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The food was good, and we spent the rest of the meal chatting. John was attentive and funny, but I was feeling guilty the whole time I was there. Which led to me yelling at myself in my head for feeling that way, which then made me drink more to shut up my inner monologue.
By the time we’d finished dessert, I was giggling and thinking the night hadn’t been a total write-off. I hadn’t thought about work once and had a great time. My night even included a free meal, since John had just paid our bill, refusing to at least let me pay half.
He smiled at me, flashing his adorable dimple. “I hope whoever has you tied up in knots knows how lucky he is.”
Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I shook my head. “It’s not like that.”
“You don’t have to explain anything to me. I’ve been there.”
John put his arm out and helped me out of my chair. Once I was standing upright, I hooked mine through, leaning into him. “I shouldn’t have had that last glass.”
He winked at me. “Being responsible all the time is boring. If nothing else, I at least hope you enjoyed your food tonight.”
I nodded, walking out with him. “The company was also great. Thank you for a nice night, and for understanding.”
“Can I at least drive you home? I promise I’m not expecting anything. I just want to make sure you make it back safely.”
He really was a nice guy. I’d told him that I’d taken a taxi to the restaurant, and he remembered. “If you’re sure. I’m happy to take a taxi home.”
“I’m sure. Now come on, let’s get you out of the cold.”
We walked to his car that was parked a few blocks away from the restaurant, chatting about his job the whole way. Once we made it to his car, I slid into the passenger seat, taking in the mess surrounding me. I pulled out two T-shirts from underneath me and had to burrow my feet into the pile of empty wrappers and take-out containers littering the floor.
Guess I found his one flaw—he was messy and not afraid of mold. I nudged a fuzzy container to the side, making sure to place my feet on a cleanish pizza box.
“Sorry about the mess. I haven’t had time to clean up.”
I raised my brows at him, giving him my best Paola Lombardo disapproving mom look. He shot me an innocent puppy dog look in return. I bet he got away with a lot, including driving his dates home in a toxic waste dump.
The drive back to my apartment building was short, and I suppressed another relieved sigh when we pulled up in front of the familiar steel door. It used to be a regular brown wooden door, but the new one appeared a few days after I moved in.
I wasn’t complaining, since steel was a whole lot stronger than wood, and I was a woman with no self-defense skills living on my own.
With one hand on the door handle, I turned to John. “Thank you so much for tonight.” The unspoken “I’m sorry it didn’t end the way you envisioned” hung between us.
“I had a great time. And if you ever want to hang out as friends, let me know. I enjoyed talking to you.” Another flash of his dimples, and I nearly asked him to come up for a drink. “And you can never have enough friends.”
I leaned in, placing a soft kiss on his stubbly cheek. “You’re a great guy. And if things were different, I’d drag you up to my apartment right now.”
His laugh boomed through the car. “And I would have done nothing to stop you.”
I made my way inside, wishing the building had an elevator. By the time I put the key in my lock, I was out of breath and putting workouts on my to-do list. But first up was finding a therapist. Because I seriously needed help. Especially after I’d just said good night to a great date so I could return to my dark and empty apartment.
My phone rang as I was closing my front door.
“How was it?” Vlad’s accented voice greeted me. “I’m guessing no happy ending since you’re answering your phone.”
Turning on the kitchen light, I went in search of ice cream. “You need to get a life. It’s ten at night on a Friday and you’re calling your boss.”
“Don’t see anything wrong with that. Besides, Tati wants to know how your date went.”
Tati was Vlad’s wife and a saint. She had to be to put up with him. She came into the restaurant often, and we all loved her to bits. They didn’t have kids and had taken an unhealthy interest in my life. Especially the part where I lacked a partner.
“It was fine.”
I leaned farther into the freezer, pushing aside the frozen peas and pizza until I struck gold in the form of a white pint-sized container that was entirely too small. In my opinion, ice cream containers should come in gallon sizes only.
Vlad scoffed and mumbled something in Russian, and then a familiar feminine voice answered. “Tati said not to be discouraged. But now that you’re dating again, we have the perfect man for you. He’s from a good family. And he has impeccable manners. You’ll love him.”
