Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Sophie
“To our newest certified instructor!” Anjannette raised her margarita.
“We’re so proud of you,” Keera added.
After clinking glasses, we each took a sip and set them down. We’ve been coming to Italo’s Mexican Restaurant Tuesday nights after pole class for the past three years. I look forward to it every week.
It’s super busy tonight, but the waitress set us up with our drinks and a couple baskets of chips and salsa. We placed our orders and told her we weren’t in any rush.
“So when’s your first class?” Eve asked. “Please say it’s before I head back to Seaside.”
I gestured toward Anjannette and Keera.
“Whenever these lovely ladies say they need me.”
“Spring training is coming up fast, so we’ll get you started asap as long as you’re up for it,” Anjannette said.
Part of me is excited about the thought of taking on a new challenge, while another part is terrified. But I suppose that’s par for the course when starting something new.
“I’m ready whenever,” I said. “But if one of you could be there for the first couple classes, I’d greatly appreciate it.”
“Don’t worry, we’ve got you,” Keera said.
“You could have taught last night’s beginner class if you didn’t abandon us all week.”
Anjannette punctuated that sentence by picking up a chip, dipping it in salsa, and taking a
purposeful bite.
“I didn’t abandon you. I was on deadline,” I said. “And I’m happy to report that I finished
the book and sent it off to my editor last night.”
“That’s something else to celebrate,” Eve said
She raised a glass again and the others slowly joined. We were in mid toast when Shannon frowned.
“Wait a minute.” She lowered her glass. “Didn’t you stay the extra nights in Brooklyn to finish your book?”
Four sets of eyes looked at me expectantly, their arms half extended in a halted toast.
I could have lied. After all, just because I set aside days to write doesn’t mean the words flowed. I’m sure if I said that, Eve would back me up.
But this is my pole crew. We’ve shared the good, the bad, and the ugly with each other over the past four years. Shannon is the latest addition to our posse. She joins us whenever she’s home from Manhattan, which luckily for us, has been more often the past few months. And she fits in so well, it’s like she’s been here from the start. It’s just unfortunate that she has such a great memory.
I set my glass down and held the stem in a death grip.
“I did plan on finishing my book in Brooklyn, but I got…sidetracked.”
“Sidetracked?” Anjannette raised her right brow.
“By?” Keera dragged out that two-letter word, raising her voice at the end.
“Please say it was a hot guy.”
I chuckled at Eve’s stage whisper.
So far, my time with Jamie has been confined to Brooklyn and my memories. Sharing
him with other people will make what happened seem more real somehow. But looking around the table, I realized how much I wanted to tell them about him.
“Yes, my book deadline was delayed by a sexy detour with a hot guy.”
Their combined screeches should have echoed through the restaurant, but since it’s packed, they barely made a dent in the noise. And once they settled down, all four asked questions at the exact same time. Thankfully motherhood has trained me to listen to multiple voices at once.
“Where’d you meet him?”
“What’s he look like?”
“When are you seeing him again?’
“How was the sex?”
I looked at Anjannette and answered her question first.
“I met him at the pole studio. He’s Elliott’s friend Jamie.”
Then to Shannon.
“He has brown hair, dark brown eyes, a strong jawline, and chiseled cheekbones.”
Next was Eve.
“We have each other’s numbers and left it open ended, but I don’t plan on seeing him
again.”
They all opened their mouths, and based on the looks on their faces, I know they planned on protesting what I shared in that last sentence. Before they could speak, I answered Keera’s question hoping to distract them.
“The sex was mind-blowingly, heart-stoppingly, forget-your-name amazing.”
“Wait, wait, wait,” Shannon said. “I want to hear about the sex, but please tell me you have a picture of this man with perfect features.”
“Ooh yeah,” Keera added. “Let’s see a picture.”
I have two pictures of Jamie. Well, of us. The waitress took one at our last dinner together and we stopped to take a selfie on the way home. I scrolled through my photos and pulled the first up, then handed the phone to Shannon.
“Holy shit,” she said. “He’s hot.”
She shifted the screen so the other three could see. Keera whistled and took the phone. After looking her fill, she passed it to Eve.
“I may want a copy of this for hero inspiration.”
“You have Max for that.”
“Yeah, but I need variety for my books.”
She offered a cheeky smile and passed the phone to Anjannette, who scrutinized both pictures before passing it back to me.
“Two things. He is ridiculously handsome and you look insanely happy in those pictures.”
I glanced at the screen. I’ve spent my fair share of time looking at the photos but have mainly focused on Jamie. As I studied myself, I realized Anjannette is right.
“So he’s hot and you look happy,” Keera said. “Why aren’t you seeing him again?”
“His life is in Brooklyn and mine is here.”
“It’s no big deal,” Anjannette said. “Leo and I have made it work and he’s gone more than half the year.”
“And you can write anywhere,” Eve pointed out.
“Yes, I can,” I agreed. “But even though they’re basically grown, my kids are still a priority for me. Tyler has baseball and there’s always something with the other kids. Add in book signings, writers’ conferences, and teaching pole classes when I start that, and my calendar is full.”
“Was he open to pursuing something?” Anjannette asked.
“He was, but I explained that my life is a little crazy.”
“But you said the sex was amazing, ” Keera said. “You’ve been searching for a man who talks the talk and walks the walk. Now that you’ve found one, you can’t just give him up.” She gestured toward my phone. “Especially when he looks like that.”
