Page 185 of The Path to Loving Him
“I know she will,” I say as I look out the window. “It’s pouring. Let me walk you to your apartment before Hattie and Hayes arrive.”
“You don’t have to do that. I don’t want you getting wet.”
“And I’m not going to be an asshole and let you walk back to your place unaccompanied.”
“It’s like thirty feet away.”
“Doesn’t matter,” I say, taking her hand in mine.
“You’re being ridiculous,” she says as I bring her out into the rain, the drops careening down from the sky at such a high speed that the water pelting the blacktop sounds more like a roar than a simple rainstorm. “Seriously, Ryland.”
But I don’t listen. I bring her out into the rain with one tug, and instead of rushing to her apartment, I wrap my arm around her waist and start dancing.
“What are you doing?” She laughs as we both get drenched in seconds.
“Dancing . . . be happy it’s not naked.”
She presses her hand to my chest. “What a show that would be for the neighbors.”
“Pretty sure I’d be fired since some students live on this street.”
“And here you are, dancing with me in public, in the rain.”
“Because . . . why not? Rain is often looked upon as an inconvenience. No one wants it to rain when they’re outside, but I don’t know. Sometimes I think the best things happen when it rains.”
She wipes away the water from her eyes, then returns her hand to my chest. “Like what?”
“Growth,” I answer. “Not just in a natural sense, but think about it, it helps us grow patience, and understanding, and makes us slow down. It’s Mother Nature’s way of telling us to sit back and enjoy for a moment. So that’s what we’re doing, we’re enjoying.”
“I love that,” she says as we sway under the pelting rain.
The smell of wet asphalt surrounds us as pools of water form around our feet, and the sound of water rushes around us.
It’s peaceful.
And we do just as I say, we slow down.
We relish in the moment, letting our senses take over as we simply sway back and forth under the rain.
It isn’t until I catch some headlights coming down the road that I realize Hattie and Hayes are almost here.
“They’re pulling up,” I say to her.
Gabby lifts her head and smiles up at me. “Thank you for the dance.”
“Thank you for the night.”
I tip her chin up, then kiss her in the rain, my heart beating a mile a minute as she grips onto me, holding me so tight, as if she never wants this moment to end.
Trust me, if I had it my way, I’d dance with her, in the rain, all night.She feels so good in my arms.“Let me know how Mac likes it in the morning.”
“I will,” I say. “Come over tomorrow night?”
“I thought you’d never ask.” She kisses me once more and then takes off up the steps to her apartment just as Hayes and Hattie pull up.
But rather than keeping my eyes on the car in front of me, I’m focused on Gabby and her retreating body, slipping into her apartment.
I think I might be in a whole lot of trouble where she’s concerned.
