Chapter 4 #3
“Why, if we’re both leaving from the office? That’s more time wasted if they have to sweep two cars.” Even when she wasn’t ‘on,’ Freya was on. Once she got even the slightest hint that there was something under the surface, she’d start digging.
“I kind of have …” he cleared his throat. “Something right before.”
She was watching him in the mirror, cold blue eyes locking him into place. “Something?”
“Yes, a, um, date.”
That was all it took to get Mimi on board. “Oh, details, please. That’s more interesting than prime minister schedules. Now close your eyes.” She said the last part to Freya as she leaned in with a long brush.
He wanted to be mad at Mimi for pressing, but if she didn’t ask it he knew Freya would have.
“There’s really no ‘details.’ She and I met only briefly, but we hit it off and are going on a first date.
” Perhaps, if he downplayed it all, Freya would lose interest and move on.
It was a long shot, but he held onto it.
Unfortunately, Mimi wasn’t about to let him get away with it. “There’s always details. Where did you meet? Who asked out who? What did you like about her?”
“We met at …” he tried to think if there was any other way to say it, without saying it.
He didn’t get a chance, though, because, as always, Freya figured it out first. Her eyes opened suddenly, forcing Mimi to pull back. “You’re going on a date with Naomi?”
“Ooh, Naomi?” Mimi said excitedly. “Who is that? Close your eyes, Jonsson. We’re short on time here.”
Will couldn’t stop a groan from coming out.
Here goes nothing. “She called me,” he said, still looking at her, nervously trying to read her expression even though her eyes were closed.
Maybe he had nothing to worry about. Maybe she wouldn’t have feelings about it one way or another.
But the anxiety of not knowing made his words start coming faster.
“Her assistant did, actually. Called the front desk, I guess. Anyway, she wanted to know if I wanted to go out—and I said yes. I don’t know, it seemed like a good idea at the moment.
Then afterward I started panicking because I remembered what everyone was saying and about what happened and now I—”
“Slow down, hon,” Mimi interrupted his confession. “I feel like I missed an episode, and now I need a ‘previously on’ recap. And Jonsson, relax a little. I can’t get this eyeliner on when you’re scrunching your eyes like that. That’s better. Now tell me about Naomi.”
“We met, briefly, at …” This had taken a bit of a turn.
How much was he supposed to say? Freya didn’t like people knowing any more about her than they needed to.
While he wasn’t sure how she’d feel about him seeing Naomi, he was confident that she wouldn’t want him relaying anything about her high school, the people he met, or that other side of her he saw.
“A thing. But then, another thing happened, and she had to leave before I could give her my number.”
“That’s a lot of … things. But I think I’m following, sort of. So, then she found you; that’s kinda cute, right?”
“I thought so. But her friend and Freya have kind of this, well,” he couldn’t come up with another word under this much pressure, “thing.”
“There are so many things flying around. This story is turning into a Dr. Seuss book.”
“There’s no thing,” Freya said, her tone commanding.
Even with her eyes closed, she could take charge of a room.
“We bumped into some of my friends from high school on Friday. That’s where Will met Naomi, and where I learned that my high school girl squad was still stuck in high drama mode.
They were trying to dig up high school gossip about Naomi to scare off Will.
It was pathetic, honestly, don’t you think, Will? ”
Gossip to ‘scare’ him off? That could almost be interpreted to mean she didn’t have a problem with him seeing Naomi. Almost. There was something else. Discomfort with the conversation centering on her personal life?
Mimi began applying lipstick, and Freya opened her eyes, looking directly at him expectantly. One thing was clear. She wanted him to confirm her narrative: there was no “thing.” No story for Mimi to tell the next person who sat in her chair. “Uh, right. Exactly.”
Thankfully, Mimi was oblivious to this footnote of their conversation.
“What is it with some people getting stuck in high school? The best time of your life is being a pimply bag of raging hormones in a sea of confused half-adults? I will never understand it. You’re still going to see her, this Naomi, right? To decide for yourself?”
“I guess. If it’s okay with …” he started to say, then trailed off. He wanted to ask permission, but asking permission would also suggest there was a “thing.”
“Of course, why would it matter to me if you see her?” Effortlessly, Freya picked up the ball he dropped. “And it’s no problem; I’ll plan to pick you up after your date on the way to the interview.”
She stood, indicating both her makeup and the conversation were done. He followed suit, handing her the printouts he’d been carrying. “I made a few changes since you last saw these,” he said.
“Thanks,” she said, glancing at the papers, then back at him.
He was tempted to push the conversation a little further but decided against it.
If there was one thing he knew, it was that he couldn’t force anything out of Freya.
If she had more to say, she’d say it when the time was right for her.
Besides, why push something when it might all be nothing? It was only one date, after all.