Chapter 25
Jordan’s dating game is just… unreal. No one can say this man doesn’t know how to show a girl a good time. Who knew running a dating app could make you so good at it? It’s almost like he’s taken tips from the best of the best (and ignored what not to do by the worst of the worst).
We’re currently in what he’s calling act one of our evening.
He’s showing me the sights of New York, taking me to see iconic locations like Central Park, the New York Public Library, the Church of the Holy Communion, Columbus Circle – everything feels so familiar, even though I’ve never been here before.
It’s strange, isn’t it, how movies and TV shows can make you feel like you know a place when you don’t.
We’re strolling down a residential street when Jordan stops, all of a sudden.
‘Okay, where are we now?’ I ask.
He looks at his phone for a moment.
‘So, this is Perry Street,’ he tells me. He puts his hands on my shoulders, to turn my body. ‘And that, if I’m not mistaken, is Carrie’s apartment, in Sex and the City .’
I gasp.
‘Oh my God, it is,’ I blurt. ‘How did you… why… you…’
He laughs at me.
‘I wanted to show you the sights,’ he tells me. ‘And I remember you talking about Sex and the City so I found a list of iconic tourist locations that had featured in the show.’
‘That’s why everywhere seemed so familiar,’ I say.
‘It’s also why we’re looking from across the street now,’ he replies. ‘The article I read said that the people who live in the neighbourhood are driven mad by fans of the show. So, I wanted you to see it, but I didn’t want to piss anyone off.’
‘I love it,’ I blurt. ‘I don’t need to get closer – I can see it perfectly from here. What a fun angle for a tour.’
‘Thanks,’ he says. ‘I’m taking that as a compliment.’
‘It really is,’ I insist. ‘You can’t know how iconic those steps are.’
‘Well, I thought you’d get a kick out of it,’ he replies.
‘I can’t believe you researched it,’ I say.
‘I can’t believe that, while I was on the website in the cab, I considered taking a quiz that was apparently going to tell me if I was a Big or an Aiden – does that mean anything to you?’
‘It does – and now I really want to know what your answer would have been,’ I practically cackle.
‘Some things are best left unknown,’ he replies. ‘Okay, so, now the tour is over, we can move on to act two. The food – it’s only a quick cab away, if you’ve seen all you need to see here?’
‘I have,’ I tell him. ‘This, for me, it’s practically a spiritual experience. I want to make so many jokes, but you won’t get any of them.’
‘Geez, I’m such a Big,’ he jokes, clearly having no idea what he’s saying. ‘Come on, let’s eat. I’m starving.’
‘Me too,’ I reply. ‘And I don’t even know where we’re going.’
Once we’re out of the cab, we don’t have to walk far before we’re at our destination.
‘This is Giorgio’s,’ he tells me.
‘The best meatballs in New York,’ I say, reading the sign outside.
We’re outside a small, unassuming Italian restaurant that looks like it’s been here forever.
I suppose I was expecting somewhere glitzy and glamorous, somewhere super Sex and the City , where we’d eat sushi off naked waiters and drink overpriced Cosmopolitans.
But we’re not doing the tourist New York any more, we’re doing Jordan’s New York, and I can see true love in his eyes as he stares at the place.
We step inside and it’s small, but so inviting. It’s warm and cosy and filled with delicious smells like garlic, pesto, oregano – God, my hunger really is awakened now.
There’s a sports channel on a little TV in the corner, but no one’s really watching. There is a table of four older men arguing (in Italian, so I’m guessing based on their tone) over a game of cards, like they’re auditioning for a part in a Goodfellas spin-off movie.
I love it here already. It’s almost as charming as Jordan.
We find a booth and take a seat.
Soon enough a sixty-something Italian man comes over to greet us.
‘Giordano! Ciao! ’ the man says, greeting him with a slap on the back.
‘ Ciao , Giorgio,’ Jordan replies, standing up to shake his hand.
Giorgio pats Jordan’s face affectionately, like they’re old friends, then starts speaking rapid Italian. Jordan nods along, before saying a few words back to him, without his usual confidence, like he’s not quite sure he’s getting it right.
‘Ahh, you haven’t been practising,’ Giorgio says, clapping his hands together.
‘I know, I’ve been busy,’ Jordan replies. ‘But this, this is Liberty, I’ve brought her to try your famous meatballs.’
‘Lady Liberty,’ he quips. ‘ Ciao , bella .’
Giorgio gives me a kiss on each cheek.
‘I know exactly what to bring you, just you wait,’ Giorgio says.
‘ Perfetto ,’ Jordan replies. ‘Hey – how’s the family?’
‘ Fantastico ,’ Giorgio replies. ‘Maria, she’s getting married, and Antonio is going to be a firefighter. We’re so proud.’
