“Fuck you,” he said with a laugh. “Bartender? Another of whatever he’s drinking, and I’ll take a Sprite.”
“Sprite? You finally sober up now that Uncle Sam’s not bossing you around?”
Carter took the stool next to me. “Nothing that exciting. Cindy’s pregnant, so I’m cutting out alcoholandcaffeine in solidarity. Honestly, the caffeine’s the hardest part. I’d kill for a cup of regular coffee.”
“Woah, don’t bury the lede there! You two are finally pregnant? Congrats!”
He smiled sheepishly and allowed me to hug him again. “Thanks, pal. Still doesn’t feel real.”
“When’s she due?”
For a while, I listened to Carter tell me about his life. New job in construction, Craftsman house in the suburbs, two Golden Retrievers. The Carter I knew was dealing with PTSD and anxiety while we were in the Army, so it was really nice to see him doing better.
“What about you, Strickland? You chasing any skirt right now?”
“Nah, just focusing on my studies.”
“I know that look. You’re holding out on me. Come on, who is she?”
“She’s nobody.”
Carter stared at me like an interrogator who had all the time in the world to wait for me to spill the beans.
“I met her on Tinder,” I eventually revealed. “Lila.”
“Lila. She sounds hot.”
“Better than hot. Beautiful. Witty, too. A hell of a lot smarter than me. And she’s got a smile that hits like a hand grenade.”
“How long have you two been shacking up?” he asked.
“That’s the thing. We haven’t.”
“Ohh. Taking it slow. You mustreallylike her. Is she religious or something?”
“Not exactly. We haven’t actually gone out at all.”
Carter blinked in confusion. “I don’t understand.”
“We met on Tinder,” I explained. “Really hit it off. Exchanged a few scandalous photos. And then I walked into my Criminology class this past week and found out she’s my professor.”
“You’re professor?” he asked, deadpan.
I nodded.
Carter was motionless for five long seconds. Then he erupted in laughter.
“Glad you’re finding humor in the situation,” I said dryly.
The bartender gave us our drinks, then asked, “Are you okay?”
“I’m great! Just heard something hilarious about my buddy here. Hey, are you single?”
The bartender glanced at both of us and said, “I could be,” before she walked away.
“You should go out with her,” Carter said. “She seems nice.”
I took a sip of my scotch. “You’re probably right.”
