This girl and her questions. What am I going to do with her? I never expect the questions she asks, nor am I particularly prepared to answer this one. She seems to catch on quickly to that fact, too.
“You don’t have to answer,” she rushes to add.
“No, it’s okay. You surprised me is all.” I scratch my jaw and try to figure out where to start with this. “Um. Well. Okay, so, my mom wasn’t too happy that I wanted to live with my dad. She thought since she was my mom that I should automatically get to live with her, but Mom was a workaholic. It was career first, which is fine, I guess, but it was no fun for me. She worked long hours and took lots of work trips. I would end up with my dad or a babysitter if I stayed with her, so my dad fought for me to stay with him.
“He won; I got to live with him. Mom was supposed to get me every other weekend. I saw her maybe once a month, if that. She worked too much. Then, around the time Dad met Janet, my stepmom, Mom got a job offer in California. She took it and told me about it after she had already moved.” I shrug. “She calls me every so often, but I generally don’t hear from her.”
Kayla looks completely stunned by this information, and I wish I had some other story to tell about my mom. I’ve never liked saying that my mom chose work over family, but lying is just as bad. Kayla reaches over and rests her hand on my thigh. “I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault. Let’s finish this food and try the next truck.”
She nods, but a moment later, she throws another damn question at me. “What’s your relationship like with Sydney’s husband? You haven’t mentioned him much. Do y’all get along?”
“What is it with you and all these questions?” I half-tease, half-seriously ask.
She laughs. “Hey, you proposed to me, remember? I think it’s only fair I get to know more about you and your relationship with those in your family.”
“On our first date?”
“No time like the present, Logan,” she says with a smile.
I just want to kiss her at this point, but I’ll get to that soon enough. For now, I better answer her. “We get along okay. Better now than we did. He and Sydney broke up years ago, and then she found out she was pregnant. Instead of making sure she told him directly, she relied on his dad to tell him. His dad decided not to tell him. Ian has only been in Savannah’s life for the past year, near about. I had to adjust to some new boundaries with him around.”
“What do you mean?” she asks as we stand, toss our trash, and head toward the next truck.
“With him not around, my stepmom, my dad, our best friend, and I all helped Sydney raise Savannah. Ian thought I overstepped, and I probably did, so I had to step back and let him be her dad and make sure I was only the fun uncle.”
“Was it hard to do?”
“Yes and no.” I don’t have to scan the menu of this truck. I’ve eaten here before, and I know exactly what I want her to try. “Yes in the sense that I’m so used to helping Sydney out and I was having to slack on that for him to do it. No in that Ian does his job as a father, so I’m never worried about her not being taken care of or anything like that. I get to kick back and irritate him and Syd by doing all the fun uncle things.”
“That’s cool. So, things are good between you two now?”
“Yeah. He’s a cool guy and he makes Syd happy, so I like him. He doesn’t have anything against me, except I think he doesn’t like I was there for those first years of her life and he wasn’t.” We’re at the front of the line, so I place our order and make sure I get some drinks this time.
“I can sort of understand that.”
“Well, yeah, me too,” I interrupt. “But it’s done and over with, so what’s the point in dwelling on it? Which, I’m not saying he dwells on it, but it still irks him from time to time, I think.”
“Gotcha. Okay, now tell me about you, Mr. College Graduate. Is it as fantastic as they make it out to be?”
I scoff before I can think better of it. The man hands me our drinks, which I hand to Kayla, and then he hands us our quesadilla. “Post-college life can be great.”
“But,” she supplies for me.
“It’s not going so well for me. I can’t find a job to use that damn degree.”
“Which is?”
“Computer Science. Don’t get me wrong. There are plenty of jobs out there, but none of those employers will hire me for some reason.” We sit at a picnic table. I hand her half of the quesadilla. “This will be the best damn quesadilla you’ve ever had in your life.”
“You’ll be disappointed if I don’t like it.”
