Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Dallas
I stare at the closed door for a few beats, my teeth worrying at my lower lip. I don’t know why I thought it was such a great idea to come over and formally introduce myself to Josette. At the time, I was certain it would reassure her. Let her know I’m a nice person.
But now, I think that was a mistake. I’ve made things more awkward and uncomfortable. Add in the fact that Josette is a tiny little thing, and at six-three and two-hundred-ten pounds, my size can be imposing to even average-sized people. Hopefully she’ll learn to relax around me after we get to know each other a little better.
Heaving a sigh, I turn and head back into my own apartment. I navigate through the boxes and storage bins as I head into the kitchen to finish unpacking the dishes, pots, and pans. Moving always sucks, but this time, it’s been harder than before.
I moved to Grenville from Los Angeles for my new job, and I know exactly no one in the area. No friends to help me unload the moving truck or unpack these boxes. I’m on my own. Luckily, I live a pretty minimalist lifestyle and don’t hold onto a bunch of unnecessary junk. I should be done unpacking within a few days. But it would still be nice if I had a friend to help me. Someone to talk to.
Linc Manning, my new boss, seems like a cool dude, but we’ve yet to meet in person. He hired me after several emails and two video calls, and we’ve developed a good rapport, but I’m still not sure if he’s the type to befriend his employees or keep things strictly professional. Hell, I don’t know if he even knows. He’s a contractor, and he’s been having trouble finding reliable carpenters in the area. So he hired me, his very first actual employee, to work with him on a subdivision he’s overseeing in nearby Ashton. He promised me a year’s worth of work with a possibility of a permanent position if it works out as well as he hopes.
And it couldn’t have come at a better time for me. Sure, I had plenty of work in L.A., but I desperately needed a change of scenery. Last year, I was in love. Holding visions of a happy life together in my heart, I asked my girlfriend to marry me with zero doubts that she’d agree. We’d been together for a long time, we were happy, we rarely argued, and she always smiled when she told me she loved me .
Imagine my shock when she stared at me with a disbelieving expression, shook her head, and said no . She told me I was a good guy, and that she did love me, but she wasn’t in love with me. I wasn’t the other half of her heart. Her soulmate. And she simply couldn’t marry me, not when there was a chance she’d find someone who would make her feel whole.
I was heartbroken and bitter, and I couldn’t understand why she’d stayed with me for two years and let me believe we were solid when she was just, what? Biding her time until someone better came along?
Then, three months ago, I won a bid to work on a whole-house remodel in Bel Air. I showed up on day one only to find out my new clients were my ex and her husband of five months. She’d met and married her “other half” within four months of dumping me. Apparently, all she needed was a mansion, an exorbitant bank account, and the six-carat rock on her left hand to feel complete .
So yeah, I quit the job and started looking for work outside of Los Angeles. I needed a break. Some time and space to get my head on straight. And a year-long gig a hundred miles away from anything that reminded me of her sounded perfect.
A familiar chiming alert echoes from my pocket, and I smile as I place the dishes I’m holding in the cabinet and yank my phone out. The only notifications I get from the Cackle app are for when JoeVSVolcano, or JoeyB, posts something new.
This dude laid into me last year when I was venting over the demise of my relationship, and his testy attitude triggered something in me. I responded to the trolling, which I never do, and it instigated a war, of sorts, between us. We’ve been disparaging each other’s posts for the last year, and social media has never been quite this fun or exhilarating.
Honestly? I think JoeyB and I could be friends if we ever met in real life. Most of the shit I spout, I don’t actually believe. I just say it to egg him on. And while most arguments on the internet degenerate into tossing insults about someone’s appearance or intelligence, JoeyB’s responses, though in direct opposition of whatever I’ve said, are always intelligent and topic-specific. That “topic” being romcom movies more times than not.
It’s all very silly, I know, but it’s the small things that make life interesting, right? And going head-to-head with him sparks an excitement in me I haven’t felt since before she who shall not be named broke my heart.
Opening the app, one corner of my mouth ticks up as I read his post.
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
Watched “Notting Hill” for the 28 th time last night. Still an excellent movie. Four and a half stars. #whoopsiedaisies
0 ?0 ?5
I laugh, the sound echoing through the half-empty apartment. In the post that started this beef between us, I insisted romcoms were the reason women had an unrealistic view of men and romance. But that was just the anger talking. I didn’t believe anything I said. I was just bitter.
I respect that the guy is so open with his love of romance movies. I, myself, actually love romcoms, too––particularly Tom Hanks flicks––and I’m not ashamed to admit it. To anyone but him, that is. Because admitting that would be admitting defeat in our little war.
DFW @BodaciousBuckaroo211
Honey announcing to the group she’s decided to get engaged, then telling Spike it’s him afterward is more believable than Anna and William falling into this deep, abiding love after spending two days, which were months apart, together. #mereinfatuation #justagirlstandinginfrontofaboyaskinghimtotolerateherwildmoodswings
5 ?0 ?0
Okay, so I’m revealing that I’ve watched this movie––more than once––by naming the characters this way, but who cares? It’ll rile JoeyB up, for sure, and ignite a fresh battle of wits that’ll leave me feeling exhilarated. At least for a little while.
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
You seem to know a lot of details about a movie you’re trying to convince us you don’t like. How many times have you watched it, Buck?
4 ?0 ?1
DFW @BodaciousBuckaroo211
What can I say? My ex loved it, and I was a good boyfriend.
3 ?0 ?0
Poppy.Bee @Poppy.Bee1
Here we go again. #sigh #smh
2 ?2 ?43
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
If you were so good, then why is she your ex? #icallbullshit
1 ?0 ?0
Ouch . Going right for the jugular today, I see. I’m still trying to come up with a clever response when JoeyB posts another comment.
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have made this personal. I’m deleting my last comment.
0 ?0 ?0
My eyes widen as I read the comment for a second time. Did he just…apologize? Before I can reply, both the dig about my ex and the apology for it disappear. A laugh barks out of me, unbidden. That “sorry” was just for me, then, and JoeyB didn’t want the rest of my followers seeing him back down.
A new comment replaces the deleted ones, and I quickly read it.
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
Anna needed someone goofy and adorable like William. He was something real in her life when everything else was fake.
0 ?0 ?0
DFW @BodaciousBuckaroo211
That may be true, but that doesn’t automatically equate to love. And he was infatuated with her, sure, but she brought nothing to his life but chaos, confusion, and disappointment prior to the HEA.
0 ?0 ?0
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
I think you meant excitement, humor, and great sex.
0 ?0 ?0
DFW @BodaciousBuckaroo211
Again, those things don’t equate to true love.
0 ?0 ?0
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
Then tell me, oh wise one, what does?
0 ?0 ?0
I don’t have a ready answer for that. I talk a big game when it comes to romance movies, but what do I actually know about true love? Hell, I thought I loved my ex, but I realize now I was in love with the idea of being in love. I was ready to be settled, therefore, I was ready to settle. For her. For a mediocre life with an obviously shallow woman.
At least, now, I know what I don’t want. I don’t want anything less than the real thing. I don’t expect to feel that heart-pounding, soul-searing jolt of electricity portrayed in the movies, but at the very least, I want a woman who’ll be my best friend. Someone I can laugh with. Someone I can love with my whole heart, who’ll love me back with the same intensity.
Another reply pops up, pulling me out of my thoughts .
JoeyB @JoeVSVolcano
Nothing? That’s what I thought.
0 ?0 ?0
Yeah. I’ve got nothing. I’m certainly not going to put all my deepest desires out there for public consumption. This round goes to JoeyB, and I’m fine with that.
There’s always next time.