Page 44 of Betting on Lizzie

“Oh,” he said. “I’m ashamed to admit it, but I took advantage of the fire bunnies when I was young and dumb and first hired on. Once Maya was old enough to understand, I didn’t bring anyone home I wasn’t serious about. And since I never found that, it’s been mostly one-night stands and secret relationships that didn’t last long.”

She nodded. “That reminds me. The day I drove Maya to the ER, she asked me about boys and stuff.”

“By ‘stuff,’ do you mean sex?” He’d had The Talk with Maya several years ago, but supposed it was normal she’d have more questions. And that her dad was the last person she’d bring them to.

“Not explicitly,” Lizzie said. “More like how to get guys to notice her. I told her putting out is not the way to win over a boy. And that she should never let anyone pressure her into doing something she didn’t want to.”

“Thank you. That’s good advice. I also need to thank you for helping her with some cretin at that party.”

“Oh, sure. No problem. Glad I was there to help.”

“Maya said you took on a kid twice your size.”

She chuckled. “Yeah, well. I’ve taken a few self-defense classes, and he was a punk.”

“Good thing it was you and not me. I’d be rotting in jail for beating the holy hell out of him.”

“Nobody would blame you.”

“Technically, she’s almost an adult, but that doesn’t mean I won’t worry every day she’s away at school.”

“Sounds like she’s pretty worried about you too.”

“Ha. That’s true. She’s not wrong about my lack of life. Next fall, I’ll be an empty nester with no hobbies.”

“That seems easy enough to fix.”

“Yeah. I’m working on the photography thing and playing basketball. I plan to take up golf in the spring. Hopefully, that will satisfy her.”

Lizzie put some dog food in a gallon-sized bowl, and they carried their coffee to the living room and sat. Jasper sniffed at the food and ate a little, then Charlie took his turn and finished off the bowl.

“He seems to be feeling better,” Lizzie said. “Guess I should go to work tonight.”

“We gonna talk about what this means for us?” he asked.

“Honestly, I’m in uncharted territory. The two guys I slept with happened like a hundred years ago. Nowadays, going past three or four dates is rare for me. I don’t know what got into me last night.”

“Do you regret it?” he asked.

She thought for a second. “No.”

“Neither do I.”

“I’m not very good at relationships.” She looked at him, face painted with doubt.

“I haven’t been in one for almost twenty years.”

“We should be great together then,” she said, and they laughed.

“Does that mean you want to try ‘together’?” he asked.

“Seems a little early for that conversation.”

“Early in the relationship, or early in the day?”

“Both,” she said. “I don’t really wake up until after noon.”

“Let’s think about it,” he said diplomatically. “We don’t have to decide right this second.”

---