Chapter 15

Hal

Hal stood, horribly amused by the whole situation, as Jesse’s neighbors came out to see him standing in the hallway behind her. He couldn’t help smiling and chuckling to himself as they looked between him and Jesse. Finally, he decided to bring the awkward moment to a close.

“Hal,” he said, introducing himself and extending his hand to the two gentlemen. “Jesse spoke about you briefly.”

“Oh?” Mark answered as he shook his hand.

“She is very fond of the two of you.” Hal smiled as he turned to Tony and shook his hand as well.

“Well, we’re fond of her as well,” Mark said, and Hal raised his brow at the hint of protectiveness he heard in the other man’s voice.

“I am getting there myself,” Hal said, flashing both of the men a smile, making sure to make it just so slightly unsettling. As he had hoped, he saw both of the men bristle a little.

“We were just heading out to the store,” Mark said to Jesse but still keeping his eyes on Hal. “Did you need anything?”

“No, I’m fine,” Jesse said, and Hal nearly laughed at the strained awkwardness he could clearly detect in her tone.

“Okay,” the man said. “We should be back in a couple of hours. Just give me a call if you change your mind.”

Hal could clearly see that the man was reluctant to trust him and could hardly blame him. He was sure that having a random famous person appear in one’s hallway was a bit of a shock.

“I will,” Jesse said from beside him. “I was just going to show Hal around for a second.”

Hal could feel both of the men sizing him up for another moment. He knew that he could take both of these men down within the span of a second, and it seemed that they, too were coming to the same realization. Hal knew, though, that they were just concerned for the well-being of their friend, and he forced himself to relax.

“Okay,” Mark said, his voice still harboring a lot of reluctance. “We’ll see you later, then.”

“See you,” Jesse said softly, and Hal could tell that she was feeling incredibly awkward about the whole situation.

“It was nice meeting you both,” Hal said as they passed him.

“Good to meet you, too,” the other man, Tony said while Mark appeared to simply ignore him.

Hal could feel their eyes on him until the elevator slid closed. He watched as Jesse opened the door to her apartment and moved inside.

“Well,” here we are, he heard her say. “It isn’t much, but it’s mine. Well, as long as I keep paying the rent, anyway.”

Hal chuckled at her even as his eyes traveled over the small apartment. It was indeed small, but it was very homey and incredibly clean and well organized.

“This is a nice little place,” Hal said, looking around, and hearing Jesse laugh from behind him.

“If you say so,” she remarked. “Can I get you anything? Tea? More coffee?”

“No, I’m fine.” Hal refused her offers. “I really appreciate you showing me around a little.”

“Oh, it’s no problem,” she said dismissively.

“I’m sorry my friends were so rude,” Jesse said, and he could hear the embarrassment in her tone.

“I’m sure they just care about you,” Hal answered as he lowered himself onto her soft couch.

“Yeah, they do,” Jesse said. There was a long moment of silence. Hal took a moment to imagine the sight of Jesse moving about in her small home, getting ready for work or just curled up watching a movie. The very thought brought a smile to his face.

“What are you thinking about?” Jesse asked as she went to sit down on the other end of the couch.

“Just you,” he said smiling, feeling a rush of satisfaction at the blush that spread across her cheeks.

“You know,” Jesse sighed and shook her head. “I’m already going to have to deal with the Spanish Inquisition when those two get back.”

“Oh,” Hal nodded. “Well, we may as well give you something interesting to tell them, then.”

Again, Jesse blushed, and Hal chuckled.

“You know, if you keep telling me things like that,” Jesse started, “you may actually have to back them up.”

Hal felt his mirth disappear, and he gave a stern expression.

“Likewise,” he said, putting a bit of a growl into his voice. He felt a hint of amusement as she looked down into her lap.

“You know I would never do anything to you that you didn’t want,” Hal said sincerely, hoping that she understood that he was just teasing with her. “I’m sorry if I’m coming off as rude. I haven’t interacted with women in a very long time.”

Jesse laughed out loud.

“Somehow I find that very hard to believe.” Jesse shook her head.

“Easier than you think.” Hal shrugged. “Usually, I just tell them to meet me in a dark corner. And they do. And we fuck. And then we part ways. And they get to tell the whole world about how they fucked Hal Roberts in a dark corner. It’s a win-win situation.”

“Oh,” Jesse said meekly. “I had no idea you had such … degrading interactions with women.”

“Some women are all too happy to be … degraded, as you say,” Hal said defensively, his eyes narrowing. “Some women are just as eager to get laid at a social event as men are.”

“Probably more so,” Jesse murmured. Hal raised an eyebrow, intrigued and slightly amused by the comment.

“Is that so?” he asked. He was rewarded with yet another violent blush from her.

Hal suddenly got the idea that it was going to be very fun to interact with this woman.