Most of All You: A Love Story(51)

Outside my door, the buzz of conversation could be heard. Today they weren’t laughing. Today their conversation sounded hushed and intimate. I pictured their heads bent close together as Chloe learned all the deepest secrets in Gabriel’s heart, those soulful eyes focused on her pretty face. I got up and turned on the bathroom fan, keeping the door open. I didn’t want to hear them. And yet … the envy I felt knowing Chloe was hearing all Gabriel’s most private thoughts rather than me caused an ache to settle in my chest.

You could ask him, Ellie. If you were brave enough, you could ask him to share with you, too.

But then he’d want you to share your secrets as well, a small voice whispered.

A little before five, a knock sounded at my door, and I opened it to find Chloe there. Her smile was radiant. “Hi!”

“Hi, Chloe.”

“I don’t know if Gabriel mentioned that I was going to cook dinner here tonight?”

“Yes, he did. It’s very nice of you.”

She waved her hand in the air. “I’m happy to. I’d have taken them out, but I want you to be as comfortable as possible and so I thought a home-cooked meal would cover all the bases.”

“You’re very kind—”

“And I was hoping you’d keep me company? You don’t have to help if you don’t want to, but I’d love to get to know you a little better. I’ll get you set up on a chair if you can’t stand for long.”

“Oh, um …” Me? Why would she want to get to know me?

She looked at me so hopefully. “Please?”

“Okay.”

That exuberant grin spread over her face again. “Awesome.”

I sat at the island on one of the stools as Chloe unpacked the bag of groceries on the counter that she must have brought with her when she arrived.

Gabriel came in the kitchen and took us in, his eyes lingering on me for a moment before he turned to Chloe. “You sure you’re okay doing this? We could just order takeout.”

“Gosh, no. I’m so happy you’re letting me cook for you. Honestly, Gabriel, after all you’re doing for me, a home-cooked meal is the very least I can do. Don’t deprive me of showing my gratitude. It wouldn’t be nice of you.” She shot him a teasing smile.

He chuckled. “All right, then. Thank you.” He turned back to me. “You good?” His eyes were soft as he seemed to assess how I was sitting, where my leg was propped, his gaze like a warm ray of sunshine washing over me.

“Yeah, I’m good.”

“Okay. I’m going to do a little yard work while you two are in here. I’ve been neglecting this place, and the weeds are taking over.”

“Six o’clock,” Chloe called as he left the kitchen.

“I’ll be here,” he called back.

Chloe turned her smiling face to me, halting in her work. “He’s really … God, he’s just extraordinary, isn’t he?”

Extraordinary. Oh yes, he is that. I nodded. “He is,” I murmured.

Chloe cocked her head, studying me. “I have to admit, when I first talked to him on the phone, I couldn’t help wondering if he was single.” Oh. There was a small, strange, sinking feeling inside me. “But now, seeing the way he looks at you …”

My eyes snapped to hers. “Oh, no. He’s just … we’re only friends, I mean.”

If we see each other naked again …

A warm blush moved up my neck at the memory of the words. Chloe shook her head, a smile tipping her lips. “Oh no, Ellie. The way he looks at you is many things, but friendly is not one of them. He has feelings for you. And if that man has feelings for you, you must be someone very special.”

Just as quickly as joy had run down my spine at her declaration that Gabriel had feelings for me, so now did insecurity and a sense of defeat. I laughed, a humorless sound. “I’m no one special, I can assure you of that.”

Chloe turned, setting a handful of vegetables that she had just gathered from the refrigerator onto the counter. A look of alarm came over her face, and she took my hands in hers across the island, startling me. “Oh, Ellie, I barely know you and I can already tell that’s not true.” She grinned and squeezed my hands before letting go. I couldn’t help the affection that flushed my cheeks at her compliment. Girls had never been kind to me, and I felt strangely shy. She was everything I wasn’t; she was friendly and open, quick to smile and easy to laugh. Pure. Sweet.

“So what do you do?”

Here we go. I watched as Chloe searched for something in a few cabinets, pulling out a cutting board and placing it on the counter. “I’m a stripper.” I stilled as I waited for her reaction.

She halted what she was doing, her eyes widening slightly. “Are you really? God, I’ve always had this secret fantasy about trying that. It must be liberating to feel so free with your body.” She grabbed an onion and started chopping it.

I frowned. “Um, no, actually. I’ve never thought of it that way. I don’t enjoy it. I just sort of … fell into it, I guess.” I sighed. “I won’t say it wasn’t a choice because we all make choices, right?”

Chloe glanced up at me, pausing only momentarily in her chopping. “I suppose, but ‘choice’ is such a loaded word, isn’t it?”