inn might go up for sale. My boss has been looking to buy properties in New England so I told him about the place and that's how I ended up there the weekend I met Sophie.
"I'll have the usual," Pete says to the bartender.
We have a few different bars we meet up at but this one's our favorite. It's kind of a dive but that's why we like it. The atmosphere is relaxed, not pretentious like the upscale trendy bars Celine makes me go to.
"Still haven't heard from her?" Pete asks, noticing me staring at my phone.
I set it down. "No. I doubt that I will. She hasn't returned any of my messages."
"I'm sure she's fine." He takes his beer from the bartender. "Thanks."
"I just wish I knew for sure. Not hearing from her makes me think something happened."
"Did you say you'd stay in touch?"
"No, but all I'm asking for is a text back, telling me she's okay."
He turns to me. "What's the deal with you and this girl? Why are you so obsessed with her?"
"I'm not obsessed with her."
"Every time I see you I hear about this girl. And you're always checking your phone to see if she called. Does Celine know about her?"
"Yes. I told her the night I got back."
"Did you tell her you had dinner with this girl?"
"Yes, and she was fine with it. Why wouldn't she be? It was just dinner, and it was with a woman I barely know."
"And yet you're obsessed with her."
"Stop saying that. I'm not obsessed with her."
"What exactly happened that night?" He pauses. "Did you have sex with her?"
"No! What the hell? I wouldn't do that to Celine."
"Did you kiss her?"
"No," I say, looking him in the eye. "What the fuck, man? You know that's not me."
"I'm just trying to figure out what's going on here. Why you can't just forget about this girl."
He's right. Why am I doing this? Why do I keep thinking about her? Why can't I get her out of my head?
I let out a sigh. "I don't know. I guess I just never hit it off with someone like that before. She was easy to talk to and I found myself opening up to her in a way I normally don't do. I even told her about wanting to take over the inn in Maine."
"No shit? You won't even tell your parents that."
"Because they'd think I was crazy. It doesn't matter. The place is long gone."
"Why'd you tell this girl about it?"
"I'm not sure. Maybe because she didn't know me. She didn't have expectations about me. I could tell her anything and it wouldn't matter."
"Shit, man," he says, shaking his head. "You gotta to stop texting this girl. You're on a slippery slope. Once you start opening to a girl, other things start happening."
"I'm not going to cheat on Celine. Sophie is just a friend."
Pete takes a drink of his beer. "What else happened that night?"
"I already told you. We had a few drinks at the bar and then had dinner."
"And that was it? You went back to your rooms?"
I consider whether to tell him what else happened, knowing he'll give me shit about it but needing to get if off my chest.
"What'd you do?" he asks with a sigh.
"We um...we went for a walk."
"At night?"
"It was just after seven. It wasn't that late. The owner, Tom, and his wife, insisted we walk down the street and check out the lights in the downtown. You remember that place, don't you? We had lunch there."
"I barely remember. All those little towns in Vermont look the same."
"Anyway, at night the downtown shops light up their windows with white Christmas lights. It really was pretty. Sophie loved it."
"And? Then what happened?"
"We walked back to the inn and I walked her to her room."
"But you didn't go inside."
"No. She had too much to drink and wasn't feel great so I helped her to her room and that was it."
He eyes me. "Why do I get the feeling there's more?"
I take a big gulp of my beer.
"What else happened?" Pete asks. "Lay it all out. It's just between you and me."
I set my beer down and shake my head. "I didn't intend for it to happen."
"Shit, you slept with her, didn't you?"
"No, but I almost kissed her. To be fair, I'd had a lot to drink, but I was sober enough to know what I was doing. We'd had such a great night, probably the best night I've ever had