Chapter Five
By the next afternoon, Mike had decided that he was never going to attend another work party as long as he lived.
Amy had come by his desk three times that day to give him pitying looks and ask if he meant to break things off with Celeste.
He must have been crazy to have told her about his problems.
He thought about that on his drive home.
He hadn’t talked about this with either of his sons; it just wasn’t the kind of thing that came up between them.
They talked mostly about their jobs, upcoming trips and purchases.
He also fielded a lot of questions from them about home repairs.
But never his love life. Probably because they knew he didn’t have one.
Maybe that’s why I can’t sort all of this out. I don’t know anyone who has any idea how to navigate these waters.
He reached home still trying to convince himself to ask Celeste on an actual date. How clear did he have to be that it was a date? Could he just say “Do you want to go to dinner?” and hope she figured it out?
No. This was supposed to be him taking the direct approach so she would know where he stood and he could find out what possibilities she was willing to consider.
He pulled his car into the garage and, rather than go into his own house, he went straight to Celeste’s. He needed to issue his invitation before she ate and before he ran out of courage.
She opened the door and, before he could even say hi, she started talking. “I was just about to call you. Are you free tonight?”
That depended on how you looked at it. He was free. He was hoping by the end of their initial conversation that he wouldn’t be and that she wouldn’t be either. “What did you have in mind?”
She grinned as she closed the door behind him. “I can check another thing off my Holiday Bucket List.”
He hadn’t thought about their competition in a few days. “Really?”
“Really. And by next week I should be able to check off another.”
Ask her. You’re going to lose your nerve.
“How the Grinch Stole Christmas in the theater was one of my bucket-list things,” Celeste explained, crossing to her living room coffee table.
She pointed to a digital projector on the table as well.
“Joey, our IT guy at the office, lent it to me. He said you would know how to connect it to my computer.”
“I can do that.” Ask her. “But I haven’t had dinner yet. Maybe we could go have something to eat first.” Not too awkward; good.
“Sure. What are you in the mood for?”
That was easier than he’d expected. “Just about anything. What about you?”
She grabbed her purse off the counter, her brows pulled low in thought. “What about Curry MacMurray? I haven’t been there in ages.”
He liked Indian food, and, despite the kind of ridiculous name, Curry MacMurray had great food. “Perfect.”
“My car or yours?” Celeste asked.
She did realize this was a date, didn’t she? “Everything’s on me tonight. The driving, the meal, the complimentary projector set-up.”
She laughed lightly and walked with him toward the door. “You are in a very generous mood.”
Generous? She really doesn’t know this is a date. He needed to clear that up, or what was the point? “My mother always told me that if I was the one doing the asking then I was the one paying for the date.”
She didn’t look surprised by his use of the word “date.” What did that mean?
He didn’t ask, and she didn’t say anything more on the topic.
They talked about inconsequential things all the way to Curry MacMurray.
He had hoped she wouldn’t object to going on an actual date with him, but he hadn’t expected it to be this easy.
Over aloo gobi and korma, they updated each other on their work projects and kids.
It was exactly like a very laid-back date and precisely like every meal he’d ever had with her.
There was never any real discomfort between them, even when the situation could easily have been horribly awkward.
And it was a date— a date she realized was a date— and still wasn’t uncomfortable.
“So how was your evening with Amy?” Celeste asked as she tore off a piece of naan.
“Evening with—? You mean the work party?”
She nodded. “You said you were there with Amy.”
He hadn’t been with Amy. “Amy and I were just both there alone. Her husband was home with their sick baby.”
Celeste’s eyes pulled wide. “She’s married? With a baby?”
Why did she sound so happy about that? “I even talked to her husband on the phone for a few minutes. So, I’m pretty sure Amy isn’t making it all up.”
“I didn’t think she was.” Celeste seemed to be biting back a smile. “So you weren’t there with Amy, you were just both there by yourselves.”
He nodded. “I would have taken you, but you said you were swearing off the usual Christmas things. And, while the party isn’t specifically a Christmas one, it is an end-of-the-year celebration, which seemed too close to the same thing.”
“Ah.” Still that barely concealed smile hovered below the surface. “I ended up watching A Christmas Carol and putting up a Christmas tree last night, so I think my boycott of the Christmas season is officially over.”
“But the bucket list competition lives on?” He hoped she didn’t mean to abandon that. He enjoyed spending the time with her.
“Of course.”
He took a quick sip of water; the korma was a little spicier than he usually ordered it. “If we include the in-home screening of The Grinch, then this date can be dinner and a movie. Mom would have wholeheartedly approved of that.”
Celeste laughed. “Except I am the one providing the movie part of it. I imagine that would have earned you a tsk or two.”
That settled it. Two mentions of a date and she went right along with both of them. This was a date. He kept himself from shooting his fist up in triumph. They were finally on a date!
His phone buzzed in the exact moment Celeste’s chimed. They shot each other quizzical looks as they both pulled their phones out. It was Kristina.
Econ guy is getting weirder. Title IX office & campus police are looking into it. Wish you guys were here.
“The Title IX office,” Celeste said, her gaze sliding over the screen. “So the school considers this an issue of the safety of women on campus. I’m glad they’re taking this seriously.”
“She seems calm.” Mike read back over the text. “Worried,” he amended, “but calm. That’s a good sign.”
Celeste typed into her phone. A moment later, his phone buzzed as her text came to him as well. Getting weird in what way?
Far quicker than either Mike or Celeste could have managed it, Kristina texted back. Showing up in a lot of places. Asking me out every time he sees me even though I told him to stop. I think he might be stalking me.
Mike was instantly on full alert. You told the Title IX office and the police all this?
Yup.
“Oh, Mike. I wish we were closer.”
“So do I.” He typed a response to Kristina. You aren’t going out alone, right?
My roommates won’t let me. A few of the guys in my complex are walking me to campus and back.
Celeste’s text popped up next. Good.
Then Kristina. Except they’re going home for Christmas in a couple of days. I’m pretty much the only one staying here.
Was the creepy guy staying as well? Mike didn’t like the idea. Maybe you should come home.
Celeste looked up at him. “I really hope she does.”
Kristina’s answer came through in the next moment. I’ll lose my job.
That was probably true. Kristina worked in retail, where the Christmas season was mandatory.
We could probably find you a job here, Celeste answered.
Feels like creepy stalker guy wins. Kristina was in a tough spot. She didn’t want this guy to decide what she did and where she went— he shouldn’t get to decide that— but she also needed to look out for herself while the authorities tried to get a handle on it all.
But how could those needs be balanced without sacrificing her safety?
“Could you get some time off?” Mike asked Celeste.
She met his eye. “Probably.”
“I think we need to go see Kristina,” he said. “We can grab a couple of hotel rooms near campus, and have her come stay with us while her roommates and makeshift bodyguards are gone. She won’t be alone, and we won’t feel so helpless.”
She reached across the table and took his hand. “Really?”
“Really.” He flagged down the waiter and asked for their check.
A few minutes later, they were in the car driving back home. Celeste was on the phone with Kristina, telling her their plans, which they were figuring out as they went.
Mike had been worried about whether or not Celeste would go on an official date with him. That seemed unimportant now. Kristina was in trouble. He loved her and Celeste both, and he would do whatever he needed to do to help either one of them.
The exact definition of his relationship with Celeste could wait.