Page 54 of Champagne Kisses
“Uh…” I clear my through. “Dude…Uh, your boxers…” I keep my eyes trained on the ceiling for longer than necessary, not trusting Bryan not to trick me into looking at his balls or something. White dudes are crazy like that.
“C’mon, Adam. You can sit down. I’m not gonna make you look at my dick when you really need to talk.” I take a seat next to him and shove my hands in the pockets of my jeans. Bryan and I don’t really do this; if I want to talk about something real, I usually go to my brothers. But with Cory gunning for the role of “World’s Biggest Douchebag”…
“So…I came to talk to you about a girl.” Bryan grabs me in a bro-hug, excited for some unknown reason.
“Adam! Oh shit!Finally.“ He leans over to me, conspiratorially. “Jessi thought you were gonna go the George Clooney route, but I knew it wouldn’t be long before some womanfinally caught your eye.” He leans back and yells in the direction of the bedroom.
“Babe! You owe me one killer back rub! Adam’s got a girlfriend.” Jessi opens the door and leans against the jamb.
“No shit?” Bryan nods and grins. “Damn. There goes Emily’s wedding weekend sex.” Bryan’s smile slides off his face and Jessi laughs before closing the door behind her. Bryan’s still facing the door, frowning.
“Babe! You weren’t really trying to hook up Adam and my little sis, were you?” He’s met with silence. “Babe?!”
If only they both knew, but Emily’s secret is not mine to tell. I clear my throat and Bryan begrudgingly turns around.
“You wouldn’t really have slept with Em, would you?” I do my best impression of appalled.
“Of course not, bro. That’s your little sister. Now can we please get back tomyproblem?“ Bryan relaxes and gives me his full attention.
“Sorry, man. What’s up?” I take a deep breath, unsure of where to begin.
“Well, like I was starting to say, I’m seeing someone. I’ve been seeing her since your engagement party actually.” Bryan perks up.
“My engagement party. Shit, do I know her?”
“Nah, man. She’s the one who made those custom champagne flutes.” Bryan nods and indicates I shouldcontinue my story.
“Anyway, things have been going well. Really well.Scarywell, even. So well that I brought her to Sunday dinner with my family. Bryan claps a hand on my shoulder, so hard I briefly lose my breath.
“That’s major, Adam! So what’s up? Am I gonna be going toyourwedding next? Are you asking me to be your best man?“ He turns around again. “Hey babe!” he yells again. I quickly grab his arm and shush him.
“Cool it, man! No wedding bells for me yet.” Despite my panicked expression, Bryan just smirks.
“You may carry on, but don’t think I didn’t hear the ‘yet’.” I sigh and continue.
“Well, Mom and Dad love Maya. Like Mom already wants her to move in. But Cory said some really shitty things about her. I’m not sure what his deal is. And she walked in on him being a jerk and then we had a huge fight.”
“Oh man. I’m sorry, Adam.” He pats my shoulder again, this time without the bodily injury. “It’s no big deal, though. I know you’re a newbie to the whole dating thing, but real couples fight.” I give him a small smile.
“I know, man. You’re totally right. And I was all set to make up with her. I called her a bunch of times.” Bryan interrupts to make the whipped sound, accompanied by the juvenile hand gesture.What are we, sixteen?“But when she finally came over to make up, another woman was there and she got the wrong idea.” Bryan rakes his hand through his hair.
“Another woman? Dude? What were you thinking?” I clench my fists by my side and use all my willpower not to rat out Emily.
“I was thinking,” I say between clenched teeth, “that my friend needed a shoulder to cry on and it was the right thing to do. Nothing happened. It wasn’t a date or anything like that.”
“Is that how your girl sees it?” Bryan asks, doubt etched into his face. My shoulders slump.
“No. Of course not. She was pissed. She finally called me back the other day and we’ve been texting a little, but….I’m not sure I’m cut out for this.” Bryan shakes his head.
“Cut out for what? Dating?” He chuckles to himself and I feel myself getting defensive.
“Well…Yeah. Hooking up is so much easier than this.” At that, Bryan has the nerve to roll his eyes. This is exactly why I prefer to talk to my brothers.
“Look, Adam,” he says, with a stern tone I’ve never heard from him. “I’m not some dating guru. Jessi and I are getting married just as much because she’s forgiven me for my bonehead moves as because I swept her off her feet. But if what you have together is real, it’s worth these little hiccups.” I’m too stunned by Bryan’s speech to respond and he pats my back.
“Do you love her?” That is the question, isn’t it? Because if Iloveher, then this isn’t over. It can’t be. I shrug, still not ready to admit my feelings for Maya.
“I don’t know.” Bryan sighs.
