Page 8 of The Hook Up
“Who said anything about a relationship? I’m talking about a hookup.”
“You mean like a fling?” Ellie noticed her voice sounded more intrigued than scandalized.
“Sure! Just dipping your toe in the water again.”
She smiled and glanced down at her hands. “It’s not my toe that’s out of practice.”
Miriam laughed and sipped her grape juice. “When’s the last time you tried the casual thing?”
“Um, that would be never.”
“Ever?”
“Nope.” Ellie shook her head and tried not to be embarrassed. “Not even before I met Chuck.”
“Seriously?” Miriam gaped at her. “Girl, we’ve gotta get you laid!”
Ellie rolled her eyes, even though the idea shot tiny little sparks of excitement through her veins. “Why do you think I sell vibrators for a living?”
“Good point.” Miriam grinned. “But the toys you use with a partner are a lot more fun.”
“I’ll have to take your word for it.”
Miriam studied her, her expression calculating. “You’re not interested in a relationship?”
“Not really.” Ellie shook her head and tried not to let her smile falter. Not to let her mind wander too far down the path that started with her ex-husband leaving and ended with Ellie swearing she’d never go through that kind of heartache again.
She shrugged and met her sister-in-law’s gaze. “I don’t think I’m ready for a boyfriend. Even that word sounds so stupid. Like I’m in fourth grade expecting someone to pull my pigtails or hand me a note with little checkboxes.”
Miriam laughed. “Don’t knock hair-pulling as a sign of affection.”
“Please don’t feel like you need to elaborate,” Ellie said. “That’s my brother you’re getting kinky with.”
“Who said anything about kink? He spent the whole first trimester holding my hair back while I hurled.”
“Oh.” Not for the first time, Ellie wondered if she spent entirely too much time immersed in the language of sexual aids. “Well, anyway, I’m not after a relationship. Not after what I went through with Chuck.”
“But you’d be game for a fling?”
Ellie glanced down the hall. Even though she heard Jason and Henry singing the Batman theme song at full volume, she still lowered her voice to answer the question. “Maybe a fling.”
Miriam grinned. “So you want me to keep an eye out for a suitable candidate?”
Ellie eyed her sister-in-law with a growing sense of wariness. And a tiny bit of giddiness. But mostly wariness. “Why do I sense you’ve already got someone in mind?”
Miriam’s grin turned to a smirk, and Ellie didn’t have to ask what she was thinking. She had a hunch.
And she had a hunch she’d be seeing him on Tuesday evening.
* * *
“Hey, Ellie.”Ty held the door open as the divine Ms. Sanders wheeled through the side door, pushing a cart teeming with pink plastic crates. All of them had lids, and Ty found himself wondering what was inside.
And what was under her dress. It was white with little green flowers, and the hem fluttered up as a breeze followed her into the narrow corridor.
“Thanks so much.” She brushed a handful of long, blond hair off her forehead and flashed Ty a smile that made his heart give a pleasant little sigh. “If you can leave the door propped open for just a couple minutes, I’ll get everything inside in just a few trips.”
“How about I give you a hand.”
