I would have burst into tears at his admissions and the fact that he had clearly already accepted that we were destined to fail as a couple if I hadn’t been so flabbergasted by the casual tone he used to deliver his speech of ultimate doom.
“That’s it? That’s the best you can do? It’s not exactly a stellar approach to easing my fears, you ass!”
He ducked as my napkin went flying toward his head. Not that it weighed enough to knock any sense into him upon impact, but it was the first thing I grabbed when the impulse to throw something at him had hit me.
“Okay, okay. Before you decide to reach for something a little more dangerous for your next pitch, I do have a solution that would totally eliminate this whole issue. But, I’m pretty sure you won’t go for it.”
I loosened my grip on the salt shaker I was holding and said, “Oh, yeah? Try me.”
He stared back at me, the ever present spark of mischief blazing in his eyes.
“You could marry me.”
“Are you insane?” I was so stumped by his statement I didn’t know what to think or say. Suddenly the prospect of throwing something at him didn’t seem to be nearly as inviting as the idea of shoving him out of the booth and away from me as far as possible. And there it was again, my commitment phobia rearing its ugly head over something as ridiculous as a fake marriage proposal declared in jest and for no other reason, but to get a rise out of me. Unfortunately, I had already played right into his hands. In an attempt to salvage my move made from a strictly emotional standpoint, I calmly folded my arms on the table and casually added, “Nice one.”
“What do you mean?” he asked, matching my tone completely and taking a sip from his nearly empty glass.
“I mean, you had me there…only for a moment, but I fell for it nevertheless. It was brilliant really, proposing marriage. What a foolproof way to cover your ass. You knew damn well how I would react to that and so now from here until eternity, no matter what issues we have, you’ll always be able to say that you were the one who was ready to commit and I wasn’t. You’ll forever be the solid good guy in our relationship while I might as well mark myself with a red F for being the flighty one.”
Noah grinned as he bit down on his straw. Then his teeth loosened their grip on it, letting it slide out of his mouth.
“You’re right, that would have been brilliant. Too bad I can’t take credit for being the genius you clearly think I am. Truth is, I wasn’t kidding. I really think we should get married.”
I squinted at him as if that would somehow allow me to look beyond the surface and grant me a glimpse into the inner workings of his mind. When I was unsuccessful, I shook my head and said, “You don’t really mean that.” Even as the words were rolling over my lips, I knew that I was saying them more to myself than to him, as though I needed to remind myself that it was just a joke. It had to be a joke because if it wasn’t…well, it didn’t matter because it was most definitely a joke.
“Lucky look at me.” Noah tapped my elbow with his hand and repeated, “Look at me.”
Reluctantly, I lifted my eyes from the safe stare at the table top they had settled into and met his gaze. He didn’t need to say anything else because the expression on his face said it all. Fact was, his impromptu proposal was for real and far from a laughing matter.
“Noah…”
He gave a weak smile and quietly said, “I told you, you wouldn’t go for it.”
“It’s not that, it’s just-” I paused, unable to conjure the words that would help to explain to the both of us what I was feeling.
“Relax, I really wasn’t expecting you to say yes. For now, let’s just focus on the moment without freaking out about the future, okay?”
I nodded silently. Disappointment streamed through me as though I had experienced an unforeseen loss. Naturally, this only added to my overall state of confusion.
Noah reached into his pocket to retrieve his wallet. As he shuffled through the bills in search for a couple of twenties, he went on, “So, since you’ve decided to move back – a very wise decision, by the way – I suppose we ought to head on out to Idaho to get your stuff; and…if on the way back we just happen to take a minor detour through a drive though wedding chapel in Vegas, well who’s to say what could happen?”
He placed the cash in the center of the table, then looked back and winked at me. Immediately the feeling of missed opportunities vanished. At the same time, the burning need to scream ‘Yes, I want to marry you’ cut through me with such force I felt a
scorching sensation in my throat as I swallowed the words back down in a heavy gulp. Playing a little hard to get from time to time would probably go a long way with Noah, given that he hadn’t experienced much of a challenge from any of the women in his past.
Chapter 4
Word Travels Fast
It took about two seconds for word about Noah and I to spread like a wildfire around town. Apparently, we barely missed D. stopping in at the diner for his daily fix of coffee and crumb cake on his way into the bar. The way I heard it, Terry came strolling over with his take out bag and casually asked what he thought of Noah and I finally getting together after all this time. Obviously, this came as quite a surprise to D. who insisted Terry give him the low-down right then and there. The moment he left the diner, he was on the phone with his wife to give her the news. From there the news was but a hop, skip and a jump away from reaching Tara, who told Jason who in turn told Gabe, who, in order to bring things full circle, called me.
I was sitting at Noah’s desk, busy trying to make arrangements for Noah and I to travel back to Idaho together when my phone rang. I was about to say hello when I heard Gabe’s voice practically bounding out at me through the receiver.
