I placed my phone on the bench, standing to put away my jump ropes. A few minutes later, my phone dinged.
Coupon Girl: Not a clue. Creepy.
Preston: Shame. I was hoping you wanted to see me again.
Coupon Girl: You know where to find me.
Preston: Aisle 7?
Coupon Girl: Maybe. What are you doing texting a random number in your phone?
Preston: I was hoping it was this gorgeous woman I met two weeks ago.
Coupon Girl: Gorgeous huh? I’m kind of jealous.
I caught myself smiling like a fucking teenager. There was something about this woman.
Preston: You know I’m talking about you.
Coupon Girl: Smooth.
The urge to hear her voice rushed over me, so without hesitation, I clicked the call button. It rang three times before she finally picked up.
“Hello.”
“Hey, gorgeous.”
She laughed. “I bet you call all the girls you meet in the grocery store that.”
I leaned back against the squat machine as a football game played silently on the TV mounted on the wall across the room. “What are you up to on a Sunday evening?” I asked, ignoring her statement.
“Well, I put away my groceries.” I could hear some rustling. “Meal prepped for the week.”
“What’s your favorite food?” I crossed my ankles.
I haven’t talked on the phone since I was probably sixteen years old, and truthfully, I’d never met a woman I wanted to have on the phone for hours.
“Pizza. What’s yours?”
“Watermelon,” I answered.
“Watermelon?” She snorted. “I wasn’t expecting that.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know…” she trailed off. “You just seem more…like a meat kind of guy.”
“I enjoy a good piece of meat.”
She went quiet, a slight hitch of her breath sounding in my ear.
With my schedule and the fact I had a hard time with women wanting me for just my money and status,datingwasn’t really something I partook in. Ihadwomen, but a relationship wasn’t a priority.Football was.And I was very clear on that when thetime called for it.But here I was, spitting out words before my mind could remind me that I didn’t do this.
“Go out with me.”
It was silent for a beat before she spoke. “Is that a question?”
“However you want to take it,” I rasped.
