Well damn. She just took all the fun out of it. I’m only teasing her, though. Getting a shortcut to who she is would be like cheating to get to the prize. I want to learn everything about her from her by talking with her and doing things with her. It’s the one thing I hate about dating in today’s world. Everything is online and through moments people want to show you. Gone are the days when people actually went out and talked instead of staring at their phones the entire time. Fuck, I sound like an old man.
The band on the corner stage has gone silent, getting ready to play again or take down their equipment, I don’t know. My attention has been on the woman sitting across from me. Sophia uses it to her advantage. “How long have you been tattooing?”
“Six or seven years,” I shrug. “It’s hard to keep count sometimes. I love this job, and most days it doesn’t feel like one, you know. How many people can honestly say they are excited about going into the office?”
“Not many,” she agrees. “I liked my last job well enough. But I really like working at the shop. Every day is something new, and I get to meet so many different people.”
Ginger slides our food, and a couple of plates onto the table without interrupting us. But the huge smile she wears on her face can no doubt be seen by everyone. Aside from Raven, she probably knows about the heartbreak Miranda dealt me. I came in here often enough after the breakup to soothe my aching heart with beer after beer.
“Exactly. It’s always a new adventure, and you can see into a person based on the ink they want.” I point toward my huge plate of cheese fries. “Want to share?”
“Sounds good to me. I always forget how big their appetizers are.” She looks around conspiratorially. “Either my eyes are bigger than my stomach, or Ginger finds a way to add more food to the portion.”
Chuckling I shake my head. “It’s probably a combination of both.”
“Most likely,” she shrugs. “She does always give me extra dessert when I come in.”
“That’s not fair,” I gasp in mock surprise. “I want extra dessert. I’m going to have to say something about it.”
“And then you’ll get no dessert,” Sophia sing songs. “Ginger can be evil that way. One-time Jay, my brother, was being an ass and when she brought out our slices of pie, she gave him a crumb.” She laughs loudly at the memory. “He totally deserved it, and he stopped acting that way when we would come eat here.”
“Did she end up giving him the rest of his pie?”
“Yeah,” Sophia sighs. “You know Ginger couldn’t hold out on him for long. But she did make him wait until I was halfway finished with mine. She’s the best.”
Ginger really is, and she has a great sense of character judgement. If she thinks highly of Sophia, then I may be safe in possibly dating her.