Which was because they weren’treallytoo small, but they were too tight for his confidence levels. He wasn’t the kind of person who wore jeans that looked like they’d been sprayed on.
“Try them,” Rita said. “I’ll be in the living room.”
She left the jeans on the bed and ducked out of the room, leaving Nolan alone to contemplate them.
It was already three-thirty. If he left this any longer, he’d be late, and he didn’twantto be late. Finn would probably care a lot more about that than what he was wearing.
On the other hand, maybe Rita was right. She had men hanging off her all the time. Maybe it was okay to just, for once,not be himself, and see where it got him.
Besides, it wasn’t like this was a real date. Even if it went horribly wrong or he hated it, he was never going to see Finn again anyway.
There was no risk here.
So he might as well try something different, right? Since what he was doing nowreallywasn’t working for him.
Decision made, Nolan kicked off the jeans he was wearing and, with only a little difficulty, shimmied into the ones Rita had picked out for him.
In the mirror, he didn’t look anything like himself.
Good. He could be someone else for the afternoon. Someone who went on dates with gorgeous veterinarians with exciting lives and pretty smiles.
Someone who wasn’thim.
“Muchbetter,” Rita said as he walked out of the bedroom, heading for the well-worn sneakers he left by the door. Those, Rita hadn’t objected to. Maybe they were cool enough.
“Yeah?” Nolan asked, still a little unsure. He wasn’t used to dressing to impress anyone.
Some part of himwouldhave liked to impress Finn, though. Finn had been nice. And handsome.
Nice, handsome men didn’t normally want to hang out with Nolan at all. And while he knew that Finn had been nice at least partly because he was getting a donation out of this, he also wanted to believe Finn was justnice. Maybe even niceto him, because he wasn’t completely repulsive all the time.
“Definitely. You’re gonna have him wrapped around your little finger, just you wait,” she said, which was encouraging.
Nolan wasn’t sure it was true, but it was still nice to hear.
“So do I have your permission to go? Because at this rate I’m gonna be late.”
“Go,” Rita said. “Have a great time. Make the most of this.”
“Because it’s never gonna happen again?” Nolan asked wryly.
He would have been mad that everyone was convinced he couldn’t get a date if not for the fact that all available evidence suggested that he really couldn’t. Not that he’d been trying all that hard. Work waswayeasier than romance, and he hadn’t been comfortable being out to the world until after college, and he’d just… never quite found the time.
Which meant now he had no idea what he was doing. The longer he’d put it off, the scarier it seemed.
Maybe Gavin was actually doing him a favor, here. Not on purpose. Nolanknewhe’d done this to embarrass him, but it didn’t have to be that way. This could be a nice afternoon with an attractive man. It could befun.
“Don’t say that.” Rita reached out to brush some fluff off Nolan’s shoulder. “You just need a little confidence boost. Maybe this can be that.”
“Maybe,” Nolan agreed. He wasn’t entirely convinced, but he would have liked to think this was the start of finally putting himself out there. “Wish me luck?”
“You don’t need it,” Rita said. “You’re a catch. Nowgo. You don’t wanna keep your hot vet waiting.”
