Marriage Material

“I knew it!” Ma screams, rushing over to them. We all cheer and give them hugs.

My eyes water a little because I’m so happy for them. The longing I’ve been having lately hits me all over again. An image of Anderson floats into my mind, and I try to push that thought away. It doesn’t work, though, because all through dinner as everyone talks about the first grandchild coming into the family, my mind is on him. It’s like he has some spell over me that I can’t break. Maybe I should call him and ask him about tomorrow? I’m clearly just making up excuses to talk to him, but is that a bad thing?

“Robin, are you going to take this food I made over to Betty?” My ma asks, jerking me from my thoughts. She holds up a few Tupperware containers with a look on her face like she’s asked me to do this already. I have no idea what she’s talking about, but I stand up and nod.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Good, she hasn’t been feeling well and I want to make sure she’s eating.” I follow my mother back into the kitchen. She grabs a bag to put the Tupperware in, then hands it to me. When I hold the bag out in front of me, it feels like there’s nothing inside.

“They’re empty,” I tell her in confusion.

“Well, duh. I told you I’d sneak you out of here,” she reminds me.

I completely forgot about my date with Franky. Suddenly I really don’t want to go, but Ma looks super smug that she pulled one over on the men.

“Yeah, of course.” I take the bag from her and she hands me my purse.

“Slip out the back so you don’t get twenty questions.”

I do as she says, and when I leave the house I check my phone to see a text from Franky. He sent me the address of the restaurant, so I make a left and drive straight there. When I pull into the restaurant parking lot I have a pep talk with myself before I go in. I don’t know why, but suddenly this feels like a chore. After a second of hesitation I make myself get out of the car and I spot Franky waiting for me near the entrance.

“Hey,” I call out, giving a small wave as I make my way to him.

“Hey yourself.” He leans down like he’s going to kiss me, and I turn my head at the last second. His mouth brushes my cheek and it’s super awkward.

“I’ve never eaten here,” I rush to say, trying to pretend that wasn’t really uncomfortable.

What is wrong with me? I’ve been excited to go on a date and to see what it’s like, but now that I’m here, all I want to do is to go home and start packing.

“It’s good.” He guides me inside and gets us a table.

The whole meal feels wrong and I have to stop myself from fidgeting. When the check comes, relief hits me because it’s over. Thank god. Franky’s nice enough, but something about him is off. He also enjoyed talking about insects a little too much. He has some weird fascination with them and is thinking about going back to school to study them. I don’t hate many things, but bugs are a no-go for me. It also didn’t help that he made a rude comment about the kids at the table next to us being loud. I thought they were adorable with their chubby cheeks covered in mashed potatoes, but he seemed to think it was annoying.

When we walk out of the restaurant I know what’s coming. He’s going to try and kiss me again. I keep a distance between us as we walk because I don’t want this to be my first kiss. It doesn’t feel right, and the truth is, I keep thinking about another man. I kept comparing Franky to Anderson, and they seem like complete opposites.

“I had a great time. We should do this again,” he says as he stops next to my car.

“The food was wonderful,” I say, trying to go with something that’s not a lie.

“I’ll call you.” He begins to lean down, and I panic.

“Okay,” I say quickly, turning around and opening my car door and getting in before he can get too close. He looks at me like I’m crazy and I wave. “Bye.”

“Later.” He shakes his head before he walks away and gets in his truck.

I drop back in my seat and close my eyes. Could that have been any more awkward? Thank god that’s over and I don’t have to do it again. My mind immediately drifts to Anderson and it makes my heart flutter. I bite my lip wondering what tomorrow will bring.

Chapter 4

Anderson

The house is so big I could almost get lost in it. It’s so different from my place in the city, but so is the town. My apartment was tiny with only one room because I didn’t need any space because I was never there. This house has so many it makes me wonder why I got it. I had this image in my head of Charlotte growing up here and having brothers and sisters, but I’ve never even kissed a woman. How could I possibly fill this place with anything? An image of Robin comes to mind and suddenly I’m creating a home with her in it.