“It’s about damn time!”
“Hi Gabe. So nice of you to call. Care to elaborate?” I asked as I tilted my head down to wedge my phone between my chin and shoulder so I could keep my hands free to continue typing.
“Oh, please! You know exactly what I’m talking about. And I don’t know about you, but I think a thank you would be in order,” Gabe said on the other end.
I almost dropped the phone.
“For what?”
I heard a loud scoff from Gabe before he responded, “For getting you your happily ever after, that’s what!”
Still squeezing the phone to my ear using only my shoulder, I turned my head in Noah’s direction and said, “Hey, why does Gabe think he has something to do with us getting together?” Noah slowly pulled his focus from the show he was watching while sprawled out on his couch and said, “Um…what, now?”
Holding the phone at a slight angle so Gabe would be able to hear the conversation, I said, “Gabe is suggesting I owe him a thank you. Do I?”
Noah smirked as he went back to staring at the TV and said, “You probably don’t since you wound up with me in the deal, but I should probably send out a card or a gift or something…ask him how he feels about cash.”
I watched Noah begin to channel surf and decided to wait until a later date to delve further into the subject. Besides, Gabe was bound to give me the juicier version anyway. Nevertheless, at some point I would have to insist on hearing Noah’s side of things as well, but for now, Gabe’s would do just fine.
“Noah wants to know if you’ll take cash,” I said as I swiveled my chair back around to the desk. Gabe laughed.
“Sure, tell him to let me know when he comes up with a number that communicates his state of gratitude.”
I shook my head. The more I thought about Gabe’s request, the more I wondered myself just what that number might amount to. For my own sake, I hoped that it was high.
“So, are you going to tell me what happened between you boys while I was gone or what?”
Gabe cleared his throat for effect and then he began, “Here’s how it went down: Jason and I were hanging out at the Burger and Brew when Noah called. Jason told him to come by, and so, a few minutes later he came strolling in.” He paus
ed to take a breath and then he went on, “After we had a chance to catch up…and after Noah took the time to get the pent up insults out of his system, he started to ask about you. One thing lead to another, and before long I had convinced him to man up and make his move….which he clearly did.”
I waited for a moment to see if he would add anything else. Obviously, there were some holes in the story. When Gabe chose not to address them I asked, “Um, exactly what sort of exchange took place between you guys that turned a simple ‘hey, how’s Lucky’ to, ‘dude, you really need to man up and make a move’? I know I can be a little slow on the uptake when it comes to you boys, I am also aware that you seem to require far less actual words than women do, but still…it feels like something is missing from the story…something vital…you know, like the plot!”
I could hear Gabe exhaling loudly and I imagined his nostrils flaring the way they always did when he was getting frustrated.
“I really don’t see what else there is to tell.”
“You don’t? How about, what it was that made you think Noah even had feelings for me…or, even better, what made you think I would return those feelings?”
“Oh, please! Everybody knew the two of you were hot for each other!”
“Gabe.”
“Okay, fine! We were talking about how any girls we met always assumed that we were hooking up with you. From there, Noah and Jason started guessing at who you might have ended up with had you stayed, only those two douchebags were so far off the mark, that I had to set them straight and tell them how you were in love with Noah.”
I crinkled my brow, confused by the confidence in his statement.
“How did you- ” When I realized I was shrieking, I lowered my voice and muffled my words by putting my hand over my mouth as I finished, “know I was in love with Noah?”
“See, now. Here’s where things get a bit sticky for me. I kinda read one of your letters to Pearl. It was totally by accident!”
“Gabe!” I was shrieking again. This time Noah even looked up from the television to see what was going on. Apparently it didn’t take him long to figure out what we were talking about, because he laughed out loud and returned his attention to the screen. I tried to tell myself, that he had really just been amused by the movie he was watching, but even I couldn’t deny that I knew that wasn’t it.
I shot him a dirty look even though I knew he was no longer paying attention and wouldn’t see it. Then I lowered my voice and continued, “Gabe, how exactly do you accidentally read a letter that’s been folded into an envelope and addressed to someone else?”
“It was addressed to a dead woman! You tell me one person who wouldn’t be a little curious about that!”
“That letter was private!”
“I know! That’s why I never told anyone else about it!”
“You told Jason and Noah!”
“Only to make a point! And all I said was that you wrote that you were in love with Noah. It’s not like I recited the letter to them word for word…and I could have. Girl, that letter was explicit! Did you really talk to your grandma that way?”
I could no longer tell if the heat rising off my cheeks was from anger or embarrassment.
“We had a very open relationship…Hey! I am not the one who needs to be explaining things.”
“You’re right, but since we both know I have no valid excuse other than the fact that I am a nosy individual, would you like to hear what happened next with Jason and Noah? Or would you rather we continued talking about the letter and what I read?”
