Chapter 10 #2
An audible gulp slipped down her throat as she tipped back the glass. Did that mean he thought Gage was serious about her? She hoped. Carly set her glass down. “Go ahead.”
“Are you open to dating someone besides Gage? Now that you’re dating, I mean.”
Carly tipped her chin as she considered. Not beating around the bush, was he?
“If you’re only interested in dating Gage right now, that’s fine, of course. I just…was kind of giving you space, but I hoped you always knew that I was interested.” Christian reached for his glass, took four solid swigs of his water, and set it back down with a nod.
She held his gaze, realizing what he wanted from her. “I guess I thought we had more of a friendship type of thing going on,” she said. It was only half of a lie. On her side, things had been more platonic. She just hadn’t known how platonic until she actually considered it.
A spark of confusion lit his face, reminding Carly of the kiss they’d shared.
“I mean,” she amended. “I did have a moment where…I wondered if there could be something more between us. But to be honest, I wasn’t in the right place for it, mentally.
I think I was hoping to push myself a little, but the timing was off.
” There, she’d blamed the timing more than she had her lack of romantic feelings for him. That was probably better.
Christian nodded and studied a spot on the table. “That makes sense. Just…wanted to make sure you knew that I was interested. But, uh…” He straightened his shoulders and puffed out his chest. “I’ll just score myself another babe to hang out with this summer.”
Carly grinned. “That shouldn’t be hard.”
“Tsk, for me?” he smacked his chest with one hand. “Forget about it. That’s as easy as breathing.”
She knew he was covering the awkwardness once again, but Carly was grateful. After a few more bites, Christian shared some hilarious reenactments of a few recent dance mishaps.
And just like that, the energy shifted. From the stiff tension of wondering what the evening might hold, to a comfortable acceptance of what it was: two friends having a bite to eat together.
They were friends. Good friends. She was certain, in fact—as the conversation continued—that Christian wouldn’t have said a bad thing about her to Gage. It wasn’t who or how he was.
“I’m happy that you’re moving beyond your past,” he said as they dished up seconds. “You seem like you’re in a good place.”
“Thank you. I am.” She reached for her glass, pausing before taking a sip. “So, what about this whole work situation? You know I’ve never paid much attention to that part of the contract. Am I going to get in trouble if I start seeing Gage?”
Christian dabbed his mouth with a napkin, a mischievous grin tugging at one side of his lips. “That all depends on which side is winning in the main office.”
“Side?”
“Sweet ol’ Mrs. King, she’s a matchmaker of sorts.
And while she doesn’t want any funny business leaking to the press, she secretly prides herself over all the couples who’ve walked down the aisle after meeting right here at the Royal Palm.
Then we have Mr. King. He’s the stickler.
Each year there’s a tug-of-war evident in the employee contracts.
A give here, a new take there. It’s the epitome of compromise. ”
Carly smiled as she pictured it.
“And then,” Christian said, his tone getting low.
He leaned over the table slightly. “If you ask me, I’d say there’s a younger version of the Kings in management.
They’ve got that he said she said thing going on.
Only they’re not married. In fact, the couple has one of those… love hate relationships, I think.”
That spiked her curiosity. “Who? Is it with Cyree?”
Christian poised himself in his chair, straightening his shoulders, and gave her the smallest hint of a nod.
“No way.” She couldn’t imagine it. Cyree always seemed so…businesslike. “She doesn’t strike me as someone who’s even looking to date. You think she likes someone here at the resort?”
Christian grinned. “Whether she knows it or not, yes.”
“Who?”
He shrugged, picked up his fork, and heaped another bite onto it.
“Come on, you can’t leave me hanging now.” Her mind raced. There weren’t a whole lot of options, were there? But then something occurred to her. “If those two spark up a relationship, they’ll have to be okay with other staff members hooking up.”
“Yeah,” Christian said, “with each other, maybe. But not with the patrons. And no matter how far we come, they’ll probably always discourage both. We can’t have people quitting over a bad breakup. Or abandoning their membership at the Palm after getting dumped by one of the staff members.”
Carly sighed. “True. So now I have a question for you in return. You know I spent time with a guy who couldn’t…
well, wouldn’t commit. From what I can tell, Gage isn’t anything like Jimmy, but you’ve known him most of his life.
” Her pulse spiked as she arranged the question in her mind.
