Perfect Fit (15 page)

Sage lifted a brow. “Celebrate what?”

“No snow.”

Sage couldn’t help but laugh, and then against her better judgment, she said, “All right, you’ve
convinced me that there’s a reason to celebrate. I’d love to have dinner with you after we finish up here.”

Gabe thought of the last time that she had laughed with him, nearly a month ago over a business dinner. He had liked the sound then, and he liked it now. He felt a ripple of uneasiness at the thought. “Good, then let’s begin.”

Sage’s stomach twisted, and she nervously twined her fingers together. She swallowed tightly when Gabe met her gaze across the table and decided that she couldn’t take it anymore. He’d said he would give her his opinion of everything over dinner.

“Well, what did you think?” she asked anxiously, unable to hold back any longer. Not only had she given him her thoughts on the theater, but she’d also given him a rundown of her other ideas.

Gabe leaned back in his chair, smiling. “The theater will be the most costly, but depending on how the architect redesigns the interior, it’s workable, and like I said earlier, I see a great benefit to what you have in mind. My only concern is the extra time needed to complete the job, and we won’t know that until the architect draws up revised plans.”

Sage nodded, was silent for a moment, then said softly, “About what you said today at lunch, about me deliberately prolonging time to stay here in Anchorage.”

Gabe’s breath snagged as he remembered what he’d said, what he had accused her of. “I was out of line,” he said, regretting the words he had spoken earlier that day to her. Even if he had thought she
had an ulterior motive for wanting to include the theater at this late date, he had no right to tell her that. “I had no right to say what I did,” he added.

“Yes, but evidently you felt there was credence in what you thought or you would not have said it. What makes you think that I’m here pining away for my fiancé?”

As much as it bothered him to discuss this topic of conversation with her, he figured he had brought it on himself by accusing her of anything in the first place. He inhaled deeply as he met her inquisitive gaze. “I guess to me it made perfect sense. When I met you a little over six months ago, you were happy over the entire idea of getting married, and it was plain to see you really cared for the guy. Therefore, it stands to reason that whatever happened between the two of you is something that can possibly work out, and the cliché ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’ may apply.”

Sage shook her head to toss the memories of her breakup with Erol aside. She
had
been happy at the thought of getting married, and yes, she had cared for Erol deeply. But his actions had changed all that in a way she could not share with Gabe. “Trust me, it won’t.” She took a sip of her drink. “I’m sure there are a number of people hoping that Erol and I will work out our differences and get back together, including my parents and his. But I’ve told them it won’t happen.”

Gabe asked. “What about him? Your fiancé? Erol? What does he think?”

Sage didn’t say anything for a moment, wondering why she was even telling Gabe as much as she was, and why it was important to her that he understood that she had no intentions of getting back with Erol.
It’s because you don’t want him to think you
would deliberately use his men for your benefit,
she reminded herself. But deep down she felt there was another reason, one she wasn’t quite ready to analyze.

“I’m not sure what Erol thinks, but I do know what thoughts I left him with. I was pretty straightforward in letting him know that we would not get back together.”

Gabe nodded. He couldn’t help but think of Lindsey, and what she had told him three years ago was pretty much the same thing that Sage was saying. Yet, within forty-eight hours of her ex-fiancé returning to town, they had miraculously worked out their differences. He would never forget the night she’d showed up at his house to let him know she and her ex-boyfriend were getting back together.

“Why don’t you believe me?”

Gabe blinked when he realized Sage must have read his expression and had spoken to him. He decided to be honest with her. “It’s not a case of me not believing you; it’s a case of knowing how two people who love each other can put past differences aside and move forward regardless, no matter what the situation that caused the breakup, especially if the love they shared is strong.”

He dropped his gaze from hers and picked up his drink. After swirling the contents around in the glass for a few moments, he said, “And like I said earlier, it was easy to see how much you cared for him.”

Sage shrugged. “Yes, but all the things that a relationship is built on were there at the time. At least I thought they were. That’s not the case now, so my feelings have changed. I loved him, yes, and I guess it would be immature to say I don’t still
care for him, but not to the point that I can forget what he did. I could never discount how he betrayed my trust.”

