What if reality sets in and it’s not as special between us as we thought it was?

“He’s young,” I say, admitting my biggest hang up to Stella. “Only twenty-one.”

“Ooh, perfect! He’s probably full of energy, which translates to amazing sex,” Stella says, making me blush. Making Sarah and Kelsey laugh. “That’s what you need. A good old fashioned fu—”

I lean over the table and rest my hand over Stella’s mouth before she can finish the sentence. “That’s not what I need. I need a man who is patient and kind and doesn’t freak out when we run out of toothpaste.”

They’re all frowning at me with that revelation.

“What in the world are you talking about?” asks Stella.

“One of the last arguments that he who shall not be named and I had was about us running out of toothpaste. He couldn’t believe there wasn’t a replacement tube in the drawer in the bathroom. I said I forgot to buy some, and when did that become my responsibility anyway?” I shrug. “We got into a huge argument. He demanded I move out. Over toothpaste. He’d done this sort of thing before. Insisted I leave and then begged me to come back. Well, that time I actually left and took all of my things with me. And I never went back. No matter how many times he begged.”

They’re all silent for a moment. Including me. I didn’t mean to turn the mood somber, but there were so many things that happened near the end of our relationship that I never revealed, only because I knew they would tell me I was crazy for staying.

“I didn’t know it was that bad,” Sarah says softly.

“Me either,” Stella adds.

Kelsey says, “Same.”

They all look at me with sad puppy dog eyes.

“This is why I don’t want a one-night stand or whatever. I want to hang out with a guy I can be friends with. One who’s not going to pressure me. One who’s genuinely kind and cares about me, and doesn’t get mad over the littlest thing. That’s what I need,” I explain.

“You’ll never know if Jonesie is what you need until you give him a chance,” Stella points out.

“True,” I tell her, my thoughts turning to Isaac. He was sweet. Kind. Not pushy at all—well, a little pushy, but in a good way. In a I’m going after what I want way.

I should take lessons from the guy. And remember Kelsey’s encouraging words too.

“Maybe I will agree to that date,” I admit.

“Maybe you should,” Sarah says.

Yes. Maybe I should.

Thirteen

Isaac

Somehow, someway, I got Amelia Lee to agree to go out with me.

It took some warming up on her part. I know she likes me. The way she kissed me out at her car after the wedding reception more than showed that. She was so responsive. Threw herself right into it. She wrapped her arms around my neck, clinging to me, our mouths fused. I heard her tiny moan when I stroked my tongue against hers, the way she nestled her slender body closer to mine.