“Yes,” I finally replied.
AJ clapped his hands together. “All right then. How about I pick you up for dinner around seven?”
My brows furrowed. “Oh, you actually want to go out?”
He snickered. “You really think I’m a ‘wham, bam, thank you ma’am’ kinda guy, huh?”
I lifted one of my shoulders. “I just figured since this date was about sex—”
“First of all, I’d never take you straight to bed—only assholes with no game do that. Second, for you, this is about experiencing life again.”
“And that includes dinner?”
“Yes, ma’am it does, along with something else thrown in just for kicks.”
I found myself smiling. “Okay, then. That sounds nice.”
“Gotta pen?”
“Sure.” I reached into my pocket and handed him one. He took the Get Well Soon card from my other hand. “What’s your number?” Once I gave it to him, he grinned. “I’ll text you for the directions to pick you up, okay?”
“Okay,” I replied as he handed me back the pen.
“Mia, I’m glad you finally decided to take me up on my offer.”
“Me too,” I replied honestly. Of course, I sounded a lot more sure of myself than I felt. Inside, I was on a Merry-Go-Round of emotions.
When AJ leaned closer to me, an intense fire burning in his eyes, I jerked back. He grinned at my reaction. “Easy girl. Just a chaste good-bye kiss,” he whispered, his breath fanning over my cheek.
“Sorry.”
His warm lips pressed a tender kiss on my cheek, rather than my lips. When he pulled away, he winked. “I’ll make sure to ply you with a little alcohol on Friday night to make sure you’re not so skittish.”
Shaking my head, I pushed him playfully. “Whatever.”
“I’ll be back to see Frank, so maybe I’ll see you before then.”
“Maybe so.”
Walking backwards down the hall to Frank’s room, he wiggled his fingers at me. “Bye Mia.”
Shifting the flowers, I waved back. “Bye AJ.” Once he disappeared back into Frank’s room, I exhaled the breath I’d been holding. As I walked into the station, Dee greeted me with a grin that stretched from cheek to cheek.
“Hellz to the yes! Mama Mia’s gettin’ back in the game!” he exclaimed, before doing a little happy dance.
“Yeah, nothing like extreme peer pressure from your bestie along with an overly persistent guy to make it happen.”
“This is going to be epic!” Dee gyrated his hips as he danced over to me. “You need to make an appointment for hair and nails ASAP.” His gaze dropped below my waist. “And I’m thinking a bikini wax as well. Don’t wanna be welcoming Mr. Latin Lover to the jungle.”
“You ass!” I cried before smacking his shoulder. My outrage only fueled him on, and two of our other shift partners broke into hysterics when he started twerking in front of me.
“Thanks. I think I need some bleach for my eyes now,” I groaned.
Slinging an arm around my shoulder, Dee gave my cheek a smacking kiss. “I’m proud of you, baby girl. I think this is exactly what you need…and more.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“You gotta have faith,” he mused.
I wagged a finger at him. “So help me God if you start doing a George Michael ass swish in front of me like in the Faith video, I’m going to request a transfer for you.”
He pursed his lips. “Don’t be hatin’ on my mad dancing skills.”
“Let’s get back to work, shall we?” I prompted before grabbing a chart.