“On paper only, right?”
“Yeah. I mean, the thing is…” I rub the back of my neck. “I think we should find a place to eat.”
Gabby smiles. “Oh shit. You caught feelings.”
Fuck. I take in her expression but she doesn't look hurt or angry. She looks a little shocked like a unicorn just trotted by on West 87th behind me. She pokes me gently in the center of my chest. “Nash Westwood, you broke all your own rules, didn’t you?”
“What? No? I didn’t… mean to,” I confess, and she bursts out laughing.
When Gabby bothers to contain her amusement, which takes much longer than I feel is appropriate, she lifts her hand and starts raising a finger one after the other with each thing she says. “I won’t date seriously until my career is done. I don’t want a woman who is younger than me. My age, or older would be even better. I don’t have any inclination to marry, ever. That might change but it definitely won’t until my next career has started, which will likely be coaching. Oh and my personal favorite, I’m not attracted to blondes because they remind me of my mom.”
Okay, I have to smile now too, but it’s entirely sheepish. “Wow. I sound like a rightful asshole.”
“You kinda did but I wanted dick so I was willing to overlook it,” Gabby replies. “And that’s all I wanted from you so I wasn’t offended.”
“Tenley looks nothing like my mom,” I say.
“She doesn’t,” Gabby agrees but then she smirks. “She kind of looks like Tate though.”
“Shut it!” I bark.
“And she definitely, totally looks like Jordan Garrison,” Gabby announces and my eyes squeeze shut like I’ve just swallowed something bitter.
"If you keep this up, I'm leaving you right here," I warn, fighting a full-body shudder. "I will see you at the airport."
“Okay fine. I’ll stop… even though I’m completely right.” She takes a breath. “I’m starving. Let’s eat. I know a place around the corner that has killer craft cocktails and a decent menu with the best wedge salad I’ve ever eaten in my life.”
“Lead the way.” I follow her as she turns toward Central Park.
Forty-five minutes later she’s on her second jalapeño pineapple margarita and I’m on my third Perrier when the waiter drops two wedge salads in front of us and a plate of crispy tofu between us. Everything looks and smells incredible. Gabby must see it in my eyes as I reach for my fork and knife because she says, “I told you so.”
I cut through the crispiest chunk of iceberg slathered in blue cheese and crumbled bacon, juicy ripe grape tomatoes, and drizzled with balsamic. The flavors explode in my mouth and I make a small moan of appreciation. Gabby plucks a piece of tofu off the plate we’re sharing and dips it in one of the three sauces in tiny bowls that came with it. “Oh this is another winner, try!”
She spears another chunk on her fork, runs it through the sauce, and holds it out for me. I hesitate but then decide to take her fork from her and try it. I nod as I hand her back her fork. "Yeah. Ten out of ten on that."
My brain runs straight to Tenley because she would love this salad. The bacon is real bacon, not that turkey stuff I stock during the season and she complains about relentlessly. I owe her a phone call. She messaged me that Callie had come through her procedure well, but I just gave it a thumbs up because I was called in to see Dr. Marchand right when I received the text. That was a subpar response and I owe it to her to do better. I promise myself I’ll sneak away to the restroom when we get to the airport and call her.
“I mean, it’s not like I’m going to stay married,” I say suddenly, pulling Gabby out of her food haze.
She blinks, swallows down her mouthful of salad, and reaches for her cocktail. “You and Tenley, you mean?”
“Yeah. I can’t stay married,” I reply. “Even if this thing between us continues, we’ll have to divorce.”
She takes a big gulp of her cocktail. “Oh man, it’s an actual thing? Like you two are involved?”
I slice into the salad again. “I mean… a little.”
Gabby puts down her fork and raises a single eyebrow. “Okay so does a little mean we’ve kissed or does a little mean we’ve had sex?”
“The latter.”
“More than once?”
“More than I can count.”
“God men are so stupid.” Gabby shakes her head. “So you like her and want to date her?”
“Yeah.” I take another piece of tofu.