“How so?”
“You don’t think it’s a total coincidence the hot guy you ran into yesterday is the one who showed up to take us on a boat tour?”
I move around her and over to the wardrobe. “I think he was doing what his boss told him to do.”
Leah spins around to face me. “He has eyes for you, and can we please talk about how freaking hot he is? I mean, he’s a total McConaughey. Like, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days McConaughey. Not Dallas Buyers Club. That was not his finest hour.”
I take a T-shirt out and slam the closet door. “He was playing an AIDS patient, Leah. I don’t think he was going for buff and brawny.”
She follows me into the bathroom where I go to change out of my damp tank top. “Speaking of Brawny, did our boy today have the ‘Strength to get things done’?” She uses air quotes when referencing the paper towel slogan.
Where do I begin when it comes to my day with Asher? It started off all right. I mean, I didn’t want to be there and I didn’t want to sit next to him and I didn’t want to talk. Okay, so I was a complete bitch.
But then it was all right. He made me feel comfortable and he was easy to talk to. There was that moment when he said he wanted to get to know me, and my entire world stopped for just a second, until I flaked on him. For the life of me, I cannot imagine why he wanted to keep the tour going. Not that he was any good as a tour guide. Actually, he sucked.
Something changed in me today. My fear of speed for one. Six months ago I thought I’d never get into a moving vehicle again. I overcame that fear out of necessity, only allowing the driver to go a safe speed, dictated by me. Today? I was racing across the ocean with no protection other than Asher’s steel grasp. I shouldn’t be surprised. My fear is new and I was probably going to let it go sooner or later. I’m sure it’s no big deal.
What is a big deal was how Asher treated me when we returned. He was dismissive and cold. It was as if he hadn’t had his arm wrapped around me. Nice to know I made as big an impression on him as he did on me.
Not.
“It was boring. We drove in circles for a few hours and he didn’t speak to me at all.”
Leah follows me into the bedroom. Her hands fall to her hips as she chews on her lip. She looks like she’s been deflated. “Oh, well, that sucks. I’m sorry you had to spend the day like that.”
I let my hair out of my ponytail and shake out the tightness of it. I’m wrapping it back up in a messy bun when I see that look in Leah’s eyes.
“It’s fine. I’m not gonna get all sad because I had a crap tour,” I say taking a seat on the bed. She looks up at me, trying to decide if I’m lying. “Besides, it was pretty nice to be able to look at a hot guy for a few hours.” I throw in a smile for good measure.
Leah relaxes and nods her head. “He was totally hot. Did he take off the sunglasses? What color are his eyes?”
“They’re like a warm honey.” I clamp my mouth shut as soon as the words come.
Leah’s face lights up in a magnanimous smile. She is just about to squeal something but is interrupted by the chime of her iPad.
We both look down at the device, which is perched on the end table next to us. Our mom’s face lights up the screen and the word PAM flashes at the top. Leah enjoys referring to Mom by her first name.
I make a face at the thought of having to talk to her, but Leah lifts the iPad and swipes on the screen anyway. “Hi, Pam!”
“Hello, sweetie. How are my girls doing?” Mom’s voice echoes from the speaker. She and Leah are on FaceTime but Leah has the screen faced in her direction.