’t say something that will make this harder, okay?”
“Maddie, we both had fun last night.”
“Fun doesn’t compare to real, true friendship. Fun is like—like a sparkler, you know? It sizzles and sparks and then it goes out. And you and I aren’t meant for that kind of thing. We tried that once already, and it hurt. Remember? You were pretty quick to run off and ask Tracey Donovan out, afterward.”
“We were both young.”
“Yeah, which makes it all forgivable. Like we were young and dumb, and made mistakes. But now we’re older. We can spot a bad idea before we’re too deep in it, you know? My life is upside down. I’m not in town for good. I just think…”
I feel like an idiot.
I try not to show it.
My chest feels heavy as I stare down into my coffee cup. “So… you’re saying… maybe my peace offering was a good idea. Maybe I was out of line last night.”
“I’m saying we were both swept up in whatever that was. And it was great, but we have to be careful, Nick.” She bites her lip. “The thing is… Hana made some good points to me, when I was in her office. She said that you and her both live here in Stillwell… You’re both quiet, responsible professionals. She wants a family. You, I’m sure, want one, too. You’re both smart and stable and?—”
“Maddie, enough.”
Ican’t.
I can’t sit here and listen to this.
Anger swells inside my chest. Sadness, too. “I don’t know why you keep talking about her.”
Her eyes pinch, like I’ve hurt her. She looks down at the table. “Nick, I’m only trying to say don’t write off whatever you have with her, just because of—I don’t know. Last night was fun. It really, honestly was. But?—”
In her purse, her phone rings.
She takes it out, frowns down at the screen as she silences the ringer, then sets it aside.
“What—sorry—what was I saying?” She pushes her bangs back. She looks tired.
Frazzled.
Confused.
Even though it’s nosy and I shouldn’t, I can’t help but flick my eye to the name flashing across her phone:Sylvester.
He calls her?
