Chapter 27 #2
Victoria sighed heavily. “Fine. Whatever. Give me the name of your doctor and I’ll make an appointment.”
Her mother looked startled. “Are you sure? I don’t want to push you.”
“You live to push me, but yes, I’m sure.”
“Then I’ll text you the contact info.” Ava’s lips turned up in a faint smile. “And he’s not my doctor. He’s done work on a
few friends.”
Victoria grinned. “Sure, Mom. Keep saying that. I’ll keep your secret.”
After brunch with an annoyingly in love Shannon and Aaron, Victoria drove to the address she’d already loaded in her phone.
The open house was from one to four, in a cute little neighborhood that was mostly older starter homes. Of course, this being
Los Angeles, the price tag was just over a million, but sure. Why not?
Apparently they were pulling in a crowd, because she had to park nearly two blocks away. She went in and started to look around.
In the kitchen, she found a stack of flyers that included all the specs on the house, along with a picture of the listing
agent. As she stared at the very handsome and familiar face, she felt an odd kind of fluttering in her stomach. One that didn’t
sit well with the huevos rancheros she’d had.
She told herself she wasn’t nervous. That if Javiar rejected her, she would simply sock him in the stomach and walk away. It wasn’t as if he would charge her with assault, and given her upper-body strength, she could probably leave a bruise.
But she would rather the conversation went another way, which was why her breakfast sat so uneasily.
She found him outside with a young couple. The woman was obviously pregnant, and they both looked so hopeful as Javiar talked.
She knew nothing about them but found herself hoping the house thing all worked out.
He looked up and saw her. For a second he went totally still, then he turned back to the couple and continued the conversation.
Which meant what? Was he being professional, or dissing her? Indecision was unfamiliar, and she didn’t like it, but instead
of running, which honestly made the most sense, she went and sat at the kitchen table. Twenty minutes later, Javiar joined
her.
“Looking for a house?” he asked, his expression unreadable. “I’m not sure the neighborhood would work for you. It’s mostly
young families. You’re not close to the beach or trendy restaurants.”
“But the school district is great, right? People care about that.”
“They do. Why are you interested in the school district?” His eyes widened. “Are you . . .”
Was she— “Pregnant? God, no. Not me. No, no, no. Margarite is, but we’re dealing. So, hi.”
“Hi.” His tone was cautious.
They stared at each other. She tried to figure out what to say, and for one of the very few times in her life, her courage
failed her.
“I have this open house,” he said, glancing around. “I have to talk to people.”
“Right. You do. Of course.” She rose. “It’s just, I was wondering if you’d like to get dinner tonight. Date dinner,” she added.
“Which is different from friend dinner.”
He went very still. “You’re asking me out.”
“Yes.”
“Is this a onetime thing?”
Really? Did they have to talk about it? “Not if it goes well. We got along before. I’m hoping that the whole dating thing
doesn’t change the dynamic too much.” She managed a smile as she lowered her voice. “Given your past thoughts on the subject,
I won’t be expecting sex anytime soon.”
One corner of his mouth twitched, as if he was trying not to smile. “I appreciate you respecting me in that way.”
She sucked in a breath. “It’s possible I used the excuse of my breakup to avoid romantic relationships, when the real reason
is slightly more complicated.”
“You couldn’t deal with being hurt, and not dating is a way to get back at your mother.”
“How did you know that?”
This time he did smile. “You’re not as complicated as you think.”
“Hey, I’m very complicated. I have layers and depths. I’m like that place where the Titanic sank.” She sighed. “But you’re right about my mom. It turns out she has depths, too. And I didn’t like being hurt. I miss
you,” she added. “And you used to like me. Maybe you can like me again.”
“Do you like me?”
“Duh. I’m asking you out. I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy . . .” She stopped when she realized the next line of the Notting Hill quote was about love and she was not going there. “Asking him out to dinner,” she amended.
“I know the movie,” he teased. “That was a close one.”
“Shut up. No one’s in love. We’ve barely kissed.”
“You’re saying sex is required for love.”
“For us, yes. And the sex had better be extraordinary, because you’ve been making me wait for it.”
He stood and walked toward her, then lightly brushed her mouth with his. “The open house closes at four. I’ll probably have to write up an offer, so I’ll be by around seven. Want me to bring takeout?”
“I can cook.”
His eyebrows rose. “I didn’t know that.”
“Not a lot, but I can put together a pretty cool charcuterie board.”
“So not cooking. Assembling.”
“Are you complaining about a dinner you haven’t even had yet?”
“No. I’m wild with anticipation.”
She grinned. “Me, too. See you at seven.”
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