I shake my head. “Gabriel doesn’t drink.”
A ‘v’ furrows between Sabrina’s well-tended eyebrows. “Why not?”
“He hasn’t said why. He just doesn’t.”
She frowns. “Everybody drinks.”
I make a face at her, a desire to defend Gabriel’s choice rising inside me. “Not everybody.” I point at myself. I rarely drink. My tolerance is low, and I don’t like how I feel after.
“Fair,” she concedes. “But most people have a reason for not drinking.”
“Why does he have to have a reason?”
Sabrina stops thumbing through a table of perfectly folded shirts and looks at me. “Why do you sound like that?”
“Like what?”
“Like you’re angry.”
“I’m a little annoyed at having to talk about Gabriel’s alcohol intake, or lack thereof.”
“Why?”
“Because a person should be able to not drink and have it be a non-issue.”
Sabrina holds up her hands. “Agreed.”
We go back to shopping, but it’s not as fun as it was prior to the Gabriel conversation. My annoyance with Sabrina has faded, and now I’m uncertain it was ever directed at her in the first place. It’s me. It’smycuriosity that’s bothering me. I, too, want to know why Gabriel doesn’t drink. And I don’t want to ask him, because right now Gabriel is the best thing in my life.
What if I don’t like the answer?
CHAPTER 8
“Avery.”Camryn snaps a finger in my face. I frown and knock her hand out of the way.
“Where the hell are you lately?” She grumbles something unintelligible.
“I’m right here in front of you.”
“You’re with Gabriel.”
I run a finger through the air, parallel to my body. “Try that again.”
“You’re with him mentally.” Cam grabs a notebook and flips it open to a fresh page.
We’re supposed to be planning a simple food menu for the wedding, but I’m distracted.
“Lara should be here any minute,” Camryn says, glancing at the front door. “Before she arrives, I think we should talk about a little surprise bachelorette party. Small and tame, you know, but…”
Gabriel and I are seeing a movie tonight. Maybe he needs a clear sign, an unmistakable green light. I can use my voice, for once, and actually ask for what I want. My stomach turns at the thought. Maybe not.
“Oh my God,” Cam wails, dropping her pen. “Just go. You’re no help. Go to Gabriel, you hormone addled, lovesick fool.” She throws her hands in the air. “It’s bad enough I have to be around Dad and Lara, but at least they have sex and then function in life.” She steers me toward the front door. “Go get laid, and then come back here. I want you sated and ready to work.”
I shake my head, trying not to trip as I walk backward. “Cam, you don’t understand, Gabriel and I?—”
Cam shakes her head back at me. “Haven’t done that yet? You’ll be fine. It’s sex, not swimming with a pod of killer whales. It’s meant to be enjoyed. Go.” She grabs my purse from the entryway table and pushes it to my chest.
I stop at the threshold. She drops her arms and reaches around me, opening the door. “I’ve never had good sex,” I admit.
