Turning to him, I said, “You are not going to see that.”
Quickly, Gabe grabbed my hand and placed it on his crotch.
I let out a light breath because I couldn’t believe how hard he was and it was so fucking sexy.
Tilting his head, Gabe said, “You have me so fucking hard right now, Sarah.”
“I can feel that,” I said breathlessly.
“So I can see you do that?” Gabe whispered for my ears only.
Moving back, I looked up at him. Pausing, I said, “Eventually. Not now, but eventually.”
“Fuck,” Gabe groaned under his breath.
Falling down into the booth, Ryder asked, “So what are you two kids talking about?” with a knowing smile on his face.
“Oh, shut up, Ryder!” I teased as I threw a piece of toast at him.
Catching it in his hand, Ryder blew a kiss my way. “Thanks, babe,” as he gave me a wink.
Letting out a deep breath, I shook my head. Ryder really had some growing up to do. Even though I didn’t like Taylor, he seemed pretty calm with her. But now? I knew he was going to be a crazy animal. I knew this summer was going to be a blur for him because he would be drunk all of the time. And then we would be in college? I knew he would be a major player. No doubt about that.
Ryder bit down on the buttered toast I had thrown at him. Upon swallowing, he asked, “So, Gabe, are you still planning on going back to Arizona?”
As I turned towards Gabe, I saw his body stiffen. I knew this was a sensitive subject for him. It was for me, also. We hadn’t even talked about it that much. Just only for the few short minutes we had this morning.
Turning to me, Gabe gave a slight smile. I knew it was hard for him to give the smile. I knew he was just trying to give me some comfort that we would get through this. It was just four years. How hard could that be?
Attempting to give a smile, I let out a breath and turned to grab my glass of cranberry juice.
“Well, Sarah and I were actually talking about it for a few minutes before someone called this morning,” Gabe said with raised eyebrows.
Tilting his head, Ryder said, “Yeah, sorry about that,” as he bit his bottom lip. “I’ll pay you back when I get paid this week from work.”
“Yeah, I know you will,” Gabe said in a stern voice. Shaking his head, Gabe said, “Anyway, um, yeah. I’m still going to Arizona for school.”
“Are you fucking serious, dude?” Ryder asked with a look of shock on his face.
“Yeah,” Gabe whispered. “I already accepted with them and who knows? I could transfer after a year.” Turning to me, Gabe smiled and said, “We’ll see.”
Yeah, we’ll see.
“Fuck. It’s just I thought you would transfer now for Sarah,” Ryder said.
Turning to Ryder, Gabe said, “Dude, you better watch what you say. I love Sarah. Very much. But―”
“So what do you guys want to do after this?” Ryder interrupted. I knew he saw the look on my face and what I was thinking. I didn’t want to hear what Gabe had to say. I knew he loved me and I knew he didn’t want to hurt me. Not intentionally, but it was still going to hurt to hear Gabe say that he wanted to go to Arizona. That it was, in a sense, more important than me.
Letting my head drop, I quietly finished the rest of my food while Gabe and Ryder talked about baseball and what our summer was going to consist of. Parties. Bonfires. Keg stands. One-night stands… on Ryder’s part, maybe.
Dropping the bill on the table, Ryder grabbed for it. Lifting his fist to his mouth, he started to chuckle. “Well, thanks, man,” he said as he handed it over to Gabe.
“You are such a fuck,” Gabe said with a smile on his face as he shook his head. Pulling out a $20 and a $5 for a tip for the waitress, Gabe closed his wallet. As he started to put it in his back pocket, Gabe shook his head. “I don’t know how we’re friends, to be perfectly honest,” he said with a laugh.
As he shrugged his shoulders, Ryder said, “Well, one good thing is you fell in love with my best friend.” He looked over at me and gave me a sincere smile.
“Thank you,” I mouthed to Ryder as I gave him a smile.
“Yeah, that’s the best thing that happened,” Gabe said.
I could see him out of the corner of my eye, staring at me. Turning to him, I smiled and saw a twinkle in his eye.
Nodding his head, Ryder smiled and said, “Well, let’s get the fuck outta here, you two.”
***
“Well, thanks, man, for dropping me off,” Ryder said as he knocked fists with Gabe.
“Don’t mention it,” Gabe said.
Turning towards his front door, Ryder yelled, “I’ll see you two later,” and started to run up the front stairs.
“See ya,” Gabe and I both yelled.
After Ryder closed the door, Gabe asked, “What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know,” I whispered.
“Sarah, we’ll get through this. I promise you we will,” Gabe whispered as he wrapped his right arm around me.
“Yeah, I know,” I said as I dipped my head. But I wasn’t sure if my mind wanted to believe my heart this time around.
Chapter 14
Sarah