There’s a long pause before he speaks again. “Do you want to know what I think?”
Is he for real? “Here we go. Let me guess what happens next. This is the part where you offer to snake my drain and fix all my problems, right?”
I don’t care if Mike will be mad if I’m rude to his friend. After the day I’ve had, I’m fresh out of tolerance for bros who offer up their bodies like the obvious solution. If Jordan’s going to be one of them, then my brother’s best friend is about to get his ass handed to him.
Every guy I’ve dated since I started college has been convinced he’ll be the one with the magic wand and the ability to solve the calculus problem between my legs. They’re always wrong. But because this is Jordan, andmaybeI’ve always harbored a small, tiny,minusculecrush on him, now I’m also a little bit curious. But mostly insulted. What does he think he knows that I haven’t been able to figure out about my own body with a team of doctors?
He laughs, interrupting my thoughts. “No thanks. Also? Knowing you’ve been hanging out with guys who say things like ‘snake your drain’ only confirms my theory.”
“It wasn’t an invitation,” I grind out.
Apparently, thiscanget more embarrassing. That was a pretty swift rejection, not that I blame him for setting boundaries. I’m the one who asked, and also the one accidentally dragging him into this.
Still, my ego is thankful when he’s quick to clarify, “Nothing against you. I don’t hook up during the season anyway, but even if I did, your brother would kick my ass just for having this conversation. Teammates’ sisters are off-limits. But if the doctors don’t see a reason, I’m just saying, you’re probably overthinking this.”
I bristle at the accusation, even though it’s the same thing multiple medical professionals have told me. The no sex thing on his part is new information. Look at us learning all kinds of new stuff about each other today. Although, I’m not exactly surprised he has a quirk about stuff interfering with his baseball season. From what Mikey’s told me, I already know Jordan, like a lot of other athletes, is superstitious about not shaving and following strict routines. Only now he seems to be admitting a razor isn’t the only thing he hasn’t touched since spring training started. Interesting.
But he’s also not wrong. We shouldn’t go there.
“I get it. Although, the future attorney in me feels compelled to point out Mike isn’t your teammate anymore, so the sisters rule no longer applies. Anyway, we can go straight to the pretending this didn’t happen now.”
My brother has been recruited by the new Virginia Foxhounds team. He’s moving up to the major league, so technically they are no longer teammates. But Jordan is also my brother’s best man, which probably means the bro code is still in effect, and definitely means we’ll be seeing each other at the wedding soon. As if we needed a way to make this whole situation even more uncomfortable. Hopefully we can put this little glitch of a conversation behind us by then.
I can hear the smirk in his voice. “The Keep-Hands-Off-Sisters Policy has no expiration date. But like I said, don’t be embarrassed about the voicemail. It’s not a big deal. We’re cool.”
“I’m trying.” I sigh. “Thanks for not being a jerk about the whole thing.”
“Literally the very least I can do.”
Maybe he has a point. The bar is on the ground if I’m thanking a guy just for not being a jerk. I need to raise my standards.
“Okay, true. But I still appreciate it. And I’m sorry I snapped at you. It was actually nice of you to try to make me feel better,” I reluctantly admit.
“Did it work?”
“Maybe a little.” A tiny smile forms on my face. “Thanks.”
“Sure. Have a good night.”
“Hey, Jordan?” I chew on my bottom lip for a few seconds while a dangerous new idea plants itself in my mind.
“Yeah?”
I don’t know if I should say what I want to ask. I’m sure it crosses several lines, but it’s been hard to get a guy’s perspective on this issue. It’s not like I can ask Mike or our dad for advice here. And every time I try to broach the subject with someone I date, they immediately want to hop into bed with me and prove themselves. I know Jordan won’t do that. He’s already made it abundantly clear he doesn’t want me. While the thought stings my pride a bit, it also makes him a neutral sounding board. This is the first time I’ve been able to talk to a man I trust and know he’s not going to try to get in my pants as soon as I mention it.
Here goes nothing.
“Believe it or not, it did help to hear you say that stuff. Sorry if this is too much. Feel free to say no, but for my own sanity I need to ask you something.”
“Okay…”
I take a deep breath and launch into my proposal.“Do you think you’d be open to talking to me more about things like this sometime? From a completely platonic male friend perspective? Platonic being the key word.” He’s quiet on the other end of the line, so I continue rambling.“I swear I’m not asking you to get horizontal with me. I’m just realizing I really do need to talk about this with someone who’s not related to me. My sisters do what they can, but it’s not the same. Not like it would be with you.”
Somebody needs to take this phone away from me. Seriously.
Eventually, he speaks.“I really should say no to that.”
It doesn’t escape me that he didn’t.
