It was his move, so he stared at the board as he considered his play, his beer on the table beside him. His eyes shifted back and forth as he looked at his pieces, examining his pawn and his queen.
“So…I really like Atlas.”
His eyes immediately flicked up and met mine.
“We’ve gone out a couple times.” It was kinda weird to talk about it with him, but I decided to share since he was the one who had suggested the match.
Dad stared, like he didn’t know what to say.
“He’s really smart but not an ass about it. I like that.”
He ignored the board altogether and just listened to me.
“He keeps up with me, which is a nice change. Anytime I have something to say, he fires back right away. It can make us butt heads sometimes, but he’s never annoyed when I say what I think or fight for my opinion. He always respects my views, which is nice. And at work, he’s all business, and he advocates for our patients harder than anyone else. The other week, he ripped into Anthony because he was a bit complacent over the holiday weekend…and I like that about him. He’s tough. But he needs to be tough.” There were other reasons I liked him, but I wasn’t going to share those points, not even with my mom. He treated me the way I wanted to be treated by a man, as equals across the table but as the leader in the bedroom. He wasn’t the least bit intimidated by me, and what other men found annoying, he found amusing.
Dad gave a slight nod. “I’m glad you like him—because I think he’s good enough for you.”
“Dad…”
“I want you to be with someone like your brothers, someone who understands your brilliance and can relate to it. That’s what you need, Daisy. You need a man with his own ambitions, but someone who can push you to pursue your ambitions. If not, you’ll just have a man who’s constantly in your shadow.”
“Intelligence isn’t everything…”
“It’s what you do with your intelligence that matters. Look what he’s doing with his. That’s a huge testament to his character.”
“I agree.”
“Well, I’m glad you’ve given him a chance.”
“Yeah.”
He looked down and made his move.
“Do you know why he got divorced?” I moved my piece, having already known where I was going to put it before he even made his move.
“No.”
“I asked him about it, but it’s a touchy subject.”
“In his defense, divorce is the second most stressful life event, only after losing a loved one.”
“I understand that. I just… I guess it’s hard for me to believe that his wife would ever let him go.”
“Maybe she didn’t. Maybe he left.”
“I don’t know.”
“But it doesn’t matter. That’s his past and has nothing to do with you. Just because a past marriage failed doesn’t mean his next will too.”
“I know that. The divorce doesn’t really bother me. But I guess I’d like to know why it happened.”
Dad made his move. “Respect his privacy.”
“Of course. I would never ask him again. Maybe he’ll tell me on his own, but I don’t think he will. He’s been divorced for a couple years, but it’s obvious that it still really bothers him. You would think in that amount of time he would be over it.”
“When I met your mother, she wanted something serious, but I was newly divorced and determined to remain single for the rest of my life. But life had other plans, and once I let her in, I let go of my divorce. It was as if it never happened. Give him time. His happiness will make him forget his heartbreak.”
“Yeah…”
16
Atlas
“So, are you going to tell me about this lady friend of yours?” Matthew sat across from me at the bar, wearing his Yankees baseball cap and his t-shirt. “She’s gotta be smokin’ because Lydia was fiiiiine and you weren’t interested.”
I tried to hide my smile with the drink I took. “Oh, she’s bangin’.”
He gave me a thumbs-up. “Slept with her?”
An annoyed look came over my features.
“What?” he asked. “You told me about Lydia and everyone before Lydia.”
“Because you dragged it out of me.”
“Well, I can drag this out of you, or you can just tell me.”
“You aren’t dragging this one outta me.”
“Ooh, my boy is in love.”
“I’ve definitely got it bad…I’ll say that much.”
He interlocked his fingers behind his head as he stared at me, giving me a slight look of approval. “Never thought this day would come. You’re ready to get back on the horse.”
“Not really. She kinda just happened…and then more shit happened…and now here I am. It was like a forest fire. It started out of nowhere, and before I knew it, I was surrounded by flames…and that was when I realized I was on fire.”
“My boy is a poet too.”