Shaking my head, I wave my own half at her. “There’s no way you’ll dislike this.” Then, I take a large bite, basically eating half of it right then and there, causing her to laugh and take her own bite. It’s loaded with shredded chicken that is seasoned perfectly, but it also has some veggies, cheese, and beans and rice in it. The thing is loaded and delicious.
Kayla nods and hums in approval while chewing through her first bite. I can’t get a job, but I can pick good food off of a menu. “How many job interviews have you been to?” she asks.
“Over the past year? Too many. They always tell me I’m simply not a good fit for the company or some shit like that.”
She’s fucking adorable. Her lips purse, her nose wrinkles, and her brows pull together as she thinks. “Maybe it’s your interview skills that need work. Maybe you’re not selling yourself in the best possible way. You’ve shown that you can easily get a date. To be sure, you can get a job.” She forgets all about her quesadilla and faces me, straddling the bench. “Let’s find out what you do wrong. Pretend I’m the interviewer.” Kayla holds out her hand.
I eye her for a moment as I turn to straddle the bench before reluctantly abandoning my own quesadilla and shake her hand.
“Logan! Come on!”
“What?” I couldn’t have fucked up already.
“Would you shake my daddy’s hand like that? All flimsy and wimpy?”
“Seriously?” Did she just insult my handshake?
“Yes! It matters, Logan. My dad would kick you out of the house, just for that.” Her grip tightens and firms and she shakes my hand again. “Shake it like you’re meeting my dad.” This is ridiculous, but whatever. I shake her hand hard and firm. She nods. “Better.” Kayla clears her throat. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Logan.”
I laugh. “It’s Archer. It’s nice to meet you too.”
“Let’s get straight down to business. It looks like you’re applying for such and such position and you went to Whaley Jones University, where you earned a degree in Computer Science. Why do you think you’d fit in here at Kayla Incorporated?”
It’s tough not to smile or laugh at her. “Well, I uh—”
“Stop.” She holds her hand up. “Confidence, Logan. Where’s your confidence? I stopped singing and you seriously mouthed ‘marry me’ at me. Joke or not, that takes either a level of confidence or stupidity. We’re going with confidence for this purpose. Starting a sentence with well or uh doesn’t equate to confidence. You need to know the answer to key questions before you go into an interview, so you can be prepared and confident in the answers. Try again.”
“How do you know so much about this anyway?” I scoot a little closer and rest my hands on her knees.
She playfully shoves them away with a smile. “No inappropriate contact, mister. You’re trying to get a job, not get fired before you’re hired. I know because when I was in high school, I wanted a job, but I sucked so massively at the interview process that no one would hire me. My dad helped me ace it. Think about why you’re awesome and then give me your answer. If it’s good, you can finish your quesadilla.” In the meantime, she’s picking up what’s left of her half and finishing it off. This girl doesn’t play fair.
I think on it for a minute. “I’m hardworking. I’ve been at my current job for five years, so I’m loyal. I’m responsible.”
“Wait, do you know what will really seal the deal? Do some research on the company and implement that into how your skill set will fit in. It will impress them that you know about the company. Try it with Kayla Inc.” The sip she takes from her can of soda hides her smile. She’s back to facing me fully since she’s finished her quesadilla.
“How am I supposed to do that?”
“Easy. A job with a company is just like a relationship. You want them to know you’re invested and everything, so doing it with me will transfer over with the company.”
That makes no sense to me, but I’ll play along. “If you hire me at Kayla Inc., I promise to show my loyalty skills. The only company I’ll have eyes for is Kayla Inc.” There’s no way she can hide her smile this time. I hook my hands under her knees and scoot her closer, causing her thighs to lie over mine. “I’ll be as committed as the best of them. I’ll work hard to show my worth to the company.” With a little pressure, my hands glide from her knees to the tops of her thighs. “I want to be the kind of employee who is indispensable. I think Kayla Inc. is the kind of company to motivate me to be that kind of employee.”