‘ Congratulazioni ,’ Jordan tells him.
‘ Grazie ,’ Giorgio calls back as he dashes off to the kitchen.
‘Okay… What was that?’ I ask when we’re alone again. ‘Do you – somehow – come here often?’
He laughs.
‘Yeah, every time I’m in the city,’ he replies. ‘It’s my local meatball place.’
‘You live in London, though, right?’ I check. ‘How have you been here enough to be greeted like a family member back from a war?’
‘The first time I wound up here was New Year’s Eve 2017,’ he tells me.
‘Someone brought you here?’ I say.
‘Something,’ he replies. ‘The weather. I don’t know if you heard about it, or if you remember, but that was when we had the historic bomb cyclone.
I’ve never seen so much snow in my life.
The temperature was way below zero, there was snow everywhere, the pavements were almost too icy to walk on.
It was my first time here, to set up Matcher US, and I was trying to do all the touristy things but it was all a bust. I went up the Rock, one of the things I had been looking forward to the most, and just stared into a wall of white.
It was crazy, I’ve never known anything like it. ’
‘I think I remember hearing about it,’ I reply.
‘Anyway, one night I was out freezing, starving, struggling to get back to my hotel, so I ducked into the nearest place that served food and looked like it would be warm, and it was here,’ he continues.
‘Giorgio and his wife Lucia sat me down, gave me a plate of meatballs and a glass of red wine, and I’ve been coming back ever since. ’
Right on cue, Giorgio reappears with two plates. Gigantic meatballs covered in a rich-smelling tomato sauce. I can’t wait to try them.
Jordan says something to him in Italian.
Giorgio laughs.
‘Enjoy,’ he tells us.
‘What did you just say to him?’ I ask.
‘I was trying to say I was hungry, but I might have said I was famous,’ he replies with a chuckle. ‘Anyway, dig in.’
I take a bite and, okay, I feel like I could be in Italy right now.
‘Okay, wow, I can see why you come here often,’ I reply. ‘To a different continent. For a meatball. They’re actually worth it.’
‘It’s nice to have someone to share them with,’ he says with a smile and a shrug. ‘I don’t think people believe me when I tell them they’re the best.’
‘I can officially vouch for them,’ I reassure him. ‘So, how many times have you been here? And do they do dessert?’
Jordan laughs.
‘I lived here for a while, when we were launching Matcher US,’ he tells me. ‘So I’ve eaten here more than a few times.’
‘That must’ve been cool, living here,’ I say.
‘It was,’ he replies… but something seems off.
‘Are you sure?’ I check playfully.
‘Yeah, I mean, the work was great. I love my job,’ he replies. ‘And the food, obviously. But Paige…’
‘Ah,’ I say simply.
‘She really struggled with the long-distance thing,’ he explains. ‘Looking back, I understand how she felt, but at the time I just thought she was being irrational, jealous for no reason. She was convinced I was cheating on her.’
I don’t say a word, but he must be able to read my mind.
‘I wasn’t,’ he tells me. ‘But we were having other problems, we just didn’t want to admit it. Hindsight is twenty-twenty, right?’
‘Yeah,’ I reply, stabbing another piece of meatball – these things are addictive. ‘I know that feeling.’
Ben and I had plenty of problems, looking back. The cheating was just the last straw.
‘Oh, really?’ he replies.
I nod as I finish my mouthful of food, then push my food around my plate a little.
‘Are you okay?’ he asks. ‘Do you want to talk about it?’
‘I’m not sure you want to hear it,’ I reply.
‘Try me,’ he insists. ‘If you want to, that is.’
He doesn’t need to hear about how selfish Ben was. The way he talks about Paige is so mature – I’d probably just rant like a woman scorned. There is one thing I haven’t told him though…
‘My ex. Ben. When he was… erm… sending photos of himself, to other women, behind my back,’ I begin, refreshing his memory – like anyone could forget. ‘He… erm… he was using Matcher to do it, it turns out.’
Jordan winces.
‘I’m sorry,’ he tells me. ‘That’s not what I want people to use it for. Paige thinks the money is better if we lean into the hook-up angle, but honestly? I want it to help people connect. And, I know it’s not very cool or sexy, but I want to make sure our users feel safe.’
‘I really admire that,’ I reassure him with a smile.
‘That I’m more safety than sexy?’ he jokes.
‘Thanks. I get that some people are going to use it for different reasons, and that’s okay, but for the people who are looking for something more serious, I want that to work too.
I don’t want people on there looking for a partner to be seeing photos of your ex-boyfriend’s knob. ’
‘I felt the same way,’ I joke.
After clearing our plates, and talking more with Giorgio and his friends, Jordan says it’s time for act three, which is only a short walk away – and a surprise.
‘So, are you looking forward to Christmas?’ he asks.