Crushing On You: Travis and Gabriella (An Emerald Falls Romance, Book One) Page 12

  Chloe smiled. “What about us? We’re living vicariously through you right now.”

  Gabby laughed. “Sorry to be such a disappointment.”

  They all laughed as well.

  When they dropped Gabby off that night, she felt marginally better, although she wondered how she would get through the next ten months—what if she ran in to Travis? What would she say? How would she feel? What if she ran into Travis and another woman? That would be even worse.

  Discouraged and depressed, she got ready for bed and tried to keep from thinking about Travis Haywood, but found that impossible as she tossed and turned all night.

  The next day at the clinic, Travis kept thinking about what it would be like to be running his own clinic. The idea continued to excite him, but when his thoughts strayed to Gabriella Peters, the excitement dimmed dramatically.

  Frustrated that he had to choose between two things that he wanted so badly, he tried not to think of either one.

  “Dr. Haywood,” Emily said after lunch. “I got a call from someone looking for a yellow lab. I think it might be Buttercup’s owner.”

  An image of Gabriella jumped into Travis’s mind, jolting him. “Okay.”

  “She said she’s been caring for her husband who’s been in the hospital with a serious illness, and when she realized Daisy—that’s her dog’s name—had gotten out, she’d been upset, but hadn’t been able to search for her until now.”

  “Ask her to come by the clinic tomorrow. I’ll pick up the dog tonight and bring her here.”

  Emily nodded, then walked away.

  A wide smile curved Travis’s mouth. He was going to have to go to Gabriella’s house.

  Then his smile faded.

  But he was going to have to take Buttercup away.

  Chapter 31

  “There you go, you sweet dog,” Gabby said as she set a bowl of food in front of Buttercup. Surprised at how much she’d fallen in love with the yellow lab, Gabby watched the dog eat, then she went to find Sadie.

  With a laugh, she saw Sadie perched on the back of the couch, her eyes focused on Buttercup.

  “At least you’re not hissing at her,” Gabby said as she stroked Sadie’s back. “Are you getting used to her? Huh?”

  Sadie began to purr, and a sense of contentment washed over Gabby.

  And she’d gone without thinking about Travis for, like, half an hour. Was that a record for today?

  Then she frowned.

  Record over. She was thinking about him now.

  Softly sighing, she settled onto the couch and picked up the book she’d been reading. Twenty minutes later a knock sounded at the front door.

  Not another girls’ night out.

  With a smile, she stood, then went to the door, but before opening it, she looked out the window where she saw a familiar car parked in front of her house.

  Travis? Was that Travis’s car? What was he doing there?

  Her heart began to pound, and after taking a steadying breath, she pulled the front door open.

  Gabriella.

  The impact of seeing her standing there when he thought he might never see her again nearly took Travis’s breath away.

  Focus. You’re here to take Buttercup.

  The thought didn’t help—taking the dog would only hurt Gabriella, and he hated the idea that he would be the one to do it. Still, he had no choice.

  “Hello,” he said.

  Gabriella’s eyebrows bunched. “Hi.”

  “How are you?” Enough with the pleasantries. Get on with it.

  But he found he was in no hurry to finish his task. Whether that was because he wanted to delay the bad news, or because he didn’t want to leave Gabriella, he wasn’t sure.

  “I’m fine.” That was a lie. She was not fine. Gabby held back a frown. Why was he there? Hope blossomed inside her, but something about Travis’s expression told her he wasn’t there to confess his love for her. “What’s up?”

  His jaw tightened, then he frowned. “We may have found Buttercup’s owner.”

  A sense of loss crashed over Gabby. “Oh.”

  He went on to describe the phone call Emily had gotten. “I need to take Buttercup—I mean, Daisy—to the clinic so the woman can see if she’s hers.”

  “Of course.” Feeling like a part of her family was going to be taken from her, Gabby opened the door wider. She had known this would probably happen. She watched Travis walk towards the dog, who was outside. But she’d also thought Travis would be by her side to help her through it, and look how that had turned out.

  “Daisy?” Travis said as he let the dog inside. “Is that your name? Daisy?”

  Buttercup/Daisy was clearly excited to see him, but it was impossible to tell which name was correct.

  Trying not to cry, Gabby watched in silence.

  Travis felt like a jerk for taking the dog from Gabriella. Certain she had become attached, he wished it could be different.

  Was that the only thing he wished could be different?

  Not ready to go there—he was still putting off calling Mitch to accept his offer—he focused on the task at hand.

  “If this isn’t Daisy,” he said as he looked at Gabriella’s face, “I’ll bring her back.” He half-smiled. “If that’s okay.”

  She nodded. “Yeah.”

  He didn’t want to leave but he had no reason to stay. And it would only make it harder if he dragged this out. “I’ll call you after the woman comes in.”

  She nodded again, but this time she didn’t say anything.

  He clipped a leash onto the dog’s collar, then with a final smile, he turned and walked towards the door. Gabriella didn’t accompany him, so he let himself out and walked to his car.

