Page 79 of Fun Together
“Thank you.” I give his tie a playful tug. “You clean up nice, too. Kind of surprised you own this.”
“Got it for my older brother’s wedding a few years ago. Comes in handy for things like this.”
“How many siblings do you have, again?”
“Two. Emmett is older, and Evie is younger.”
“Do you get along with them?”
“We have the usual good-natured bickering, but I love them. The big reason I moved back was because I really missed my family.”
“I’m sure they’re happy you’re back, too.”
“What about your family? Are you close?”
“I’m close with my grandpa, but no siblings and I don’t see my mom very often.”
He nods and we sway for a few seconds. Maybe it’s the song or that dancing with him makes me feel like sharing, but I find myself wanting to say more. It feels easy to talk to him in way that it never has with anyone else. I think of the conversation Rett and I had where she said I don’t open up to people very easily, and I think about his comment the other night about how it’s worth getting to know me. Maybe I should try to put in a little effort, too.
“It was her birthday yesterday. She just turned forty-three.”
“She’s pretty young. So, she had you . . .”
“When she was seventeen,” I finish.
“Dang,” he says.
I laugh. “Yeah.”
“What about your dad?”
“It was kind of a one-time only thing with them, I think.” We sway a little more and I catch myself momentarily laying my head against his shoulder. I straighten back up, remembering that I’m in a gray-carpeted hotel conference room surrounded by my coworkers, and not somewhere private. “I’ve never met him.”
“I’m sorry.”
“She had a hard time of it. I couldn’t imagine having a kid that young.”
“And did you have hard time of it?”
That is never a question I’ve had to answer, nor allowed myself to think about. I like to think I had a good time of it. I made good grades. I got a scholarship to go to NC State. I did all the right things. I guess it was hard sometimes, but it was just the reality of the situation.
The timer goes off, saving me from having to answer his question. I remove my right hand from his shoulder and unclasp my left hand from his.
“That was a fast ninety seconds,” he says, slightly squeezing where his hand still rests on my hip. “Sure you didn’t cheat?”
I agree, it went by really fast, but it’s probably for the best. “How dare you accuse me of cheating?”
“I think I need another minute just to make sure,” he teases.
“We had an agreement.”
“What if I say please?”I have no doubt he’s gotten away with so many things with that line and that face.
“There are plenty of others here who I’m sure would be glad to dance with you,” I say.It’s almost a challenge.Are there others you want to be dancing with?
“I don’t want to dance with them.”
I look away, feeling heat sweep up my chest. He’s looking at me like he’s the one challenging me now.Are we thinking the same thing?
