Lily- Grace lightly touched his chin, encouraging him to look at her. “What just happened? Tell me.”
“I didn’t want her—” Jesse had made some progress in a short time with Dr. Brooks but he wasn’t ready to bare all his insecurities to Lily-Grace just yet. “We didn’t need her running commentary.”
“Well, she’s gone now.” Lily Grace frowned, then moved off his lap. She kept a death grip on his arm as she moved to the top step. “This might be out of line, but do you want me to say something to her? Like I get the ha-ha kiking that goes on between family, but she clearly knows how to push your buttons and doesn’t seem to care that it actually bothers you.”
“It doesn’t bother me,” Jesse lied. “Come on.” Ignoring his still-present erection, Jesse stood and helped Lily-Grace out of the pool. They toweled off. Jesse would show her to the guest shower so she could rinse off, and then he’d take her home. Maybe he could recommend a good swim instructor down at the rec center. He started to lead the way inside, but Lily-Grace stopped him with a gentle touch to his side. He almost flinched away. Erection or not, he’d completely shut down.
“Hey. It’s a big deal. Wait, that’s not what I meant. I get that it’s a big deal to you. Sometimes you get interrupted. Sometimes people say shitty things.”
And that was Jesse’s problem. Somewhere between nature and nurture everything felt like a big deal. And no one, not even him, seemed to understand why.
* * *
“So that was it? Mid boner, he just called it off?” Jenny took a forkful of chili cheese fries and shoved it in her mouth. Lily-Grace took a big bite of her own as she tried to figure out how to explain how this bizarre weekend had gotten even weirder. Jesse had dropped her off. Instead of moping around until her dad came back from his day-and-night date with Mrs. Lovell, she’d called Jenny. They’d gone to Claim Jumpers to drown their sorrows in cheap beer, bad food, and the best hip-hop and R & B from the nineties.
“I mean I get it. I think he was embarrassed. I just hate that I hate that Icareso much. Ugh, I need to leave town.”
“Why?” Jenny chuckled.
“Because! I’ve spent like five minutes with him and I hate how it’s making me feel. We shopped. We went and got new phones. I somehow slip in the idea of giving him sex lessons. Which he agrees to!”
“What guy wouldn’t? Hell, you wanna give me sex lessons? I could probably use them.”
“’Cause he’s Jesse Pleasant, and I would sex-lessons you any day of the week. Dude. I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“You’re due a life crisis. You’ve had your shit together since we were like nine. I’m glad, for once, you’re the messy one.”
“Have you talked to Vinny yet?”
“Yup. It’s over.”
“What? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You gave Jesse Pleasant sex lessons. My not-relationship is way less interesting.”
“What happened?”
“Nothing. He called me this morning to basically gloat about the auction, and I had like this moment of clarity where I realized how unhappy I was, so I ended it.”
“I’m sorry it went down like that, but you deserve to be with someone who is one hundred percentwithyou. Vinny seemed committed to some high school shit.”
“And so was I. I’m old and tired now, though. I talked to Ned last night for a few minutes and I don’t want to get with Ned, but he’s so nice, and I had this moment where I realized I could have a conversation with a guy who didn’t give me chest pains.”
“Funny, that’s how I felt with Jesse this morning.”
Jenny raised her beer. “How about a little pact? We don’t date again until we’rehappyhappy. Not just mildly amused or distracted. The real thing or nothing, and if we don’t find what we’re looking for, we raise show ponies together and you give me sex lessons.”
“Oh my God. Hell yeah.” Lily-Grace clinked her beer to Jenny’s and took a long swig. A perfect long-term plan.
* * *
A few hours later, as if sensing that she was even thinking about happiness, Dane texted her. She wouldn’t even have noticed if she hadn’t been lying in bed reading Real Housewives commentary on Twitter.
I spoke with Matt Rich today.
He’s getting his feet wet with a new blockchain developer. He might have something for you.
A fresh start when you come back.
