“Birthday-tinis for all of us.” He slid a cocktail glass rimmed with rainbow confetti across the bar with a smile.
My eyes widened. “How did you know it was my birthday?”
His grin brightened. “Dani, of course.”
“Of course.” I glared at her smiling face. “Thank you both, but please do me a favor and keep it to yourselves.” I liked Thanksgiving. No, Ilovedthe holiday, even though it’s been lonely for the past few years, because what’s not to love about eating too much, laughing too much, and spending time with the people you love? But my birthday was always an addedweightto the holiday.
“Your secret is safe with me,” Antonio promised. “But why?”
I took a sip of the drink, enjoying the creamy chocolate goodness with a hint of delicious liquor. “That’s really good,” I told him. “And I don’t like people who don’t know to know because they forget in the holiday rush, and then they feel guilty, and then I have to be the one to soothe them. And then when they do remember, it’s so obviously an afterthought that it makesmefeel worse, and then I still have to rush to reassure them the thoughtless gift wasn’t thoughtless.” Explaining it made me feel childish, so I just took a big swig of my drink and wished I could disappear.
“Well, I remembered,” Dani said and raised her glass. “So happy damn birthday, Sela. Maybe this next year will be filled with love, laughter, and a ridiculous amount of orgasms.”
“I’ll drink to two of those.” I held my glass high in the air before I held it to my lips and finished it off. “Thank you.”
“Anytime.” Antonio smiled and rinsed our glasses before we all left the bar. He and Dani turned right at the door to get to their car while I went left, not wanting to risk driving under the influence. “Hey, Sela, you want a ride?”
“No thanks. I think I’m going to enjoy the night air.” It was crisp outside, but the drink provided enough warmth that only my fingers were cold when I turned onto my block.
It was officially Thanksgiving. My birthday. I was now squarely in my thirties with none of the things I thought I’d have at this milestone birthday. I had friends who cared about me. Ihad a whole town, in fact, who cared. What I didn’t have was a man of my own to love me or children to take care of and teach about the world. “Two things,” I said to myself. “I don’t have two things. Three if you count my career, but there’s still time for that.”
“Time for what?”
“Oh my god!” I jumped about ten feet in the air and spun to face the familiar deep voice. “Brock, what the hell?”
He grinned as if he hadn’t just taken ten years off my life. “Hey, Sela.”
“Hey?” I shoved his chest. “Did you justheyme after sneaking up on me, or were you following me?”
He held up his hands and took a step back, but his masculine scent wafted on the breeze. “I was coming to see if you were home from work.”
“And you thought it was okay to eavesdrop on a private conversation?”
He laughed. “With yourself?”
I nodded. “That’s private.” It was a weak insistence, and I didn’t even know why I was insisting, only that I was.
“Okay, then what do you still have time for?”
I glared at him and turned on my heels, certain he would follow. This wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have with anyone, but Brock was temporary, and I was in mynot giving a damn what anyone thinks of meera. I could do this. I would do it.
“Hey, are you okay?”
I shoved the key in the lock and opened the door, waving him in. “I’m fine.” I slipped off my shoes again and locked the door. “I still have time to figure out what I want to be when I grow up.”
“This seems to be a big concern of yours.” He wasn’t judging me, just stating an observation. He sat in the middle of the sofa, one leg rested over the knee, his gaze steady on my face. “Maketwo lists: skills that you possess and things you’d like to do. See where they intersect.”
“Just that simple?” He sounded incredibly privileged, but I kept that thought to myself.
“Not simple at all, actually. But that’s the first step. The really hard part starts with figuring it out and then working towards making it happen.”
Okay, not so privileged. “Thank you.”
He flashed a small smile that lit up his eyes, and I felt it all the way down to my belly. There was heat in his eyes, but I swore there was something else, something I couldn’t name but terrified me, nonetheless. “Of course.” His voice was soft and low, that deep rumble more comforting than it should’ve been considering we were practically strangers.
A long moment passed between us, hot and electric, but also comfortable. It was strange, feeling so at ease around someone I didn’t know well, wasn’t sure I could trust beyond having a good time. “I’m glad you came,” I said with a heavy sigh.
With a nod, Brock stood. “But you’d rather be alone?”
