Acts of Desperation(25)
“If you think I only need to cool off then you’re completely delusional.”
“I’m not delusional.”
“It seems that way. We are finished, and you have my blessing to move on…because I have.” I hesitated on adding those last three words, but I couldn’t help myself.
“You better not be seeing someone else,” he said, and I laughed at his aggressive tone.
“Um, it’s none of your business, is it?” I said. “And, I really don’t understand where you’re coming from. You made your choice when you brought another woman into our home. Now live with it.”
Annoyed, he huffed through the line. “Give me five minutes to explain, it’s not that much to ask.”
“It is actually, and nothing needs to be explained. I had a very clear picture,” I said.
“Seriously? There’s no part of you that still wants to see me?”
“Nope,” I said and hung up. With shaky hands, I went through the settings in my phone and blocked his calls permanently. Hopefully that would send the message loud and clear.
I took an extra-long shower, hoping to wash away some of the conversation with John and to get ready for my date. After my shower, and appropriate grooming, I slipped into my perfectly faded boot cut jeans and a black cashmere sweater then went to the kitchen and poured myself a glass of wine to wash away the rest. It pissed me off that I even allowed John to get under my skin. I anxiously stood, sipping my wine.
At this point some might start to pace, but I’m the type of person that feels nice and calm in a tidy space. So, I drank more wine to silence my brain, turned on the radio, and did what I normally do—clean. I straightened up the counters and started in on the dishwasher when Pink’s “You and Ur Hand” came on. This evening, the lyrics were especially meaningful. I turned it up loud and danced around the kitchen, opening cupboards and drawers as the warm relaxation of my wine set in.
“Screw him,” I said aloud and topped off my glass.
I opened the fridge to put some bananas away that looked to be getting overly ripe and made a mental note to bake some of my famous banana nut bread later in the week. Then, I did some quick rearranging of the shelves. With as organized as Liz was everywhere else in her life, I would never understand how she could haphazardly throw things in the fridge with no rhyme or reason to any of it; it drove me mildly nuts. I put the milk in the door, threw the deli meats in the proper drawer, and moved some oranges into the crisper.
When I shut the fridge, I saw a dark figure out of the corner of my eye, staring at me through one of the panes of glass in the kitchen door. I clutched my chest and screamed. I snatched my phone and shut off the music as I crept toward the door. I recognized his smile immediately and opened the door for Jax.
“Sorry.” He laughed. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I rang the bell and knocked a couple of times, but you didn’t answer. I heard the music from outside so I took a chance and came around back. Glad I did though—I like watching you dance.”
“Do you now? Well, I didn’t know I had an audience. You almost gave me a heart attack.” I patted my chest. “Do we have time for a glass of wine or should we head out?”
“We should probably get going,” he said.
“Ok, just let me just grab my stuff.” I took the last gulp of wine and put my glass in the sink. I locked up the back door and headed into the family room.
“This is a nice house,” he said, following closely behind.
“Thanks. It’s my friends Liz’s place, so I can’t take any credit for the decorating, but I love it.” I slipped into my black velvet blazer and grabbed my purse. “Do you have an apartment in the city?” I asked as we were walking out the front door. It’s worth mentioning that the weather had changed significantly from the day before. One thing about the weather in the Midwest is that it always keeps you on your toes. It could be bitterly cold one day, making you bundle up and the next it could be quite pleasant where you only need a light jacket. Such was the case this evening as we stepped out into the mild night.
“I just bought a brownstone in Mt. Adams, and I hate unpacking. It needs some work too, so it’s a complete disaster.” He opened my car door, and I slid onto the preheated leather seat of his black Audi S4 that smelled pleasantly like him. A few minutes into our drive, he reached over and put his hand on mine. We briefly talked about Sarah and got the details for Monday squared away and short while later, we were pulling into a parking spot.
The restaurant he brought me to is an old pottery house that has been converted into a restaurant, and the diners get to eat dinner inside the old retired kilns. It just happened to be located in the same area of town he’d just moved.
“How close is your place from here?” I asked.
“Just a couple of blocks,” he said with a grin.
I just smiled back. I’m not the kind of girl who’d go back to a guy’s place on the first date, but if he asked me, I was going to have to call upon a higher power to stop me from going.
As our hostess led us to our table, there was a pleasant clinking of silverware and constant low chatter from our fellow patrons. The warm glow of the candles lit throughout the room reflected off the orange clay of the kilns, and the air smelled pleasantly of grilled meats and coffee. She led us deeper into the restaurant into our own private kiln.