Gabe:Nah. You and your bathrobe had everything under control.
He sent another text before she could respond.
Gabe:I think our current situation makes us…star crossed lovers.
He held his breath after hitting send. He’d told Paige at PT that he couldn’t promise her anything, but his rebellious heart wanted to make her all kinds of promises. He watched the little dots dance as she typed a response, then they disappeared.
She'd decided not to respond right now. Or maybe ever.
He didn't blame her. She probably felt like he'd dropped a bomb on her. He was about to set his phone down when the dots returned. His chest tightened and so did his grip on his phone as he waited.
The dots disappeared again.
Stomach sinking, he tucked his phone into the cup holder and put his car into gear again. This time there was no traffic to prevent him from pulling out and getting on the freeway. His grip remained tight on the steering wheel.
Stupid move, man.
He was a mile down the freeway when the screen lit up again. Ignoring the dangers of texting and driving, he snatched it up. He checked the road before letting his gaze dart to his phone. A gif of a female actress—whose name he couldn’t recall—sighing and blowing her hair out of her face filled his screen.
No wonder it took her so long to respond. Finding a gif to adequately depict this kind of frustration and disappointment wasn't easy. He couldn't devote the attention necessary to finding a gif of his own while driving, so he decided to leave it be. Which was probably for the best.
He put his phone face-down on the passenger seat and pressed the button on his steering wheel. "Call Mom."
CHAPTER 18
Paige poked at her Belgian waffle, wishing she had an appetite. The constant twisting of her stomach in knots was going to give her an ulcer. She'd kept so many things bottled up all week, she feared she'd explode at any moment.
Her dad was almost finished with his breakfast, but Paige had hardly touched hers.
"Is something wrong, dear?" Mom eyed her from across the kitchen table.
"Um…there's something I need to tell you and dad." Though hesitant, her voice must have sounded serious, because her dad who was in the process of standing dropped back into his chair.
Her plans to tell her parents the truth about Phillip Monday evening fell apart when Mom texted, saying she'd decided to spend the night in Spokane rather than make the late-night drive home. Then the week had been busy for everyone. Between high school graduation activities that her mom, as the principal, was involved in, and her dad spending a couple extra days at the medical conference, Paige hadn’t had an opportunity to talk to them.
She’d even been enlisted to help her sister-in-law Amy with redecorating Aunt Charity's diner. Then because she could see Amy wasstressed, she'd volunteered to babysit last night so Ben could take Amy out on a date. The diversions had been welcomed, but they'd allowed her to remain a coward.
"What is it, honey?" Concern deepened the lines around her mother's eyes.
She hoped she'd finally seen the last of Phillip, but her parents needed to know the truth in case she was wrong. She sucked in a fortifying breath. "I need to tell you the truth behind my accident and what really happened with Phillip."
Mom leaned forward, a puzzled look on her face. "What do you mean?"
"Right before my accident on Valentine’s Day, I found out from Phillip'sfiancéethat he’d been cheating on her with me." She forced out the words she'd rehearsed Monday night.
"What?" Mom gasped, her eyes wide.
Dad's brows lowered until they became a single unit, and the muscle in his jaw jerked, much like Gabe's did when he was upset.
She gave them a play by play of what happened before she darted in front of the car, including Avery breaking the news that she was pregnant and that she and Phillip had set a wedding date.
Her mother's eyes grew wider, while her father's hands balled into tight fists.
"That miscreant! I'm so sorry, honey. I can't believe he lied to you all this time." Mom's nostrils flared in her red face. "And he has the gall to show up here wanting you back when he's married?"
"He's not married. He broke up with Avery after she lost the baby." Paige's tone was full of disgust.
"That poor woman." Sympathy filled Mom's voice.
