Chapter 24 #2
Everyone laughed at that. They continued to talk and eat, small conversations breaking out here and there but Gavin's focus was on her.
With every occasional shift in her seat, he would catch plumes of the sweet fragrance of her perfume.
He wanted to speak to only her but he knew it wasn't the time, instead he forced himself to engage in the conversations around him, spending a considerable portion of the entrée speaking to Leon about his capoeira training.
"Tell me," Elias began, looking straight at Ebony. "Are you still planning on going to Harvard?"
Gavin stiffened, flicking a glance over to his father.
He recalled their conversation in his office weeks ago and the pamphlets Ebony had sent off for.
In both of their minds there was really no discussion on the matter, Ebony would attend Harvard, end of story.
Now whether that was a battle she still planned on waging was another thing entirely.
A second stretched by as the whole table went silent in expectation of her answer. Unable to hold out any longer, Gavin turned to look down at her, his jaw tightening in apprehension at what he would see.
Buying herself a second more of time, Ebony politely wiped her mouth with the linen napkin in her lap before flicking a glance to him.
There were remnants of anger and pride sparking in her beautiful brown eyes like a flint strike.
Gavin understood the unspoken message, he wasn't forgiven yet and her anger at him wasn't forgotten.
But eventually she smiled and looked at her uncle with a smile and nodded. "Yeah, as long as Gavin doesn’t kill me by driving me crazy beforehand."
Gavin nearly wilted in relief. A motion from across the table caught his eye, and he glanced up and caught Cameron's stare. He was looking at Ebony like a man holding onto the last thread of a fantasy. Gavin didn’t allow himself to smile, because there truly wasn’t anything enjoyable about what was coming.
He was going to unravel every piece of his friend's dream until he questioned if it was ever really there.
Underneath the table he reached for her hand and nearly brought it to his lips for a kiss when she grasped him back, her fingers entwining with his under the table's shadows.
His thumb stroked the smooth skin of her hand as he grinned at everyone. "I will be on my best behavior."
Checking his watch, Gavin stood up and went to the door.
It had been nearly an hour since dinner.
He had walked Ebony back to her room, promising he would be back soon.
If she wasn’t showered and dressed by now, she was just going to have to tolerate his presence while she did.
He had spent the entire time pacing his room.
Every minute since he arrived on the ship had felt like hours as he waited for this moment.
He needed to speak to her. He needed to fix everything he had fucked up between them.
Since he was on a floor below hers, he used a service corridor designed for staff to go upstairs. This route would take him past a game room and another living area and then into the private quarters. Gavin was reaching for another door when he heard voices—voices he knew all too well.
Gavin paused. He was standing in front of a service door that opened into the game room. Inside, he could overhear Luis, Ethan, and Cameron speaking.
"Why in God's name would you go after her of all people? You know how unhinged he is," Luis's voice, dry and incredulous.
"Yeah, enlighten us," Ethan chimed in, his voice as unserious as ever. "Is this like a new form of suicide? Like death by cop or something?"
"No," Cameron said, his voice sharper than the others. "I like her. And she likes me. You two need to ask yourselves why you're so afraid of him."
Luis laughed under his breath. "We're not afraid."
"Why the hell would we be afraid of him? We've never given him a reason to get angry at us much less get so angry he kicks the shit out of us in our own house. Yeah, we heard about that," Ethan added. "Small town, remember?"
Cameron exhaled and Gavin could hear his empty, humorless chuckle. "Yeah, well I refuse to be his lackey. He doesn’t have the right to tell me what I can and cannot do."
"When it comes to Ebony he does," Ethan said dryly.
"She's his sister. His goddamn sister! Why is everyone ignoring that fact?" Cameron snapped and Gavin could imagine the anger written on his face.
There was a pause. Then Luis spoke, his voice even. "But she's not his sister, is she?"
Ethan's tone turned amused. "Wait. Was it the red dress? Last year?" He snapped his fingers as if the thought was catching. "Last year when we were all over at their house and their parents were there. We were hanging out in the kitchen when she came down in that red cocktail dress?"
Luis groaned. "Fuck. That dress."
