Page 85 of Dear John

I waited impatiently for him to pull himself together. I had no idea my revelation would hit him so hard. They were just a snack. Then again, maybe I would react the same way if someone said they didn’t like to go to flea markets. I thought they were amazing, but not everyone could have such good taste.

His eyes finally opened and a smile graced his face. A very large, almost frightening smile. I smiled back, wondering when he was going to move. “Fox.”

“Yeah?”

“Can I get in my room?”

He scoffed out a laugh. “Of course you can.”

As I stepped, he shifted with me.

“Do you like musicals?”

“I feel like we’ve had this conversation before.”

“No, we most definitely haven’t. I remember every conversation I’ve ever had about musicals. It’s sort of my thing,” he said, his smile growing.

“Well…maybe another time.”

“How about now?”

“How about another time?”

“You already said that.”

“That’s because I meant it.”

“Right, but you didn’t really,” he chuckled.

“I really did.”

“No, you only think you did. But deep down inside, you have that feeling growing in the pit of your tummy. Right here,” he said, grabbing my lower stomach and squeezing. “Right there, can you feel it?”

“I feel nothing but a strong desire for you to remove your hand from my stomach,” I deadpanned. Any other time, I was all for Fox and his antics, but I couldn’t take it right now.

He slowly retracted his fingers and resumed his cheery stance. “So, how about that musical?”

“Fox—”

“We haveOklahoma, which is a personal favorite. I watch it with every female who joins our ranks.West Side Storyis another good one, but I have to warn you, it puts me in a mood you might not be comfortable with.” He glanced away and started tapping his chin. “Let’s see…a good movie for you might beFunny FaceorMary Poppinsif you need something with a bit more cheer. And then there’s?—”

“Fox, I really don’t want to watch a musical,” I snapped.

“But you haven’t even finished hearing the list. Perhaps you want to step inside and get the full rundown. I could even perform a few numbers for you.”

“What I really want right now is to go into my room and take a hot bath before I pack and fly home. I don’t want to sing musicals, or talk about musicals, or even think about musicals. My life is not a musical number right now. Do you get that?”

“Of course,” he nodded, his brows pulled in a frown.

This time, he let me sidestep him, but only until I got to the door.

“I don’t suppose I could interest you in a nice margarita?”

I was about to tell him exactly where I would shove a margarita if he didn’t leave me alone when I heard voices on the other side of the door. My gaze slipped to Fox and I shot him a questioning look.

“Is someone in there?”

“How would I know?” he asked, pulling at his shirt collar. “I just got here. Same as you.”

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