Apparently Faith had made the same decision. They both stood there examining the carpet, each pretending to ignore the other.
Okay, fine, he’d take the initiative. “I apologize for this,” he said curtly. “I had no idea Megan was setting us up.”
“I didn’t, either,” Faith told him.
It was pleasant not to be snapping at each other. Only months ago, they used to talk for hours on end. They’d laughed together and shared memories and dreams.
Troy exhaled a sigh. “Listen, about the other night—”
“Last week in the grocery store—” Faith started speaking at the same time.
They both stopped and stared at each other.
“Ladies before gentlemen,” Troy said and gestured toward her.
“You spoke first.” She motioned back at him.
Troy hardly knew where to begin. He made a couple of awkward attempts. “When I saw you…” He paused. “I never should’ve said the things I…”
Faith smiled and her expression softened. “Are you actually apologizing, Troy Davis?”
He chuckled and conceded with a nod. “I am.”
“Do the words always get stuck in your throat?”
“With you they seem to.”
“That’s a sad commentary, isn’t it?”
He had to agree.
Her shoulders relaxed. “I admit no one has the power to unsettle me as much as you do.”
They continued to stand in their respective areas, Faith near the front door, Troy on the other side of the room.
“Is that good or bad?” he asked.
She took a moment to consider. “A bit of both, I guess.”
With that, it seemed they’d said everything there was to be said. The strained silence returned. When Troy could no longer stand not knowing, he asked, “Are you still planning to move?”
Faith broke eye contact. “I don’t know…. I think it might be for the best.”
“Because of me?”
She smiled at that. “Why is it men always assume they’re the sole reason for a woman’s decisions?”
“I don’t know. Why?”
“You ask that as if I’m going to give you a punch line.” She shook her head in amusement. “I guess the answer is that men tend to be self-centered.”
He didn’t argue with her. “You’re probably right.”
Troy thought he saw Megan poke her head around the corner, but she didn’t return with her “found” knitting.
His pride felt like a lump in his throat. Somehow he managed to speak around it. “Don’t leave, Faith.” If she moved away, he knew he’d regret that he hadn’t asked her to stay. He’d regret that he hadn’t tried to stop her.
To his utter astonishment, her eyes filled with tears. He had no idea what he could’ve said to cause such a reaction. Every time he opened his mouth he upset her. That was the last thing he wanted. Feeling completely helpless, he covered the distance between them and wrapped his arms around her.
At first she resisted and then, gradually, he felt her resolve weaken as she leaned against him. Troy held her enclosed in his embrace.
Megan cleared her throat as she entered the room.
They broke apart like guilty teenagers.
“Here’s the blanket,” his daughter announced in an unnecessarily loud voice.
“Oh, let me see,” Faith said with more enthusiasm than warranted. Almost eagerly she walked away from Troy and toward Megan.
Troy could see that Faith’s skin was flushed with embarrassment. While she examined Megan’s knitting, Troy’s mind whirled with hope and excitement, and his spirits felt lighter than they’d been in weeks.
In his heart of hearts, he was convinced Faith loved him as much as he loved her. This being apart was ridiculous. He knew what he wanted, and that was to have Faith in his life. They were meant to be together. He felt sure that, given time, she’d admit it, too.
“Oh, Megan, you’ve done a splendid job.”
His daughter fairly beamed at Faith’s praise. “Did you notice the mistake I made here?” she asked, pointing to what must’ve been a small flaw in the blanket.
“No, and no one else will, either.”
“I do, but I have to look for it. Remember what you told me when I first started knitting?”
Faith frowned and gave a slight shrug.
“You said,” Megan reminded her, “that if it bothered me I should rip it out and repair the mistake, but if it was something small and barely noticeable I should simply forget it.”
“Remember there are three stitches in knitting. Knit, purl—”
“—and rip,” Megan completed for her. “That isn’t technically a stitch, but it’s certainly part of my knitting process.”
“It’s part of everyone’s process,” Faith said, and they both laughed.
Faith made a couple of other complimentary remarks about the blanket while Troy waited patiently.
“I should be going,” he said pointedly when Megan brought out the new yarn she’d purchased. It was obvious that she and Faith had become good friends and shared an easy camaraderie.
Faith turned and her gaze immediately found his. “I should go, too. Oh, look at the time,” she said. “Craig will be home soon, won’t he? You two will want to have dinner.”
“Okay,” Megan said. Troy supposed she figured her work was done.
Troy held the door for Faith and was about to follow her when Megan placed her hand on his arm, stopping him. “You’re not upset with me, are you?”
Troy looked over at Faith and saw that she stood next to her car, waiting for him.