flings! I’ve never actually experienced one of those but I’d like to! How about you? I almost groaned at the pathetic, scattered nature of my thoughts, but managed to hold it back, rallying and again, taking a deep breath and smiling.
I was never nervous like this with Travis. Talking to Travis was fun. And easy. It just flowed. I felt like myself, not this anxious, babbling idiot.
That’s because Travis is your friend and Gage is your crush.
“What else?” he asked, and I swore I saw a hint of amusement in his eyes as though he was enjoying something. But what I wasn’t sure, because I certainly wasn’t being enjoyable. “What else? Oh. Um. I’m sort of a health nut—which you probably already knew.” I frowned, second-guessing my choice of wording. “Not a nut. I’m not a fanatic or anything, and my other motto is to each their own, so if you wanted to . . . oh, eat something laden with chemicals and carcinogens, I would say, have at it.” I blinked, laying my hand on his arm and leaning in a little. “Not that I want you to eat chemicals and carcinogens. Because your health might suffer, and you are the picture of health.”
His lip twitched. “Health is important to me too.”
“Clearly, yes.” I reached out and gave his bicep a small squeeze, my hand falling immediately, heat flooding my cheeks.
Oh my God. You actually just did that. Stop now, Haven. Stop touching him. And stop talking immediately. Immediately!
“And I love possums,” I added.
Gage’s face went blank. “Did you say, possums?”
I bobbed my head. “Mm-hmm. They’re, ah . . . they get a bum rap. They look sort of scary, and they hiss out of fear, but they’re not violent.”
“No,” he agreed, seeming stupefied. “What else do you like about possums?” he asked, almost hesitantly.
What else, what else? My mind searched to recall possum facts I’d learned less than an hour before. Oh! Right. “My favorite, of course,” I said, because it was really their greatest achievement, “is the way they um, eat up to five thousand ticks a year. Just think of all the Lyme disease they prevent. Little heroes, honestly. They should get more credit.”
That’s when I noticed Gage Buchanan was trying not to laugh, his lips trembling and his eyes squinting. I peered at him more closely, a sinking feeling in my gut. “Do . . . do you like possums?”
He did laugh then, his eyes twinkling. It wasn’t an unkind laugh, but it was a laugh. “I don’t not like possums,” he said. “But I can’t say I’ve ever given them a lot of thought. You’ve convinced me though. I should. Little heroes. I like that.”
Oh. My. God. If laughs could sound limp, mine did.
I was going to murder Travis Hale.
Where was he? I needed to find him right that second.
“Will you excuse me, Gage? I’m sure you have to get back to your guests. I’ve loved talking to you, and this house is like something out of a fairy tale. Thank you for having me.”
And without waiting for him to respond, I got up and stalked toward the door, flinging it open and going in search of my friend the lying liar!
CHAPTER TEN
Haven
I made my way through the groups of well-dressed guests, peering into rooms, and checking twice at the bar. Just as I was turning away from one of the small balconies, I spotted a lone figure, leaning against the stone wall of a patio on the floor below. My heart gave a jolt. Anger of course. I turned abruptly, racing down the stairs and moving through the house, out a back door and along the patio, turning the corner to where he stood. He turned, a drink in his hand, a look on his face I couldn’t read—something glum. Almost sulky. He should be glum and sulky. I was about to kill him.
“You double-crossing rat!”
He leaned back casually against the stone, assessing me as I approached. “You look . . . upset, Haven.”
I stepped closer, socking him on his arm. It felt like I’d struck the wall behind him. He didn’t even blink. “You lied so I’d look like a fool.”
“Lied about what?”
“Oh quit the innocent act. You made up some ridiculous story about Gage’s soft spot for possums of all things.” I socked him again with the same result as the first time. “I went on and on about ticks, for the love of God! In front of Gage! Ticks! I