“What’s that?” I asked, suspicious. I was fairly certain I was being tricked into something heinous.
“It’s an obstacle course, where you scale a wall and stuff like that. Once you finish, they give you beer. People of all ages and levels of endurance do it, and there are no high speeds or demons.”
He was just a regular Jimmy Fallon. “I could probably do that.” Though I didn’t exactly sound enthusiastic. “I like beer.”
“You don’t have to,” he said. “It requires determination and a willingness to get dirty. But maybe you can come and just cheer me on.”
Hello. Just because I was blond didn’t mean I was going to be relegated to the role of cheerleader in a tight T-shirt. “I can get dirty. I’m determined. Screw you, Mann. Tell me when and where.”
I could practically hear him grinning. “You are so easy to manipulate.”
How amusing. Not. “Dick.” Though I had walked right into that one.
“What?”
“You know. But fine, I’ll still do it. Now I have a point to prove and maybe you’ll stop calling me princess.”
“I already have. Pita.”
“How about no nicknames unless they start with Sexy?”
“No. That shows no imagination.”
Winning. “I’m okay with cliche as long as it references my beauty.”
“We can talk about your beauty later. Right now I have to go to work.”
“Work sucks.”
“Tell me about it. I’ll call you later.” He made exaggerated and obnoxious kissing sounds into the phone.
I laughed. “Oh, God, never make that sound again.”
Wednesday night after he picked me up, we went back to his house and played video games in the hot living room. “So who do you normally hang out with?” I asked, thumbs moving fast on my controller.
“I don’t know. I’m either at work or the gym or with my brothers. Sometimes I grab a beer with the guys I work with.”
“Maybe we should invite some people over sometime.”
“You mean, like a party?” he asked, glancing over at me.
“No. I guess we really can’t do that. Not with the boys and social workers and all that. I meant more just like, maybe you could introduce me to your friends.” The minute it was out of my mouth, I wanted to retract the statement. It was so “girlfriend.” So needy.
“I don’t have any friends. I have coworkers I grab a beer with. I have Tyler and Nathan and that’s about it. You’re dating a loser. There is still time for you to bail if you want.”
“Don’t be self-deprecating. It’s not a good look on you.” I dodged a missile on the screen. “I don’t have a lot of true friends either. Just Rory and Kylie and Robin.” The rest were fringe.
“Robin’s the hot one, right?” he asked, voice teasing.
“I will cut you if you say that again.”
“And you were worried about my jealousy? Damn.”
“Maybe we could have a cookout or something for your friends and my friends.” Why was I still pushing this? I wasn’t even sure what I was pushing.
“Why do we have to be with other people? Can’t I just be with you?” He paused the game and tossed his controller on the coffee table. “Come here, weirdo.”
He pulled me into his arms and I settled with my back against his chest. “What are you really asking for, Jess?”
“I don’t know,” I told him honestly. “I don’t really have any idea how to date someone. I haven’t had a boyfriend since my junior year in high school.”
“Well, I’ve never had a boyfriend so you’re one step ahead of me.”
Oh, God. I rolled my eyes even though he couldn’t see them. “Cute.”
Tyler came into the living room from the kitchen. He saw us sitting together and made a face.
“What?” I asked.
“I miss Rory.”
“It’s been two days,” Riley protested. “How much can you miss her?”
“Easy for you to say when you have Jessica’s ass resting on your junk.”
Suddenly Riley stiffened. “Hey, look, man, I know I’m supposed to be all cool with whatever you and Jess did before, but the truth is, I’m not. I’m trying but it’s hard, so just leave my girlfriend’s ass out of our conversations, okay?”
My cheeks started to burn. I wanted to protest that Tyler hadn’t said anything suggestive at all, that he was talking about missing Rory, but my gut said that would make it worse. Instead, I just linked my hand through Riley’s, trying to convey that I was with him and he needed to chill.
“Girlfriend, huh?” was what Tyler said. “I never saw that one coming, but I have to say, the two of you make sense together.”
Now I was really embarrassed. I turned to Riley. “Yeah, girlfriend?”
He shrugged. “You got a problem with that?”
It was so utterly unromantic that I grinned, feeling much better about the whole thing. He was just as awkward as I was, and it was a huge relief. I didn’t feel so insane for suggesting he introduce me to his friends.
“Dude, you have no game,” Tyler told him.
“Fuck you,” Riley responded. “She never wanted to date you, did she? Yet she’s dating
Fortunately, Tyler just laughed, throwing his hands up. “True. See, it all worked out the way it was supposed to. Now can you just accept that Jess and I are friends, always have been, and stop making her feel uncomfortable?”
“Can you just go away?”
Easton came streaking out of the kitchen in nothing but a pair of basketball shorts, running out of the front door. “Where the hell are you going?” Riley roared after him.
“He has a bug up his ass about catching fireflies since Rory’s dad showed him how to catch them and release them before they croak.”
For some reason, Riley sighed. “You know the next time the social worker shows up, it will be an unannounced visit.”
“So?” Tyler shrugged. “It’s all going to be fine. Easton has gained ten pounds since Mom died and he’s grown like half an inch. He even talks more. His teachers at the end of the year said he was doing better. Don’t borrow trouble, man.”
I found it interesting that the dynamic in the house had changed since the boys were back. Riley was less relaxed. While he had been worried about Easton and the impending social worker visit, he hadn’t been on edge like this. That Tyler was always so calm seemed to make Riley wind tighter. I sensed a wall kicking in the near future.
That tension was why he wasn’t interested in having sex with me. That’s what I told myself when Riley drove me back to my apartment an hour later and just idled the car, his goodnight kiss distracted.
“Wear clothes that can get dirty for the Warrior Dash,” he said. “I’ll pick you up at eight Saturday morning.”
Gross. I wished I’d had that information before I’d said yes. I also wished that he would show the slightest bit of interest in seeing me between now and then. It was only Wednesday. And if we had to get up at the crack of dawn on Saturday, wouldn’t it make sense for me to stay over with him Friday night?
And have sex?
I wasn’t sure how to approach the subject though without looking needy. “What are you doing Friday?”
“Working. Sleeping.”
Not the answer I was looking for. Apparently I needed
