“It was damned good cornbread.” On a contented sigh, she said, “I had fun.”
“Good. There’s a lot of other stuff I want to show you to further your southern education.”
“Oh yeah? Like what?”
“The Sweet Potato Festival is only a few weeks off.”
“Sweet potatoes?” Her voice dripped with skepticism.
“Sure. Vardaman is the sweet potato capital of the world. Once you’ve had sweet potato pie, you’ll never go back to pumpkin.”
“Blasphemer! There is no Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie.”
“I’ll concede that it’s worth having both.”
“Generous of you.”
“I’m pretty sure there’s no such thing as too much pie.”
She grinned up at him. “I’ve eaten your grandmother’s pie. This is a true thing. What else?”
“Well, there’s the Spring pilgrimage in Columbus. It’s not as grand as the one in Natchez, but it’s closer and easier to manage. You’ll totally dig all the folks that dress up in period clothes to give the tours of all the antebellum homes.”
Reed knew as soon as the words left his mouth that it was the wrong thing to say. He could actually see the reality of their situation come crashing back down on her. Every fiber of his being wanted to rewind, have a do-over as the light in her eyes dimmed and her expression twisted into regret.
“Reed—”
Please don’t say it.
She pulled away from him, tugging the blanket up to her chin. “I don’t know how much longer I’m here.”
“Have you signed a contract somewhere?”
“No, but I have to be ready to go when I do. I could be moving in a matter of weeks. Probably will be. I’ve got resumes out at all the top tier firms on my short list. These are prestigious positions, so there’s a big possibility I won’t get offered a job.”
“But if you do get an offer, you’re gone.” Reed saw past her false modesty. She was amazing at what she did. If any of these places interviewed her, that would be the end of it.
She gave a What can I do? shrug.
There was plenty she could do. With the means at her disposal, she could stay if she really wanted to. But he knew how much she wanted to succeed on her own terms, without the help of her family, so he didn’t say a word. How could he, when he admired the hell out of her choice to do exactly that? He’d known her leaving was a very real possibility when he decided to pursue her again. But he’d thought he’d have more time to convince her that staying here was the right move. As usual he’d miscalculated.
He sighed. “I know how hard you’ve worked for this.” Sometimes it was a real pisser to be able to see both sides of a situation.
“I like you, Reed. I’ve always liked you. But I just don’t think it’s smart to start something when I might not be around to finish it.”
“So, what exactly was tonight then?”
“I don’t know. Part business. Part apology. Part what if?”
He nodded, though he didn’t know what he was agreeing with. His mind was full of his own what ifs. What if he hadn’t said the wrong thing at the lake? What if they’d had the last three months to deepen the connection between them? Would she still be planning to leave?
They were useless questions. He had; they hadn’t; and she was. That was reality.
At least she hadn’t called it a mistake.
Looking over at her, he hated the mix of concern and sorrow on her face. “You aren’t going to start avoiding me again, are you?”
Even in the moonlight, he could see her blush.