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“What?”
“You’re done,” he said as if I had just given up a successful career in the NFL. “Put a ring on it. You’re never coming back from this. There’s no point in fighting it. We should have a toast.”
“To what?”
“The end of your bachelorhood,” he said. “It’s over. It’s the end of an era. I’m going to miss my wingman, but I guess it was bound to happen.”
“I think you might be getting ahead of yourself,” I said, laughing. I walked to the bar to pour myself a drink.
“You know it’s true,” he said.
“Maybe,” I admitted. “I don’t know. I guess we’ll have to see. But I’m not going to say there is nothing there. I fell in love with her once. After getting to know her this past week, I think I know why. My heart already knew, but my head is holding back. I want to take it slow and make sure this is right.”
“Quit having sex with her then,” he said dryly. “You should know sex confuses things.”
“Trust me, it’s not the sex confusing things,” I assured him. “I think I know what I want, but I’ve never wanted it. The first time I fell hard.”
“You keep saying the first time, but from where I’ve been standing the last eight years, it’s been thesametime. You never got over her, so you can’t say it was the first time. Face it, you’re crazy about her. It’s only a matter of time.”
“Maybe,” I said. “I’m not going to say it isn’t happening. It might be. I’m going to Vegas tomorrow.”
“What?”
I couldn’t stop smiling. “She wants me there.”
“Are you sure you’re not projecting?” he asked. “That’s something I picked up from my therapist.”
“Your therapist?”
He waved it off. “It was some stupid thing a long time ago. The court insisted I see a therapist.”
I shook my head. “Why am I not surprised? But I’m not projecting. She asked if I was going, I told her no. I asked her if she wanted me to go and she said yes. She wants me there. I’m going.”
“No kidding,” he said. “Damn. You might be making a lot more progress than I thought you were. You really should start shopping for rings. Are you taking her to the penthouse?”
“Not just her, all of them,” I said.
He curled his lip. “What? Come on. You’re whisking her away to Vegas and crashing with like fifteen people? I think we need to brush up on your game. You’re not doing so well.”
I snorted. “You’ve been to my penthouse. It’s not exactly cramped. I’m not even sure why it’s called a penthouse. It’s like half the damn building.”
“Now you’re just bragging.”
“You know what I mean,” I said. “There will be plenty of space for everyone to fan out. If she wants to be alone with me, we’ll find a way. And, if you think about it, this is a great way for us to spend time together without all the pressure. I got tickets to theCirque du Soleilshow. We’ll do a nice dinner somewhere fancy with the group. We’ll be together but not like a date.”
“Are you afraid to date her?” he asked.
I scoffed. “Why would I be afraid?”
“Because you’re acting afraid. Why are you trying to group date? You’re not in high school.”
“No, but we had a rocky start,” I said. “I can’t explain it, but I feel like she doesn’t actually want to be around me. Not like that anyway. If there is a chance this thing could be real, I want to do it right.”
“Holy shit, you’re serious.”
“Yes, I am,” I said and downed my drink. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to pack and call the personal chef I always use. And the housekeeper. I had initially made sure my room was off limits. Now I need to get it ready. And transportation.”
“Alright, alright,” he said. “I get it. You’re kicking me out. Have fun. Try not to stumble into an Elvis or a chapel or any combination of that. I’d hate for you to end up getting hitched while you’re there. It’s nothing short of a miracle we got you out of there last time before you two ended up hitched.”
