I gave her a murderous glare and muttered a sarcastic, “Thanks.”
Once that had been decided, Spencer was ushering me away from the check out and toward the door. I didn’t even have a chance to really understand how I was feeling about all of it and now, all I could think about was the way Spencer’s hand was wrapped around my wrist. His hands were warm and his fingers felt thick and strong. I remembered when those hands had touched me in an entirely different way. Even though the experience was five years ago, I still remembered the way Spencer made me feel like it was yesterday.
“There’s a diner just a little way up the street we could head to if you want to eat?” Spencer suggested when we were outside and he finally let go of my wrist.
I shook my head. I didn’t want anyone to see us or to let myself get pulled into whatever spell Spencer seemed to have me under. I had to resist. “I don’t get long for my lunch break. If you want to talk to me, we should probably just walk and talk.”
“Whatever you want, Rylee,” he told me in that deep voice of his that made me want him even more.
Instead of dwelling on it, however, I sped up my steps and began striding down Main Street, desperate to get Spencer and I away from any prying eyes who might tell my mom. Just outside of the town center there was a long, winding river that sparkled cerulean in the afternoon sun. I headed toward it in a bit of a mindless daze thinking that not many people were likely to spot us there. Maybe a few birds, I told myself.
“I love this spot under the willow tree by the river,” Spencer said to me as we headed toward it. “It’s a scenic spot, one of my favorites. I did always think Halston was a lovely town and while I was in Boise, I missed it every day.”
We reached the tree and Spencer turned to look at me. His gray eyes met my own blue ones and he reached out to gently touch my arms. I was starstruck for a moment. I wasn’t sure what to do. I just stood silently and looked at him, enjoying being so close to him again after so long.
“Yes, I missed Halston, but I didn’t miss it half as much as I missed you, Rylee.”
5
Spencer
I expected some kind of reaction – even a negative one – but Rylee just stood there, staring at me, speechless. At first, I waited a few moments to see if she was just collecting her thoughts, but then I thought, Screw it.
“Rylee, I know what happened between us wasn’t very well thought out and I wish I had never left you without giving you my phone number or even getting your last name because trust me, I’ve regretted it ever since,” I began to tell her, gripping tight to her arms and hoping that she’d believe me. “But there was a reason I just disappeared. Five years ago, I was working for a huge company as an engineer. I’d been working there for years and honestly, I was bored. I wanted a challenge. I wanted to do something more exciting with my life. That was when I started coming to the coffee shop.”
I stopped to take a deep breath and then continued, “I started working on an idea I’d had for years of a machine element that would streamline irrigation and save water and time for farmers. So, every time you saw me in the coffee shop, that’s what I was working on. It was years in the making and even when I saw you that last night, I never dreamed I would actually be able to file the patent and make a profit from it. But that’s exactly what happened.”
Rylee gave me a strange look as though she wasn’t entirely following all the complex terms I was referring to, so I decided to try and get to the point.
“Anyway, what I’m trying to say is that the day after we slept together, I got a call from a company in Chicago who wanted to discuss the patent with me. I thought it would be a quick meeting, but the negotiations ended up taking around six months which was completely unexpected. But it did lead to a deal that made me… well, a lot of money. As soon as I signed those contracts, I took the first flight back to Boise and I went back to the coffee shop, trying to find you, but… you were already gone.”
I saw Rylee’s eyes widen at the confession and I don’t really understand why. Did she not think I felt something for her after that first magical night? It had been life-changing for me, but perhaps, Rylee had felt differently. I thought since she had given me her virginity that it meant something to her, but maybe I was just kidding myself. After all, she was a young, sexy woman who must have been beating guys away with a stick. And me? I was some guy almost twice her age who had fucked her and took off. It was no wonder she didn’t expect anything to happen between us. Who was I kidding?