Page 35 of Just One Chance
She went back to her phone to respond when the lights of David’s car flashed through her front window. Avery glanced at her watch. Just after ten. Not too bad for a first date. She watched through her window as David climbed out of his car then hesitated in his driveway, looking from his house then back to hers. She tried not to think about what it meant when he stepped toward her house and her heart jumped in her chest.
She swung open her front door before he’d made it all the way up the steps. “Hey,” she said. The night air was cool, so rather than inviting him in, she motioned to the wicker couch that sat at the end of the porch. “Want to sit out here?”
He nodded, his face still unreadable in the dim light.
She lowered herself beside him, turning her body sideways and pulling her legs up under her. “So? How was it?”
David looked at her and grimaced. “I . . . don’t think we will go out again.”
“Oh, no,” Avery said. “Why not? Is she not your type?”
“No, she was fine. Great. I just don’t think we really hit it off.”
Avery narrowed her eyes. There was something he wasn’t saying, but she didn’t want to push it. She’d get the whole story from Shelley at work the next day anyway.
“That’s too bad. But you have to start somewhere, right? You’re new in town, so dating at all is a big step. I’m proud of you for jumping in the pool.” She nudged him with her arm, referencing back to the conversation they’d had about his hesitance to get in the water at pool parties when he was a kid.
He shook his head and heaved a deep sigh. “This didn’t really feel like jumping in.”
“Why not?” Avery asked. “You did it. You went. Youjumped.”
He scrubbed a hand across his face, clearly frustrated by something. “I know, but . . . the pool, it was something I really wanted to do. And this—” He leaned forward on his elbows, nervous energy radiating off of him in waves. “Shelley is nice, but she’s not what I want.”
Avery stilled, the words he wasn’t saying hanging in the air between them. She swallowed. “Well, that’s what dating is, right? It’s just a way to help us figure out what we do want.”
He looked at her then, his eyes clear and intense. “I already know what I want.”
Avery closed her eyes. If she kept them open, kept her gaze trained on David, she might lean in and kiss him and that was absolutely not what she needed to do.
She opened her eyes.
He leaned forward, just slightly, enough for her to know he felt the same pull. She moved toward him, her resistance all but completely crumbled. “David—” she whispered, her lips just inches away from his.
“I don’t think you should be dating Tucker,” he said, cutting her off.
Avery frowned, the magic of the moment wilting in the thick, humid air. She sat back on the couch, her cheeks red from their almost kiss. “What? Why?”
David stood up and moved to the porch railing. He was silent for a long moment before he turned around and spoke, his voice soft. “He’s not good enough for you, Avery. He’s an entitled jerk that . . . I don’t know. I just don’t think he’s right for you.”
Avery folded her arms across her chest, immediately defensive. Who did David think he was? He didn’t even know Tucker. They’d spoken two times and not for longer than five minutes. “You don’t get to be the one to make that call. Even if Ididwant the opinions of my friends, you don’t know him well enough to offer one.”
David scoffed. “I know. . .”
“You know what?” Avery said, suddenly wondering if Daviddidknow something she didn’t.
He turned away, shaking his head in obvious frustration. “Nothing. IknowI don’t know him. I just . . .”
When he didn’t finish his sentence, it was Avery’s turn to scoff. “You just what, David? You can’t leave that hanging over my head like it’s perfectly normal for you to have such a strong opinion about a guy you’ve spent less than ten minutes with. I don’t know what your problem is with him, but you’ve got to back off. I thought we already talked about this.”
David breathed out a sigh then finally turned around to face her. “I’m sorry.” His tone was flat, emotionless. “You’re right. I was out of line.” He took a step backward toward the stairs. “I’m sorry,” he said again. “I won’t mention Tucker again.”
Halfway down the stairs, he stopped and turned. “I do have to wonder, if things are so good between you and Tucker, why you just came that close to kissing me.”
Avery watched him walk across the grass to his own house, letting himself in the front door without a backward glance. She sank back into the cushions of the couch, completely steamrolled by the previous five minutes. She’d wanted to kiss David, felt a pull to him unlike anything she’d experienced in a long time. For a split second, she didn’t see her neighbor, or a nerdy doctor, or a socially awkward guy in glasses. She just saw a man, a man that looked at her like he saw her all the way to her soul.
And then he’d gone and ruined everything by mentioning Tucker. If he wanted to compete with the guy, the lesson he needed to learn most was to keep his opinions to himself. He’d actually had a fighting chance until he went and opened his mouth.
Avery stomped into her house, slamming and locking the front door with enough force to make her entire house shake. Without giving herself time to think about it, she crossed to her phone and texted Tucker.Late tomorrow is good. I’m already looking forward to it.