He betrayed her trust.
Gabe wondered what exactly her fiancé had done to make her sound so bitter, and so utterly convinced that she could not patch things up with him. Usually when there was a question of trust involved, it meant the involvement of a third party—possibly another woman. If that was the case, then she would definitely be hurt and distrustful. But would it be enough to keep a reconciliation from possibly taking place? It hadn’t been for Lindsey, who ultimately forgave her ex for his infidelity. And even if there was no reconciliation, would Sage pigeonhole all men into the same category as her fiancé and become distrustful of the entire male population? He shook his head. Weren’t there women without issues of some kind or another?

“What?”

He lifted his gaze to Sage. “What’s what?”

“Why were you shaking your head?” Sage asked him.

He shrugged. “No reason,” he said, deciding to drop the matter. It meant nothing to him whether or not she and her fiancé worked things out as long as his work crew wasn’t caught in the middle.

Deciding to change the subject, he asked, “So how is Rose Woods? She came across as one sharp woman when we met.”

Sage smiled, thankful for the switch to another topic now that they had cleared the air about a few things. “Rose is doing fine; however, she no longer works for Denmark. She’s in between jobs right now until she decides what she wants to do. I’ve invited
her to fly out and spend time with me, but she detests cold weather.”

Gabe chuckled. “Yeah, it does take some getting used to. You seem to be doing okay with it.”

She grinned. “I’m a person who can adjust to any given situation, or at least try. Coming here was a promotion, and I did say I was mobile when I was hired. Besides, I needed the change.”

He nodded. “So did I. My mother was driving me bonkers.”

Sage lifted a brow. “How so?”

Gabe leaned back in his chair. “Playing matchmaker. For the longest time she had given up on Chris and me and thought we would never settle down and marry. Then Chris got reunited with Maxi and—”

“Reunited? Were they married before?”

Gabe shook his head, grinning. “No, Maxi and Chris have known each other since elementary school, and believe it or not, he had a crush on her even then. He loved her all through school, for twelve long years. And because he thought he would never be worthy of her affections, he left town after graduating from high school without telling her how he felt. They met up again on a ten-year class reunion cruise and discovered they loved each other.” He sighed. That tale was close enough, although things hadn’t been that simple. But there was no need to go into any details about it with her.

“Anyway,” he continued, “no sooner was the rice thrown over Chris’s head, than my mother gazed at me with a look in her eye that said, ‘You’re next.’ And since that time she hasn’t given me a moment’s rest from playing Cupid.”

Sage laughed. She remembered her father telling her once that his mother had been just as bad. She sobered quickly when she thought of her father.

“Now it’s my turn to ask what?”

Sage met Gabe’s curious gaze. “What’s what?”

“What made you stop laughing so abruptly.”

Sage sighed. “Trust me, you don’t want to know.”

A part of Gabe wanted to agree with her that he really didn’t want to know, but instead of saying that, he said, “I do trust you, Sage, since I have no reason not to, and you’re wrong. I do want to know. All of us have secrets.”

Gabe’s voice held a bit of tenderness, and Sage couldn’t help it when a feeling of deep appreciation washed over her. It had been so easy for him to say he trusted her. Would trusting someone, especially a man, ever come that easy to her again? “Do you, Gabe? Do you have secrets?”

A smile touched the corners of his mouth. “Yes, in fact I have a few. I’ve been waiting twenty years for my father to discover that I’m the one who at the age of twelve wasted two cans of his shaving cream on the dog next door. I thought the hairy mutt needed a shave. Unfortunately, he took a dip in another neighbor’s pool before I could go after him with the shears.”

Sage gasped, pretending she was shocked, absolutely mortified. A huge smile appeared on her face. “That’s awful, simply shameful. You’ll never get to heaven without first confessing that one to your father.”

Gabe chuckled. “Yes, I’m still losing sleep over how to break the news to him.”

Laughter flickered in Sage’s eyes. She had to admit that Gabe had a knack for making her laugh.
She really enjoyed his company. Possibly too much, she thought. That prompted her to glance down at her watch.

