AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Then, where?”
“Las Vegas,” I answer, swallowing hard.
Oliver blinks with interest. “Anyone I know?”
“Uh…” I look down. “Yeah.”
He bristles. “It wasn’t Doc, was it?”
I chortle. “No! God, no.”
“Because that guy would take home a turkey sandwich if it were warm enough.”
“So I’ve heard. But… no. Not Doc. It was, uh…”
My throat tightens, nearly choking on the word.
Oliver notices. He tilts his head as he studies my downturn expression.
“Me?” he asks.
I hold my breath in tight. “Yes,” I answer.
He sits back with squinting eyes, clearly doing all the math and science in his head. “So, wait, that means that… your last time… was with me… four years ago?”
“Hey, so…” I cringe with instant regret. “We were going to talk about that book, weren’t we? You don’t like Richard. What’s… what’s that about? Everybody loves Richard.”
“I’m sorry, I just…”
Oliver pauses, his eyes still warm on me. He closes his mouth, though that doesn’t matter much. I struggle to hear anything over the sound of my heart racing toward the exit.
He furrows his brow as he sits back. Still, he says nothing. Typical Oliver. Finally shutting his mouth at the worst possible moment.
“What?” I ask.
He shakes his head. “Nothing.”
“Just say what you’re going to say, Oliver.”
“I wasn’t going to say anything,” he says.
“For once?”
“Okay. Okay, I was going to crack a joke, but then I changed my mind.”
“Oh, did you?”
He nods. “I thought a more mature response was appropriate, so I didn’t say it.”
“What was the joke?” I ask.
“It’s not important, Paige. Let’s talk about Richard!” He picks up his drink again. “I’m only on chapter twelve, I think, so I don’t know, maybe I’m… just not far enough yet…”
His voice fades off into the thick crowd. Somehow, I’m not even in the mood to chat about my favorite book anymore.
“Paige?” Oliver asks when I don’t respond.
“Yeah, he, uh…” I clear my throat. “I can see how it’d take a bit for some people to warm up to him at first.” I plant my feet on the floor. “I think I’m going to call it a night, Oliver.”
