Page 47 of Unrealistic Expectations

“If I hated men, I wouldn’t have written a book encouraging them to be better. I actually think men are harmed as much as anyone else by the way that society treats them.”

“How exactly does society treat them poorly? They have most of the money and the power, and they use it to oppress everyone else, and then they act like they are doing women a favor when they deign to date them.

“They have the audacity to impose arbitrary standards on how women should look, talk, and think. And they never even take a minute to think about whether or not they add anything to the lives of the women they expect to be perfect.”

Jessica didn’t rush to respond when the reporter stopped talking. She looked at the woman for a beat. There was definitely a story there, but she wasn’t here to hear it. “I think that men are confused. I think everyone is very confused about what we’re supposed to be doing in the dating space. And it’s almost impossible to assume good intent from anyone involved because dating apps have gamified the whole process.

“It can certainly feel like you’re just shopping for a partner because the interface and algorithms are virtually the same across social media and dating apps. You have to first think about the incentives of dating app companies—it’s certainly not to help everyone who wants a partner find a partner so they can delete the app.”

The reporter looked incredulous. “You’re blaming the dating apps for how men treat women in the dating space?”

Jessica shook her head and wished that this was a written interview. She could articulate herself better in writing when the person she was conversing with couldn’t attack her. If this woman were a client, this was where she would sit silently for several moments.

“I think blame is unproductive. Accountability and awareness are important. It’s useless to be angry at a corporation in a capitalist society for doing what it does, but it’s important to be aware of what dating apps are doing and temper expectations accordingly.”

The reporter, Logan, sat back and looked at her notes for a moment. It finally gave Jessica a chance to breathe. She took a sip of her water and wished she’d ordered a cocktail.

That wish was compounded when her interrogation resumed. “So, you’re dating Galvin Baker—the architect.” Hearing his name made her heart pick up speed, but the reporter said it like it was an accusation.

“Yes. Galvin is my boyfriend.” She didn’t even feel like she was lying about it this time, but she didn’t elaborate because she wasn’t sure where the reporter was going with this.

“You’re aware of his previous relationship with Kennedy Mower?” The reporter said that like it was a piece of incriminating evidence on a legal procedural show. She felt as though the woman was waiting for her to break down on the stand with some sort of tearful apology for daring to date a man who’d had a messy breakup with an influencer.

“Yes.”

“Would you like to elaborate?”

Jessica decided to play dumb and wait for the reporter to ask the question that she really wanted to ask.

The reporter sighed and asked, “Are any of the allegations that Kennedy made in the video true?”

“Allegations? It’s not like she accused him of doing anything criminal, and this is what I’m talking about. I think that even guys who may have been bad boyfriends can be good boyfriends if they have some additional insight into how others perceive their actions.”

Logan looked pleased to have provoked a response, and that should have stopped Jessica from continuing. It didn’t. “There’s more than one side to the story in most relationships. Galvin is a really good man who had his own reasons for ending that relationship. In my experience, he’s kind, considerate, and fabulous in bed.”

That stunned the reporter into silence. Jessica wished she hadn’t said that last part, not because it wasn’t true, but because it wasn’t really appropriate or within the scope of the article. Jesus. Abby was going to kill her.

“What I meant—”

The reporter held up a hand. “It’s perfectly clear what you meant. Do you think you might be a little biased because of your new relationship?”

“Everyone’s biased about relationships. Everyone has biases about everything. It’s when we try to deny or aren’t aware of our biases that they become a problem. Of course I’m partial to a man that I’m dating, but he’s not on trial for anything.”

“If you’re going to start railing about cancel culture,” the reporter sneered, “you can save your breath.”

Jessica knew that this was part of her job. Abby would be disappointed in her, would probably fire her as a client, and definitely wouldn’t bail her out if she got in a catfight with this woman, defending Galvin’s honor. But still, she considered flipping a table or throwing a drink for a split second longer than anyone who knew her would ever imagine.

Abby would also be disappointed when she walked out of this interview, but Jessica wasn’t going to sit through this. The way this woman spoke to her was completely out of line. The only thing keeping her in her seat was the possibility that this woman would take out her anger on Galvin.

And she might regret defending him in the future. That was a distinct possibility. He could be putting on a whole show for her right now, pretending to be a great boyfriend to lull her into a sense of security before dumping her mercilessly. That could very well be the truth. And she could look very foolish—even more foolish than she would if people realized that her boyfriend of fifteen years had walked out on her.

But she was approaching the point in caring for Galvin that she didn’t care about how it looked. That part of her—the part of her that was sure she knew better than the hundreds of other girls he’d dated—was the one that answered.

“I don’t know what will happen with my relationship, and I’m not going to go into the specifics.” The reporter raised her eyebrows, indicating that Jessica had given her plenty of specifics. “I wrote this book to encourage men to start treating women like they are people and not like a collection of warm, wet holes. That’s really the bare minimum, and that’s what I’m prepared to speak to today.”

“So you’re getting more than the bare minimum personally.”

“Yes. Definitely.”

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