Page 17 of Right Number

“That’ll do it. Got to have both.” Mason’s answer just seemed to be further proof my theory was right.

“So, you going out with this coffee guy again?”

Shit. Why wouldn’t he let it go? “Do you really want me to answer that?”

“I won’t know until you answer it.”

“We are hanging out this weekend.”

“Yeah. Didn’t want you to answer.”

Whoa…what was going on? “What are you doing, Mason?”

“Good question.”

I sighed and looked up from my phone. The sky had started to darken and I noticed the lights on the poles around campus were lit. I’d been sitting there texting with Mason for far longer than I’d realized. My phone buzzed as I stood up. “I should go. Talk to you later?”

“OK,” was all I wrote back before shoving my phone in my coat pocket. As I continued my walk home, I felt confused about everything. The conversation with Mason had taken a weird turn at the end. Was it possible to develop feelings for someone you’d never actually met? We’d spent so much time texting with each other, I felt like I’d really been getting to know him. On the other hand, he lived on the other side of the country and chances were we’d never actually meet, making the whole thing a nonissue.

There was also Liam. He was there in the flesh and someone I had a lot in common with. I knew Liam was interested in me, and he wasn’t going to be playing games about it. I shook my head as I unlocked the door to our apartment.

Thank God it was the weekend.

Chapter 6

You Are Beautiful

“SO, YOU’RE SKIPPING OUT on brunch with us to go hang out with Liam? That sounds serious,” Sarah said as she wiggled her eyebrows at me.

“We’re going early in the day because I need good light for my photography.” The three of us were standing in the kitchen early Sunday morning. Sarah and Bree were still in their pajamas sipping coffee while I waited for Liam to come pick me up for our day together.

“Mm-hmm. Photography. Right. Is that what the kids are calling it these days when you ditch your besties for a deliciously hot guy?” Bree looked at me with a smirk as she leaned against the counter and took a sip of her coffee. “In all seriousness, I’m glad you’re getting back out there. Plus, Liam seems really nice.”

I’d told Sarah and Bree all about my coffee date with Liam, including his feelings for me. What I hadn’t told them about was my text conversation with Mason after the coffee date. I was trying hard not to think about the fact I hadn’t heard from Mason since then. It was the longest we’d gone without talking since the initial wrong number text, which felt…weird.

Of course, even though I tried not to think about it, I just couldn’t seem to push everything completely out of my mind. In reality, I wasn’t being honest with myself about how much not hearing from Mason bothered me. I didn’t want to admit how much I missed talking to him. Making that admission only seemed to add a whole other layer of confusion to what was already becoming a complicated situation. I’d contemplated texting him a million times, but nothing I came up with seemed quite right. Why had our fun and flirty conversations suddenly gotten so serious and difficult? Was it because we’d touched on the subject of relationships…something we’d never have, given our circumstances? Was it even something you could want with someone you’d never really even met? Mason and I were just friends, so why was I even thinking about a relationship? How could I miss him so much? Did he miss talking to me? If so, why hadn’t he texted me? The whole damn thing was way too confusing.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by a soft knock at the door. “That’s Liam,” I said as I started walking out of the kitchen and to the front door. “I’ll see you guys later,” I shouted over my shoulder to Bree and Sarah.

I grabbed my tan wool coat from the back of the sofa and started to put it on as I pulled open the door. “Good morning!” Liam greeted me with a big smile. “Are you all ready to go?” Liam had on a gray hoodie zipped up under his black leather jacket and his brown curls poked out from under his black beanie. He had that casual, cool, I-just-rolled-out-of-bed-looking-like-this vibe down solid, so I took a moment just to appreciate how handsome he looked. “That for today?” Liam said with a slight nod of his head to the pile of photography equipment behind me.

“Yes,” I answered quickly as I finished putting my coat on and pulled my gray beanie down over my head. “I think I have everything here.”

I began to pick up one of the cases, but Liam gently put his hand over mine and took it from me. “Let me get that for you, Anna,” he said softly. I looked down at his hand over mine and tried really hard to feel some kind of spark…connection…anything. Once again, nothing. I needed to stop trying so hard and just let things develop at their own pace.

“Morning, Liam!” Sarah said as she and Bree walked into the living room with their mugs of coffee. I quickly pulled my hand away from Liam’s and shoved it in the pocket of my coat, like we’d just been caught doing something inappropriate. Why did I do that? There was nothing wrong with what we’d been doing. I was just making shit weird.

Liam didn’t seem to notice, and instead smiled as he said good morning to my roommates. Bree, on the other hand, had clearly noticed and briefly gave me a quizzical look. “Have fun today, you crazy kids,” she said, taking a sip of her coffee and giving me another look over the edge of her mug before turning her gaze to Liam as he gathered up all of my equipment.

“Bye!” I said quickly, grabbing the last of my things and hurrying Liam out the door. Shit had gotten weird quickly in there and I didn’t want to give it a chance to get even weirder.

I shut the door to my apartment and we silently walked down the stairs to Liam’s car. After we loaded up my bags of stuff, Liam opened the passenger side door for me, which I thought was very kind. Once he got in the car, he turned to me. “So, where are we going today?” he asked.

I put my seat belt on and turned to face him. “I wanted to see about getting some outdoor shots. I’m looking to have a diverse portfolio. I already have some portraits and some shots from in town. Maybe somewhere out of town?” I instantly felt bad I’d spent so much time thinking about Mason since our last conversation, I hadn’t really given any thought to where I wanted to go with Liam. I needed to stop thinking about Mason, period, and start focusing on Liam.

Liam seemed to be deep in thought for a moment before he responded. “You want to do some nature inspired shots?”

“Yes.” I nodded as I tried to rack my brain for places to go. I didn’t have a car, so I didn’t get outside the city very often and wasn’t sure what I was looking for.

---