Page 21 of Love Me Forever

"I know."

"So it's lunchtime now?"

"Yes."

"Do you have plans for the afternoon?" I asked him.

He grinned. "Well, since it's almost afternoon now, I want to finish eating this breakfast, and then I'll start with you."

My whole body tingled at that.Travis Maxwell is a dirty talker through and through.

"You want to go to the flea market?" I asked.

"You do that on Saturdays?"

"I do. Most people sell old belongings, though I do occasionally find a gem. But I use the opportunity to check on two residents, Mr. Edwards and Mrs. Lewis. They're both very elderly, and when I first arrived, Mr. Edwards offered to help me clean up this space. And Mrs. Lewis bought me an apple pie. They both live alone, and Mrs. Lewis has a bad hip. She's got mobility issues, but she doesn't like it if I check on her at home, and neither does Mr. Edwards. He says it makes him feel old. So I check on them at the flea market."

He looked at me with a strange expression, then said, "Okay, next stop flea market. Then we come back here, and I put my plan into motion."

Heat skittered along my body. "You are one determined man."

"Hell yes. I've got a few days here, and I plan to make every minute count."

It was time to tease him again. I leaned back against the chair. “Who said you're welcome here the whole week?"

He wiggled his eyebrows. "I like my chances."

"I wouldn't kick you out of bed, that's for sure," I murmured, then couldn't help myself and burst out laughing. "If you think you can keep up the pace from last night for the whole week, I'll be impressed."

“You certainly will be.”

Spending time with him was easy. Even talking about personal things wasn’t a struggle as it sometimes could be. Was it because I knew he was going back to Chicago and we'd probably never cross paths again? I had no idea, but it felt good to be around him. I couldn’t wait to spend more time with him, though I made a promise to myself not to get too attached.

***

The flea market wason the opposite end of the town. The walk there took ten minutes. It was in full swing. I stopped at Mr. Edwards's cart first. He was selling old newspapers today.

"How are you feeling, Mr. Edwards?"

"Good. These old bones still work. That's all I need."

"What are you selling?" Travis asked.

Mr. Edwards fixed him with his eyes. "I like collecting newspapers.”

“I know it's all the rage for people to buy the newspaper that coincided with their date of birth,” Travis said.

“Who knows? Maybe I can get rid of some of them. They're taking up a lot of space."

I didn't say anything. Mr. Edwards was a bit of a hoarder. I didn't think selling the newspapers would solve the problem, but it was a start.

I stopped by Mrs. Lewis's cart next. She was selling handmade calendars. They were pretty, but I'd already bought two; if I kept at it, I would become a hoarder myself.

"Bonnie, darling, who is this handsome man?" she asked with a smile.

"Travis. He's staying at the Winston Hotel. I'm just showing him around."

"Uh-huh," Mrs. Lewis said, staring at Travis in that same way Mr. Edwards had. I could barely fight laughter.

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