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“Hey,” I said as Mona moved her hands to get me going. “It’s Tiffany.”
“Hey, how are you?”
“I’m good.” Not really. Not at all. I was feeling awkward. “I actually was calling to find out if you wanted to have lunch tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow?” he asked. I held my breath waiting for his response. “Yeah, that actually sounds perfect.”
“Oh, great,” I said, surprised.
“It’s funny,” he chuckled. “I was actually getting ready to call you and ask you the same thing.”
“Ha,” I responded with wide eyes.
“So, I’ll meet you at the Frisk? Like twelve thirty?”
“Yes,” I said excitedly. “That sounds great!”
“Awesome,” he said nervously. “It was good hearing your voice, Tiff.”
“You, too,” I said before hanging up the phone.
I looked over at Mona who seemed like she was holding her breath. I smiled and nodded my head, watching her jump from the couch and basically run me over. I laughed as she screamed loudly in excitement. I couldn’t believe I had just asked Jason out on a date. Well, a kind of date. I didn’t know what to call it, but my heart was racing and butterflies were pushing through my entire body. I didn’t know if this was right or wrong, but at that moment, I didn’t really give a damn.
Chapter 7
Jason
I sprung out of bed as soon as the sun came up, completely awake and ready for the day. Knowing I was going to have lunch with Tiffany was both thrilling and terrifying at the same time. I had never been this excited for lunch in my life, and I shook my head at the clothes hanging on the door. I had picked out my outfit the night before like some excited school girl. She was just a girl, but there was something more to it than I could explain. At that moment, I wished I had a friend other than my brother to talk to. I couldn’t tell him I was having lunch with Tiffany, and I no way in hell could I tell my dad, though I was completely unsure of what his reaction would have been. Instead, I had to keep it to myself, and I felt like I was going to burst. I hopped in the shower and let the water calm my nerves, using the aromatherapy body wash my mom had sent home with me because she thought I was too uptight and stressed out. To my surprise, it helped calm me, but only until I was out of the shower and staring at myself in the mirror.
I fixed my hair carefully, putting every single piece in the right place. My face was shaved the day before, so I still had that smooth but not too smooth look. I never liked how I looked right after a shave, like I had taken ten years off my face. I guessed I would enjoy that later in life. I sprayed some cologne on me before pulling on my suit and straightening my favorite silver and burgundy tie. I stopped as I passed the mirror, impressed with how professional I looked. Maybe I should force myself out of bed this early every day. Maybe my mother wouldn’t feel the need to buy me stress therapy products. I grabbed my keys and headed out of the house, grabbing a cab and plopping down in the back seat, slightly out of breath. As we drove along, I could feel the warmth of the holidays approaching and thought about the fact that maybe, just maybe, I wouldn’t have to spend them without seeing Tiffany’s beautiful face. I shook the thought from my mind, realizing I was getting about fifty steps ahead of myself.
When I arrived at the office, I greeted everyone happily before realizing I needed to tone it down a notch, judging from the surprised looks on people’s faces. They were going to start getting suspicious, and the last thing I needed was to have my father come in and start asking me questions, or worse, Jordan. I knew I should probably feel guilty about having this feeling about his ex-wife, but for some reason, I didn’t feel even an ounce of guilt. Maybe it was because he treated her like complete shit, and she deserved so much more. When I sat down at my desk, I realized I had several hours before meeting Tiffany and needed to find something to take up my time. Luckily, there were meetings scheduled all morning, so I happily trotted down to the conference room and listened intently to each person’s presentation. My father looked over at me and furrowed his brow, noticing my happy, awake status. He was used to my normal scowl and twelve cups of coffee. Slowly, I picked up my cup and took a sip, trying to wipe the look of excitement off my face.
When the meeting was over, I finished up my notes and looked down at my watch. It was noon, and time to head over to the restaurant. I had picked one several blocks away to avoid running into Jordan o
r anyone from the office. As I turned into my office, my father poked his head out of his.
“Jason,” he said, making me freeze in place. “Jordan and I are going next door to the deli for lunch. You want to join us?”
“Oh,” I said letting out a deep breath. “Um, not today, Dad. Thanks.”
“You got a hot date?”
“Ha,” I laughed awkwardly. “Maybe.”
I laughed like it was a ridiculous sentiment and heard my father laughing as well. I shook my head as I grabbed my jacket off the chair and headed out to the elevator. As the doors flew open, Jordan stepped off and looked at me suspiciously. I smiled and stepped around him into the elevator. He looked back at me curiously as he made his way to my father’s office. As soon as the elevator doors closed, I leaned back against the wall and let out another deep breath. Why did it feel like I was on some secret mission from hell?
I grabbed a cab and headed over to the restaurant, nervous and excited all at the same time. I still couldn’t believe what had happened yesterday. I sat there with Tiffany’s number on my screen and my finger hovering over the call button when she had called. At first, I thought I’d pressed the button, but when I put the phone to my ear and said hello, her sweet voice came through on the other side. I wasn’t a big signs kind of person, but there had to be something more than just coincidence to that. It had to be some kind of sign, even though the thought of me dating Tiffany seemed strange and taboo. Maybe, just maybe, in some sort of lightning strike of good luck, I somehow managed to get myself in a position where Tiffany and I could be in a relationship with each other. I took a deep breath and shook my head, realizing how crazy I sounded. That was nuts, I needed to keep my head on straight and not go running around with these silly fantasies in my head. We were friends, meeting for lunch, and nothing more.
The other night, sitting next to her in the booth at the club had been amazing on many levels. We laughed, we talked, we reminisced, and I even found us flirting quite a bit. Every time her leg had brushed up against mine, electricity had jolted through my stomach. And my crotch. I hadn’t even realized how one person could want someone as much as I did at that moment and not even realize it until I had gotten home. Sure, at first, it was complete and total animal magnetism, but then my thoughts turned her sexy laugh, her enchanting eyes, and her fragile sensibility that she kept hidden underneath a strong and tough façade. Regardless of whether this was a date, or just two friends having lunch, no one could deny the amount of sexual tension that had built between us in that booth the other night.
I pulled up in front of the restaurant and hopped out, pulling my coat closed and shivering. The weather had taken a turn and the air was almost frigid. I loved New York, but the winters could sometimes be brutal on the senses. Shockingly, it was only October but felt more like December than anything else. I pulled the door open and approached the hostess.
“Hi,” I said smiling. “I’m meeting a woman named Tiffany.”
“Yes,” the hostess smiled. “Right this way.”
I looked up as we moved through the restaurant, spotting Tiffany in the back corner. She was looking down at her hands and seemed nervous. She looked absolutely beautiful in a warm, off-white sweater, jeans, and flats. Her hair was pulled halfway up with curls cascading over her shoulders. Her fair skin was offset by her rosy cheeks, and her eyes glimmered as she looked up and saw me walking toward her. She smiled wide and waved as I approached. I leaned down and kissed her gently on the cheek, lingering longer than I probably should have. I took off my coat and hung it on the chair, thanking the hostess and sitting down.
