Page 28 of That Friendzone Feeling
“Goodness.”ItellChase, tugging at the neckline of my dress to check it’s still decent. “Imust have been talking for a solid forty minutes.”
It’sprobably closer to an hour, except for his occasional questions, all of them insightful and thoughtful.Hewas thoroughly engaged and paid attention the whole time.
OnceIgot going,Ifound my stride.Ithelped that he was amused by my attempts to describe all the images, charts, and financial projectionsIcouldn’t show him—so that’s something.
Buteven my best efforts to salvage the situation are probably hopeless.Itwas hard enough to comprehend why someone like him would ever want to do business with ordinary folks like me andWalkerin the first place.Andimpossible now thatI’vemade such a fool of myself.
Onlya total loser shows up with an uncharged laptopand no power cord.Ican’t wait to seeWalker’sface whenItell him.Or, maybeIcan.
“Didyou have any other questions?”Iask. “OrshouldItalk for another twenty minutes describing the curtain swatches and bathroom faucets our designer’s selected?”
“Ha.”Acharmed smile eases acrossChase’sface. “Thewhole thing sounds amazing.Ican’t wait to see the plans and pictures.”Icouldn’t wish for a more attentive audience. “AndIhave a whole bunch of ideas running through my brain.”Heswirls his finger next to his head. “Likehow we could leverage my name recognition in other countries to turnToastedTomatointo a global brand.”
Wow, so he wouldn’t just throw cash at us to get the resort off the ground, he wants to add value and help us grow.
“Thatwould be amazing,Chase.Ifyou’d like to be actively involved, what you bring to the table could be a game changer.”Icheck myself. “Imean, if you decide you do want to join us.”
Heleans forward and rests his elbows on his knees. “Now, tell me aboutyou.What’syourstory?”
“Me?”Iwave dismissively. “I’mthe least interesting part of this whole thing.”
“Idoubt that very much.I’dlike to hear how you got from wherever you’re from to sitting on that chair.”
Hetops up his wine and gestures at my glass with the bottle.Mineis still full, soIput my hand over the top. “I’vebeen chattering too much to drink.”
Mymouth is pretty damn dry after all that talking though, and it might be rude to ask for water.Itake a sip and the smoothest, fruitiest wineIever tasted glides down my throat.
“Lord, that’s good.Areyou sure you wouldn’t prefer to invest in a vineyard?”
“Yourbeer knocks the socks off other beers,” he says.
“Walker’sbeer,”Iremind him. “Ican’t claim any credit for that.”
“Areyou two an item?”
Ifreeze, my glass hovering over the table whereIwas about to put it down.Wherethe hell did that come from?Hecertainly doesn’t beat around the bush, does he?
“Oh,God, no.Absolutelynot.”Ilaugh, but it sounds a bit fake.Anda teensy bit shrieky. “That’shilarious.”Butmaybe that’s a bit disrespectful toWalker. “Imean, he’s great.Obviously.Andgood-looking and everything.”Jesus, nowI’mgoing the other way. “Imean, we’re best friends.Havebeen since the first week of business school.Andthen we started the brewery together.Sono, that would be completely crazy.”
Itwould be.
Itreally would be.
Walkeris amazing, though.
Andhot.
“Sogo on,”Chasesays. “Whereare you from?Howdid you get here?”
Iam my least favorite topic of conversation.Howquickly canIsummarize my life story?
“I’mfrom just outsideSeattle.Didmy undergrad in business economics atUCLA.”
“So, you knowLAwell?”
“Yup.Hatedit.”Shit,Igot too relaxed there for a second.Letdown my guard.That’swhere he lives.Ishouldn’t be denigrating it.
“Ha.”Hesits up. “Ihate it too.Can’tstand the place.It’sone of the reasonsIwant to do more theater soIcan be inNewYorkmore.”
