“Maybe he’s a writer and he’s here to research his next novel,” Ali said as she leaned in, brimming with excitement. “Or maybe he’s here because there’s some kind of Loch Ness monster situation in the lake and he’s investigating it.”
“And you called me Nancy Drew?” Jess raised her perfectly sculpted brows.
“I think he works with his hands.” Brynn hadn’t meant to divulge that theory. It just popped out when she remembered how amazing the callouses on his palm had felt when he touched her.
“Annnnnd?” Jess’s chin dipped as she gave Brynn a pointed stare. “You can’t drop, I think he works with his hands, and not follow that up.”
Brynn’s left shoulder lifted as a thrill raced through her at the memory of his roughened touch. “He has callouses.”
“Exactly how much groping was there?” Jess questioned playfully.
“None. I mean other than me grabbing his…you know…”
“Junk.” Jess completed.
“But that wasn’t…I mean it wasn’t skin to skin. But when we shook hands I felt his callouses.”
“All right,” Jess smirked. “So a hot, well-endowed—”
“I never said well-endowed,” Brynn countered.
“Not with your words, but the glow that appeared on your cheeks said it all.” Ali confirmed.
Brynn was beginning to feel ganged up on.
“Exactly. So, he’s hot, well-endowed, and convenient since he’s literally in your backyard…so what are we missing?” Jess’s eyes narrowed. “What are you not telling us?”
“What do you mean? I told you everything.”
“What’s wrong with him?”
“Nothing.” Brynn automatically shot back. “I mean, I don’t really know him.”
“I think what Jess is asking is, why not date him?”
“Oh, no. That’s too…complicated. He’s only here temporarily, and he lives in my backyard.”
“You’re saying that as if those are bad things.” Jess looked at her like she was crazy. “But think about it, it’s been…how long since you dated Tim?”
“About six years.” Brynn had told Jess about her last romantic entanglement when she’d been sitting in her chair getting her hair chopped off. Since Ali wasn’t there, she filled her in. “It wasn’t serious and only lasted for a couple of months. He promised to take Ryder and his friends to the water park but he bailed at the last minute to go to a music festival and I decided that it just wasn’t worth it.”
“Before that, I hadn’t dated anyone since Max. I was too busy, trying to raise Ryder, working, and going to school. Guys my age weren’t ready to settle down. I just didn’t see the point of complicating our lives for what? Mediocre sex and constant disappointment?”
“Wow. That’s a really sad way to look at relationships.” Ali sighed.
“It’s realistic,” Brynn countered.
“It is,” Jess agreed. “And just so you know, speaking as someone who was very recently in the dating pool, the water is not great. From my experience, the prince-to-frog ratio is about one to one million.”
“It’s not that bad,” Ali reasoned. “I went out with Keaton and he wasn’t a frog.”
Keaton Mills was one of the few eligible men in Whisper Lake. He ran an MMA gym and moved to town a few years earlier. With jet black hair and bright blue eyes, all the women had definitely taken notice.
“That’s true. And there’s Chris,” Jess offered.
Chris Hanover was a veterinarian that had taken over when Dr. Yanuck retired. He reminded Brynn of Coach Taylor from Friday Night Lights.
Brynn rolled her straw wrapper in her hand as she wondered why the idea of going out with Keaton or Chris didn’t appeal to her. They were both appropriate ages. Had viable employment. And were easy on the eyes. She’d be lucky to date either man, so why didn’t she want to?