Jess stood up and gathered all of the bath toys into the small plastic storage container. “How was your day?”
I enjoyed our little catch-ups at the end of each day. “A friend of mine came to visit. He was on vacation for a month.”
“Wow,” she said, turning on the water to clean out the tub. “That must be nice.”
I noticed myself smiling. Had that been what Brandon saw? I wiped my hand across my face and ended up with a more neutral expression. “Brandon and his wife seem always to be traveling.”
“Have you and Gina gone anywhere with them before?” I asked.
“No,” I said, even though it wasn’t for lack of want. “With the business and taking care of her, there isn’t much time.”
“You keep saying that,” she said with a small smile.
I narrowed my eyes. “My business is important to me.”
“I totally get that. But you should do something for yourself now and then.”
I laughed. “Like what?”
“Like something fun.” She shrugged. “What do you like to do for fun?”
“Back in the day, I loved to go out, I guess.” I shrugged, not really wanting to get into this conversation again.
“Then go out now.”
“Alone?” I lifted and eyebrow, wishing I had responded with something else. Hell, anything else.
“No. On a date.”
“You sound like Brandon.”
“Does he try to set you up?” she said.
I rolled my eyes. “All the time.”
“Maybe you should listen to your friend.”
“I don’t—”
“Listen, I have this friend. She would be perfect for you. She’s available this Saturday.”
“Jess, I—”
“I know it’s hard getting back out there,” she said, grabbing the towel from the ground and hanging it on the rack by the tub. “But if your friends have tried to set you up and failed, maybe you need to branch out a little further. We think it will be good for you.”
“Did you discuss this with Gina?” I asked.
“Absolutely not, but as I said the other day, she did mention she wants to see you happy with another woman. And I’m not saying you’re going to marry this girl, but getting out of the house without a toddler in tow would be good for you.”
I wondered how much Jess was going to push the issue until I gave in. She seemed pretty persistent. Maybe if I went on a date with her friend, then I could have the opportunity to tell her to drop it for a little while.
“All right,” I said. “Text me the information later.”
“Yay!” she said and clapped her hands. “You two will get along perfectly. I promise.”
I doubted that. I had a nasty taste in my mouth about going out with Jess’s friend. If I had to be honest with myself, I’d rather spend Saturday night with Jess and Gina. But Jess and Brandon were right. I needed to get back out there. Even if it was just for fun.
Then, Gina walked into the bathroom wearing bright pink pajama pants and a green nightgown with a dog on the front. Jess and I smiled at each other. Gina hadn’t mastered matching yet. But as long as she was happy, I never wanted to deter her creativity.