“I’ll come too,” Miles adds.
I catch a weird look between Brendan and Leo.
“Is that okay?” I ask Brendan, wondering what’s going on between them.
“Uh…sure. I’ll meet you back right here.”
There’s something he’s not telling me, but maybe they’ve got a secret planned for Jaxon.
I head toward the food booths with Gabriella and Miles, chatting about whether elephant ears are better than funnel cakes. While we’re waiting on our orders, a guy approaches Gabriella in the funnel cake line. They chat for a minute, and by the end, it looks like they exchange contact information.
That’s when I notice Miles’ face. He’s staring at them, flexing his fists like he’s about to punch a wall.
“Who was that guy?” I ask Gabriella when she walks up with her funnel cake.
“Oh, just someone I knew from college.” She rips off a section of her dessert, dusting powdered sugar over her fingers.
“Like an ex-boyfriend?” Miles prods, trying to sound casual but failing completely.
“No. Why?”
“No reason,” Miles responds, looking down at the corn dog he hasn’t taken a single bite of yet. “You just seemed…friendly.”
“Friendly?” she asks with a frown. “Do you think I want to date him or something?”
“No.” He’s trying so hard to act uninterested, it’s painful to watch him.
“It doesn’t matter anyway.” She shrugs. “I’m taking a break from dating, indefinitely.”
“You have?” The relief on Miles’ face is almost comical.
“Too many losers in the past year.” She nods to me. “I’m focusing on my job with the Crushers, just like you suggested.” She looks like she deserves a medal for this decision.
“Me?” I ask.
“Yeah, you told me to focus on my job.”
“I didn’t meanforever—”I begin, but she keeps talking over me.
“It’s in my best interest,” she argues, like she’s trying to remain resolute, now that she’s saying it publicly. “I shouldn’t get emotionally involved with anyone right now.”
Miles’ brows lift. “No one?”
She hesitates, looking down at her funnel cake. “Yeah. No one.”
Miles’ face falls.
Thankfully, Jaz walks up, oblivious to what’s just happened. “Hey, I’m heading over to the kiddie rides. Anyone want to join me and a very wiggly toddler?”
“Sure!” Gabriella heads off with her, completely unaware she just destroyed a grown man’s dreams.
The second she’s out of earshot, I turn to him. “Sorry, Miles.”
He shakes his head slowly, eyes dropping to his untouched corn dog. “I never had a shot, did I?”
Then he glances at Gabriella one more time.
Poor guy.