8. Dan
CHAPTER 8
DAN
I f Dan had worried that things would become awkward between him and Leah after their night together, he was quickly proven wrong. The pair spent the day attending conferences, enjoyed a pleasant lunch with a few counterparts from other companies, then drove home together (once Dan had retrieved the car from the restaurant). On the way, they chatted about light topics and even listened to a little music after discovering that they had overlapping tastes.
Dan dropped Leah off at her apartment around six. As he pulled into a free parking space in front of her building, he had the strange urge to ask if she wanted to join him for dinner, but he quickly set it aside. They’d just agreed to keep things professional. It was best to continue that.
“I really enjoyed the conference,” Leah said as she unfastened her seatbelt and took her overnight bag from the back seat.
“As did I.” Dan paused. He wanted to say something else about their night together, but perhaps it was better to put it out of his mind. “I’ll be in touch about our next steps.”
“Wonderful.” Leah slid out of the car and shut the door behind her. Dan watched until she was safely inside the building, at which point she waved a friendly goodbye before disappearing inside.
He was surprised by how strongly he felt her absence. After only a little more than twenty-four hours together, he’d grown very used to her company. The way she made little jokes, her insightful comments, her sweet smiles… He was going to have a hard time forgetting any of it. And even more, the memory of their night together was so strong that he was having a difficult time moving past it.
He’d meant it when he’d said that he and Leah should keep their relationship professional. Their situation was unusual enough anyway without adding any further dimensions. And he meant what he’d said to both Leah and his father — that he needed to prioritize RMA over a relationship that may or may not work out.
Still… Dan couldn’t help imagining what it might be like if he and Leah were in a real relationship. If they could spend more nights like last night together. If he could learn more about what made her who she was and hear more of those insightful opinions. It was ridiculous, because he had never felt this kind of romantic interest in anyone before.
As someone who had studied science, Dan knew that what he felt now was probably due to the release of endorphins and hormones after his and Leah’s night together. Logically, he knew that if he left those feelings alone, they would disappear.
Yet still, Dan missed Leah and wanted to see her again.
He managed to wait until the next morning before texting her. He told himself that he was just setting up another meeting to be sure they were ready to meet his father, though he knew it wasn’t entirely true.
Leah texted back after just a few minutes, agreeing to dinner the following night.
But I’m paying for this one!
Dan chuckled and texted back that she could even choose the restaurant if she wanted to. The message from Leah lifted his spirits more than he cared to admit.
The rest of the day, Dan did his work as usual, but his mind wandered to Leah more often than he was willing to acknowledge. He stayed at the office late to try to catch up on work he’d missed during the conference, so by the time he got home, he was so tired that he fell asleep right after eating.
The next evening couldn’t come soon enough. After work, Dan offered to pick Leah up at home, and she agreed. He met her at her house around six, earlier than he ever left work. She was dressed for a date today, in a white skirt and green top that brought out the color of her eyes and was perfect for the warm weather outside.
“Hi, Dan.” She smiled at him as she descended the steps to his car. “How was work?”
“Not bad. There have already been some good responses from the conference, which is nice to see. And one of our blood-pressure drugs is currently topping the market, thanks to it having fewer side effects and being a more reasonable price.” Dan hesitated. It might have been easier to talk about work all evening, but he didn’t want to. They needed to prepare for Leah’s meeting with Richard — and he’d rather just chat with her. “Do you mind if we talk about something else?”
“Sure, no problem. Do you have anything in mind?”
Dan opened the car door for her and she got in. When he slid into his seat, he had a question in mind.
“I was thinking we could catch a movie after dinner. And, if you’re open to it, we could take a picture and send it to my dad. As a kind of easy introduction to our fake relationship.”
“That’s fine with me. I imagined we’d need to do something like that eventually.”
“Perfect. Is there a movie you’d be interested in seeing?”
“To be honest, I’m not really sure what the options even are. I’m not very good at keeping up with pop culture. Do you have something in mind?”