Kayla snakes her arms around my neck, and I continue with my hands at the top of her thighs. “I’m fit to and more than capable of taking care of any task Kayla Inc. gives me.” I lean forward to kiss her on the collarbone. “I’m a quick learner, but also very knowledgable in many, many areas.” My lips move up her neck to a spot just below her ear.
“Logan.” My name comes out all breathy and it sounds a little like a moan. “You can so get a job at Kayla Incorporated.”
My chest shakes with laughter. My forehead falls to rest on her shoulder. “Thanks.”
“Next time you have an interview, pretend you’re applying for a job for me.”
I lift my head and smile at her. “Will do. Ready to hit up another truck?”
“Do any of these things serve desserts or something sweet?”
“Only one way to find out.”
We manage to visit six of the trucks before Kayla deems herself as full as a tick. I’m actually surprised she lasted that long. I wasn’t sure I was going to, but the food was too good and so was the company. Kayla occasionally gave me interview pointers, but we mostly talked about the food and things we saw around us. Unfortunately, I’m now taking her back to her car.
“You know, you keep asking about relationships with my family. What about you and yours? All I know is that you have the common relationship with your brother.”
“My relationship is mostly good with my mom and good with my dad.”
“Do they live close by?”
“Yeah. I actually live with my mom. I don’t know why I thought that would be the better choice compared to living on campus; well, I do know, but it’s not always fun.”
“Why? And if it’s not fun, why not live with your dad?”
“Mom would pass out. She can be overbearing sometimes. Like, she always wants to know where I’m going and when I’m coming home. I feel like I should have a little bit more freedom than she gives me. Some of the things she does, I can understand. She texted me earlier wanting to know when I would be home so she would know how much dinner to fix; that’s understandable. But giving me a curfew? I’m twenty. Give me a break. Dad tries to talk some sense into her. Sometimes it helps, but most of the time it doesn’t.”
“Why didn’t you choose to live on campus?” I ask.
Kayla sighs. “They gave me a choice. I could live on campus, but I would have to get a job since they pay for my tuition. Since we live so close, they thought it would be just fine if I stayed at home. If I did, then they wouldn’t make me get a job since they would be saving on room and board costs. I decided to stay home. After my first semester, I’m glad I did. I don’t know about you, but I have a lot of homework and I don’t want to deal with the hassle of a job.”
I nod. “That makes sense. It can be tough to juggle it all; I worked and went to school, so I get it.” Unfortunately, we’ve returned to the park. Time to say goodbye. I get out of the car to walk around and open the door for her. “So, I’ll pick you up Thursday around six?” I say, walking to her car.
“I’ll be ready.”
“Will you miss me this time?” I lean in a bit, taking a small step closer to her, and grin.
Kayla smiles. “I’ll let you know on Thursday if I did or not. I’ll miss the food.” She laughs at herself over that. Not missing me is not an option. She must miss me.
When Kayla leans against her car, as if she’s getting comfortable, she ends up pulling me even closer to her. My thighs, hips, and stomach now press against hers. Every time she breathes, her breasts move over my chest. What’s crazy is the fact that her fingers hooking into my belt loops are the thing that’s turning me on the most, even though her tongue totally just darted out and licked her lower lip.
To wait until Thursday or to kiss her now?
Kayla raises her eyebrows. That’s practically a challenge. Or a call for action.
To hell with it. I lean forward and kiss her. A closed-mouth kiss that lasts the perfect amount of time with good pressure, and then I pull away. Kayla shakes her head slowly back and forth. I don’t know if that no means it’s a bad kiss, it wasn’t good enough, or no way are you kissing me just once. It doesn’t matter because for some reason, I take it as an invitation to lurch forward and capture her mouth again.
Our tongues meet at the same time. Hot damn. The moment they touch, not an inch separates our bodies, my fingers dig into her waist, and I’m not sure how I’m standing because fuck, she can kiss. She tastes good. Sweet. If heaven had a taste, it would taste like her. And her tongue slides against mine in a way that makes my entire body tighten up because it’s too freaking good. She’s too freaking good.
