“She did?”
“She pops back into my life every few months with the same sob story. Unfortunately for her, I’m not interested in that.” David looked at me carefully, and I was suddenly filled with an incredible amount of respect for the guy. He’d been through hell. He’d been through utter and total hell, and he’d kept himself together. Damn.
“That was a year ago?”
“Almost to the day.”
Then it hit me. It was something I should have realized sooner, something that made the entire not-telling-Felix thing make a little more sense.
“She broke up with you right around the time that Felix met Lauren.”
“They started dating the same week Debra and I broke up,” he told me. “I couldn’t bring myself to rain on Felix’s parade. He was too happy. I mean, Lauren basically saved his life. She keeps him from working too hard, and she keeps him happy. He was well on his way to an early heart attack when she came along.”
“He didn’t tell me that either,” I muttered.
“Being a lawyer can be stressful,” David said.
“I get it.” Any job could be stressful. It was important to have someone who could pull you back when you got too involved. I knew that. Having someone who would watch over you and take care of you and keep you from totally losing yourself to the job...that was essential, wasn’t it?
“So that’s my sad story,” David said. “And that’s why I haven’t had my penis sucked on in two years.”
“Um, excuse me.”
It was the server again. Seriously, twice in one night? David and I both looked up sheepishly to see the waiter. He was holding our meals, and he set them down on the table and took our salad plates away.
“Can I offer you more wine?” He asked. He was whispering.
“Yes, please,” I said.
“I’ll be right back.”
He scurried away, and I looked at David.
“You pay for dinner, and I’ll leave the tip,” I told him. “That guy deserves like, a double tip tonight.”
“I’ll pay for everything,” David smiled at me. “It’s my pleasure.”
“Is that so?” I asked. “Maybe I’ll order more wine, then.”
“You already ordered more wine,” he laughed.
“Oh yeah,” I smiled.
Once our drinks were refilled and our server was safely out of earshot, we started eating the steaks we’d ordered. Mine was well done and his was medium. I hated eating anything that even sort-of looked alive, so I was glad that the edges of my steak were slightly crisp. We ate in silence for a few minutes, and then we started talking again.
“So,” I asked him. I was wildly curious about David, and he was definitely allowing me to ask him whatever I want to. That was a nice feeling. “Have you thought about dating since then?”
“I’ve been on dates,” he told me. “And I’ve had sex. I just haven’t done that.”
“Why not?”
“It’s not that it’s a special thing for me,” he said. “It’s just a bit intimate. Sex is easy. Sex is just body parts moving in all of the right places.”
“Are you worried whoever you find won’t be able to blow you that well?” I asked sympathetically. “Because despite what you may have heard, I’m actually very good at it.”
“Is that so?” He asked.
“It’s so,” I nodded.