Page 33 of Marrying Off My Husband

Istared at the ceiling, the shadows morphing into specters of past dating disasters. Each silhouette was a reminder of awkward silences and misunderstood jokes. Sleep eluded me as it usually did before any social obligation.

The prospect of the upcoming date with Eve had me twisted into knots. To say I hated socializing was an understatement.

Louise had dumped a pile of rules on me earlier this afternoon, leaving my head spinning. Flowers, wine, putting her in the car…all common sense things. But common sense went right out the window the moment I tried to relate to someone.

My mind toggled back and forth between deciding that I was a total loser who couldn’t get through a date and reminding myself that I’d managed to code a game that had sold billions of copies.

With a sigh, I rolled over onto my side and stared out my window at the moonlit rolling sea. The turbulent waves matched the turmoil inside me.

I felt bad for Eve. Stuck with me after Louise insisted, and after my wife had explained it to her so oddly. The poor girl had thought we were propositioning her into something perverse.

I chuckled in the darkness as I recalled her reaction. She seemed nice enough. And Louise would parade a long line of women in front of me if I didn’t like Eve.

Maybe I should just stick with her rather than go through awkward first date after awkward first date. Especially when I knew what outcome would be coming in the end.

This wouldn’t be the love connection Louise expected. She was open to finding a relationship. I’d been stung too many times to have any hope.

I didn’t connect with people. Period.

On that rather depressing thought, I drifted off to sleep.

I woke before the sun and dragged myself out of bed to make some progress on my game’s sequel, but I spent most of the morning studying my distorted reflection in the darkened monitor.

My mind spun through everything from past dates to the upcoming one, from heartache to hope as I wondered if I’d already found true happiness in my life or if I was missing out on something big.

I dodged Louise’s well-meaning ambushes for most of the day. Her enthusiasm, while encouraging, built up more dread than anything. Her belief in the magic of dating was a language I didn’t speak.

When the time finally came, I forced myself into my bedroom to put on something nice. I stood in front of the mirror, blowing out a long breath as I practiced saying hello. Yes, I practiced saying hello because for an introvert, even that can be difficult.

“It doesn’t matter,” I muttered to my reflection as I shook my head.

And it didn’t. I’d been down this road before. Nothing good ever came of it. But I had to figure out a way to string it along long enough to find Louise the love she was searching for.

After receiving the seal of approval from a robe-clad Louise, I grabbed the flowers and slid behind the wheel of my custom sports car.

The wind blew my hair around a little as I white-knuckled the wheel, following my GPS to Eve’s address.

Climbing from the car, I cleared my throat a dozen times before I knocked on her door. She pulled it open a second later, startling me.

Louise always was at least fifteen minutes late. In my surprise, I thrust the flowers forward, nearly smacking her in the face.

My lips tugged back in a wince as she stumbled back a step before she plastered a smile on her face. “These are for you.”

“Thanks,” she said. “Come in, I’ll put these in some water.”

I stepped into the small apartment, my mind recalling one of the first places I’d had when I’d quit college to build my game. It may have even been smaller than this.

“Make yourself comfortable,” she called from the kitchen over the sound of running water.

I perched on the edge of the couch, trying to look relaxed but certain I wasn’t pulling it off. She bustled back in and set the flowers on the coffee table. “Thank you. These are really beautiful. Carnations are my favorite.”

“You’re welcome,” I answered.

We stared at each other for a second, both awkwardly smiling.

Ready to tell her we should go, I swallowed hard and leapt from my seat. My sudden movement, couple with her stepforward to sit down, sent us colliding into each other. My forehead smacked off of hers.

She stumbled back a step, pressing a palm to her head. “Oh, gosh, I’m sorry.”

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