Page 14 of Hot Shot
Blushing, I shrug and try to change the subject. “Dinner will be ready shortly.”
“Good. But seriously Mads, I’m happy for you. You’re allowed to let yourself be happy. I hope you know that. I do want to meet this young man of yours so be sure to bring him around.”
“Yes, Aunt Judy,” I agree although I have no intention of introducing Hunter to my aunt anytime soon.
The perfect way to scare off a new friend—introduce them to my aunt who has no filter and would probably ask about our sex life. Which obviously doesn’t exist because we’re friends. Now I’m thinking about Hunter and sex. What it would feel like to be in his arms, be under him, or over him. My face heats up and I shake my head, trying to focus on dinner and not Hunter, naked. This feels wrong—I barely know the guy—but also right.Fuck me.
Judy pats my arm, bringing me out of my daydream, and proceeds to move around the kitchen grabbing what she needs to set the table.
Sunday night dinners at her house have been a tradition since I moved here. Not that I don’t end up eating at her house most days of the week, but on Sunday nights, I cook for her.
It’s nice to take time to flex my cooking muscles and make dinner for the person who’s been here for me during everything.
“What’s new with you?” I ask as we sit down at her small kitchen table with our chili and glasses of wine.
“Same old, same old, dear.” She breaks off a piece of bread from the fresh loaf I baked this morning and dunks it in her bowl before taking a bite.
“Have you gone out with Curtis yet?” I ask, picking up my spoon and stirring in the melted cheese that I sprinkled on my chili.
“He’s taking me out to dinner and a movie on Friday night.”
“He finally asked you out?”
“Oh no, dear. I asked him out,” Judy says nonchalantly.
“You did?” Of course she did. Judy’s always been a grab life by the horns type of woman.
Perhaps that’s why she and I have such a great relationship. She’s always encouraged me to go for what I want.
She sets her spoon down, her expression serious all of a sudden. “Yes dear. You know what? I think you should ask your young man out. This is the twenty-first century, a woman can ask a man out. None of this waiting for him to make the first move.” She winks at me.
Throwing back my head, I let out a bark of laughter. “Aunt Judy. I don’t even know if he likes me that way. He’s new to the city too. Maybe he’s only looking for a friend. Plus, after everything . . .” I trail off, not wanting to rehash all the pain and humiliation caused by the last guy I thought liked me.
“Dearie, EJ behaved like a jackass and didn’t deserve you. If you like this new guy, ask him out.”
“I-I don’t know. I’m probably reading too much into this. Like I was with EJ.”
I thought I’d read the signals right with him. That after all these years he wanted to be more than friends. We were both finally single at the same time so I’d leapt but he didn’t catch me.
“No, no, dearie. Not if he’s been texting you nonstop the last couple of weeks. I don’t think you’re misreading the signals.” She pats my hand before going back to her dinner.
She’s got a point. I guess. I mean, we haven’t texted nonstop, but close enough.
Do I want to go out with him? Or do I want to keep him in the safe friendship zone that we’ve established through text? I don’t know.
I think back to what she said earlier about how I deserve to let myself be happy. Have I been keeping myself from being happy? Is that what I’m doing now?
I stare down at my bowl, pushing my chili around with my spoon. The rest of dinner passes mostly in silence as if Judy knows that I need the time to think about what she said.
Later that night when I’m back in my apartment I still can’t stop thinking about what Judy said. Maybe she’s right—maybe I should ask Hunter out. What’s the worst that he could say?No. Which would mean that once again I didn’t read the signs right.
After everything that’s happened this past year—losing not one job but two and having a lifelong friendship ruined—I don’t think I trust my gut anymore.
Besides, I can use all the friends I can get. So I’ll keep Hunter safely in the friend zone until he makes the first move, and even then I don’t know if I’m ready to date.
My phone dings, pulling me from my thoughts, and I grab it off the coffee table hoping it’s Hunter. He said he was having dinner with friends tonight so I didn’t anticipate hearing from him, but maybe they got done early. I shake my head when I see who it is.
EJ:Mads can we talk, please? I hate that things are like this between us.
