“She beautiful?”
“Yeah.” I know my brothers don’t seem to think so, but who cares? They have shit for taste. “She’s got that whole girl-next-door thing going on.”
“Nice.” Jim nods approvingly. “My Sharon’s like that. There’s nothin’ better.”
I can’t agree more. I’ve had my share of women in my life. They’ve all been more like Anthony’s Vicky. None of them made me feel anything close to the way Matilda makes me feel. “She makes me feel… heard.”
I said that out loud. God, when did I turn intothatguy?
“When it comes down to it, that’s the kind of shit that matters. If you can talk to each other and laugh together, if you’re friends first, that makes the best kind of marriage.”
“I hadn’t thought of it that way.”
“Fly her down. Show her what a big shot you are down here.” He chuckles. “Show her your life, where you work, live.”
“My apartment is a dump.”
“So, spruce it up. If you want, I can ask Sharon to lend you a hand in that area. She loves those home decorating shows, and I’d appreciate turning her constant need to change our house onto yours.” He laughs again. “In all seriousness, she’s got a knack for it, and she’s able to do it on the cheap.” He arches his brow. “Most of the time.”
“If I do this, I may take you up on that.”
“Good.”
After breakfast, I head back to my dumpy apartment. I’m worn out, but I need to address that last text message.
Do I want her to visit? I look around my apartment. Maybe if Jim’s wife could help me out, I wouldn’t be embarrassed to have her here. I do have two bedrooms. The second one is filled with all my equipment, but that could be turned into a bedroom easily enough.
What about the timing? She probably can’t come down for a while. Because of that, she wouldn’t get to meet Ben. They’re flying him out in a couple of days. After that, I’m helping Becky pack up their place—putting most of their shit into storage and shipping the rest to Maryland. She and the kids will leave a week from Monday.
The thought of them going makes my chest hurt. It’s the end of an important part of my life; I can’t say it’s a welcome change. I was ready for change; I just didn’t want it to happen this way.
Sorry it took me so long to respond. We had a situation here on-post. Everyone’s fine.
I press enter, then start a new text.
When do you want to visit?
ChapterTwenty-Seven
Matilda
As I stareat my phone, my mouth agape, my father asks, “Bad news?”
“Depends.”
“On?”
“How you feel about your daughter making a fool of herself.”
“You’re gonna have to be more specific, Muffin.”
“Hardy har har, Dad,” I retort. “I did something I was sure wouldn’t work, but it did. Now I’m going to have to decide if I want to follow through or chicken out.”
“Wow, that’s a lot to unpack. As I said, I need more information.”
With a dramatic sigh, I give him a very minimal, basic account of my text to Alec telling him how I’ve always wanted to see Texas.
“You never mentioned your desire to see the friendship state before.”
