The Grumpy Roommate Gamble (Heroes of Huckleberry Creek #1)

16. Felicity

SIXTEEN

FELICITY

“Are you okay?” Austen asked softly.

“Not even a little bit. But that doesn’t really matter now.”

I’d packed everything I owned in a haze. As I’d said to Gabe, I didn’t actually have that much stuff. The bistro set and chandelier were still in his backyard, but I no longer wanted them, because they made me think of him. Of that first kiss, when it still felt as if we were on the cusp of possibility.

I hadn’t seen him again. He’d been sticking to his new routine of getting home so late, he assumed I was asleep and could avoid me. So many times I thought about going out and confronting him. Trying to force him to talk about what had happened. But what would that accomplish? He’d clearly made up his mind.

I couldn’t understand what had gone so horribly wrong. I mean, I knew the nightmare and what had happened after had scared him. It had scared me, too, a little. But I wasn’t afraid of him. I was completely and utterly heartbroken. Because I’d let myself dream. Let myself hope. I’d fallen in love with some specter of my own imagination. Some dream.

Well, we were both wide awake now .

It was back to the real world.

I settled the last bag of my clothes into Austen’s trunk and shut it. “I’ve just got to get the last of my plants. I’ll meet you over there in a little while, okay?”

“Don’t you want me to help you with the last of it?”

“No. I need to do this last part myself, okay?”

“Okay. Hey, why don’t I go ahead and call in a pizza? I can swing through town and pick it up on the way.”

I wasn’t at all sure I could eat, but it would keep her occupied. “Sure. That sounds great.” I tried to force a smile and failed miserably.

Austen squeezed me tight. “I’ll get ice cream, too.”

That had tears welling again. “Thanks. You’re a good friend.”

“Damned straight. See you in a bit.”

When she was gone, I headed back into the house and began carting out my plant babies. The used minivan I’d purchased for deliveries for the shop was already full of boxes. But I’d packed it in such a way as to create little nooks for the pots. I was just securing the last of them when Gabe’s truck pulled into the driveway.

Did he have some kind of radar for when I was finally out of his house?

He slid out of the truck, hesitating as he saw me with the plants. Something that might’ve been regret passed over his face. For just a moment, I wondered if the reality of seeing this would make what he’d asked of me finally sink in. If he’d realize he’d made a mistake and ask me to stay.

Instead, he pocketed his keys. “I’ll help you with the last of it.”

God, I couldn’t endure that. There were still a handful of boxes in the house that I’d intended to save for another trip. I’d send Austen by to get them later. She could give him his keys, too.

“You really don’t have to. You’ve done enough.” I didn’t even know what I meant by that. Whether I was talking about the good or the bad.

Just the sight of him had my heart cracking into pieces all over again. But I was determined to get through this without crying in front of him. Swallowing hard, I lifted my chin. “Thank you for giving me a place to stay. And for fixing my house. And thank you for giving me back a piece of my father.”

My throat went thick, and I had to take a few moments to get myself under control again. “And thank you for giving me resolution to my lifelong crush. It didn’t end how I was hoping, but I enjoyed our time together, nonetheless. I don’t regret anything.”

Painful though this whole thing was, I found that part was absolutely true.

“I hope you find what you’re looking for, Gabe.”

Turning my back on him, I slid into the driver’s seat of the van and quietly shut the door I really wanted to slam. No reason to subject my plants to the heartbreak and rage I really wanted to let fly.

Keeping a few miles under the speed limit, I drove back to the house I’d been avoiding like the plague for months. Using the keys he’d left on the kitchen counter at his house, I let myself inside. Austen wasn’t here yet, and I took the time to walk through. I’d only absorbed a little of what he’d done the last time I’d been here because my focus had been entirely on him.

At some point, he’d gotten rid of the furniture that had been ruined by the flood. We hadn’t talked about it, but I appreciated that. The sofa was probably full of mold, and the warped bookcases had simply broken my heart every time I saw them. I’d need to get more furniture at some point. Money was tight right now, so I’d make do with what I had until I found something second-hand that would work.

Moving through the house, I saw that everything looked new. There were no signs of the flood that had devastated my life. And in the living room, against the freshly sheet-rocked wall that was still painted only primer white, was a new bookcase. I could tell at a glance it was Gabe’s work, not something that had been purchased and assembled. Even in breaking my heart and kicking me out, he’d given me a parting gift. Because that was the kind of man he was.

Sinking to the floor beside it in the empty house I’d once called home, I finally gave in and let the tears come.