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“You won’t get any pressure from me. We will take things as slowly as you want. I just want to spend time with you and get to know you again.” He pauses and looks at the table. “Now, let’s eat before this gets cold. I’m starving!”
“I’m hungry, too. It all looks so delicious.” My mouth waters as I decide which tapa to try first.
I feel relief at the change in topic. I didn’t expect this evening to be this intense. I just hope that he isn’t expecting more than I am prepared to give at this moment. We haven’t seen each other in a really long time. With so much going on with my uncle and with the new job, I am hesitant to think about dating anyone right now.
Dominic pours our wine while I fill my plate with jamón, garlic shrimp, chorizo, and many foods I don’t recognize. I steal several moments to look at him while he is busy with his food. It’s too soon to feel any sort of attraction to Dominic. We are basically strangers.
As we eat, we talk about some of the things we have done since being apart. Come to find out, Dominic developed and sold a computer application a couple of years ago. He recently moved back to the city when he accepted an IT vice president position at a big company.
“I could probably retire with the profit I made from the sale of the program,” he explains. “However, I’m way too young for that. Anyway, I actually enjoy working, and this new position is fast-paced and challenging. I’ll give it a few years and then decide what to do next.”
“I always knew you’d do something amazing,” I tell him. “I wish I had a big story to tell like that. My life is pretty low-key. I’ve spent the last few years working at a non-profit. The work is important to me, but the pay is not great. Now that I’ve taken on this new job, I can only work at the shelter on the occasional Saturday.”
Thinking about the shelter brings a lump to my throat. Knowing that I can’t spend as much time there anymore is a regret I’m having trouble coming to terms with. When I told Dominic that the pay wasn’t great, that was an understatement. It barely paid above minimum wage, and if not for Jess graciously sharing an apartment with me, I’d have trouble paying rent each month. Even if I hadn’t taken the job at the Anders Group, I’d probably have needed to find some other employment anyway.
“You always had a soft spot for non-profit organizations. I’m glad to see you are doing what you enjoy. That’s way more important than making a lot of money. What type of work are you doing?” he asks.
“Prior to taking my new job, I was the program manager for a women’s and children’s shelter. Unfortunately, I had to resign from that position. However, I still help women a few hours a week by offering job and resume assistance for those seeking employment. I would love to do more, but I need to focus on other things for a while.”
“Nothing wrong with making changes and trying new things,” Dominic says. “What made you decide to take the job with the Anders Group?”
“I just thought it might be time to try something different.” The half-truth sticks in my throat. I hate that I’m not being honest with him. However, Dominic wouldn’t understand my motives for working at the Anders Group. I don’t want to go into any more detail and risk havingto lie further to him. Luckily, Dominic is satisfied with that answer and suggest we leave after paying the bill the server just dropped off.
As we walk out of the restaurant, Dominic turns to me. “I’m not ready to take you home yet. Would you like to go for a short walk?” he asks.
Surprisingly, I’m not ready to go home yet either, so I agree. He reaches for my hand as we start down the sidewalk. I can feel the heat coming off him, and I automatically gravitate closer. I had forgotten how good it feels to be with Dominic. Or with any man, for that matter.
We stop at a park bench and sit down. He puts his arm around me, and I lay my head against his shoulder in a gesture that is both familiar and comfortable. When he turns to me for a kiss, I don’t turn him away. His kiss is sweet and gentle, just like Dominic.
The next morning, I’m still in bed when Jess slowly and quietly opens my door and peeks her face into my room. She gets a big grin on her face when she sees that I am awake. She takes that as her invitation to come in as she throws open the door and bounces onto my bed.
“I’ve been waiting forever for you to wake up, sleepy head!” she sings at me. “When I got home at one, you were already in bed. I’m dying to get the scoop on your big date.”
Grumbling, I pull the covers over my head. “Go away. I’m not ready to get up yet. And anyway, don’t you ever sleep?”
Ignoring my complaints, she pulls the covers back off my face. “Come on. I’m dying here. How was he?” She wiggles her eyebrows and gives me a suggestive look.
I can’t help but laugh at her. “It’s not like that. Dominic is an old friend, nothing more. He was so sweet, and the dinner was incredible. He planned out every minute and even pre-ordered our food and wine. It was the most perfect date I’ve ever been on. It’s just too early to tell if we’re going to be anything more than friends.”
“You never know,” she says. “This is the first date you’ve had in what . . . two years? You just need to give it a chance. Unless he’s ugly? Smelly? Owes millions in gambling debts? You can be honest. What’s wrong with him?”
“He’s handsome, smells really nice, and is probably quite wealthy. But we broke up for a reason. Sometimes, you just can’t go back to where you were. I don’t know, we’ll see. Right now, I’m happy being friends with him.”
“So nothing happened on this date? Nothing at all?”
“Maybe we kissed.”
“I knew it! Ha!”
“But that’s it, nothing more than kissing.”
The look I get from Jess tells me that she doesn’t believe me. “You could have brought him back here, you know. I have earplugs,” she says suggestively.
“Stop,” I say, laughing. “Seriously, we couldn’t make it work the first time around. I’m not sure I want to try again.”
“Hmm, well, I think you just need to get laid so you can make better decisions. No one should go this long without action. You’re probably not thinking clearly.”
Part of me wonders if there might be some truth in what she is saying. Maybe I’m not thinking clearly.
