After a few more moments, he finally said, “That sounds like a rehearsed answer.”
I swallowed hard.“Yeah, because it is.”
Staring at his sandwich, he said, “Amy, do you tell this to the guys you go out with?”
“Yeah.It’s normal to ask each other what you’re looking for in a person.”
He put his food down and looked up.“And how do they react?”
I bit the inside of my cheek.“They mostly give me vague replies.”
He sighed.“Listen to me.You can’t tell a guy that.It’s not how we function.It’ll scare anyone off.”
“No, it won’t.I’m putting it on my profile on all the dating sites.I don’t want to waste any more time.”My voice grew stronger as I went on.“I’m nearing thirty, and I’ve been waiting for men to get their shit together since I was eighteen!They don’t, okay?Even Rodrigo, who I thought was...well...”
“You thought you were going to marry him.I remember.”
I winced.
“He was always so evasive, you know?Like, ‘Oh, we’ll see about this’ and ‘We’ll see about that.’I can’t bear that anymore.If a man just wants to have some fun, then I’m not interested.And I want him to know off the bat.And let me tell you, so far, I’ve been the one who’s turned down second dates, not the guys I went out with.”
“That’s because they don’t think you mean it.Or they figure that they can have fun with you anyway.”
I blinked, taking that in for a second.
“Thank you for the feedback.I guess I need to change my little speech to include that if they just want to have fun, they should tell me before the date starts.”
Knox groaned.I wasn’t used to him dissecting and criticizing what I shared with him.Usually, we cheered each other on, whether it was about careers, family, or whatnot.
“What?”I challenged.
“I think you’re setting yourself up for disappointment by approaching things this way.I understand where you’re coming from.Well, I mean, not really.But I can understand why you don’t want to waste any more time.But you can’t force a relationship.”
I sighed.“My mom said something similar.”
“See, your mom would know.”
“No, she wouldn’t.She married my dad right out of high school and hated her marriage—every minute of it.”
I drummed my fingers on the marble again.Knox leaned over, putting a hand over mine.
“Amy, I’m sorry.I didn’t want to upset you.I’m just being honest.”
“I know.I’m not mad at you.”I sighed heavily.“Deep down, I know you’re right.But the way I’ve done things before—being patient with guys, thinking they’ll eventually get their shit together—hasn’t served me well.So I want to do things differently for a change.”
He beamed and then straightened up.“If any guy gives you trouble, let me know.Okay?”
“Why?”
“Just let me know.”
“You’re going to play the all-protective alpha male friend like you did in college?”
He grinned.“You bet I will.”
“Knox...”
“What?It was a very effective way of getting you away from unpleasant dates.”