  As he drove away he felt empty. It was time to make a decision.

  The moment Travis’s car was out of sight, Gabby collapsed onto the couch and sobbed. Twenty minutes later, after her tears had slowed, her mind ricocheted from one thought to another.

  Maybe she should leave Emerald Falls. If she cared about him so much, why wouldn’t she consider it? But this was home. She didn’t want to leave. This was where her heart was, this was where she belonged. Staying here just felt right.

  A fresh bout of tears trickled down her face.

  If she wouldn’t sacrifice for him, then maybe he didn’t mean as much to her as she had thought. But why couldn’t he sacrifice for her? Maybe he didn’t care for her enough.

  Knowing it was useless to obsess over it, she tried to turn her mind to other things, but her heart refused to allow her to think of anything other than Travis Haywood.

  Chapter 32

  “Thank you so much for taking care of her,” the woman said to Travis the next morning when she came to claim Daisy. The dog had recognized her right away, her tail wagging with joy.

  “How’s your husband?” Travis asked. “I understand he’s been in the hospital.”

  “Yes. He had a stroke, but he’s home now.” She smiled, but it was tinged with sadness. “He’s not the same.”

  “I’m sorry to hear it.”

  Her smile brightened. “He’ll be so happy to have his Daisy back.”

  Knowing that hearing the positive side of the story would make Gabriella happy, Travis was eager to tell her. Then again, he shouldn’t be too eager since it would probably be the last time he would talk to her. Unless he had some awkward run-in sometime in the future.

  “Thank you again, Dr. Haywood,” she said.

  After she left, Travis couldn’t get his mind off of Gabriella. Though he’d told her he would let her know what happened with Daisy, he wasn’t in a hurry to tell her that she wouldn’t see the dog again.

  Maybe he could bring her some flowers tonight when he broke the news.

  He frowned.

  Sounded like an excuse to go see her that had nothing at all to do with the dog.

  Picturing her face and remembering how happy he’d been to see her the night before, Travis knew he had fallen for her
more than he’d been ready to admit.

  He should admit it. Because it was a fact. He was falling in love with Gabriella Peters. Why else hadn’t he called Mitch? Gabriella told him to do it, so why hadn’t he? It was what he wanted, so why was he hesitating?

  He knew why. He wasn’t ready to give her up. Yes, he loved what he did. But what was wrong with doing it here, in Emerald Falls? He would be a vet for a long, long time. Who was to say there wouldn’t be another opportunity to run his own clinic? Maybe one day he could buy out Doc Martin when he was ready to retire.

  Thinking of Doc Martin, he knew he needed to talk to him. Right away.

  Gabby hadn’t heard from Travis all day. Had the woman not come to claim Buttercup yet?

  Excited at the idea that the dog might come back to her, she tried to be patient. She fixed herself dinner, then stretched out on the couch to read. Sadie curled up on her lap, and Gabby set her book down.

  “I know you’re glad the dog’s gone, right, kitty?”

  Sadie began to purr, and Gabby laughed.

  By six-thirty, when Gabby still hadn’t heard from Travis, she became annoyed that he hadn’t bothered to contact her.

  Guess I’m not worth his time anymore.

  Upset at the idea, when she heard a knock at the front door a short time later, her first thought was that Travis had decided to bring Buttercup back rather than call.

  She leapt from the couch, and with a quick glance out the window to verify it was Travis, she paused as she prepared to face him.

  He was just the local vet, she reminded herself. He wasn’t the man she had fallen in love with. He was just the local vet. He was just the local vet.

  Though she continued repeating the words, as she opened the door and saw him standing there, his sapphire-blue eyes shining, all she wanted to do was fling herself into his arms and have him hold her close.

  She had to stop it. That was over now. It was time to move on. Then she noticed he was all alone—no Buttercup. And he was holding a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

  What was going on? Why was he there if he didn’t have Buttercup? Confused, Gabby said, “Hi.”

  Travis could see the confusion on Gabriella’s face, but he hoped when she learned why he was there, that she would be happy.

  “Hey.” He smiled as he held out the flowers. “I brought these for you.”

  She took them. “Thank you. They’re lovely.” She paused. “Where’s Buttercup? Or is it Daisy?”

  His smile dimmed. “It’s Daisy.” Then he told her what the woman had told him.

  “That makes me feel better.”

  “I thought it might.”

  Her head tilted. “You didn’t have to come all the way here just to tell me that, you know.”

  Anxious to tell her the rest of his news, he nodded. “I know.” He laughed. “I thought about bringing you a puppy, but I didn’t think Sadie would appreciate it.”

  Gabriella laughed. “Yeah. Probably not a great idea.”

  Travis paused, then smiled. “I have something else to tell you. Is it okay if I come in?”

  The only thing Gabby could imagine him telling her was that he’d talked to his friend and everything was set. But why tell her that face to face? She already knew he was going to take the offer. And why bring flowers? Did he think she would keep seeing him while he lived in Emerald Falls? Didn’t he understand that that wouldn’t work for her?

