Gabe felt left out, but he loved it. This was exactly the comfortable atmosphere he'd hoped to have in his physical therapy office.
Around noon, he was working on Gladys' knee when the dooropened. He looked up, thinking Travis was early, and froze when he saw Evelyn Tate, his mother's best friend.
What is she doing here?
He vaguely remembered Luke mentioning last week that Evelyn had scheduled an appointment here in Providence. At the time, he hadn't thought anything of it. But he got engaged Saturday night which changed everything.
His mom had promised not to tell anyone about the engagement until he’d had a chance to come clean with Dr. Stoker and Dr. Young. Then she apologized yesterday for telling Evelyn he was engaged. His mom’s friend knew she planned to give him his grandmother’s wedding rings, and she wanted to hear all about his reaction.
“But I didn’t tell her Paige was a current patient. So if by chance it gets back to Dr. Stoker, he won’t know that you’ve been seeing a patient.” Mom’s effort to smooth things over hadn’t been at all reassuring, and with Paige’s excitement over the prospect of a new job, he’d forgotten to tell her Evelyn knew of their engagement.
This could be bad.
"Hey, Evelyn," Luke greeted the woman before Gabe found his voice. "I can't believe you drove all the way to Providence for PT."
"It's better than working with that stuffed shirt, Toa. I try to make sure I end up on Dr. Stoker’s schedule, but with Gabe here three days a week, he’s busier than ever. So I get stuck with Toa way too often." The tall, slender woman's lips turned up when she spotted Gabe. "Congratulations, Gabe. I couldn't believe it when your mother told me the news." She crossed the room with her arms spread wide and wrapped him in a hug "She's so excited you’re engaged."
Gabe's stomach plummeted so fast it created a vacuum that squeezed his chest and sucked the air from his lungs. He'd never wished harder for the ground to open up and swallow him than he did at that moment. Bury him alive. He deserved it. It couldn't be any worse than having to claw his way out of the pit his lies had created.
Weights clanked on the other side of the room, and audible gasps filled the space that had gone utterly silent. His gaze jumped to Paige, his eyes full of apology.
Her face registered confusion and panic.
Oblivious to the collective shock of the room's occupants, Evelyn dumped a truck load of dirt into his pit. "Your mom says Paige is perfect for you. She absolutely adores her."
"You and Paige are engaged?" Nikki's voice, full of surprise and excitement, sounded shrill in the quiet room. "Every time I asked how things were going with your fake relationship, you told me there was nothing to report. But now you guys are suddenly engaged?" Her accusing gaze darted between him and Paige, who stood next to the weight set attached to the wall, eyes closed, her head slowly shaking.
Luke's eyes were almost as wide as his grin.
Gladys wore a similar expression.
Even the right side of Sam's lips turned up, the twinkle in his eyes showing his amusement.
"Fake?" Evelyn's jaw dropped as her own gaze darted around the room. "What is she talking about?" Her full focus landed back on Gabe again.
"Do you have something to share with the class, Gabe?" Gladys blinked up at him with innocent eyes. She was giving him a chance to come clean with them, but he wasn't fooled. She wanted the scoop just as much as Nikki.
He looked at Paige again. Posture rigid, her expression was a mixture of shock and desperation. She gave a small shake of her head, but he was tired of lying, so he pasted on a smile.
"Paige and I have an announcement to make." He walked over to where she stood stiff and unmoving and put his arm around her. She didn't reciprocate. "We got engaged on Saturday."
The room erupted.
"Yay!" Nikki cheered. "I can't believe you didn't keep us in the loop like you promised."
"Congratulations!" Gladys smiled like she'd known all along.
"I knew it." Luke pointed at them. "It was so obvious you two had a thing for each other."
Even Sam grunted something that sounded like, "Attaboy."
"Wait a minute." Evelyn's voice rose above the rest as she walkedtoward him and Paige. "Thisis Paige? A current patient? Not a former one?" Her brows inched up with each question. "And what is this about a fake relationship?"
The rest of the room quieted, and Gabe scrambled for the words that wouldn't cause his world to come crashing down around him.
"Evelyn, I'd like you to meet Paige Young, my fiancée. Paige, this is my mom’s best friend Evelyn Tate." He lifted his chin and met Evelyn’s gaze. "Yes, she is a current patient."
"But you told your mom?—"
