Page 101 of Never With You
“How mature of you.” I playfully roll my eyes.
“In all honesty, I was in over my head on the New Zealand trip.”
My mouth falls open. “I knew it!”
“The trip didn’t go smoothly at all. More than once, I wished you’d been there to help me.”
I hit the water, splashing him. “That’s called karma.”
His laughter is instant. “Your trip checklist was the only thing that saved me.”
“So, in the end, all credit for a successful trip goes to me.”
“Pretty much.”
This conversation tears my walls down. Every reason I had to dislike Nate at work is going up in flames, and it’s scary. But will it stay like this when we get back to the office?
“So, I’ve been thinking about something you said last night,” he shifts the topic.
“What’s that?”
“You said you rafted the Noce River in Italy after high school.”
“Yeah.”
“Was that, like, a graduation trip?”
“No, funny story. I actually won the trip fromThe Price is Right. It was part of my Showcase Showdown.”
Something crosses through Nate’s eyes, and a frown creases his brows.
“I know,” I laugh, “shocking that I was onThe Price is Right.But I’m obsessed with being on game shows. Another piece of me I like to keep hidden.”
“Wait.” The lines across his forehead deepen even more. “You wonThe Price is Right?”
“Yeah.” I don’t know why he’s acting so strange about this.
“And you won the Italy trip?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Is that the only game show you’ve ever been on?”
“No, I’ve also been onLet’s Make a Deal.”
He blinks a few times. “The one you have to dress up for?”
“Yes, I know, totally embarrassing. I wore my dad’s real antlers to the show, and every time the camera panned to me, they were falling off. When I watched the show back, I looked like a complete idiot.”
Nate’s eyes drop to the water, and he just floats there…silently.
He must have some prejudice against people who appear on game shows, although I don’t know why he would. I’ve always considered it to be one of the most unique things about me—the truth I share whenever people playtwo truths and a lie.
“I think I'll take a swim for a while.” He doesn’t wait for my response before diving into the water and disappearing.
I stand confused, not knowing what just went wrong between us.
I didn’t speakto Nate the rest of the afternoon as we gathered our group and took the boat ride back to the resort. It felt almost as if he was avoiding me. His distant behavior didn’t make sense, especially since we had a good conversation in the water. But despite everything I told myself, insecurities from my past flared up. Was I too controlling during the side tour? Did I boss him around too much? Did my personality come across as too strong? It’s frightening how much my old ghosts affect me, especially since Isaac isn’t on my mind or radar anymore. But what’s even more frightening is how much I’m beginning to care about what Nate thinks of me.
