I stopped in the employee’s bathroom of the Healing Winds Chiropractic and Orthopedic Center to freshen up a bit. I ran my fingers through my hair, setting the locks as I liked and swished some mouthwash from a travel sized bottle. I turned my head side to side, spotting thin lines intersecting my face. Hell, I was probably seeing things that weren’t there. Just wait until I was fifty, then I’d have things to worry about.Although my father looked good for his age so maybe genetics were on my side.
Not wanting to dwell on that thought, I adjusted the collar of my shirt, leaving the top two buttons open. Satisfied, I grabbed my jacket and laptop bag then left the clinic for lunch.
The walk to Marco’s Fresh Market was brisk, the October air getting deep into my lungs. I’d mulled over my thoughts about the previous day all morning and decided to go for it. I wasn’t unaware of the young man that had attempted to start a conversation. He’d been watching me for months. Sometimes I caught him staring and he seemed like he wanted to introduce himself. I was surprised he hadn’t already, and I was unsure why. It occurred to me he might be waiting for me to make the first move. Though I was often busy with work, I needed to put myself out there if I were going to find someone for more than a blowjob. The whole thing was a victim of the wait-and-see-what-happens mentality of my youth.
I breezed into the market and immediately set my sights on him. He was standing near the salad bar with a platter of cheese in his hands, looking bored and miserable. He was cute with blond hair scattered around his face like a halo and he was young, but I was willing to look past age. Heck, I could beimmature at times. Besides, I was digging the whole Troye Sivan impression he had going on.
Taking a deep breath, I made my way toward the salad bar. He noticed me, his cheeks coloring, and he attempted to hand out samples with renewed enthusiasm as if he’d gotten caught daydreaming about me. Yeah, he was crushing on me hard. I remembered what it was like to be infatuated with someone that you stumbled over your words and your own feet.
“You didn’t save any for me?” I asked as I looked at the empty tray.
“Uh, I didn’t expect you…”
“Are you sure about that?”
Wide, blue eyes stared at me, and his lips moved like a fish. They looked incredibly soft, the kind you could kiss for hours. His chest expanded as if he were having trouble breathing.
“It’s just that you watch me every day. You know what I like to have for lunch and were sure to remind me that you are out of sunflower seeds. I can’t help thinking you are expecting me.”
I’d thrown the guy off his axis. His cheeks turned the color of summer strawberries, and his eyeballs were ready to pop out of their sockets. “I… uh… You get to know your regulars?”
“Is that a question or a statement?” I was enjoying unnerving him, but figured I’d startled him enough. I dropped my gaze down to the name tag on his white shirt. “I’m Gabriel,” I said.
His lips moved as if he were whispering my name to himself. He cleared his throat, a shy smile creasing his cheeks. “Jake.”
“I know,” I muttered, doing a once over on him. He was slight of frame, but I was sure I could find a few muscles under that simple uniform.
“Right.” He looked at his name tag. “I’ll just make a fool of myself again today.”
“You left so quickly yesterday I didn’t get a chance to introduce myself,” I said.
“Oh, uh…” He looked around as if he were searching for help. “I meant what I said. I didn’t want to keep you from your lunch.”
“Maybe I wanted to be kept?” He didn’t know what to say to that, just blushed harder. It was adorable. “I know you’ve been watching me. I’ve been waiting for you to make contact.”
He seemed utterly confused. “I…didn’t know.”
Conceding the point, I shifted my weight on my feet. “I can understand that and didn’t exactly make it obvious. I guess I’m unfamiliar with the ins and outs of actual dating. You know, the kind outside the bedroom? Or a dark corner in the alley?”
“Wait. What?” He said, looking awestruck. “What exactly is happening here because I’m totally confused.”
I chuckled. “I’m asking you out, silly. I’m not exactly smooth, I know but would you like to have dinner with me, Jake?”
I didn’t think it was possible for his jaw to open wider without dislodging. Realization set in and he beamed widely, his cheeks plumping as he tried to hide his smile between his teeth. He was a shy one and it was damned adorable. “You’re serious?”
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I don’t know. After yesterday–The argument with your…wife?”
I couldn’t help it. I burst out in laughter, drawing several gazes. “Bev isn’t my wife, she’s my sister.”
“Oh.” Jake’s countenance slowly shifted from befuddlement to realization. The nerves seemed to melt away and he looked me in the eye for a brief moment. “Y-yes. Okay. I’d like to…have dinner with you.”
It was my turn to beam. “Perfect. What time are you off tonight? Assuming tonight works for you.”
“Four. By the time I clock out and get my stuff, make it four-fifteen. Unless I grab some groceries then maybe closer to four-thirty, but not much past four—I don’t plan on grabbing anything today.”
“Breathe.”