He took her cue and said, “I guess it’s time for us to call it a night. Unless you think you can handle dessert.”

She shook her head, smiling. “There’s no way I can handle dessert. I’m stuffed. I never had a real taste for salmon until coming here. I didn’t know it could be prepared in so many different ways. Everything was delicious, and I wish you would let me contribute toward the tab.”

Gabe shook his head. “No, tonight was my treat.” He met her gaze, wondering why he was a glutton for punishment, then thought what the hell and said, “If you’re one of those die-hard women’s libbers, then I’ll reconsider the next time we go out.”

Sage slowly lifted her brow and held his gaze as if she couldn’t believe what he’d suggested. He had made the statement as if for them to have another date was a done deal. As far as he was concerned, it was. But he could tell by the way she was looking at him she wasn’t.

“Do you think I assume too much, Sage?” He decided to beat her to the punch and ask.

For a long moment she stared at him. Finally, she broke eye contact and looked out the window.

“Sage?”

A frown had creased her brow when she met his gaze again. “Do you, Gabe? Do you think that you assume too much?”

He met her gaze with a level stare, wondering why it was important to him to take her out again, although every fiber of his being was screaming at him to back off. She had issues to deal with. He
should patiently wait and let her work through them before making a move. But for some reason he didn’t want to wait.

“The only thing I can assume with certainty is that you enjoy laughing, and I like seeing you laugh. And for some reason, I get the feeling that you don’t trust me, and that bothers me since I make it a point to be the type of person anyone can trust in my line of business as well as the personal aspects of my life. So I’d like to give you the chance to get to know me. I’m not asking for anything hot and heavy, Sage, just friendship and a chance to see you again in a nice, comfortable setting like this. We do have to eat a decent meal every once in a while, so what’s wrong with sharing it?”

“Just for friendship?”

“Yes.” For some reason he was willing to break the rules for Sage Dunbar and hoped he wasn’t making the mistake of his life. “So, are you willing to let there be a next time?”

Sighing, Sage leaned back in her chair. It was too soon to become involved with another man after Erol, especially when she had so many personal issues to deal with. But then, according to Gabe, they would be friends and nothing more. “Yes, Gabe. I’m willing to let there be a next time.”

Later that night after getting ready for bed, Sage walked over to the bedroom window and looked out. It had started snowing again. Her lips twitched. If Rose was listening to the weather report, she might never decide to come out and pay her a visit. She also thought about the bet she’d made with Gabe.

She turned from the window when she heard the phone ring and quickly crossed the room and picked it up. “Yes?”

“You owe me five dollars.”

Sage laughed. While walking her out to her car after dinner, Gabe had said he thought it would be snowing before midnight. She had told him she’d heard that it wouldn’t snow again for at least a couple of days. He’d made a five-dollar bet with her that she was wrong and he was right. “Okay, so you win. Don’t rub it in.”

“I won’t too much. But once you get to know me, you’ll find out that I’m a person who likes being right.”

Sage shook her head, chuckling. “It must be hard carrying around that big head of yours.”

Now it was Gabe’s turn to laugh. “Well, yeah, sometimes it is. Good night, Sage.”

She grinned. “Good night, Gabe.”

After hanging up the phone, Sage couldn’t help but smile. He had a knack for making her laugh, and she really liked that. Gabe Blackwell was something else. She had to admit that he was definitely an all-right guy.

W
ithout opening an eye, Sage reached across the bed to the nightstand to pick up the ringing telephone and drowsily said, “Hello.”

“Sage, are you still in bed?”

Sage opened one eye slowly upon hearing the sound of her mother’s voice. She then sleepily peered at the clock on her bedroom wall. “Yes, Mom, it’s only six o’clock here. Did you forget about the four-hour time difference again?”

“Oh, sweetheart, I’m so sorry. I tend to forget about that. I’ll just call you back later.”

Sage slowly pulled herself up in the bed. “No, Mom, that’s fine. I’m usually up by seven anyway.” Now Sage’s curiosity was peaked. Her mom rarely called in the morning. Usually they talked at night. “Are you all right? And how is Dad?”