Page 42 of Finders Keepers

I pause, my hands full of silverware. The thought of being alone with him makes my stomach flutter, not entirely from anxiety.

“Thank you,” I hear myself say, though part of me wants to refuse.

As they head outside, Sophie’s excitement fading into the evening air, I find myself alone with Gavin in Ms. Lucy’s kitchen. I fill the sink with soapy water, hyper aware of his presence as he gathers the remaining dishes.

“I’ll wash, you dry?” I suggest keeping my voice casual despite the nervous energy buzzing through my entire body..

“Works for me.” He picks up a dish towel and stands beside me, close enough that I can smell his cologne—it’s woodsy and clean.

I plunge my hands into the warm water, focusing on scrubbing a plate. “You don’t have to do this, you know. I’m sure you have better things to do than wash dishes with a stranger.”

“We’re hardly strangers, Bailey,” he says, accepting the wet plate I hand him. “And honestly, there’s nowhere I’d rather be right now.”

His words hang in the air between us. I risk a glance at him, finding him already watching me. He’s nothing like Matt. His gaze is warm, patient, without a hint of the calculation I’d grown so accustomed to seeing. I look away quickly, but something inside me settles.

“Well, then,” I say, passing him another clean dish, “I guess we’d better get these done before the fireflies are gone.”

Gavin chuckles, a deep, warm sound. “You know, you’re not what I expected when I first met you at the fair.”

“Oh?” I glance up from the soapy water. “What did you expect?”

He shrugs, carefully drying a glass. “I’m not sure. But there’s something about you… you’re stronger than you let on.”

The compliment catches me off guard, and I focus intently on scrubbing a stubborn spot on a plate. A comfortable silence falls between us, punctuated only by the soft clink of dishes and the distant sound of Sophie’s delighted giggles floating through the open window.

Gavin clears his throat. “Bailey, I was wondering if maybe… if you’d like to have dinner with me sometime?”

My hands freeze in the dishwater. The plate I’m holding slips slightly.

“Not here,” he adds quickly. “Somewhere nice. Just the two of us.”

“You mean like… a date?” The word feels foreign on my tongue.

“Yeah.” He sets down the towel, turning to face me fully. “I don’t want to seem too forward, and if you’re not interested, I completely understand.”

If Matt found out, he’d lose it.

The thought slams into me with such force that I nearly gasp. Matt’s face flashes in my mind, contorted with rage, veins bulging in his forehead. I can almost hear his voice:Who the hell do you think you are? You think anyone else would want you?

But Matt isn’t here. He doesn’t know where we are.

“I…” My throat feels tight.

Part of me wants to say yes. Gavin has been nothing but kind and gentle, everything Matt wasn’t.

Another part of me, the part that still flinches at sudden movements and checks over my shoulder in public places, screams danger. What if this is me just repeating the same cycle? Meeting a charming man that turns out to be not so charming? Can I even trust my own instincts?

“You don’t have to answer now,” he says softly, noticing my hesitation.

I look up at him, at his patient expression, and something inside me rebels against the fear.

“No, I… I’d like that,” I say, surprising even myself. “Dinner sounds nice.”

The smile that spreads across his face makes my heart flutter in a way I’d almost forgotten it could.

“Great,” he says, picking up the towel again. “How about Friday? I know a place in town that makes amazing steaks.”

“Friday works,” I reply, turning back to the dishes, a small smile playing at my lips despite the anxiety still churning beneath the surface.

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