CHAPTER 13
Amy
“Where’s the hidden camera?”
“I’m serious.”
“You can’t be. Laura’s best friend lives in a different —”
“We moved recently.”
His free hand comes up to his face and rubs his chin as he continues looking right at me. His other hand is still on mine, comforting me. I’m surprised he didn’t jerk it away.
“You’re serious?”
“I think I may have seen you at her thirteenth birthday party, but I’m not sure because you were in the room with the adults.”
“The one at—”
“Chuck E. Cheese. Yeah, I was there.”
He nods his head, as he looks for the words to say.
“Pretty unexpected, right?”
“It is, but think of it this way. You didn’t walk out this morning. You stayed. And before that you showed up. You didn’t have to do either, but you did.”
“I know.”
“And there’s a reason why you did. You felt something. Something that told you the risk was worth it, even with the costs involved.”
I nod.
“And I know you don’t want to hurt anyone, especially Laura, and neither do I. Still though, there’s something here that we can’t deny.”
“I don’t deny that.”
“You don’t deny that we can’t deny it?” he teases.
“Yeah. What you said,” I say, giggling again. I can’t believe he’s making such a serious subject something we can discuss so easily. I think most guys would have flipped out or reacted a lot differently. I guess he was serious when he said he’s a professional at expecting the unexpected, or at least dealing with it.
“So where do we go from here? That’s the question, right?”
“Right,” I say.
“But it’s not really a question at all, is it? Because we know where we go. We keep moving forward. My life is about me, and your life is about you. If we decide to share our lives together, even if just for a dinner like we’re having now…well that’s our business. And don’t get me wrong. We’re not going to do anything to hurt those that are close to us, but in time they’ll see what we have and they’ll come to understand and accept it.”
“You make it sound like we’re already together.”
“We are already together, at least in my eyes. Aren’t we in yours?”
“Well, I mean…things are moving so fast I haven’t really had time to sit and think about it.”
“Perfect. It’s all happening naturally. The limits we put on relationships with others are just that, limits. They’re created by people to slow down what they already feel, and what they already know. They’re buffers to prevent themselves from getting hurt and to comply with what society thinks is right or wrong. I live by my own set of rules, and one of those rules is that I don’t hurt people, and especially not you.”
I smile.
“What?”
“I thought I was confused, but when you say it like that it makes a lot of sense.”
“But you have to feel it for yourself. Know it for yourself.”
“I do. That’s why I went to that diner this morning, and why we’ve been together ever since. Everything inside me is excited. I’m enjoying every minute and I don’t want this to stop.”
“Then why should it?” He turns towards the corner and motions to the waiter.
Seconds later the waiter arrives at the table and he pays him in cash. A few seconds later and we’re walking out.
“Where are we going?”
He offers me his arm, which I accept.
“How about a walk through the canals of Venice and then we can make our way up to the Santa Monica Pier. It, and its reflections off the water are beautiful this time of night.”
I nod. “Yeah, that sounds perfect.”
We walk for a few minutes, and I’m feeling a lot better, but I’m still thinking about my best friend.
“What about Laura?”
“Just as we’re letting our relationship develop naturally, the time to tell Laura will present itself.”
“Naturally.”
“Exactly,” he says.
The man certainly has a way with words and I like that he’s not pressuring us to move too fast, even though in some ways we’re moving at breakneck speeds already. Maybe that’s just it. He has this way about him, this charisma that makes me feel like I’ve known him forever. He’s easy to be around and easy to talk to. There’s no pressure, and that makes me want be with him even more.
This man knows how to make people feel good, and that certainly includes me. And I have no doubt he’ll know just how to break the news to Laura when the time is right. I just hope my dad finds him to be just as charismatic as I do.