Page 122 of How to Kiss a Hawthorne Brother
I swallow the list of things that could still possibly (but probably won’t) go wrong and nod. “For the most part. There’s still a lot to do.”
“What about taking bad selfies? Is that on your to-do list too?”
I drop my phone onto the desktop in front of me, suddenly too tired to be defensive. “Were they really that bad?”
“I mean, maybe depending on who you’re trying to impress.” His eyes narrow. “Whoareyou trying to impress?”
“No one.”
“Liar. Try again.”
I shift in my chair. “It’s nothing. It’s the software I use to communicate with my virtual assistant. There’s a place for a profile picture, and I never put one up.”
He nods his head, his expression inscrutable. “Your virtual assistant, huh?”
I turn to my computer and pull up my email. If I look busy, maybe Lennox will leave me alone.
“You met her, right? She’s the one who helped you with your flat tire?”
“Thanks to you,” I mumble. “Did you put my jack back?”
“Stop changing the subject. What does she look like?”
“Who?”
He rolls his eyes. “Your assistant. Don’t play dumb on purpose.”
I shrug. “She looks like a woman.”
He heaves out an exasperated sigh. “Young? Old?” He pauses. “Beautiful?”
My eyes lift to his, and he grins.
“So she is beautiful.”
“That isn’t what this is about.”
He chuckles. “Right. I’m sure it isn’t.”
“I just want things to feel a little more personal,” I argue, though I don’t sound very convincing. “It was nice of her to come out and help. I haven’t exactly been kind to her so far, and I’m trying to do better. I don’t want to lose her. She’s very good at her job.”
“All very respectable reasons for wanting to update your profile picture. I still don’t believe you.”
I breathe out a sigh. “Please don’t make this something it isn’t.”
“Okay. I won’t. But if you start to date her, I’m going to say I told you so.”
“I’m not going to date her. She has a kid.”
“So youhavethought about it. Also, a kid is not a reason not to date someone.”
“She’s widowed.”
“Also not a disqualifier.”
“Maybe not generally, but for me? I don’t need complicated, Lennox. You know that.”
He studies me. “I hate to break it to you, man. Butlifeis complicated. You avoid complicated, you might as well hang up the idea of dating altogether.”