I drop my hands, step back, and inhale a large gulp of fresh air. Kayla looks at me like I’ve lost my mind, but we should say goodnight before my mind fails to function any more than it is already. “Good night, Kayla.” Gulping, without stepping forward, I lean as far as I can to kiss her cheek. “Let me know when you get home.” I idly watch as she gets into her car before finally heading back to mine.
This girl is the first bright spot in my life in a long time, and I can’t wait to see where things will go with her.
On Thursday, the same day as my date with Kayla to a Rebels game, I learn that I am not selected for the job I interviewed for on Tuesday. While I tried to think about the tips Kayla gave me, I obviously didn’t do well enough. I’ve been in such a sour mood that if I hadn’t bought the tickets to the game prior to the interview, I honestly might have forgotten about it.
That’s how fucked up this week has been. To hopefully put me in a better mood prior to our date, I’m stopping by Sydney’s for a little bit. It’s early enough that it’s only her and Andrew because Savannah is still at preschool.
“Hey, Logan,” Sydney says when I walk into her kitchen. I rarely knock, but that’s because she knew I was coming over. If she didn’t know, I’d definitely knock. The last thing I’d want is to walk in on something that will scorch my eyes forever. “How’d the job interview go?”
I groan. “Just give me the baby.” She frowns, but hands over my wiggling nephew. “Speaking of jobs, when are you going back to work?” Syd graduated when I did last year, but put the job search on hold because she knew little Andrew would be coming in October.
“Ah, well. About that.”
I lift my gaze from Andrew to my sister. She seems both nervous and confident. “What is it, Syd?”
“I’m not going to work.”
“Why not?” It’s fine if she doesn’t want to, I guess, but I thought her plan was to be a stay-at-home mom for a small time, and then find a job.
Her eyes water, which throws me completely off guard. “Why are you judging my decision?”
“I’m not; I’m—”
Ian walks into the kitchen as she stands and interrupts me. “I expected the why not from my parents, but not from you, Logan.” Sydney rushes out of the room and a second later, I hear her running up the stairs.
“What the hell did I do?” I ask Ian. “I’m just confused; I don’t care what she does as long as it works and she’s happy.”
He sighs and takes a seat. “She’s a bit emotional today; she’ll be fine.”
“Why? What happened?”
Ian’s gaze drops to his baby, who reaches for him, so I have to give him up. Andrew, what a traitor. Doesn’t he know that uncles are better than dumb ol’ dad? My inner conversation with myself comes to a screeching halt when Ian says, “She thought she was pregnant again, but she’s not.”
My eyes widen. “What? Already? Don’t y’all know how to use protection? I mean, do you want another kid so soon? Three kids under five? For real?”
Somehow, he manages to laugh. “We’re married, Logan. We’re not going to use protection unless we’re actively trying to avoid a baby. Anyway, I don’t know. She doesn’t know how she’s feeling about it other than guilty. Apparently, one of my teammates’ wives has been trying to get pregnant and isn’t having any luck so far. She feels guilty for feeling a bit of relief over not being pregnant.”
Wow. My mind is still attempting to wrap around them having another kid. I don’t know if I can handle it and I’m just the uncle. Slow down, Syd! Since Sydney isn’t here for me to talk to and Ian is in one of his rare talking moods with me, I decide to go with it.
“How are you feeling about it?”
Andrew makes some nonsense noises, making Ian smile. “Fuck, man,” he says. “I love him and Savannah, but I don’t know if I’m quite ready when he’s just three months old. If she was pregnant, we’d have a new baby before this one could even turn one.” Ian shakes his head. “Too soon.”
“Ian.”
Our heads snap to the threshold of the room where Sydney stands, her arms wrapped around herself.
“Babe. We already talked about this.”
