“Will, we always think it’s different. Do you believe I didn’t try to tell myself Elijah wasn’t different?”
“You got all this from a spaced-out look in your lobby?” I’d known Jameson for five minutes, and Shaw got this from one weird encounter?
“I’m very good at what I do. I see things others don’t, and whoever—he, she, they?”
“He.”
“Whoever he is, you’re going to start to feel like you’re losing your mind. You’re going to be confused, and a little nutty, and you’ll probably fuck up and make a fool of yourself, but if you’re as lucky as me, he’ll forgive you.”
I couldn’t help laughing. I wasn’t sure there was anyone in the world like Shaw Hastings. “Methinks you’re letting your cockiness go to your head. You can’t have gotten all that from a look, and I’m a hundred percent sure you’re wrong. But I will say, because you might see us together, that I went on my date with Jameson last night.”
“Who the fuck is Jameson?”
“The dude from the auction.” Couldn’t he keep up?
“Oh shit. Okay, yeah. He’s cute in this nerdy way.”
“Right? He doesn’t see it at all. It’s fucking crazy.”
“More proof that you’re crazy in love with him. I’m listening.”
“I don’t even know him.” We were walking down Peachtree, heading toward this burger place we liked.
“I don’t know that love cares. When it’s right, it’s right. If you went by the rules, E and I weren’t supposed to fall in love, so…”
“Dude. I’m going to kill you if you say we’re in love again. We went out. It…didn’t go as planned, but I think we’re going to chill together for a bit.” I refused to call it hanging out. That was the excuse he always threw my way about Elijah in the beginning. “Like a fling or something.”
“You planned a fling? Is that how those usually work?”
“I’m regretting talking to you at the moment.”
Shaw chuckled. “I can’t help it. I didn’t expect to get payback so soon, but I’ll try to be good.”
We got to the restaurant, and they seated us. He dropped the subject, and we talked about work and how excited he was to be out of school for the summer, and then he got all mushy over Elijah. You know, the usual.
It wasn’t until our food came that Shaw continued. “He’s cute, but…I don’t know why, I just didn’t see him as your type.”
The truth was, I didn’t either. I wouldn’t even try to deny that. I’d always been into confident, cocky guys. “Well, I’m not going to marry the guy. I’m just having some fun with him. He…makes me laugh. He’s not like anyone I’ve ever met.”
Shaw stared at me for a moment, his brows pulled together…and then, then he busted out laughing. I balled up a napkin and threw it at him.
“I’m sorry! I can’t help it,” he said between fits of amusement. “It’s just, you’re so fucked, and you don’t even see it. God, this is going to be so fun. We need to plan a double date soon.”
I ignored him. Shaw had no idea what he was talking about. I wasn’t fucked. I mean, I would be fucking, but I wasn’t fucked in the way he thought. Hell, for all I knew, this summer-fling idea would be over before it even started.
Luckily, Shaw dropped the Jameson conversation after that. We had lunch, and he asked more questions about my job and things like that. Afterward, Shaw asked if I wanted to go hang out at his apartment, but I declined.
I was at home that evening, lying on the couch, when I grabbed my phone.
It would be a dick move if I didn’t message Jameson to see how he was doing, right? This was all new for him, and last night and this morning had likely been a lot. He would be nervous and probably telling himself all the reasons this wasn’t going to go down, thinking I would change my mind, and nope, I wasn’t going to contemplate how I felt like I knew him so well already.
At first, I pulled up my text messages, but changed my mind and decided to call.
Jameson answered with, “What’s wrong with you? No one calls people anymore. They text. Texting is easier, and this is the second time you’ve called me.”
I snickered. It seemed to be my default setting around him. “Aw, now my feelings are hurt. Here I was, missing the sound of my summer fling’s voice, and he doesn’t even want to talk to me. A less secure man would take that as a sign that you don’t want me.”
There was a short pause, Jameson’s breathing the only sound on the line. “You still wanna…?”
See? It was good that I called. I knew he’d think I was bowing out. It was also time to have a little fun. “Oh yeah. In fact, I was thinking your first lesson could start now and be phone sex.”