Pure Redemption (Tainted Legacy) (23 page)

“Don’t feel like you have to,” she told him. “He gets really excited about that kind of thing.”

“I can tell,” Gabe admitted. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but he’s kind of a menace on the jobsite. He was darting all over trying to help everyone with everything but it kind of backfired.”

Ava groaned. “I can only imagine. He has an enormous heart and two left feet.”

“That would explain why he tripped over the power cord and unplugged the saw while one of Mike’s guys was cutting a piece of lumber.”

“I’m not surprised,” Ava admitted as she scrunched up her face at the thought of it.

“He also knocked over a tray of tools and a gallon of paint. Luckily,” he was quick to point out, “the paint still had the lid on it. After about half an hour of that, Mike sent him to the store to buy supplies. He seemed happy though, still felt like he was helping. He came back from the hardware store with a huge grin on his face and a box full of doughnuts for everyone.”

“He can get carried away. If he had his way, no one would ever have free time. They’d all be busy helping others. All. The. Time,” she said with a laugh.

Gabe shrugged. “Nothing wrong with that.”

“Yeah?” Ava asked, surprised by his answer. This was a side of Gabe she’d never seen before and she’d happily admit that she liked it.

“Yeah, the house they’re working on right now, it’s for an elderly couple. They couldn’t thank us enough. She brought out cookies and lemonade. Twice,” Gabe said. “They were so
grateful and I realized that if I wasn’t there, helping get something done, I’d just be sitting around here doing nothing.” He looked gloomy for a minute. “I doubt I’ve ever done anything like that before. I guess maybe that’s part of why I wanted to go with your dad when he
showed up
today. I figure if I’m going to turn my life around, I might as well start with the basics because I’m pretty sure the old me didn’t do a single thing that didn’t benefit himself.”

“I could definitely argue that point,” Ava told him.

“Okay, before I met you, I bet I never did a single decent thing in my life,” Gabe amended.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself. I think you did what you had to do to get by.”

They ate in comfortable silence for a while.

“This is nice,” Gabe said.

“What?” she wondered.

“Just sitting here, having dinner. It feels so normal. It also feels kind of strange. But in a good way,” he admitted.

“I don’t think you ever did family dinners,” Ava told him. “No holidays, no birthdays, no family meals.”

Gabe looked contemplative as he stabbed at his last bite of food.

“Sorry,” Ava said, “I shouldn’t have brought it up. I just wanted to let you know why it might seem strange.”

“It’s okay. I kind of figured. Actually, I hadn’t really thought about it but it makes sense.” He reached for her hand across the table. “I don’t ever want to go back to that. I like what we have here.”

“Really? I kind of worry it’ll all be too boring for you. I guess I’ve always felt like that,” she quietly admitted. “That after a while you’d get tired of me and move on t
o something, or I guess someone,
more exciting.”

Gabe looked surprised by her confession. “I’m with you because I want to be. I don’t think this,” he said motioning to her, their dinner, the cabin, “is boring at all. It’s…nice.”

Ava
made a
face. “There was a time when ‘nice’, coming from you, wasn’t exactly a good thing.”

“Exactly,” he said definitively, “which is why now, it’s a
very
good thing. I like what we have. I like it a lot,” he assured her.

“Good, me too,” she said as she squeezed his hand and then let it go.

“I think what I want is just a normal, quiet life,” he took a deep breath. “The job is great, for now. I’m glad I got it. But while I was working today, my mind was kind of wandering. I think I should probably start thinking about college.”

Ava
looked at him pensively
. “College where?” she finally asked.

“You’ve been accepted to Granville. That’s where you plan on going. I thought maybe I should apply there, too?” It came out sounding like a question. “It’s probably too late to get in this fal
l. B
ut I could get everything ready and maybe start spring semester. What do you think?”

“If you want to, of course you should do it.”

“Are you done eating?” he asked and Ava nodded.

After a quick clearing of the table, they found themselves outside, sitting on the shore by the lake.

“You know, your dad is still not happy about the living arrangements.”

“I figured. I hope he didn’t lecture you too badly,” Ava said with a grimace.

“Nah,” Gabe said. “Not too bad. He just said he’ll feel a lot better about it after we’re married.”

Ava groaned. “After we’re married?” Actually, she wasn’t the least bit surprised her dad had said that. “I’m so sorry.”

Gabe laughed but he looked worried. “It’s okay. Actually, he had a whole lot to say about what he thinks should come after marriage.”

She threw her hands over her face. “Ugh, I can only imagine. Please, stop right there. I can’t believe my dad brought this up with you. No, actually I can.”

“I’m pretty sure I
took it better than you. You kind of look like you’re going to throw up,” he teased.

She forced a laugh. “Only because I’m so embarrassed,” she assured him
.

“H
e also told me he’s worried I’m going to disappear on you again,” he watched her expression as he told her this. Her eyebrows twitched up almost imperceptibly. “I told him I’m not. I want to be sure that you know that, too.”

“It’s nice to hear it,” she admitted.

“Then I’m telling you again. I’m not going anywhere. When I’m with you, everything just feels right. It feels familiar. Which I know doesn’t make any sense si
nce I really don’t remember but,
” he paused, “I don’t know how to explain it but sometimes, I feel like my soul remembers you, even if my head doesn’t. I know I want to be with you. For as long as you want me to be.”

Chapter
17

“Just look at her!” Molly said with a sigh. “Our little girl is all grown up.”

“Oh please,” Julia said with an uncharacteristic eye roll.

“Come on Julia, it’s exciting. Admit it,” Ava said.

A blush spilled across Julia’s pale features. “Actually, it’s nerve-wracking. I think I might cancel. Or vomit. One or the other. Or possibly both.”

