Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Bailey
A sense of unease weighs on my chest as I scroll through the conversation thread.
This guy, Foster, seems nice enough. He’s polite and very…
normal. He comes across as happy to tag along on the free ride, and Lian seems confident about it.
But maybe it’s my brand of overprotectiveness when it comes to my best friend that’s making me wary of this guy and this entire… situation.
“And you’re sure about this?” I ask, glancing over to Lian.
I’m lounging on his bed while he’s busy packing clothes into an open suitcase for the cruise he’s going on tomorrow. The cruise he’s going on with this Foster dude.
A guy he’s never met before.
Yeah, I’m not sure how I feel about this at all.
I hate that I wasn’t able to get the time off work to go with him because he’s been excited about this trip for months, but I have too many clients booked in that rescheduling them all would have been a nightmare.
“Yes, Bailey, of course I’m sure. He seems really nice,” Lian answers, a soft smile lighting up his face. “I mean, really, what could go wrong?”
A lot of things, I want to say, because Lian doesn’t have the best luck. And that’s not just referring to his clumsiness.
Sitting up, I lock his phone and place it on the bedside table. “Do you want me to come with you to the port?”
Lian tilts his head to the side. His mouth kicks up on one side as he arches a brow.
“For what? To scare him away before I’ve gotten the chance to even say hello?” He laughs and shakes his head. “I don’t think so.”
I scowl at him. “I won’t scare him away.”
“You will if you look at him like that!” He waves a hand in front of my face before turning back to his closet and continues to speak to me over his shoulder as he sorts through more clothes. “I promise, it’ll be fine. In fact, I’m more worried about you.”
I slump against the headboard, fighting back a groan. “What about me?”
“I’m going to be away for two weeks.” He spins around again, pinning me with a serious expression. “Are you going to leave the house during that time?”
“Yes.”
He gives me an incredulous look. “Aside from going to work?”
“Then no, probably not.”
“Bailey!” He scoffs a laugh.
“What can I say, I’m a creature of habit.”
Being a tattoo artist, I’m around people all day, every day, and sometimes it can be a lot.
Especially for someone who’s an introvert like me and doesn’t really like many people.
It’s ironic I work with people every day in the studio, but my love for creating art outweighs the discomfort I feel around new people.
Only just.
I like being in the comfort of my own home, hiding away playing video games or drawing. I like my solitude, with the exception of Lian, but he’s used to my quiet, antisocial ways.
He opens his mouth to speak again, then lets out a gasp so loud it has me bolting upright and tensing.
“I just had the most amazing idea!”
“Fucking hell, Lian,” I grunt, covering my eyes with my arm as I fall back again. “I thought something was wrong.”
He ignores my concern. “You need to download the H2H app!”
“Uhh, no? Why the fuck would I do that?” I ask, shifting my arm to look at him out of one eye.
“You can find yourself a plus-one to do an activity with while I’m away!” he says excitedly, clapping his hands once before flinging himself onto the bed. Only, instead of landing on the mattress next to me, he ends up landing on me. I let out a pained cry when his elbow hits me in the balls.
“Fuck! Lian!” I hiss, groaning as the sharp pain shoots up to my stomach.
“Oops! I’m sorry!”
Grimacing, I cup my crotch with my hands and curl in half on my side. Lian scoots up next to me, gently patting my head before he starts combing his fingers through my hair.
“Sometimes I wonder why I’m friends with you,” I grumble between gritted teeth.
I hear the smile in his voice when he says, “Because I’m wonderful and amazing.”
I grunt.
“Anyway, what do you say? Wouldn’t it be fun if you found someone who needed a plus-one, and then we could be on this adventure together but separately.”
“That makes no sense and doesn’t sound like fun at all.”
“Bailey,” he whines.
“Lian,” I mimic his tone.
When the pain has subsided slightly, I lift my head to look at him and instantly regret it. His big brown eyes are blinking at me, all cute and endearing, something he does when he wants his own way. “Will you do it for me?”
I narrow my eyes in warning. “Don’t try to guilt me by giving me the look. You know I’ll do anything for you when you give me that look.”
“I know. That’s why I do it.” He grins, then twirls some of my hair around his finger. “I think it’ll be good for you. It doesn’t have to be romantic. There’s all kinds of things on there. Dog walking, school reunions, attending a sports game…”
“I’ll take the dog walking because dogs are elite, but veto the rest.”
“There’s more than just those! They were just examples.”
“Fine,” I sigh and reach into my pocket for my phone.
He lets out an excited noise as I download the app.
I go through the steps of creating a profile, then begin to scroll through the different sections as Lian gets back to packing.
He’s right, there are a lot of different activities that people need a plus-one for.
Concerts, weddings, even going to Costco.
But there’s one that stops me from scrolling, and I burst into laughter.
Lian’s head snaps toward me, his eyes widening and mouth dropping open at my sudden outburst.
“Holy shit!” I manage between laughter. “Listen to this. It says, ‘I need someone to come with me to purchase a burial slot. It’s for me, but no, I’m not sick, I just like to be prepared. Plus, I’m not a big fan of the sun, but can’t decide between a north- or south-facing spot.’”
He presses his lips together to suppress a laugh, amusement glistening in his eyes. “See? There might be something fun on there for you, and you never know who you might meet.”
I wave my phone. “Someone who might talk me into buying the plot of land next to them?”
He rolls his eyes and snatches the phone from my grip. He chews on his lip, brows furrowing slightly in concentration.
“What are you doing?”
“Finding you an activity that won’t stress me out while I’m gone.”
I snort, but I don’t move to get my phone back. I trust Lian with my life, and while I said I’d do this for him, he knows my limits.
“Okay, what about this one?” He flashes the phone. “He sounds fun.”
I lean forward so I can read the short bio on the screen.
Remington: HELP! I need a date to help protect me from grandmas touching my butt!
I can’t hold back the bubble of laughter.
There’s no photo of him, but it says he’s three miles away, twenty-four years old, and his account was created six hours ago.
The “plus-one requirement” says it’s a work event, but aside from the amusing yet intriguing bio, there’s nothing else about Remington.
“I love the look on your face right now,” Lian says. He’s grinning widely when I glance back his way. “Please just talk to him. You don’t have to agree to anything you don’t want to do, but I’d feel better about you being with the grandma magnet than viewing a hole in the ground.”
Letting out a long breath, I slump back against the headboard and hold my hand out for my phone. “Fine, give it here.”
He makes an excited noise and taps on my screen before handing it back.
“Let’s get connected!” flashes on the screen, letting me know Lian has already matched me with Remington.
Of course he has.
My thumbs hover over the keyboard as I think of something to say. Nerves wash over me, but I try to stamp it down. One of the reasons I don’t have many friends outside of the non-virtual variety is because I’m often misunderstood.
I’m quiet because I don’t like people’s attention to be on me. People tend to get the wrong impression because I’m covered in tattoos. And I prefer playing video games to going to a bar.
I guess I’m a bit like a cat: I’m social on my own terms.
But maybe Lian’s right. Maybe this will be good for me. Hell knows I’d like to meet someone eventually, so maybe this is the gentle nudge I need to finally put myself out there.
Sucking in a breath, I click on “send a message” and begin to type, and hope I’m not making a huge mistake.