“When have you ever held back? Go ahead, butt in.”
“Sometimes you look lonely. I know you have your career, Lise. You’re not struggling for money, but is that enough?”
“Do you really think having a man around would plug up occasional loneliness? In my experience, they bring the complete opposite.” She said. “The last date I went on, the guy didn’t apologize for being forty minutes late, and he spent two hours listing what he wanted in a traditional wife.”
Nina snorted. “Let me guess. A sandwich maker and a slut in the bedroom?”
“Something along those lines. So, if I get a mad moment and think I might want a man around, I just remember that and I come back to reality. The type of man I’d accept is fictional.”
As Nina said, “Ohhh.” Splice’s ears pricked, and he leaned forward on the table. “Tell me about this mythical bucket list man.”
“Have you watched the movie Practical Magic? Sandra Bullock’s character wrote a list of qualities she wanted in a man when she grew up. It was all the things she thought wouldn’t come true because she didn’t want to fall in love. And then, one day, that man turned up. It’s something like that.”
He heard them ordering more shots from the server. Splice waited with his breath bated, wondering what Lisa was gonna say next.
Suddenly, there was nothing else he wanted to hear.
“I told you about my marriage. On paper, Rowley checked most of the boxes. He was kind, generous, a family man, and a good provider.”
“But there was no passion,” interjected Nina. “Kindness is all good and well, but unless you’ve signed up for a lavender marriage, a girl wants her organs tickled.”
“Right,” giggled Lisa.
He felt the familiar burning sensation and didn’t want to hear about her ex-husband or their marriage issues. The righteous jerk clearly didn’t appreciate Lisa while married to her; his loss.
“But it wasn’t like Rowley and I lost the passion somewhere along the marriage; we never had it to begin with. We were two lonely people attempting to make a marriage work. We were essentially roommates. I was a buffer for his family, and he was company for me. It ended amicably. We arrived at the same conclusion together.”
“And that was three years ago?”
“We split four years ago, married for two. I was in Asia again for a year before I came back to Utah. I’m still friendly with him and his new wife; we exchange Christmas cards.”
Nina laughed. “That’s some modern shit. I don’t think I could be friendly with Tomb’s new wife; I’d stab her.”
“That’s because you’re madly in love with Tomb.”
“And you weren’t with Rowley?”
“I felt love for him, but it wasn’t romantic. I convinced myself that I wanted a partner. We’d already had a few dates, and things were going well between us.”
“Damn, babe,” he heard Nina exclaim, “I feel a type of way about that kind of life for you.”
“Don’t feel sorry for me. I am completely good, I promise. I moved here, didn’t I? I have more work than I can deal with, and I met you.”
“Well, yeah, that part was worth it,” his buddy’s old lady laughed. “Now, tell me about this perfect man you have in your mind. Is it based on anyone? A celeb?”
The scotch went down his gullet like hot rocks, and he had to stop himself from coughing by pressing his fingers into his throat when Lisa said, “Someone I knew a long time ago.”
It could be someone she knew before she’d met Splice or after.
Any thought of leaving vanished.
“A boyfriend?”
“Something like that. More like a wild fling.”
His interest was officially piqued. Back then, Lisa would never call them a couple, insisting they were only having a fling. His younger age bothered her, he assumed, even though he always insisted it didn’t mean a thing to him, not when they were so explosive together. Not only sex but also compatibility in every sense.
Splice could pick out Lisa’s voice in a crowd. Even now, all this time later, it was strange to know how attuned he felt to her, like his frequency could always find hers.