“I know,” she mumbles. She walks over, takes Andrew, and sits on Ian’s lap. “Sorry, Logan. I’m wishy-washy about this still. Let’s talk about something else.”
“Okay. I’m good with you not working if that’s what you want. But why? That wasn’t the plan.”
She shrugs. “This way, I spend more time with my kids and my husband. I decided to put my family first. It’ll be really hard if I ever do pursue a career, but this is the right decision. I don’t have to work and being at home with my family is what’s making me happy. They’re all I need right now.”
I nod. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to me at all. Sydney has been dodging the question lately and she’s more invested than ever in doing what it takes to make their relationship work, in keeping everyone happy, which she’s been that way since they got married over the summer. “Good,” I finally say.
“How are things with Kayla?”
“Who’s Kayla?” Ian asks.
“A girl Ian is practically in love with already. She sings in some coffeehouse, Logan proposed to her sort of, and she came over for dinner while you were gone on your trip.”
The only thing that can be done with Sydney’s response to Ian is to shake my head. “Things are good. I saw her again the next day. We’ve talked a little since then. Tonight, I’m taking her to the game.”
Sydney’s eyes widen. “Ian’s game?”
“Is there another?” Andrew starts crying and that’s my cue to leave. “I should go. I’ll talk to you later, Syd. Good luck tonight, Ian.”
It won’t take me long to get ready, but I might as well clean up my apartment since I have the time. Plus, while unlikely, she may want to come back here. I’m not a slob, but I’m messy enough that by the time I pick up, thoroughly clean, shower, and finish getting ready, it’s time to drive to the address Kayla texted me.
Huh.
My nerves bundle, tense, and relax on the drive. Anxiety and nervousness isn’t usually something I deal with on a date. This is odd. It’s just a hockey game, too. What is there to be nervous about?
Soon enough, I knock on the door of the nice house. Hopefully, Kayla will be the one who answers the door. But this is me we’re talking about. I don’t have that much good luck. A woman who I’m assuming is her mom answers with a look mixed with surprise and confusion.
“Can I help you?”
“I’m here to pick up Kayla.” Just as the words leave my mouth, footsteps pound in a rush down the stairs and a moment later, I see her. Ah, yes. There, clear as day and as beautiful as the prettiest of sunsets is the answer to why I have some nervousness.
“Hey, Logan. I’ll be back at some point, Mom.” Kayla walks past her mom, grabs my hand, and drags me to the car.
“Trying to make a quick escape?”
“Yes. She’s pestered me for the past two hours about my date while I was getting ready.”
I pull on the door handle, but hold Kayla firm before she can slide into the car. “It took you two hours to get ready?” She probably wishes I wasn’t smiling, but I can’t help it. That’s a lot of effort, it seems, especially when I’m sure five minutes would’ve garnered fantastic results, too.
“I took lots of breaks, Lo-Lo.” She flashes a quick grin and slips away from me to get into the car.
I close the door and walk around. My nerves are fully relaxed now with her little quip to me.
“So, what hockey game are we seeing?” Kayla asks once I’m on the road.
“A Rebels game,” I reply with a bit too much bluntness in my tone.
“Well, there are other teams too, you know!” she points out. A moment later, she says, “Wait. That means your brother-in-law plays for the Carolina Rebels? Seriously?”
“Yeah. Ian Rhett.”
“Wow. I can’t wait to tell my dad, not that it’ll impress him, but it’s one of those things that’s kind of cool.” She has her phone in her hands already. She starts to text, but I don’t know if she’s texting him about who my brother-in-law is.
“Y’all are fans?”
She shrugs. “He likes to watch if he sees that it’s on. I’ve watched a few times with him. It’s always fun.”
“Have you ever been to a game?”
“Not that much of a fan, though I’m sure Dad would jump on the chance to go if he’d ever stop working.” That last bit comes out as a grumble.
“I will attempt to be a good host then.” I’m so not asking about her dad. I want this date to be fun and light.