Ethan kept going. "Was that when you fell for her? She came downstairs and we all just stood there. Like a deer in headlights. I swear I didn’t even make it home that night. Just scrolled through my phone and ended up at Jenna’s."
Luis whistled low. "To be fair, same. Not Jenna's but Rachel's."
Gavin stepped back. It was best he stepped away now before he heard anything more that might make him barge in and throw all three of them overboard.
Making his way to her cabin, he stopped in front of her door. The hallway was quiet and there were a few other cabin doors along the wall. Most likely belonging to her uncles. Gavin knocked softly. A few seconds later her door opened.
Standing in a fluffy white robe that seemed to swallow her whole, she stared up at him. Her curls were big and bouncy, framing her face like a soft black cloud.
Gavin stepped inside and closed the door behind him. Her room, a carbon copy of his, was swathed in soft amber light from a lamp in the corner, reducing the space into something private and intimate.
“I'm happy you're here.” As if she had been holding it in all night she began to speak. “It felt wrong you not being here to celebrate our birthdays, but don't think I'm just going to forgive and forget everything you've-"
Closing the distance between them, he grabbed her face, gently kissing her on the cheek, cutting off her words. "I've missed you," he sighed. His words came out like a confession.
Ebony blinked, her face small between his hands.
Grabbing his wrists she lowered them and fixed him with a stare.
"If you've missed me then prove it. No more cryptic statements, no more walking off when I press for answers.
Tell me why you pulled away from me. Tell me why you decided to treat me like a stranger. "
Her voice caught on the last words, a small shift. A small crack in her tone that hit him like a gunshot. He tried to pull her in closer but she stepped back. Her eyes bright with unshed tears, she stood her ground, silently demanding he speak.
There was so much to say and so much she wasn’t ready for. Gavin sighed. "I'm sorry. I was just mad."
Not at all satisfied with that answer, she balled her fists into the fabric of her robe. "Mad about what?"
"Mad that my best friend wanted to date you,” he snapped.
“Mad that you probably wouldn't mind. But even madder knowing I should step back and not get in the way.
" And even though it wasn’t the whole truth, it was a truth.
True enough that the words were bitter on his tongue, scraping across his insides as they poured from him.
His own fucking friend had betrayed him. Hell, it sounded like all fucking three of them had considered it at one point or another. Frustrated, he turned away, willing his anger to calm.
"I'm not dating Cameron," her soft-spoken words felt like cool water splashing in his face.
Frowning, Gavin turned on his heel and gave her a look that said are you serious. Because he was still haunted by the image of her laying on Cameron's bed with his fucking hand up her shirt.
"What? I'm serious, we aren't," she said, her eyes wide. For some reason, Gavin believed her.
Running a hand through his hair he thought about that as he continued to give her a speculative stare. "Does he know that?"
Ebony shrugged and looked away. "We're just hanging out."
"Good Lord, you're a cruel woman," he laughed, only to laugh harder when she threw a pillow at him.
"But no seriously. You treated me like that for so long just because…you thought I was dating. That's not fair or right. You've done all sorts of-"
Again, he cut her off this time crowding her close until they were standing by the bed.
Dipping his head to her collar, he inhaled the citrusy sweet scent of her shampoo.
He buried his face in her curls, letting them glide over his skin.
"Please forgive me Ebbs. I've been a dick," he groaned into the dark mass of her hair.
"I was angry. So fucking angry, you have no idea.
It feels like I've been angry forever. I forgot what it felt like to smile and laugh and hold you. "
Ebony pushed at his chest and he briefly considered not moving but relented, allowing her to push him back only a step.
She gave him a look of indignant outrage. "But you were the one who left me! You were the one who did all of that. Why should I just forgive you and pretend you didn’t hurt me so badly?" she said, her voice rising.
Unable to tolerate even the small distance she managed to get between them, Gavin stepped forward, pushing her onto the bed. He ignored her protests as he climbed after her retreating figure. He grabbed her just as she was about to escape to the other side of the bed and pulled her into a bear hug.
"I know. I know. I fucked up," he admitted in a soothing voice as she tried to fight out of his embrace. "If…if you knew what had been going on in my mind you would have me locked away. I was losing my mind. I need you to forgive me. I need us back. I need to feel like I'm living again."