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Nothing is my first reaction. I don’t want him to know that because I’m too much of a coward to go against my family’s plans for me, I’ll be in a loveless marriage starting this summer. I don’t want him to get a better understanding of how much money my family really has, because it makes me feel like a spoiled brat when people outside of my circle know.
“Okay, how about I tell you about myself? As I mentioned earlier, I come from a big family and we’re all a little crazy. I’m the second oldest of four. Older sister. Two younger brothers. They’re still in high school. My sister is only a year older than me. My parents must have needed a bit more time to try for more kids after I entered the world.” He chuckles at himself. “My dad cheated on my mom, they got a divorce, Mom got remarried a few months ago to a great guy. We don’t have much of a relationship with my dad anymore.”
“Wow. That’s…”
He grins. “A lot? Maybe I spilled a little too much. I’m an honest guy, though.”
I take a big swallow of my wine and set the glass down. “Okay, here goes. My parents are still together… though I’m not sure why. I mean, I know why but not really. My dad works a lot so I don’t have much of a relationship with him, either. I’m an only child. A few cousins that I’m close with, but no siblings.”
“Did you ever wish you had a sister or brother?”
“Yeah. All the time. My parents are busy so I was alone a lot.”
I don’t like the look of pity that crosses his face so I quickly change the subject.
“I’m graduating from University of Chicago in a few months.”
His expression clears, and I can tell he knows exactly what I’m doing. “Oh, yeah? What degree?”
One I won’t be able to use.“Counseling psychology.”
“Is that to become a therapist?”
“Yeah.” That would be my dream, but I’ll be told otherwise. Actually, I’ll be married not long after I get my diploma and my time spent in college will all be for naught. “What about you?”
“Just graduated with a business degree from University of Tennessee. Right now I’m working for my stepdad’s company.”
“And that is?”
“A furniture company.”
“Nice. You enjoy it?”
“It’s probably not what I want to do forever, but it’s a good place to work for now.”
I drink the last of my wine, and our waitress comes over, asking if we want another. Three glasses might be more than my limit, but I’m having too much fun to say no. We both say yes and she lets us know she’ll be right back with it.
For the next few minutes, we give each other basic information about ourselves. Our favorite food, color, animal, vacation, movies, shows, music… nothing deep but helps me relax. We learn we have a lot in common, which shouldn’t surprise me but it does. Maybe because my entire life I’ve lied about those answers because I had to play the part. But with Cash/Danny, I know I can be myself. When I tell him thatAce Ventura: Pet Detectiveis my favorite movie, he doesn’t make fun of me. He starts quoting lines and doing the best Jim Carrey impression I’ve ever seen. My favorite vacation? One that I just went on. Because I did whatIwanted to do. I wasn’t under a microscope the entire time.
“What were you doing here in New York?”
“Business,” he tells me. “For Stone, that’s my stepdad. I had meetings with a new supplier and then with some prospective buyers. The furniture he builds is primarily custom.” Cash/Dannyreaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone, scrolling a bit then turns it to me. “Like this. He does amazing work.”
I gasp, taking the phone from his hand. Our fingers graze one another’s and when our eyes connect, I know he feels the same thing I do. Clearing my throat, I agree with him. “I’ll say. This is incredible. It’s all custom?”
“Most of it, yeah. He has a line of pieces that are more, standard, I guess you could say, but they’re still more unique than what you’d find in a typical furniture store.”
I hand him the phone back and sit back in my seat, taking a sip out of my new glass of wine the waitress delivered. Cash does the same with his beer. Our eyes, though, never stray from keeping contact. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from him if I wanted to. Which I don’t.
“You’re beautiful, you know that?” His words are bold and I love it.
“I do now.”
His head turns to the side a little. “Don’t tell me no one has told you you’re beautiful before.”
“They’ve said it, but never meant it the way you did just now.”
Beneath the table, his foot brushes against mine. I lean forward and slide my hand across the table. His fingers touch mine, linking our pinkies together.
