“I’m not sure,” I say, my face already warming as I remove my apron, hoping it helps.
“What do you mean you’re not sure? He asked you for coffee, right? Or a beer?” Her arms are flying as she talks, and all I can do is nod.
“He asked for your number. He asked you to go out for a drink. He asked you out.”
My eyebrows lift on their own.
“He asked me out,” I repeat, still trying to process it.
Tess looks thrilled.
I feel like my brain is running in circles.
Did this really happen? Or did he just feel bad for me?
“He probably did it because he feels bad I fell or something,” I say as Tess hands me a coffee.
“Or,” Tess says firmly, pouring herself one, “he asked you out because you’re an amazing woman. Funny, loyal, kindhearted, you deserve the moon.”
“He’s a famous athlete,” I say quietly. “He can get anyone he wants.”
“He could,” Tess replies. “But he didn’t. He asked for your number. Accept it.”
“Accept what?”
Leo suddenly appears behind us, walking in through the back door.
“Oh God,” I sigh.
“Zane asked Gwen out on a date!” Tess announces excitedly.
“How surprising,” Leo says with that infuriating smirk of his. “When are you going out?”
“He asked me for a drink tomorrow. I think he’s just being nice,” I tell him.
“Zane is a great guy,” Leo says, “but he doesn’t do things because he feels obligated. He does them because he wants to.”
Silence settles between the three of us while my mind tries and fails to catch up.
“Where are you going? What are you wearing?” Tess asks.
And then it hits me.
I’m going on a drink date with Zane tomorrow.
I need to get my life together like, yesterday.
“Maybe I should take him to the Moonlight Lounge,” I suggest.
Leo immediately nods. “Zane loves that place. We’ve gone there after his games a few times.”
The fact that Leo knows the guy I’m going on a date with only makes everything feel more complicated.
“I think you should wear your green blouse, the one with the buttons,” Tess adds. “You bought it when you were trying to put yourself out there.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I say with a small, polite smile.
I finish cleaning while Tess and Leo chat behind me. Within five minutes, I’m done, and we all grab our jackets.