“With the job issue aside, do you think, I mean, it’s been close to two weeks now, do you think Gage is a good guy for me to invest in? ”
Her palms broke out in a sweat as she waited for his reply. Red-hot heat flared up in her chest. It had taken years to develop feelings like this for anyone other than Jimmy, and the stakes felt much higher than she wanted to admit.
“Gage hasn’t had a whole lot of girlfriends, to be honest,” Christian said. “I tease him because of how different we’ve always been. I used to be real quick to commit.”
Commit. The ache in her chest multiplied as she considered that. Would Gage be the same as Jimmy in that regard?
“But the good thing about Gage,” Christian continued with a nod, “is that he doesn’t give women a load of bull crap either. If he doesn’t see a future, he won’t string them along saying that he does. He’s honest. And that’s a rare quality among men these days.”
Carly nodded as a wave of relief flooded over her.
“That’s good,” she said. “And you’re right.
There seems to be a real shortage of that.
” The question did make her wonder though.
Just where was this new relationship going?
With his acting stint around the bend, did she and Gage actually have a shot at a normal relationship?
“Have you told Gage about the meaning behind your necklace yet?” Christian nodded to the pendant she wore.
Carly reached for it and shook her head, glad he’d asked it without really asking. Certain things were just too painful to hear without warning.
“Not yet. You didn’t say anything about it, did you?”
Christian frowned. “Of course not.”
“Good.” Carly couldn’t help but sigh with relief. “It’s not something I’m hiding. It’s just such a personal thing, and I hadn’t found the right time to share it.”
Christian gave her a reassuring grin. “Talking about tragedy is no easy feat.”
A dose of warmth rested over her heart. She appreciated the way Christian seemed to understand. “You’re right.”
“But you can trust Gage with the truth. When you’re ready.”
“That’s good to hear.” Carly imagined what the conversation might be like.
She was nervous about exposing such a private piece of her past. Would it scare him away?
Make him see her as damaged goods? She couldn’t help but fear that it might.
Confiding in him could deepen their relationship too though, couldn’t it?
She guessed it all depended on Gage’s reaction.
After dinner, Carly offered to help with the dishes, but Christian let her off the hook, insisting he walk her back to her bungalow before it was dark out.
The timing was perfect, she realized as they stepped outside.
The setting sun cast an orange glow over the beach.
It was impossible not to stare at the reflection along the rippling water, a vision of warmth and light and…
and hope. Hope for future sunsets she might possibly enjoy with Gage on this very beach.
Christian shared stories of what it was like to be friends with Gage as a kid as they walked.
Yes, Gage was spoiled as a child, getting almost everything he wanted, but according to Christian, he was generous too.
She liked seeing him through Christian’s eyes.
It confirmed what she’d concluded herself since getting to know him better: Gage Craven really was a great guy.
“Well,” Christian said as they reached her bungalow. “When I was texting Gage about spending some time with you tonight, we ended off with the old may-the-best-man-win type a thing. Obviously, that didn’t happen…” He chuckled under his breath, and Carly couldn’t help but laugh as well.
“But,” he continued, “I want you to know that Gage can be trusted. He’s not going to jerk you around the way Jimmy did.”
Carly gave Christian a quick hug. “Thank you. That means a lot.”
After thanking him again for dinner, Carly wished Christian goodnight and headed inside.
Thoughts of their conversation ran through her mind as she settled in front of the TV with a bowl of sunflower seeds.
It wasn’t until a bunch of advertisements came on that she noticed she wasn’t even watching the show on the screen.
Instead, she’d been feeding the growing fear rising in her heart. Already she was getting herself into deeper waters than she’d known, but what if it didn’t mean anything to Gage? After all, hadn’t Gage just canceled their date so that Christian could spend time with her?
Come on, Carly. You’re making something out of nothing.
You’ve only shared a kiss with the guy. But inside, Carly knew what a very big deal that was for her.
She’d opened up to Gage in ways she normally wouldn’t allow.
And now, she was about to take things to a whole new level by opening up about her past. She couldn’t help but fear what that might look like, exposed in the unknown depths, foolishly hoping for Gage Craven to…
to what? Come to her rescue by accepting that part of her past?
By saying he wanted to be part of her future?
The more she considered it, the less possible it all seemed. Perhaps what Carly was really doing was making one great big mistake. Maybe she’d be better off just staying in the shallows where it was safe.