I stared at my computer screen stubbornly, giving Gabe the silent treatment. Only over the phone, the effect was pretty lost on him.
“Are you still there? Did I lose you?”
I pressed my lips together defiantly a minute longer. I held out until I thought Gabe might hang up on me and then finally said, “Fine! Let’s talk about that happened after you told them about the letter.”
Even without seeing it for myself, I could sense the satisfied smile now settling in on his face as he realized he was now officially off the hook.
“Okay, so at first they both thought I was nuts…Noah was in total denial over the whole thing until Jason started putting everything together.”
“What do you mean? What did Jason put together? Don’t tell me he read a letter as well?!” I was already leaning toward the computer as my fingertips flew over the keys in search of Jason’s email address. I was nothing if not a multi-tasker. Thankfully Gabe cut in before I got too far into my rant via Gmail.
“No, no. Actually, turns out he was the only one who didn’t know about the letters. Which is why he was able to figure things out. He remembered the stationary Noah gave you for your birthday – a clear indication that he was into you, cuz lets be real, a guy doesn’t get that invested over a present for just any girl. Of course, what really sealed the deal was when Jason told us that Tara told him that you told Tara that Noah told you that he was in love with you.”
“Tara!” I hissed under my breath, half debating whether or not her breach of trust warranted the same message I had initially planned for Jason. I had practically written the whole thing out in my head already anyway and it would be a shame to let it go to waste considering my flare for dramatic word usage and talent for placing them in just such a way to create maximum impact upon being read by the recipient.
As if Gabe knew what I was considering he said, “Yeah, I wouldn’t really hold that one against her though. I mean, after that, Noah pretty much admitted that it was true. That he was in love with you.”
I sighed and nodded reluctantly even though I knew the gesture would go unnoticed by Gabe. Then I said, “So, basically Noah owes you because you can’t mind your own business and have zero respect for other people’s belongings.”
“Damn girl. No, the reason he owes me is because I’m the one who pushed him to make a move and stop wasting time!”
Finally I pushed myself back from the desk and leaned back into the cushions of my chair.
“I suppose that was some pretty good advice, all things considered.”
“Yeah, it was! Especially compared to the advice you gave me with Janette: ‘Just go for it, Gabe. Move to New York and turn your life upside down for a girl who’s just going end up trampling all over your heart the second you get there’.”
I cringed.
“How about you forget about that if I forget about you reading my letter?”
“Deal.”
It would take a while for the contents of our conversation to really settle, but I was pretty certain a heaping portion of gratitude was already welling up within my chest as I looked over at Noah just lounging on the couch and watching TV. We weren’t doing anything extravagant or even that different from what we normally did together, except of course for the fact that now we were actually together and that in and of itself made everything different. I had denied my feelings for long enough. After the previous night, I was fairly sure that I would never be able to deny them again. I was in love with Noah. Not just in lust, even though there was obviously plenty of that to go around, too. Not smitten, or crushing or really, really liking, no, I was head-over-heels-heart-so-full-it-aches-from-nearly-bursting-undeniably-and-irreversibly-in-love with him.
With the knowledge of my debt to Gabe increasingly growing, I turned in Noah’s direction and said, “You may have to take out a loan just to pay Gabe back.”
Noah’s eyes twinkled as he looked over at me and winked.
“I’ve got it covered.”
I swiveled my chair back in the opposite direction just so Noah wouldn’t see how genuinely delighted I was in that very moment. I was slightly disgusted with myself already. Gushing over him in plain sight for him to witness, would have pushed me over the edge completely.
“So…tell me Gabe the Babe: what’s new with you?”
“You mean aside from breaking up with my girlfriend and winding up homeless?”
“Yeah, as
ide from that…”
Gabe laughed.
“Actually I’ve been pretty good. I mean, crashing at Jason’s hasn’t been perfect, but surprisingly more enjoyable than living with Psychonette.”
I propped my feet up on the edge of the desk and chuckled.
“Psychonette?”
I could hear the amusement in Gabe’s voice when he confirmed it.
“Yeah, that’s what we call her now. Well, either that or J-bitch, but I like the way Psychonette rolls off my tongue.”
“Oh, totally,” I mused. This was the first real conversation he and I had had in ages. Sure, there had been text messages here and there, and quick calls to say ‘hi’, but trying to maintain the relationship we had had while living together had proven to be nearly impossible between different schedules and life pulling us in opposite directions. I hadn’t even realized how much I missed Gabe until that moment.
Nearly an hour went by of us chatting back and forth and by the time the conversation came to an end, I couldn’t believe I had ever considered a life deprived of all of the people I loved most. Moving on was one thing…moving away was something entirely different. I would think twice before going to such lengths to run away from my own happiness again.
Getting Lucky (A Lucky Novella) Page 3