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“Like I said, he’s a nurse. Well… he is, but right now he’s working for a medical consulting company rather than practicing.”
My sister hummed with understanding. “Mm, he prefers the corporate side of things. Management, maybe.”
I thought about it. “No. I don’t think so. I think he prefers working with patients, especially the elderly. I’m not really sure why he changed jobs.” Which, of course, was a lie. But I’d be damned if I was going to admit out loud that Teo had done it for Chris. “He’s smart and kind. So freaking sweet too. He cares so much about his patients, and he has that same gentle nature that makes for a perfect nurse. You remember Vickie Young who lived around the corner and went to work for hospice? And how we thought that was just perfect because she was seriously the kindest human being on earth? He’s like that.”
There was silence on the phone while I took another sip of my wine. Just when I was getting ready to tell her more about him, she cut in.
“You really like this guy. It sounds serious.”
“Pfft. No. Don’t be ridiculous. You know me. Never again. Or at least not for a very long time.” I took another quick slug of wine. Maybe telling Millie it wasn’t serious was the wrong way to pretend he was my boyfriend. “I mean… never say never, right? But… probably not. Or at least… I’m not in any hurry. And neither is he. We’re just… going to see how it goes.” Good job, Jack. Stellar.
“Well, I for one can’t wait to see him. Bring him on Saturday and we’ll put him through Snyder initiation.”
“Oh. Oh, no. No, no,” I stammered. “He can’t—”
“Jacqueline, I’m not taking no for an answer. Bring him Saturday night or I’m telling Mom you’re in love.”
“But I—”
“Gotta go, Kirk just got his hand caught in the pretzel barrel again.”
The phone call ended before I could tell her that, in no uncertain terms, Teo Parisi was not meeting my family on Saturday night.
“I need you to meet my family Saturday night,” I blurted an hour later when I got him on the phone.
Silence greeted me, and I wondered if the call had accidentally disconnected.
“Did you… is this… Jack, is that you?” Teo asked in mock confusion. “Are you being held against your will somewhere? Blink once for yes and—”
“We’re not on FaceTime. If we were, you would have just seen me not blink. You would have also seen the stark terror in the whites around my eyes.” I threw myself back into the mountain of crisp white bed pillows in my peaceful hotel room. The lights and sounds of Vegas were dimmed by the thick, tinted glass and sheer curtain in front of the windows. “It’s a long story, but I thought it would be good practice at the whole pretend-boyfriend thing.”
“Liar. Your sister roped you into something. Admit it.”
“She’s so bossy,” I whined. “Say you’ll come with me. There will be fancy champagne and my sister’s famous spinach puffs that are basically worth meeting anyone’s mom.”
“Are your parents homophobes?”
“Um no? But they are trivia nerds, and they’ll low-key test you on your trivia knowledge to determine whether or not they’ll want you on their team the next time the family does game night.”
“That doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Babe. You’re… you’re new. All right? So just… if my dad asks you any baseball statistic or like… the name of the man who invented Kevlar or something—”
“It was a woman, actually.”
I barked out a laugh. “Oh my god.”
“Stephanie Kwolek in 1966. She was trying to perfect a lighter fiber for car tires.”
My heart did a little ka-thunk. “Tell me something else. Your big brain is turning me on.”
I could hear Teo shifting in his seat as he chuckled warmly over the line. I missed his sweet face.
“A baby puffin is called a puffling. Isn’t that the cutest thing ever?”
I squeezed my eyes closed. Since when did I get this goofy over a man I barely knew? Maybe since I hadn’t had sex in too long. “You’re the cutest thing ever. And I want to fuck you so badly right now I can hardly see straight.”
“Oh.” Teo swallowed. “Um. That would be nice, actually. When will you be back from Vegas?”
I reached down and palmed my cock. Just the sound of his voice made me hard. “Two days.”
“Can we… I mean, can you… come with me to a thing?”
“What thing?” As if the answer would ever be no to any question he asked that might result in me clapping eyes on him again, much less touching him. “And how is Mr. Banks?”
“He’s doing much better. They put stents in—wait, I think I told you that part already—and he’s back home in his apartment. They’re not sure how his recovery will go because he has chronic issues, but so far so good. I’ve been staying with him to keep an eye on him.”