“First French-fries, now dating. Who would have thought?” Molly said with a grin.

“I think I preferred the French-fries. This is going to be a catastrophe. I don’t know the first thing about dating!” Julia moaned.

“Sweetie, that’s because you refused to do it before now. Everyone has to start somewhere. You’ve taken the first step into the dating world by accepting. Don’t backslide by canceling,” Molly encouraged.

“So, where did you meet this guy?” Ava wondered.

Julia began fidgeting with the hem of the coral sundress she’d asked Ava if she could borrow. While the dress was short on Ava, it fell comfortably below Julia’s knees. Still, she wondered if it were too revealing.

“He’s been coming into the country club the last week or so. At first, I thought he seemed kind of flirty but then I thought it was probably just my imagination. But yesterday, he asked me when my break was. I told him and he showed up and asked if he could buy me a smoothie. I let him, we talked and it wasn’t nearly as disastrous as I thought it would be. He was really easy to talk to. So easy to talk to,” she pointed out, “that he asked if I’d please go to the centennial carnival with him tonight. I said yes without even thinking about it. Of course, now I’m thinking about it and I’m kind of freaking out.” Her face turned pale and she plopped down on Ava’s bed. “No, not kind of. I am completely freaking out!”

“It’s just dating,” Molly said gently. “The more you do it, the easier it gets. He’s just a guy. That’s the first thing to remember. He’s
just
a guy and if things don’t work out, well, there are a whole lot more of them to pick from. If you take into consideration the fact that this is your first date, the likelihood of him being ‘the one’ is actually pretty small. So just think of him as practice. Like a trial run for when you do meet Mr. Right.”

“Uh-huh,” Julia said, not sounding the least bit convinced.

“What’s his name? What does he look like,” Molly demanded, trying to change the subject in an effort to alleviate her friend’s worries.

“His name is Cam. It’s short for something. Cameron, maybe. He’s…oh wow,” Julia sighed and a dreamy look that neither of her friends had ever seen before settled onto her face. “Let’s just say I know you’d approve. He’s at least as hot as Oliver,” she said, somewhat defensively. “He’s just…he’s
actually quite gorgeous and perfect
. Too perfect for me. I have no idea why he asked me out. Why me?! Maybe he didn’t mean to. Maybe it was a mistake!”

“Julia, calm down. Take a deep breath or something,” Molly ordered. “It wasn’t a mistake. You don’t give yourself enough credit. You’re absolutely beautiful. You’re sweet and completely lovable.”

“Then why didn’t anyone ever ask me out in high school? Why?” she demanded. “You and Ava went on dates all the time and no one ever asked me out. Never.”

Ava and Molly shared a look. They’d both been under the assumption that Julia hadn’t
wanted
to date. She’d always been a little high strung and more than a little neurotic and most of their class knew it. In a school as small as Hunter Falls High, it was hard to miss when during flu season she insisted on sanitizing her desk with each class change.

“Maybe because no one thought you’d be interested,” Ava carefully replied. In actuality, Julia and all of her obsessive compulsive tendencies could be a bit intimidating.

“Of course I was interested,” Julia whimpered. “What kind of girl wants to sit home alone every weekend? Weekend after weekend?”

Molly and Ava shared another look and they each knew exactly what the other was thinking. They’d
assumed
the kind of girl who’d nearly hyperventilated their freshman year after Molly reported back about her first kiss and Julia couldn’t stop fretting about the shared saliva and the mass quantity of bacterium it might entail would be the kind of girl who didn’t
want
to date.

“Why didn’t you ever say anything?” Molly asked.

Julia shrugged, looking miserable.

“Well we can’t change the past, but you can make your date tonight memorable,” Ava optimistically replied. “Hopefully this will be the first of many. I agree with Molly. He asked you out because he obviously knows a good thing when he sees it.”

They hadn’t been trying to placate her. Julia
was
pretty. Her friends both shared dark features. While Ava was tall and lanky, Molly was shorter but curvy. Julia was petite and looked almost delicate. Her short blond hair framed her pale face. Her big blue eyes made her look young and vulnerable.

“Thanks,” Julia said as she blew out a breath. “But I’m still
so
nervous.”

“If it doesn’t work out, I do know someone who I think might be interested,” Molly hesitantly told her friends.

“Who?” Ava asked with a curious grin. Molly gave her a cautious look which, in turn, only piqued Ava’s curiosity more. “Seriously, Molly? You can’t say something like that and then clam up. Who is it!?”

“Yeah, who?” Julia asked sounding completely baffled by the prospect.

Molly scrunched her face into an apologetic grimace. “Dawson.”

“Ava’s Dawson?!” Julia blurted.

“He’s not my Dawson,” Ava assured her. She thought it over for a moment, while both of her friends watched with interest. “Actually, you and Dawson would be so perfect for each other! I mean, you know, if this Cam thing fizzles.”

“
Ava’s
Dawson?” Julia repeated. This time, she
threw
the question directly
at
Molly.

Molly nodded. “I knew he’d been asking Oliver about you.
Oliver wasn’t supposed to tell me but he’s like a preschooler when it comes to trying to keep a secret.
I wasn’t sure how serious
Dawson
was and really, I didn’t think you’d be interested because let’s be honest here, you’ve never really shown a lot of interest in boys in general. Well, other than Mitch
. B
ut I always figured you two had some bizarre safety obsession in common. But then the night we were at Tammy’s Dawson was asking me about you. He said for a while he thought it might be weird because of Ava, so he’s been trying to talk to her about
it
to make sure she wouldn’t mind. B
ut he can’t ever get her alone,” Molly glanced at Ava who was adamantly shaking her head to say that ‘No, it wouldn’t be weird’. Molly continued. “But now that Gabe’s back, he was hoping it might be okay.”