“Trust me when I say, I did not come to this decision lightly.” I shook my head. “If he lived closer, Jamie is the kind of guy I’d want to spend more time with. We had an immediate connection and that extended beyond the physical. He’s amazing, in and out of bed.”
I studied my finger as I circled it along the salty rim of the glass, avoiding their questioning looks. I’ve played out the scenario of trying long distance with Jamie since our last night together. But the thought of stressing over fitting phone calls and visits into my full schedule gave me a headache. If we met a few years from now, I’d give it a try, but not today.
“You know, you’re allowed to have a life of your own,” Anjannette said.
“I think you should go for it,” Shannon added.
I love these ladies, but we’ll have to agree to disagree about this.
Thankfully the waitress arrived with our dinners and everyone’s attention shifted to the food.
Jamie
I stepped into the pub and spotted Elliott sitting in a corner booth. The fact that he arrived before me says a lot. He’s the king of being fashionably late.
“It’s about time you got here.”
“I’m five minutes early.”
I shrugged out of my jacket and sat across from him.
“Well, I’ve already been here for five minutes,” he said.
The waitress approached with a pitcher of beer and two empty mugs, and set them on the table.
“Did you want me to put something in for you?” she asked, as she filled each mug with beer.
Before answering, I looked at Elliott.
“I ordered an assortment of appetizers, so we’re good.” When the waitress left, he looked at me then deliberately folded his hands. “So what have you been doing with yourself?”
“When?”
“This week. Last week. Take your pick. Aside from Tuesday dinner you’ve been MIA.”
“You know I’m going to help your dad at Janet Guzman’s, so we’ve been working on that. And we went to White Plains yesterday.”
“You’re purposely avoiding me.”
“You only miss me when Josh is traveling.”
“Don’t try to change the subject by aggravating me.”
He shook his head then took a sip of beer.
“You just got used to me being around all the time when I was between projects,” I said. “Now that I have a couple things going on, I’ll be busy again.”
“Are the projects the only reason you’ll be busy?”
Arched brows accentuated the question.
Instead of answering, I picked up my beer and took a sip.
The waitress returned with a platter of wings, another of nachos, and some mozzarella sticks giving us something to focus on aside from the topic Elliott’s dying to bring up. For a minute anyway. He’s not that easily distracted.
“So, you never responded to my discovery Tuesday night.”
“Discovery? That’s dramatic.”
“You’ll have to fess up eventually.”
“About what?”
“Who you had sex with.” He picked up a chicken wing and pointed it at me. “Don’t try to deny it. You’re less grumpy, the tic in your jaw is gone, and you’re not vibrating like a tuning fork anymore. You. Had. Sex.”
It’s obviously none of his business, but Elliott doesn’t exactly understand the concept of boundaries. Not with me or his siblings anyway. I know denial won’t work so I decided to employ the same tactic I’ve used all the times he said I was grumpy and needed to get laid.
“Why are you so interested in my sex life?”
“I just want you to be happy,” he said. “Plus, it’d be nice if we could double date instead of you third-wheeling it with Josh and me.”
“Smartass.”
“So who was it?”
I could just not answer, but history has taught me that he won’t give up. And what does it matter if he knows?
“Sophie.”
Elliott had just bit into the wing as I said her name and I’m pretty sure he swallowed without chewing.
“Holy hell!” He took a long drink of beer. “How did that happen? Were you scheming behind my back the entire time?”
His narrowed eyes made me laugh.
“No, I wasn’t scheming ,” I said. “I was heading to Neville for dinner Wednesday night and saw her going into Worth Reading, so I followed. Turns out she was in the mood for a steak as well, so we went together.”
“And then you couldn’t ignore the electric connection between you anymore.”
“You and that damn electric connection.”
“Well, I was right,” he said, looking ridiculously proud of himself. “So what’s the plan?”
“For what?”
“Sophie.” He blinked. “You did make plans to see her again, right?”
“We left it open-ended.”
“What? Why?”
“She said her life is too crazy to fit in a long-distance relationship.”
“I’m sure if you put your mind to it, you could convince her to squeeze you in.”
I ignored his double entendre and finished my beer. As I refilled my mug and topped off Elliott’s, he took the opportunity to argue his point.
“Sophie is the first woman who’s caught your interest in a long time,” he said, dramatically drawing out the word long. “You’d be crazy if you didn’t pursue her.”
“I told her to call if she wanted to get together.”
“That’s not pursuing, that’s waiting.”
“I can’t make her want to see me.”
“Based on how she practically drooled every time she looked in your direction, I don’t think you need to work too hard to make her want to do anything.”
“Like I said, we left the door open.”
I don’t want to discuss this with Elliott anymore, because truth be told, I do want to see Sophie again. But I’ve left the ball in her court and am giving her time to throw it back. If she doesn’t, I’ll have to come up with an alternate plan.
“We’ll just have to figure out a way to get you two together again without stressing out her schedule.”
“ We ?”
“I can’t trust you to do this on your own.”
Thankfully he dropped the subject of Sophie and me after that. Although, I’m sure he’s mentally plotting. His eyes had rounded at one point, like he had an idea, but I’m not going to stress myself out worrying about it.
As we left the pub, Elliott offered me a ride home, but I declined.
“I’d rather walk. I haven’t been running as much and I’m starting to feel it.”
“Okay. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”
He got into his car and I turned the corner and headed toward home. But instead of going straight there, I took a slight detour, hoping my destination was still open. Two blocks later, I smiled as I spotted the lights still on at Worth Reading.