Page 23 of The Man Next Door
Izzie was over the moon, a bounce in her step as we headed back to her place. “So do you have a girlfriend, Gavin?” she asked.
He laughed. “I do not,” he told her. “Not at the moment anyway.”
She cocked a brow. “Well, I’m sure we could fix that.”
He shook his head, but he was laughing. Clearly, he was highly amused by Izzie.
When we finally stepped onto Izzie’s porch, Abe and I followed her inside, but Gavin stayed back.
“You’re not coming in?” Izzie asked, devastated.
“Nope. And I want you girls to stay inside,” he scolded in a fatherly tone. “And get that poor kid in bed.”
Izzie slammed the door behind us. “Asshole.”
“That’s a bad word,” Abe whispered.
I patted his head. “I know… I know. Your sister is mad. Now let’s go to bed.”
He took my hand as we headed to his room. “Did you know that Spiderman’s real name is Peter Parker, like my uncle Pete.”
As soon as we got into his tiny bedroom, he stripped his clothes. He was wearing Spiderman undies of course. I tucked him into his bed. “I doubt that your uncle can weave webs and save people though.”
“No, he can’t. He’s kind of a jerk.”
I laughed. Yes, Izzie’s uncle was a notorious jerk. “Okay, goodnight. Sleep tight, Abe.”
He blew me a kiss as I turned off his light. I blew one back.
* * *
The first weekis a total bore; lots of filing, taking phone calls, and administrative work.
I’m sitting at my desk, in my very tiny office, fiddling with my pen and staring at the sad face of a child on a poster. “Yep, this is why I got my Masters in Social Work,” I whisper to myself. I’ve done my filing for the day and organized my desk. All there is left to do is daydream, reminisce, and obsess about Noah.
We had such a great night, I was sure I’d see him again soon. I was going to play coy, the whole cat and mouse game and all that. I had no interest in doing the chasing. So I waited and waited. And nothing. I’d step out of my apartment much more often than usual, hoping to run into him accidentally. Accidentally on purpose.
I reach for my cup of coffee. It’s gone cold.I wonder if he’s hiding from me.I thought he liked me. I know I said it was just a friendly dinner and all, but can’t the man read between the lines. Perhaps he’s just not that clever. Or maybe he just thinks I’m too old for him. Yet everyone always says I look young. I have a dimple, for God’s sake. Maybe I didn’t smile enough during our dinner. Maybe he didn’t see the dimple.
I hate this. I hate that I’m obsessing over some young guy who’s probably in the middle of a threesome right this minute. That’s how those young people are these days, Tinder and all that. It’s all about sex, and it’s so easy to get.
“What’s up?” Melanie asks. “You look angry. Did something happen I should know about?”
I sit up straighter. “No, no. It’s just something personal. Daniel…”
She nods knowingly. “Ex-husbands, believe me… I get it. They are the worst.”
Sometimes I wonder if Melanie hired me just because she felt bad for me, being divorced and all. Perhaps she could relate. It seems all we talk about is our exes. She doesn’t really know that I have basically no contact at all with Daniel, unlike her who has to see her ex every week because of the kids. Thank God, Daniel and I never had kids.
I wonder if he’s planning to have kids with Ella.
Melanie settles into the chair across my desk, holding a red folder full of papers. “Don’t be so down about it,” she says. “I’ve got good news for you.”
I shift in my seat, curious. “Yes?”
“I finally have a case for you. I know you’ve been bored this past week, but I really wanted you to settle in before I threw a case at you. These cases are not always easy.”
I nod quietly. “Yes… I know.”
