“I’ll be there. See you soon. - MatchedAce”
I logged out of the site, then practically launched myself away from the desk to get into the shower. For as long as I could, I ignored the nagging question in the back of my mind, of why I was so damned happy I’d gotten Tori to have dinner with me— and under false pretenses at that. I held no hope she would ever let me near enough to her to sleep with her again, so it wasn’t that. She’d made it clear there wasn’t supposed to be anything between us that was remotely romantic, so it wasn’t that either. However, before I had ruined our first impressions of each other, there had been something. A little spark that hadn’t been there with anybody else, and every time I was around her, it grew bigger.
I wanted that spark and I got it, as soon as Tori turned the corner and the server pointed her to our table. She looked good, in dark jeans and some kind of sheer, silky top— with a tank underneath, God knows I looked for even a hint of a nipple— but she always looked good, so why on earth did the sight of her have my heart thumping a ridiculously fast beat? Standing to greet her, I gave her a completely platonic one-armed hug, then kissed her forehead.
“Thanks for coming.”
She nodded, then took the seat across from mine as the server approached to take our drink orders. “So,” she said, clasping her hands on the table. “That was a good way to greet a date. Casual and friendly without being touchy-feely. Good.”
I lifted an eyebrow at her in confusion, a reaction she met with a smile.
“Maybe I should explain?”
“Please do.”
“Well, the reason I decided to join you tonight is because I heard from Lauren you were a little…” she tilted her head back and forth, as if she were searching her mind.
My forehead creased in a scowl. “A little what?”
“Stiff. Stuffy. Uptight. Now, when she told me that, I thought maybe you were feeling a little unsure about this process, so I didn’t address with you specifically. I just reminded you to loosen up, remember?”
When I nodded, though I was annoyed that Lauren’s whining ass was calling anybody uptight, she continued. “But then, Stacey said the same thing. Now, she did enjoy her time with you, but at the same time, felt there was a little underlying rigidity there. The word boring was tossed around. So, in order to go into your next date with a clean slate, that’s something that needs to be addressed.”
The queen of complaining had called me uptight, and the thrill-seeker had called me boring. I shrugged, not sure how to respond. “I’m being myself.”
“Well, maybe that’s the problem,” she joked. “But no, seriously Avery, what’s going on? In all of the times I’ve been around you, you’ve never come across as stuffy, or cold. If anything, your fire can be a little overwhelming, so I’d like to understand what the difference is between your interactions with me, and those with your dates.”
They aren’t you. Duh.
“I don’t know what to tell you, Tori.”
She smirked as she accepted her drink from the server. “That’s not surprising— for more reasons than one— but I have a solution.”
“I’m listening.”
“Pretend you’re on a date with me, right now.”
I gave a snort of laughter, but Tori’s expression remained serious as she took a sip from her water. “Are you always condescending like this?”
“What?” That definitely wiped the smile off my face. “I’m not trying to be condescending.”
“But you’re not trying to not be condescending either?”
“Huh? I… I— shit.”
Tori covered her mouth as she tried to suppress a laugh. “Just chill, Avery, be yourself. Where was your snappy comeback?”