  Frustrated that he was making it harder to get over him, she decided to hear him out. “Sure. Come on in.”

  She put the flowers in a vase, then they sat on opposite ends of the couch as she waited to hear what he had to say.

  He remained quiet. What was on his mind?

  Finally, after several moments of silence, he said, “I’m not taking the offer.”

  Not sure what the implications of that statement were, Gabby said, “Wait. What?”

  He slowly smiled, and the sparkle in his eyes was unmistakable.

  Terrified to allow herself to believe what he might be implying, she waited for him to explain.

  He gazed at her steadily. “I’m staying in Emerald Falls.”

  Holding back the euphoria that wanted to burst forth—what if she was misunderstanding what he was saying?—Gabby forced herself to remain calm.

  As Travis waited for his news to sink in, he watched Gabriella’s face, his heart filling with emotion. He didn’t know what the future held for them, but he didn’t want to give up the chance to find out. There was something special about her, something that touched him deep inside, and he wanted more.

  “For good?” she asked. “You’re staying in Emerald Falls for good?”

  He nodded. “I talked to Doc Martin and he said if I want to stay on after my internship, he’d be glad to have me.”

  Gabby could hardly believe what he was telling her. “You’re staying? For good?”

  To Gabby’s delight, he moved over so that he was sitting right beside her, then he drew her into his arms. “Yes. Like I told you the other night, I’m not ready to give you up.”

  Still not allowing herself to believe that he was staying, she wanted to make sure he wouldn’t resent her for giving up the chance to open his own clinic. “But what about your dream of having your own clinic?”

  His smile grew as he gazed at her. “I’m not even done with my internship. I have lots of years left in my career. And who knows, one day Doc Martin might want to retire and I can take over.” He leaned towards her and kissed her on the mouth, sending a wave of love crashing over her.

  He was staying! He was really going to stay!

  He pulled away and looked at her. “I just know that you’re one of a kind, Gabriella, and I’m not willing to lose you over some career ambition.”

  She couldn’t hold back her emotions any longer. She had to tell him how she felt. “I love you, Travis. I’ve loved you for a long time.”

  He gently stroked her cheek. “I love you too.”

  She lay her head against his chest and savored the feel of him next to her, their blossoming love wrapping them in a peaceful warmth that Gabby never wanted to end.

  Thank you for reading Crushing On You. The next book in the Emerald Falls Romance series—Dangerous Lies: Sawyer and Amethyst—is out now. Amethyst’s friends will definitely have cameos! Read on to get a sneak peek at the first two chapters, or to get Dangerous Lies now, click HERE. FREE to read in Kindle Unlimited.

  Dangerous Lies

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  Dangerous Lies Chapter 1

  “Perfect,” Amethyst Fox murmured as she threaded the final moonstone onto the bar necklace. Leaning back in her chair, she let her gaze wander her studio—her favorite space in her house. Soft turquoise paint accented one wall, shelves with drawers and pouches containing all of her jewelry-making supplies adorned another, and a sparkly chandelier hung over it all.

  Pleased with her work that morning, Amethyst smiled. Though she still had a number of custom orders to complete—orders that had been commissioned online—plus over two dozen standard pieces that she’d promised the boutique in town, she wasn’t about to complain. Knowing she was fortunate to do what she loved for a living, she was glad to be busy.

  If only she had a busy love life.

  With a wry smile, she shook her head. Before her love life could become busy, she needed to find someone she wanted to date. Like Gabby had.

  Picturing her good friend Gabriella Peters, who was now happily dating Travis Haywood,
Amethyst’s smile grew. Pleased that she’d played a part—however small—in getting Gabby and Travis together, Amethyst consoled herself with the knowledge that people she cared for were now walking down the path to true love.

  You just need to live your life the best that you can. Don’t worry about finding true love. That will work itself out.

  The words she’d heard her mother speak more than once echoed in her head, and she wished she could call her mother and talk to her. But her mother had passed away two years earlier.

  Softly sighing, Amethyst decided to take a break and water the flowers in her front yard. A few minutes later, as she turned on the hose and began watering the colorful flowers that lined the front of her house, her gaze went to the house next door—the house that had stood vacant for the last few months. Now, however, there was a dark blue BMW parked in the driveway.

  Amethyst knew that the former owner—an older woman—had passed away several months before. Since then, she’d briefly met the woman’s son who had inherited the house.

  Was he back? Or maybe it was a realtor getting ready to list the place.

  Keeping one eye on her flowers, Amethyst waited to see if the owner of the car would make an appearance. Curious to know what was going on, she finished watering the flowers and began pulling the few weeds that had grown since she’d last tended the flower bed. Still, no one came out of the neighboring house.

  With a smile of irony that she wanted an excuse to stay outside but for once had nothing left to accomplish, Amethyst stood and brushed off her jeans. At that moment, she heard the creak of a door opening. Turning her gaze to the neighboring house, she watched as a man with dark hair and the beginnings of a beard walked out the front door, locking it behind him. Lifting her hand to shade her eyes, she called, “Hello.”