Soon, we pay for parking, find a decent spot, and get out of the car to walk inside. Kayla takes my hand on the walk inside. She does it so casually that I would think it was almost an act requiring no thought and gave her no nerve if not for the grin she tried to hide by looking around at all the other fans decked out in their navy and silver jerseys. We both stick out a little bit because we’re wearing only jeans and a hoodie for me and a nice sweater for Kayla.
I didn’t get us super fantastic seats, but we are in the lower level, which is pretty great. Before making our way there, we walk around and search for a place to grab some grub. We decide on BBQ sandwiches with slaw, fries, and some sodas. Then, we venture to the center of the arena behind the Rebels bench, about midway up from the ice.
“Nice seats, Logan.”
“Hope so. I don’t normally come, but when I do, it’s with Syd, and she’s in a box.”
“Oh! Before I forget, have you heard anything about the job interview?”
Unfortunately, a mouth-full of delicious BBQ will delay, but not prevent, the inevitable. Once I swallow, I nod. “Didn’t get it.”
“What? Did you follow all of my instructions?”
“Yes, of course.”
“All of them?”
“I tried.”
“Okay. After this, we’re going back to your place, and I’m getting you into interview shape. The next job interview you have, you’re nailing.”
I scoff. “Doubt it. Somehow, I managed to get one next week with this company who interviewed me before, but turned me down. Maybe they don’t realize they interviewed me already, but I doubt they’ll hire me after rejecting me once already.”
With her free hand, Kayla grabs my arm. “No! This is a great second chance. We’re getting you a job, Logan. You wait and see.”
Thankfully, I don’t have to tell her she’s dreaming hopelessly. I’m close to giving up myself. We’re sitting at the end of the aisle and have to stand for a couple to pass us. They end up taking the seats next to us.
“Britt, relax,” the guy tells his woman. “Ben and Melissa can handle the kids tonight.”
“But they’ve never kept them overnight,” we hear Britt tell him.
“Everyone will be sleeping,” he points out.
The girl is easily my age or a little older. They wear wedding rings. I’m starting to think everyone my age is married and possibly has kids. Not to say I want those things right now, but I wouldn’t object to someone to spend my time with. Like Kayla.
We finish eating in peace and warm ups are about to start. I decide to take our trash and run to the trash can, so she won’t miss any of it in case it takes me too long. Sure enough, players are on the ice when I get back. Kayla is chatting with the couple next to us, but she stops and smiles big at me when I take my seat.
She introduces me to the couple, Trace and Brittany, and we chat with them until the game starts. Kayla actually impresses me with what she does know of the game and how she seems to be invested during the plays. During intermission, we talk a little more and less about hockey.
“I know we aren’t supposed to ask these things so soon, but I’m super curious. What were your past relationships like? What do you want out of one now?”
No matter when these conversations come up, I always dread them. I don’t know why. I have no reason to regret my past or to not want to talk about it. But these conversations are no fun, not relevant to the present in my case, and therefore, I dread them. But if Kayla wants to know, then I’ll tell her about the boring life of Logan Archer.
“I’ve dated around a lot. Right now, I want someone to spend my time with.”
“No long-time relationship then?”
“No actual relationship, I guess. I date people.”
Kayla mulls that over. “So, does that mean while we’re dating, if a guy asks me out, I’m not obligated to say no just because I’m dating you, and you can ask a girl out while we’re dating?”
“Hypothetically.”
She laughs. “Hypothetically? What does that mean?”
“It means I won’t be asking anyone else out and at some point, you’ll be my girlfriend. So when some guy asks you out, you can say yes if you want, but you’ll only be leading him on because you’ll eventually be all mine. Don’t be that girl, Kayla,” I finish in a fake chastising tone.
She grins, laughs, and eventually snorts a little. “You’re that sure of yourself?”
“Absolutely.”
Kayla shakes her head and keeps glancing at me. “We’ll see.”