Bad Ideas (First & Forever 4)

“Vibe achieved.”

“So, correct me if I’m wrong,” she said, as she looked up from the bracelet, “but it seems your car made it home last night and you didn’t. How did that happen?”

“I spent the night with someone who lives close by, so I parked here and walked over.”

Her grin turned playful. “Wow, an all-nighter. Do tell, and spare no detail, no matter how kinky.”

“I wish I had a juicy story for you, but he was drunk when I showed up, so we didn’t have sex. I ended up spending the night though, because he didn’t want to be alone. Then he kicked me out at the crack of dawn.”

“That doesn’t sound like some random guy you met on that hookup site.”

“No. I actually deleted my profile on that app,” I said. “This guy is all I want.”

“Who is he?”

“Um…”

She raised a perfectly groomed brow. “Was it the same guy you hooked up with during the Christmas party?” When I nodded, JoJo looked delighted. “Now this is juicy. It’s a coworker, isn’t it? One who also turned out to be a neighbor, apparently.”

“Yeah, it is. I don’t know how much I should say, though. Yolanda hates this guy, and I’m not sure how to tell her about this.”

Her blue-green eyes went wide. “Oh my god, you’re talking about Doctor Koenig!”

My mouth fell open, and I asked, “How’d you put that together so fast?” I didn’t know why I was so surprised, since Lark had done exactly the same thing.

“You know Yolanda gets along with everyone, just like you do. There’s only one person she really complains about from work, and it turns out you’re hooking up with him.”

“I want it to be more than that,” I admitted, “but he pretty much shot me down when I asked him out this morning.”

JoJo traded the bracelet for a pretty, porcelain cup with flowers on it. Then she sat back and crossed her legs as she said, “Okay, I’ve got my tea. Now spill yours. I want the whole story. Just so you know though, I’m going to repeat all of this to Yolanda. She and I don’t keep secrets from each other.”

“I know, and that’s fine. She’s going to think I’ve gone off the deep end, but I’ve just been delaying the inevitable by not talking to her about it.”

I told JoJo everything, and when I finished, she put down her empty teacup and said, “You really like this guy, don’t you?”

“I do. He has a lot of walls up at work, but there’s another side to him. I’ve just gotten glimpses, but I think he’s fascinating and I’m dying to know more. So, what do I do?”

“Do you think the feeling’s mutual?”

“I’m pretty sure it is, but it seems like he’s afraid to let his guard down and give us a chance.”

She mulled that over for a few moments before saying, “My advice is to start small. You guys went straight to sex and skipped the part that’s supposed to come first, where you get to know each other and build trust. Rewind a bit. Imagine what you’d do if you’d just met this guy for the first time and wanted to woo him.”

I grinned at that and echoed, “Woo him?”

JoJo grinned, too. “You heard me. Show him you’re interested in little ways. Gradually work your way up to asking him out again, and then don’t make a big production out of it—just see if he wants to meet for coffee or something. It sounds like this guy might have been burned by something pretty badly in his past, so give him time to learn he can trust you.”

“That makes sense, and I think I can do this. I hope so, anyway.”

She asked, “Why the lack of confidence?”

“I just don’t have much experience with relationships, and I’m worried about screwing it up. This guy’s special, JoJo. It’s not just that he’s brilliant, and beautiful, and passionate. He can be so vulnerable sometimes, and it makes me want to gather him in my arms and protect him from all the bad things in the world.” I wrinkled my nose and muttered, “That probably sounds sappy, right?”

“It sounds sweet and genuine. You really care about this guy. Show him that, but like I said, start small. Treat him like…I don’t know, a feral cat or something. You don’t want to spook him and give him a reason to run from you.”

She was right about that. It would be so easy to push too hard and lose him forever.

Later that afternoon, I arrived at the hospital to read to Oscar. But before I went to his room, I took a detour first to the cafeteria, then to the row of doctor’s offices at the back of the second floor. They were empty for the most part, which wasn’t unusual. No one really spent much time there.