“I’m the same as you — I don’t do a good job of following current movies. Work keeps me too busy. We can just go to the theater and pick something from the poster.”
“That works.” Leah grinned. “As for dinner, I’ve picked out a place.”
“Great. Let’s go.”
Leah gave him directions, and Dan drove them through the city to a neighborhood he hadn’t visited before. They parked and descended a set of stairs into an underground restaurant. Dan felt a stab of apprehension. This wasn’t the kind of place he would ever visit on his own. He usually went to more upscale restaurants.
The waiter greeted Leah by name and led them to a small, round table in the corner. They took their seats across from each other, and Dan surveyed the place. The design was simple but clean and homey. Waiters bustled between large, round tables, bringing small, covered plates to the guests.
“What do you think?” Leah asked.
“I like it.” Dan looked around once more. “I wouldn’t normally come here, but I like the vibe. What’s good here?”
“This is a dim sum place, so what I usually do is share plates with the people I come with. Between the two of us, we can get five or six plates, depending on how hungry you are.”
Dan set aside his menu. “I trust your judgment. I’m quite hungry, so let’s get six dishes — but I’ll let you choose them since you know what you’re doing.”
“Right answer.” Leah winked, then took a pad of paper and started marking dishes off a list of options. Dan settled back in his chair. He wasn’t usually the kind of person who let others take charge, but something about Leah made him feel comfortable letting her call the shots.
Dan was even more pleased with his decision when the food arrived. Six small dishes were placed on the table in front of them. Dan identified dumplings and something that looked like a spring roll. The other dishes included some kind of leafy green vegetable wrapped in almost transparent rice paper and drizzled with soy sauce, a fluffy white bun that Leah told him was filled with tofu and mushrooms, and several other delectable-looking selections.
“It’s all vegetarian,” Leah told him as she expertly used chopsticks to transfer one of the dumplings onto her plate. “I hope that’s all right.”
“Of course.” Dan took one of the same kind of dumpling. “Do you come here a lot?”
“It’s one of my favorite places,” Leah told him. “When my parents visit or I want a night out with my friends, I usually come here. I’ve tried almost every dish on the menu, and they’re all scrumptious.”
Dan popped the dumpling into his mouth and smiled at the burst of flavor. There was some kind of broth or soup inside that exploded into his mouth.
“Delicious.”
“I know, right?” Leah beamed. “You have to try the steamed buns, too.”
“Oh, I will.” Dan took one of the buns and one of the spring rolls.
“So,” Leah said. “Shall we dive right into business?”
“After dinner.” Dan took another dumpling. “Let’s enjoy the food first.” It was true that he wanted to enjoy the meal, but it was also true that he wanted to forget about the deal, even for just a moment. Leah was fun to spend time with, and Dan wanted to talk to her casually first.
“We should take a selfie with the food, though.”
“Good point.” Dan got out his phone and handed it to Leah, who snapped a picture of the two of them and their plates full of dim sum. They both approved it, then Dan sent it to his father. Within a few minutes, Dan received a reply.
Is this the girl? She’s beautiful.
“My dad likes you.” Dan turned the phone to show her the message. Leah chuckled, and Dan turned the phone back to see that Richard had texted again.
When do we get to meet her?
“I’m thinking we can set a date for two or three weeks from now,” Dan told Leah. “What do you think?”
“That sounds good to me.”
“Good. Now let’s eat.”
They chatted about this and that over dinner, not touching on the subject of their deal, or on the night they’d spent together. It was easy to talk to Leah, just as it had always been.
After they ate, Leah insisted on keeping their agreement that she would pay. Then they went to a nearby movie theater, where they selected a film that looked funny in the poster.
Ninety minutes later, when they walked out of the theater, Leah couldn’t stop laughing.
“That was the worst movie I have ever seen,” she giggled. She tossed the empty popcorn bucket that they’d shared into a trash can and turned to Dan, still giggling. “Was it supposed to be funny?”
“You know, I’m not sure anymore. There was that scene with the bird…”
“Yeah, but the bird scene had that deep monologue about life and death. Which didn’t fit at all with those two guys trying to get the bird out of their house.”
