Page 57 of I Met Him At The Library

“Because we didn’t discuss this. Because now everyone in town is going to know you kissed me in public, that we are together.”

“And?”

Shaking my head slowly, I went silent and continued walking. The last thing I wanted to do was give any bystanders anything more to talk about. This could wait until we were in the privacy of my apartment.

I hated confrontation, but it was coming. I tried to calm down so I could approach this rationally … so I wouldn’t ruin this. Except, it was hard for me to think about how this wasn’t already ruined. I didn’t know where we stood with the book festival, if we had a shot at saving the library, or if once again a man was going to be forced to leave for work. I wasn’t important enough for any man to stick around in the past. Why would Ryan stick around?

That wasn’t fair, I didn’t care if the men in the past stuck around or not. But, Ryan? I wanted him to choose to stay here, to be with me, to choose me. I couldn’t expect him to do it. I wasn’t special.

“Are we going to talk?” Ryan asked as we approached my apartment building.

“Not out here,” I hissed as I began digging in my purse for my keys, finding them as I approached the front door to my building.

Unlocking the door, I flung it open and marched inside with Ryan hot on my heels. At my apartment, I stomped in, set my purse on the table, and spun to Ryan as he closed the door behind us.

“What the hell? You knew I didn’t want to go public, yet you kissed me in front of half the town?” I yelled.

“Your ex was sitting across from you, confessing his love. I wasn’t going to lose you to him!” He yelled back.

“He never stood a chance!”

The determination in his eyes disappeared as he stared at me, “What?”

“Nick was … a distraction, at best. I was never in love with him. He was company when I was lonely, and I thought I was the same to him. Either way it didn’t matter because I moved on … to you. He was never an option.”

“How would I know that?”

“Because you could have trusted me.”

“Except, you didn’t tell him when we saw him in Fairwood. It probably would have prevented him even coming out here if you had,” he argued.

“He did have friends here. I don’t know if he still talks to them or not, and I wasn’t ready for the entire town to know.”

“Why do you care so much if the town knows?”

“Because I’m unlovable to them. I can’t make a man stay. But why would any man stay after what half the town believes I did in high school?”

“What?” Confusion came over his face.

“Every boyfriend I’ve ever had has left town. I didn’t care. But you, you might leave town, and I would be devastated. Because you’re different to me than any of them. When you leave it will hurt, and then the town will talk and make it hurt ten times worse because they’ll say, ‘she always makes them run away,’” I explained and Ryan’s expression softened.

“I’d stay,” he whispered.

“Oh? Is the library saved?”

“Well, no not yet.”

“Which means when the doors close, you’ll be forced to leave in order to afford to live. You’ll leave me.”

“Who told you I was going to leave? And if it’s such a huge concern there is something you could do to try to stop it,” he stated, crossing his arms over my chest.

My eyes widened in understanding, and I whispered, “I can’t do that.”

“Right, because of the town gossip. Because you’re so afraid of what everyone will think about you. Because your fear is stronger than your feelings for me. You let this town control everything about your life.”

Looking down to the floor, the fight left me. He wasn’t wrong, but he’d been so supportive of my desire to keep my career a secret, I never expected he’d use it against me. How wrong had I been?

“Get out,” I whispered.

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