Page 31 of The 21-Day Boyfriend
“I don’t doubt that.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“That I can tell you’re someone who likes to make conversation.”
That didn’t come out particularly well. But I think I know what he means.
“And you don’t like talking.”
“I like being concentrated on what I’m doing,” Eric responds.
“You mean at work?” I ask.
“I mean, I sometimes say things in the kitchen – though they’re mainly orders, or…”
“Insults?”
The corner of his mouth lifts slightly. “Something like that.”
“I can’t imagine how stressful it must be.”
“Stressful?”
“Well, you’re there with a thousand orders to make all at the same time. You have to make sure they’re all cooked properly, presented well, that you won’t poison anyone…”
He looks at me again, his gaze lingering for a few seconds.
“It must be stressful. A job which requires responsibility and a lot of concentration.”
He sits in silence, looking back at the road. His hands are gripping the steering wheel tightly, but he’s not as nervous as he was last time. He seems more comfortable now, more relaxed.
“It is.”
“I don’t know how you do it. I know I couldn’t.”
“What makes you think that?”
“Come on. I’m more of a library guy, solitary. Someone who spends all day with his nose in a book without realising that there’s a whole real world around him.”
“A real world?” he asks. He seems almost interested.
“Forget it,” I say, slipping off my glasses to rub at my tired eyes. “It’s boring.”
I let my gaze fall out the window, slipping into silence. I don’t really know why I started talking to him like that. I didn’t want to go into detail, act as if I was interested in his life. I certainly didn’t want him to start asking questions about mine. It seemed polite to chat, that’s all. I should’ve chosen a more neutral topic.
“My grandmother lives out of town,” he says, thankfully changing the subject. “It’ll take about twenty minutes to get there.”
“Okay.”
“I still haven’t thought about how we might get out of this.”
“You’ll think of something.”
“I don’t want to lie to her.”
I sigh. He said it, but here we are, heading for her house.
“It’s just… She was so happy.”
