It's Better This Way(8)
Following Julia’s advice, her niece had applied with The Heritage for the concierge position. Carrie had apparently made a good enough impression for the condo board to check with Julia as a reference. From what she knew, the decision was going to be made either today or tomorrow, once the board had completed the interviews. Julia felt Carrie had a more than fair chance of getting the job. For everyone’s sake, she hoped so.
After her workout, Julia returned to her condo to shower and change clothes. As he had for the last two weeks, Heath had arrived at the same time as she did. Other than exchanging their usual morning greeting, they basically ignored each other. She plugged in her earbuds and went about her routine as if she had the room to herself.
When Julia first switched her exercising to the mornings, she’d been disappointed not to be able to work out in private, and even briefly considered altering her schedule. She wasn’t sure what changed her mind. Since they rarely spoke other than a brief acknowledgment, it seemed a little silly to change her schedule.
Seeing that she would be eating lunch out, Julia opted for a light breakfast by stopping off at the Busy Bean. The line was short, with only two people in front of her. She was considering ordering the daily drink when she heard someone come to stand behind her.
“Hey,” Heath said, sounding surprised to see her.
“Hello,” she said, smiling over her shoulder. As she looked his way, she noticed her sister walking into The Heritage, and she wasn’t alone. Twice now Amanda had mentioned Frank, the man she was hot for Julia to meet. Julia had refused both times. It seemed her sister had decided that if Julia wouldn’t meet Frank on her own, then she would bring the man to her. Noticing the two of them walking side by side, her face fell. “Oh no.”
She was willing to admit Frank looked decent enough; looks, however, were deceiving, as she had painfully learned in her brief sojourn into the dating world.
“Something wrong?” Heath asked at her whispered protest.
Julia’s shoulders slumped as she turned her gaze away from Amanda, whose intentions were good, though misguided. “My sister is heading to my place and she’s bringing this man she insists is my soul mate, despite the fact I have repeatedly told her I’m not interested.”
Heath looked toward The Heritage. “Hide out here with me,” he suggested. “If she happens to see you sitting alone, she’ll bring him over. But if you’re with me, most likely she’ll leave.”
She wasn’t about to refuse this small gift. “Thanks. I’d appreciate that.”
“Get us a table, and I’ll order the drinks.”
“Perfect.” She opened her purse to get out cash when Heath stopped her. “My treat.”
This was an even better offer. She told him what she wanted and quickly secured one of the few tables available. Within a matter of minutes, Heath handed her the latte and then sat down across from her.
“Does this sort of thing happen often?” he asked.
“You mean my sister and/or friends pushing me to meet a man who will be perfect for me?” she asked in an exaggerated voice, and then answered her own question. “All the time. You?”
“Some. Not so much lately, as my friends have gotten the message I’m not interested. Shortly after the divorce I thought it would be a good idea to move on, give dating a try. That was a mistake.”
Julia understood all too well. “It was a while before I was ready to meet anyone. I was lonely, and thought Why not? All I wanted was someone to share experiences with, someone to laugh with and enjoy life. I’d been married over thirty years, and I wasn’t accustomed to life alone.”
“I hear you. That was my thought, but after a few pretty hairy experiences I was done.”
“I met my share of duds as well,” Julia said, and she had. It didn’t take her long to discover the men who were single were that way for a reason.
Heath relaxed against the back of his chair and tossed out a challenge. “Bet my dating experiences will be worse than yours.”
“Oh yeah?” Julia said with a smile. “First time out was with a guy who was the friend of a friend. Sheryl thought we would be perfect together. Have you noticed how that is what they all say? ‘I know someone perfect for you’?”
“Heard it enough to realize my friends don’t know me near well enough.”
“At any rate, Sheryl said this about Harry, that was his name, claiming we had a lot in common. Like me, he had been recently divorced. We met for dinner and everything was going along fine until after half a bottle of wine, when Harry started talking about his ex-wife and his children. Then, out of the blue, he started to cry. And when I say ‘cry,’ I mean howling sobs and tears. There I sat in the middle of a crowded restaurant, with a man weeping into his napkin so loudly that the waiter asked if there was something he could do to help. I assured him there was and asked if he could call for a cab. I thanked Harry for dinner and left.”
Heath grinned. “My first time out was equally bad. An old college roommate set me up with a woman he knew, convinced we would hit it off. Callie worked in social media and was seriously into her job. Like you, we met for dinner, and she—I am not exaggerating—snapped at least forty selfies, which she posted on Facebook. I don’t think she swallowed more than two bites of her lobster, and yes, she ordered the most expensive item on the menu. Then she asked me to take her photo for Instagram. Not one photo, mind you, several, none of which pleased her. Later she let me know I didn’t make her look as good as I could have. With that, she informed me it would be better if we didn’t see each other again.”