“As far as anatomy goes, yes.”
She considered that. “Wow. I thought it was hard just doing people.”
“Yeah, but remember: Most people won’t sue me if their chicken dies. Your responsibility is much greater, especially since you’re dealing with kids.” He paused. “And I’ll bet you’re great with them.”
“Why would you say that?”
“You have an aura of kindness and patience.”
“Uh-huh. I think you got too much sun today.”
“Probably,” he said. He motioned to her bottle as he stood. “Want another?”
She hadn’t even realized she’d finished. “I’d better not.”
“I won’t tell anyone.”
“That’s not the point. I don’t want to give you the wrong impression about me.”
“I doubt that’s possible.”
“I don’t think my boyfriend would appreciate it.”
“Then it’s a good thing he’s not here, isn’t it? Besides, we’re just getting to know each other. What harm is there in that?”
“Fine.” She sighed. “Last one, though.”
He brought two more over and opened hers. As soon as she took a drink and felt the corresponding buzz as it went down, she heard a voice inside her whisper, You shouldn’t be doing this.
“You’d like him,” she said, trying to reestablish some boundaries between them. “He’s a great guy.”
“I’m sure he is.”
“And yes, to answer your earlier question, he’s tall.”
“I thought you didn’t want to talk about him.”
“I don’t. I just want you to know I love him.”
“Love is a wonderful thing. It makes life worthwhile. I love being in love.”
“Spoken like a man with plenty of experience. But keep in mind that true love lasts forever.”
“Poets would say that true love always ends in tragedy.”
“And you’re a poet?”
“No. I’m just telling you what they say. I’m not saying I agree. Like you, I’m more of a happy-ending romantic. My parents have been married forever, and that’s what I want to have one day, too.”
Gabby couldn’t help thinking that he was very good at this sort of flirty banter-and then reminded herself that it was because he’d had a lot of practice. Still, she had to admit there was something flattering about his attention, even if she knew Kevin wouldn’t approve.
“Did you know that I almost bought your house?” he asked.
She shook her head, surprised.
“It was for sale at the same time this one was. I liked the floor plan better than this one, but this one already had the deck and the boathouse and a lift. It was a tough choice.”
“And now you’ve even got a hot tub.”
“You like that?” He cocked an eyebrow. “We could get in later, once the sun goes down.”
“I don’t have my suit.”
“Bathing suits are optional, of course.”
She rolled her eyes, pointedly ignoring the shiver that had gone through her. “I don’t think so.”
He stretched, looking pleased with himself. “How about just our feet, then.”
“I could probably handle that.”
“It’s a start.”
“And a finish.”
“That goes without saying.”
On the other side of the creek, the setting sun was changing the sky to a golden palette of colors that stretched across the horizon. Travis pulled another chair closer and propped his feet on it. Gabby stared across the water, feeling a sense of well-being she hadn’t experienced in a long time.
“Tell me about Africa,” she said. “Is it as otherwordly as it seems?”
“It was for me,” he said. “I kept wanting to go back. Like something in my genes recognized it as home, even though there was so little there that I saw that reminded me of the world I came from.”
“Did you see any lions or elephants?”
“Many.”
“Was that amazing?”
“It’s something I’ll never forget.”
She was quiet for a moment. “I’m envious.”
“Then go. And if you do, make sure you visit Victoria Falls. It’s the most amazing place I’ve ever seen. The rainbows, the mist, the incredible roar-it’s like you’re standing on the very edge of the world.”
She smiled dreamily. “How long were you there?”
“Which time?”
“How many times have you been there?”
“Three.”
She tried to imagine living a life so free but somehow failed. “Tell me about all of them.”
They talked quietly for a long time, dusk giving way to darkness. His colorful descriptions of people and places were vivid and detailed, making her feel as if she’d been alongside him, and she found herself wondering how many times, and with how many other women, he’d shared these stories. Halfway through, he rose from the table and brought back two bottles of water, respecting her earlier comment, and the appreciation she felt added to her growing sense of affection for Travis. Though she knew it was wrong, she was somehow unable to stop it.
By the time they got up to bring the dishes into the house, stars were twinkling overhead. While Travis rinsed the dishes, Gabby toured Travis’s living room, thinking it was less like a bachelor pad than she’d imagined it would be. The furniture was comfortable and stylish, brown leather couches, walnut end tables, and brass lamps, and while the room was clean, it wasn’t obsessively so. Magazines were stacked haphazardly on the television, and she could see a thin layer of dust on the stereo, which somehow seemed just right. Instead of artwork lining the walls, there were movie posters that reflected Travis’s eclectic taste: Casablanca on one wall, Die Hard on another, with Home Alone right next to that. Behind her, she heard the faucet stop, and a moment later, Travis stepped into the room.
She smiled. “You ready to go soak our feet?”
“As long as you don’t show too much skin.”
They wandered back outside to the hot tub. Travis flipped open the cover and set it aside while Gabby removed her sandals; a moment later, they were sitting beside each other, their feet swishing back and forth. Gabby stared upward, tracing images in the skies above her.
“What are you thinking about?” Travis asked.
“The stars,” she said. “I bought an astronomy book, and I’m trying to see if I remember anything.”
“Do you?”
“Just the big ones. The obvious ones.” She pointed toward the house. “Go straight up from the chimney about two fists and you’ll see Orion’s belt. Betelgeuse is on Orion’s left shoulder, and Rigel is the name of his foot. He has two hunting dogs. The bright star over there is Sirius, and that’s part of Canis Major, and Procyon is part of Canis Minor.”
Travis spotted Orion’s belt, and though he tried to follow her direction, he couldn’t make out the others. “I’m not sure I see the other two.”
“I can’t, either. I just know they’re there.”
He pointed over her shoulder. “I can see the Big Dipper. Right over there. That’s the only one I can always find.”
“It’s also known as the Big Bear, or Ursa Major. Did you know that a bear figure has been associated with that constellation since the ice age?”
“I can’t say that I did.”
“I just love the names, even if I can’t make out all the constellations yet. Canes Venatici, Coma Berenices, the Pleiades, Antinous, Cassiopeia… their names sound like music.”
“I take it this is a new hobby of yours.”
“It’s more like good intentions buried in the detritus of daily life. But for a couple of days there, I was really into it.”
He laughed. “At least you’re honest.”
“I know my limitations. Still, I wish I knew more. When I was in seventh grade, I had a teacher who loved astronomy. He had this way of talking about stars that made you remember them forever.”
“What did he say?’
“That staring at the stars was like staring backward in time, since some stars are so far away that their light takes millions of years just to reach us. That we see stars not as they look now, but as they were when dinosaurs roamed the earth. The whole concept just struck me as… amazing somehow.”