“Travis.” Her heart lurched when she saw him come from behind her and stand next to Darrell. She clasped her hands together to keep herself from grabbing him and holding him tight. She couldn’t take her eyes off his rugged face and piercing brown eyes. “What are you doing here?”
He gestured at one of the clocks on the wall. “The bank is closing for the day and I decided to pick you up from work.”
“Thank you,” she said with a bright smile. The energy was pulsating through her as she met his gaze. “Travis, have you met Darrell?”
“Yes, he has,” her ex-boyfriend bit out.
“I’ll go get my purse,” Christine told Travis. She walked to her desk when she heard Travis speaking to her ex.
“So, Darrell,” he said in a soft, lethal tone that made her pause, “do you or do you not believe that Christine has a wild streak?”
“I’ve never seen it.”
“I bet you didn’t.” Travis’s voice went lower. “Which makes me wonder why you’re telling everyone in town that Christine’s out of control and she shouldn’t be trusted.”
Christine’s hand slipped on the drawer handle. When did Darrell say that? And how did Travis know?
Darrell nervously cleared his throat. “You’re confusing me with someone else.”
“No, I’m not,” Travis replied with confidence. “But I’m going to settle your curiosity once and for all. She has a wild side but she’s not reckless.”
Darrell scoffed at his statement. “Why should I listen to you?”
“I’ve seen her wild side many times,” Travis said. “And she will never allow herself to lose control. You know that, but you want to play mind games with her. What I can’t figure out is if you’re angry that she proved you a liar, or if you’re angry you never saw this side of her.”
“She has no sides,” Darrell insisted. “I should know. I dated her for years.”
“Really?” Travis drawled. “Name one thing on her bucket list.”
“Her what?” Darrell asked.
“Exactly,” Travis said. “She didn’t trust you enough to tell you what she wanted out of life. And I don’t trust you at all. Cause any more trouble for Christine and you will deal with me.”
Christine quickly grabbed her purse and hurried out of her office. “I’m ready,” she told Travis.
“I don’t have time for this,” Darrell declared. He pivoted on his heel and marched out of the bank.
Christine raised herself on her tiptoes and placed a kiss on Travis’s angular jaw. “Thank you, Travis.”
“You’re welcome.” Travis slowly turned his attention away from the main entrance and gave her an incredulous look. “That guy really thought you paid me to come here?”
She shrugged. She didn’t want to point out the obvious—that someone like him would need extra incentive to notice someone like her. “He thought I was boring and you don’t,” she explained. “Either he’s worried that he missed out on something or he can’t figure out why I’m different with you.”
“Why are you different with me?” Travis asked as he curled his arm around her waist and escorted her to the door.
“I’m not that different,” she admitted. “I haven’t done anything on my bucket list since I got back home.”
“We’ll have to work on that,” Travis said. “I have a few ideas.”
Christine and Travis said goodnight to Harold and walked out of the bank. As they strolled to the parking lot, Christine stopped, a question burning in her mind since the moment she saw him in the bank.
“Travis, why are you still here? I thought you left town.”
“I was going to,” Travis said quietly. “I didn’t think you wanted me around and I had planned to leave immediately.”
“I’m glad you didn’t.” She wanted him near, but knew it was only a matter of time until he left.
“But the more I thought about it, I realized that you were right.” Travis sighed. “If you took the day off today, you would just be avoiding the problem. You would only face more problems the next day.”
“So what have you been doing since I last saw you?”
“I’ve been here.” He extended his arms and gestured at the downtown area. “I figured the problem is that your neighbors don’t know me. So I decided to introduce myself, drop by some stores and listen to gossip. And you should hear some of the rumors. Apparently you won me in strip poker.”
Christine groaned and covered her face with her hands.