“Don’t forget about me.”
“You can be my manager and number one client.”
“Sold.”
“So, what do you want to eat?” he asked from behind his kitchen counter where he was pulling out menus. Seeing the five or six options laid out before him, I tensed up. I hated making decisions, and I felt like that was all I did lately. I didn’t want to have come to his house only to make more. The snippet of relaxation I had felt being in his arms evaporated, and in its place, I was filled with irrational irritation.
“Whatever you want,” I muttered.
“Tell me, Ana.” He didn’t pick up on my irritation and began waving menus around like fans, continuing the banter from moments before. I was being a bitch, but I couldn’t help it.
“I don’t care,” I snapped. His smile faded and he dropped the menus on the counter. “I’m sorry.” I tried to back pedal. “It’s just been a long day. How about sushi?”
He gave me a pitying look to accompany his smile. “Okay. What kind of sushi do you recommend?”
Thankfully he was looking at the menu and didn’t see my eye roll.
After I had picked out both our meals, he flipped through the channels, letting me decide what we would watch. I also picked the wine we would drink with our sushi. God, I was so tired of choosing.
Surprisingly, by the time we were done eating, I had begun feeling calmer. We sat side-by-side on the couch, laughing at reruns of The Office. Another check in Andrew’s column was how much we had in common. We had a similar sense of humor, watched the same shows, enjoyed the same movies. At lunch, we would compete against each other to see who could go the longest talking only in movie or television quotes. One time we only did it with Friends quotes. He was a good, normal guy. Maybe the kind of normal I had talked to Kevin about last week.
I watched Andrew clean up from our dinner and tried to imagine letting things go further between us. Imagined feeling more than a mild tingle when we kissed. I wondered if Kevin’s kisses would still light me on fire.
I blinked, pulling myself back from that train of thought. Kevin and I had quickly progressed back into a friendship—one I cherished and couldn’t fathom ruining because of our physical attraction.
No. I wanted normal. Someone like Andrew.
He sat back down on the couch, this time pulling my feet into his lap. He wrapped his long fingers around my feet, pressing his thumbs into my instep. He continued the process with each foot as we watched more episodes, except I couldn’t help but notice the way his eyes kept landing on me and not the television, like he had something to say. I tried to ignore it, not wanting to ruin the amazing foot rub he was giving me, but it was inevitable when the credits rolled, and he finally let me know what he was thinking.
“I like you, Ana.”
My whole body froze and I made myself turn to look at him. There were commercials on the screen, and there was no doubt he’d said it loud enough for me to hear. I had no choice but to acknowledge his words.
“I like you too,” I confessed, slowly.
“But . . .” He sensed there was more.
Biting my lips, I chose my words carefully, not wanting to hurt his feelings. “But I have a lot going on right now. I just moved here, and I’m just trying to finish out my final year. Any extra attention I have is going to my mom.” And Kevin, my mind added.
“I understand.” He nodded, his brow furrowed while he processed what I’d said.
“Thank you.”
“How about this? How about you hang out with me and let me take you on dates occasionally. We can take it slow with no pressure for more.”
“Andrew, I can’t make any commitments to you.”
“No commitments,” he agreed. “If you want to date other people, then so be it. We don’t have to be exclusive. Let’s just enjoy each other when we can.”
It sounded so simple and hard to resist, and I didn’t want to. I already enjoyed his company. “That sounds good.”
“Good.”
An infomercial popped on the screen, and I took the break in between episodes to learn more about him. “Have you dated a lot?” I thought back to the girl at the bar hanging on Kevin. She seemed overly friendly with him. Not that I minded, just an observation.
“Some. More when I was younger and just starting college.” His hand had stopped rubbing my feet and rested on the bare skin of my calf, under the opening of my jeans. It was nice, nothing more.
Just nice.
“What about you? You date a lot back at Vanderbilt?”
“Not so much. There was one guy, but it ended.” I swallowed back the bad memories and turned the conversation back to him. “So, what are you looking for in a girl?”