Big Chicas Don't Cry(35)

“What are you drinking?” he asked just as I was pulling another hefeweizen from one of the buckets.

I showed him the bottle and grabbed an opener from a nearby table. He nodded his approval and grabbed the same.

“The food is in the kitchen,” I said after taking my first drink. “They have a sandwich tray, chips, and pizza. I know Deanna got a cake, too, but she hasn’t brought it out yet.”

“Okay. I’ll probably get something in a little bit. Did you already eat?”

“Yep. The sandwiches are pretty good. I’ll probably go back for seconds later. I need something to absorb all of the alcohol I plan to drink.”

I laughed, but he barely cracked a smile.

All righty, then.

It was time for me to ditch my boss and go find people who would appreciate my self-deprecating sense of humor.

But when I went back inside in search of my friends, Adrian was right behind me. He stayed with me as I chatted with two of Mark’s coworkers from the dealership, offering his unsolicited opinions on foreign-made cars. Then he tagged along when I found a seat on the sofa next to a couple who used to play on the team but were taking a break after just adopting twin toddler girls from China.

“Where’s Greg?” Kyle asked me after giving me a hug.

The mention of his name stopped me cold. Of course Kyle couldn’t have known what had happened since it had barely been a month since our breakup. While I was getting better about talking about Greg, I didn’t feel like going into the gory details at that moment. So I shook my head and scrunched up my face. “It’s a long story. Besides, I want to see the babies!”

Kyle shot a look at his partner, Devon, who offered me a sympathetic smile. They understood perfectly.

“They’re beautiful,” I cooed as Kyle scrolled through photos on his phone of the two girls with chubby cheeks and adorable smiles.

“My mother insists that they look like me when I was a baby,” Devon said, and we all laughed.

Well, almost all of us.

“But they’re adopted, right?” Adrian asked in a confused tone.

“They are. That’s why it’s funny,” I explained.

He nodded, but I still didn’t think he understood.

Jesus Christ, this guy was going to kill me.

Still, something kept me from telling him to go away, and he stuck with me for the rest of the night. And after we’d joined in on the happy birthday singing to Mark, we took our pieces of cake and walked back outside. I held our plates as Adrian opened two more hefeweizens for us and motioned for me to take a seat on Deanna’s back porch swing. Then he sat down next to me.

We ate and drank in silence for a few minutes before I couldn’t take it anymore. “Am I crazy, or does this beer go perfectly with this cake?”

“It’s the cream cheese filling,” he said matter-of-factly.

“For real?”

“Yes, Erica. For real. Wheat beers complement the lighter cheeses.”

“Wow, Mr. Mendes. You continue to impress me with your random knowledge.”

“Guess that will be my go-to party trick then. I’m not good at chitchat, in case you haven’t noticed.”

“Just a little bit,” I said honestly and tried not to grin.

“Erica, I’m sorry if I offended your friend earlier.”

“Who? Devon? Don’t even worry about it. He didn’t punch you in the face, so he obviously didn’t care.”

He nodded and smiled. “That’s good.”

We took more drinks and more bites.

“So, uh, who’s Greg?”

The fork holding a glob of frosting stilled in front of my mouth. I couldn’t think of a reason not to answer, so I put the fork down.

“He’s my ex. We broke up just before Christmas.”

“Who breaks up right before Christmas? Seems to me that’s more like a January first thing to do.”

“January first?”

“Yeah. That way you still have a date for New Year’s Eve.”

“True. Does it count if you sleep with your ex on New Year’s Eve, even though you broke up before Christmas?” It was out before I could stop myself from saying it. I winced, bracing myself for his judgment. Or worse, disappointment.

Instead, he seemed to nod in understanding. “So how long were you together?” he asked.

“Almost two years. I actually thought I was going to marry him. He, on the other hand, didn’t think I was the marrying type, I guess.”

“I almost got married,” he announced.

The admission took me by surprise. “When?”

“A long time ago. She and I dated in college, and I proposed to her the Christmas after our graduation. But then I got the job in Washington, and she didn’t want to move with me. She still lives here. Well, in Los Angeles. You know I’m from here, right?”

I didn’t know, but I still nodded.

“Anyway, it all worked out. We were too young to make that kind of commitment.”

“Have you seen her since you’ve been back?”

“Nope. Her parents and my parents are really good friends, so I get updates all the time about how she’s doing. I don’t even know if she would want to see me. And that’s okay. She made a life for herself after I left. I don’t need to be a part of it if she doesn’t want me to.”