“Or did it?” Dan raised his eyebrows, sending Leah into another fit of giggles. “My favorite part was the scene with the wedding.”
“Oh, that was so dumb.” Leah put her head into her hands. “I still didn’t understand who was getting married.”
“No one was getting married.” Dan shook his head. “That whole scene was a dream that Amanda was having.”
“I think we can both agree that it was the worst movie ever.”
“Terrible. Next time, we need to do a little more research first.”
“Or ask someone else to pick the movie for us. I don’t know if we can be trusted to choose our own movies.”
They stepped out from the theater into a warm evening. It was dark, but a nearby path beckoned them into a well-lit park. Dan tilted his head in a question and Leah nodded. Together, they turned into the park, still talking about the movie.
“The only redeeming quality was the popcorn,” Leah said.
“Definitely. That and the baby in the end. He was pretty cute — although I still don’t know whose baby he was.”
Leah chuckled, but the sound was a little more subdued than before. Dan glanced at her and saw that she was biting her lip.
“Speaking of babies — I found a good clinic, I think,” Leah said. “It had good rates, is accepting customers, and is near our office. Plus, I read a few testimonies and everyone seems very satisfied with their care.”
“That’s great.” Dan hoped his words masked the surprise he’d felt when she had mentioned the clinic. He’d forgotten, again, that he and Leah were business partners, not a couple on an early date. He tried to ignore the hint of disappointment he couldn’t quite dismiss.
“I hope it’ll be good. Do you mind if I drop some paperwork off at your desk tomorrow? I’m working on scheduling an intake appointment, and they want medical information on both the, um, parents.”
“Yes, of course,” Dan said. “Just let me know what you need. Do you know when the first appointment will be?”
“I’m not sure yet. I need to get the registration process started first.”
“You can let me know the dates, and I’d be happy to come with you.”
“No, no.” Leah waved a hand. “That’s quite all right. You’ll need to come eventually, but there are going to be a lot of appointments, and I know that you’re really busy. I can handle some of them on my own.”
Dan was disappointed. He wanted to be involved in the IVF process as much as he could be, both to support Leah and for his own interest. But he didn’t want to push if she’d rather do it alone.
“Whatever you’d like. Just let me know.”
“I will.” Leah smiled, a dreamy look crossing her soft features. “I can’t believe that this time next year I could actually have a baby of my own.”
Dan’s heart softened. This was a huge moment for Leah. He reached for her hand and gave it a quick squeeze before letting it go. “I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks. And this time next year, you’ll probably be fully in charge of RMA.”
“Let’s hope so. Speaking of which, shall we start talking about what you need to know?”
“Sounds good.”
They walked for another hour or so, talking about things his father might want to know. It was mainly dry biographical information. They memorized each other’s birthdays and the names of childhood pets. They also went over their parents’ names again, and swapped allergies and medical history. Dan suggested that they’d need to plan what to say about how they’d fallen in love and what they liked to do together next time, and Leah agreed.
Finally, Dan dropped Leah off at home. After she went inside, he drove home and parked in the driveway, his hands resting on the steering wheel. The evening with Leah had given him a strange ache in his chest. Even though it would be a terrible idea, some traitorous part of his heart kept wishing that this were a real relationship. He wanted to go on dates with Leah and talk for hours, not about their agreement but about their interests and points of view. He wanted to kiss her again. He wanted to be with her, truly.
And then… what? Dan could imagine dating Leah, spending more nights with her, and getting to know her. But he couldn’t imagine marrying her or even moving in together — none of the things that normal couples would do. Dan was just too busy, too focused on his work. It wouldn’t be fair to her.
On top of that, as much as he was okay with having a child and being a co-parent, he couldn’t imagine being a real father to the baby, either. Babies required care all the time, Dan knew. That wouldn’t work with his hectic schedule.
He sighed. This was all getting so complicated. He never should have let himself develop feelings for Leah. Now, it might be too late.