“I only have my profile up while I’m fixing this error. I really shouldn’t be talking to any of the guys on here.”
“Why not?”
One of the things I loved most about Mattie was her willingness to go against the norms of everything. She was so much bolder than I was. I was pretty sure I’d always be a rule follower, but I liked having her around so I could live vicariously through her and her wild ways.
“I’m an employee here. I’m sure there are rules about us having a profile on the site. Plus, I’m not dating right now.”
“Yes, you are. You totally brought that guy home from the charity event last month.”
“That wasn’t dating,” I clarified. “That was a one-night thing.”
“Oh, come on. Just say hello to the guy. What could it hurt to say hi? Everyone is heading out to lunch. Robert isn’t even around to see what you’re doing. You are flat out of excuses. Say hi to the guy.”
Mattie reached around me and clicked the accept button on the message. Soon, another message popped up and she went scurrying back to her desk with a huge smile of pride across her face.
“Mattie!”
“You can thank me later when the two of you fall madly in love and you’re married to a millionaire.”
Brandon: Hi, I’m Brandon. It’s nice to meet you.
Delilah: Hi, Brandon. I’m Delilah, my friends call me Del.
As I typed my reply, I looked at his profile to see who this guy was and if he was anyone I might be interested in. Even though I wasn’t really dating, there was always this little voice inside my head that said there was another right guy out in the world for me. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever find someone I could love as much as my late h
usband, but I still had a little hope that someday I would cross paths with a man of equal standing.
“What’s he saying?” Mattie asked as she leaned in from across the cubicle. “Is he nice? Are you going to go out with him? I bet he’s really rich. Ask him how much money he has. Wait, no. Don’t ask that.”
“He just said hello, and I said hello. Now go to lunch; I’m only going to talk to him for a second before I’m getting back to working on this project. I need to get this error fixed before the end of the day.”
Mattie laughed as she grabbed her purse and headed out. We normally ate together for lunch, but she knew how I was when I had a lot of work. I wasn’t on a regular break and lunch schedule like she was, so I could always leave early if I skipped my lunch. Mattie worked in customer service and had to be at her desk at specific times.
Brandon: That’s one hell of a profile picture.
Delilah: Well, it got your attention, didn’t it?
Brandon: Definitely. I was a little disappointed you didn’t have a cat sweater photo, too. I bet you look amazing in cat sweaters.
Delilah: That was a little joke my friend and I put on my profile. I don’t actually own a cat or a cat sweater.
Brandon: What! False advertising. I can’t talk to you if you don’t actually own a cat sweater. Man, that was a huge selling point.
I paused our conversation for a minute while I looked through his profile a little closer. If I could have designed my ideal man, physically at least, it would have been Brandon. He was six-two with medium-brown hair cut in a trendy, short style. His light-green eyes popped out from every picture on his profile, and I was pretty sure the guy was incapable of taking a bad picture. Even the one of him crossing the finish line at the Boston Marathon had him looking epically handsome.
Brandon: Did I lose you?
Delilah: Sorry, I’m still here. I’m actually at work right now so I probably should get back to working…lol.
Brandon: Then we should meet for a drink sometime?
I froze as I stared at my computer screen. Did I want to go on a date with this guy? He was handsome and seemed pretty normal, but I wasn’t sure my head was in the right place for dating. Suddenly the whole interaction got real and I freaked out. No, I wasn’t ready to go on a real date. I couldn’t handle that.
Quickly, I closed out of the window and went back to work without replying to him. I clicked my profile back to hidden so no one could message me or see my profile. I was just going to have to fix my error without the active profile on there. I certainly couldn’t risk him messaging me and me having to explain why I had just disappeared.
My hands shook as I tried to type the code fixes into the computer. With adrenaline rushing through my body, I had to stop and sip some water while I cleared my head a little.
I pulled a family photo out of my wallet and tears started to pour down my face while I looked at how happy Spencer and I were when Connor was born. There really hadn’t been any happier moment in my entire life than when they placed my son in my arms with Spencer right there by my side.