Page 83 of Keep My Heart
‘I did too. It went too fast.’
‘When do you think you’ll be back?’
‘Probably Thanksgiving. I’d like to come back for the fall festival if I can get the time off, but I doubt it’ll happen.’
I take another sip of wine, hoping it’ll lessen the sadness I’m feeling about not seeing Nick again.
‘I got you something.’ He pulls an envelope out of his pocket and sets it on the table. ‘I didn’t want to give it to you in front of everyone.’
‘Nick, you didn’t have to get me anything.’
‘I wanted to. It’s a graduation gift.’
‘You’ve already done enough with the party and the cake.’
‘The party was my mom’s idea.’ He nods toward the envelope. ‘Go ahead and open it.’
I pick up the envelope and open it to find a card inside. It’s a graduation card, the only one I got other than the one my mom sent me.
‘Open it up,’ he says.
I open the card and another envelope falls out. I hold it up. ‘What’s this?’
He smiles. ‘Open it and find out.’
WhenI do, I find a gift card inside. It’s an airline gift card and has $500 on it.
‘It’s so you can fly home,’ Nick says. ‘See your mom. Spend time with Diane. Or when you need to get a break from LA and go back to small-town life.’
‘Nick, I can’t take this. It’s too much.’
‘It’s not too much. You know what I make an hour?’ He reaches across the table and holds my hand, something I’ve missed and will miss even more when he’s gone. ‘I know it’s tough being away from family and the friends you grew up with. And now that you’re divorced I’m sure it’s even tougher, adjusting to a new life on your own. This way you can make a trip home and not have to worry about paying for it.’
‘Nick.’ I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to hold back the tears, but one manages to slide down my cheek.
‘Hey.’ Nick rubs my hand. ‘This was supposed to be a good thing. Why are you crying?’
‘Because it’s perfect.’ I wipe my eyes. ‘It’s exactly what I needed. Chris cleaned out our savings and I didn’t know when I’d be able to come back here.’ I smile. ‘These are happy tears. I can’t thank you enough.’
‘You’re welcome. I’m glad I could do it.’
‘You’re a great guy, Nick. I’m going to miss you.’
‘I’ll miss you too.’ He takes his hand from mine and picks up his drink, swigging down half of it.
‘You think your dad will be okay?’
‘I think so. He was probably just exhausted from getting the party ready. He was looking better tonight.’
‘It was nice of you to do all that work in the orchard for him.’
‘I liked doing it. It was hard work, but it was also kind of relaxing, being out there in the fresh air, the beautiful scenery. You don’t appreciate that shit when you’re younger. Back in highschool, I couldn’t wait to get away from it and away from this town.’
‘And now?’
‘Now I kind of miss it, but I wouldn’t want to be here all the time. A few times a year is enough.’
He seems determined to stay in New York, and my life is in LA. So why do I keep holding out hope that Nick and I could be together someday?
