Page 102 of The Rules of Dating a Younger Man

“I need to take it one day at a time. I got the email about the project resuming right after I’d told her I would go away with her.” I sighed. “The timing of that was kind of strange.”

“Definitely,” he agreed.

“Was that fate? I don’t know. I have some thinking to do—though not about Alex. Because nothing has changed there. More about how long I can string Lacey along before she kicks me to the damn curb. I also don’t want her to get hurt.”

“Who would’ve thought you’d become so damn conscientious?” He patted me on the shoulder. “I’m proud of you. You could’ve taken advantage of the situation—used Lacey for gratuitous sex and Alex would’ve never known.”

“It needs to feel right, you know? It hasn’t yet.”

“My boy is growing up.”

I shook my head. “’Bout time at thirty-one.”

***

The following evening, Lacey and I were headed to dinner in the West Village after meeting for coffee first. We walked hand in hand down the street. She’d picked a restaurant I’d never heard of, so I was unsure where we were heading both literally and figuratively now.

I really liked her as a person, and under different circumstances, I’d bet we would’ve stood a real shot. But more times than I could count tonight, my mind had returned to the look on Alex’s face when I’d told her I was seeing someone. And that had me distracted, unable to give Lacey my all.

“I’m sorry again about missing the Hamptons trip,” I said as we strolled.

“No biggie. Your work upstate is important.”

“Thanks for understanding. We’re getting to the end of the project, and it’s gonna be nice to finally see it finished. What’s the point of all that work if we can’t complete it, right? I’m really grateful, but I still can’t believe they reinstated our permit.”

I’d told Lacey before that the woman I’d been involved with also volunteered in Seneca Falls, so I was expecting her to ask whether I’d seen Alex this past weekend. But she never did, and I certainly wasn’t going to offer that information.

“Tell me more about your trip,” I finally said, happy to change the subject.

“Have you ever played pickleball?” she asked.

“I haven’t, but it seems to be all the rage lately.”

“I played a couple of times while I was there,” she said. “It was so much fun, like a cross between tennis and ping-pong.”

“I feel like I’m hearing about it left and right. I might need to try it.”

“That’s definitely a sign you should try it. It’s actually been around since the sixties. But it’s only gotten popular recently. Don’t laugh, but I think I’m gonna join a pickleball club here in the City.”

“Why would I laugh at that? Because it’s the modern-day version of a bowling league?” I knocked into her playfully.

“That’s exactly what it is.” She giggled. “And I’m not even ashamed.”

“You shouldn’t be. Anything to blow off steam.”

“I’m not doing much else to blow off steam lately.” She winked.

Ugh. There it was. The elephant in the room. The fact that I hadn’t initiated sex yet, while she’d made it clear more than once that she was down to have some fun with me. She wasn’t even asking for a commitment. Was I crazy not to jump at the chance?

I pretended I didn’t get her innuendo and pushed forward. “So, besides pickleball, what else did you do?”

Lacey told me more about her trip until we finally got to the restaurant, an Asian-fusion place that had been recommended to her by a co-worker. The food was perfect. The ambience was perfect. Everything was perfect except for the fact that I still didn’t know how to approach the evening once we left this place.

I had officially reached the shit-or-get-off-the-pot portion of this courtship. It wasn’t fair to keep playing dumb when Lacey had been nothing but clear with me this entire time. So as we exited the restaurant, I decided to make the first move for once. “We’re closer to your place than mine,” I blurted.

“I was thinking that myself.” She batted her lashes. “Are you saying you’d like this night to continue?”

“Well, it’s too late for you to teach me how to play pickleball, but I’m sure we can find something else to do.”

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