“Oh, call me Karin honey!”
No, thank you.
She beams, tightening her grip on the leash while the dog circles her ankles. “Back from the gym?” she asks, eyes flicking over me.
“Yeah.” I nod once, angling my body toward the front door and sliding my key into the lock.
“So listen,” she continues. “My cousin’s daughter is in town for a few weeks—”
Here we go.
“—She’s lovely,” Mrs. Keller says. “Really sweet. Works in marketing. Or maybe finance. Anyway,verypretty.”
“That’s great,” I say, twisting the key again. “I, uh—”
“She’s single,” she adds quickly. “And I thought you’re such a nice young man.”
The lock finally gives, and I grab the handle. “Thank you, but I’m actually really busy with school and training right now,” I say, keeping my tone polite. “So—”
“Oh, just a coffee,” she says, waving her hand. “It doesn’t have to be anything serious.”
“I don’t really date,” I say, as gently as humanly possible. Because I really don’t. Between school and training, I’m already busy enough as it is. And I never really liked the idea of doing all that cliche date shit. Like going to the cinema, holding hands, or whatever weird things couples do. That’s just not for me.
She laughs. “Oh, honey. Nobody really dates anymore. You just see what happens.”
I smile and step one foot inside my house.
“She’ll be around next week,” Mrs. Keller continues. “I could give her your number?”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I say. “But thank you.”
She tilts her head. “You never know unless you try.”
“Right,” I say, backing further into my house. “Well. I should probably—”
Her dog suddenly lunges forward, tangling the leash around her leg, and she bends down to untangle it, still talking. “—and she loves the beach, and her mom says she’s been wanting to meet someone local—”
I take the opportunity. “Nice seeing you!” I say, already halfway inside.
“Well I’ll—”
I close the door. Fast. For a second, I just stand there with my forehead pressed against it, letting out a long exhale while her dog keeps barking on the other side. The sound slowly fades,which hopefully means Mrs. Keller finally gave up and walked away.
As much as I love this town, it’s absolutely full of women trying to set me up with their daughter, or niece, or best friend’s sister—or whoever. I’m pretty sure half of them just want new gossip material for their salon conversations.
Because if there’s one force stronger than human kind, it’s women in their forties trying to secure you as their future son-in-law. And don’t get me wrong, it’s nice. Getting flirted with, being told I’m a “nice young man”. I know they mean well. It just gets tricky trying to turn people down without sounding like a complete asshole.
I finally push myself off the door, dragging a hand through my hair. I need a shower. And a fake identity.
My Mom’s voice floats in from the kitchen, soft and full of warmth. “Ryan? Is that you, darling?”
“Yeah,” I say, toeing off my shoes at the door. “Just me.”
I drop my gym bag by the stairs and head towards the kitchen, the smell of cinnamon hitting me immediately. Mom’s been on a baking spree lately, so every day when I come home, it smells like something heavenly. Not that I’m complaining. At all.
I take one more step and enter the kitchen. Mom is standing at the stove, stirring something in a bowl.
“How was training, honey?” she asks, turning to face me.
