Her face is turning red, and I don’t know if it’s from anger or something else. “You realize that’s creepy, right? That would be the equivalent of one of your little fans following you home and waiting outside your house.”
“Believe it or not, that’s happened before.”
“So, you think it’s okay for you to do it?” Yep, anger is the reason she’s turning colors. But she sits back down and takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.
“Would you have gone on a date with me otherwise?”
She taps her finger against her chin, thinking, and quiet for way too long. “I don’t know. I kind of wrote you off after that first meeting. You’re way too sure of yourself and not really my type.”
“And what is your type? Someone who has their shit together? Or someone who only uses you for what they want and discards you when they’re done? Because I sometimes fall into both categories, and I’m willing to see where this goes.”
Her head rears back as if I have slapped her. I guess I hit a little too close to home. “If you are the second type, I don’t know that this is worth pursuing.”
I won’t apologize for who I’ve been. Getting romantically involved with someone when they may leave is terrifying and not necessarily something I want to go through. “I said sometimes. And just so you know, I haven’t been with or even tried to see anyone else since that first flight.” That’s something I didn’t want to admit, but if it will ease her worries, so be it. “You want to know why I haven’t seen anyone?” She shakes her head no even though her eyes are pleading for the answer. “Because I saw the way you reacted to that guy, and how much he must have hurt you. You intrigue me, and I know that the only way I’d have a shot is if I didn’t keep up my player ways.”
Her lips are pressed firmly together and I want her to tell me what she’s thinking. I’m not one to play games, and she’ll accept me or she won’t. This is not at all how I envisioned our first personal date going. It was supposed to be happy and watching a movie. Not getting into the nitty gritty bullshit that is going to run her off. I probably could have censored my answers better, but I also don’t want to give her a false sense of who I am.
Finally, she speaks. “I’m not sure what to say. You’re definitely not the type I would normally date. You have heartbreak written all over you. But I guess if you’re willing to give this thing a shot, then I am, too.” Her eyes shift to the side, uncertain if this is something she really wants to do.
“Only if you’re certain,” I say. “I don’t want to get into this thing and then you back out because you’re scared. That’s not fair to either of us.”
She takes a deep breath then releases it. “I’m sure.” She nods to drive the point home and I do a mental fist in the air. Damn, I’ve never had to work this hard to get someone’s attention. “What do we do now?”
“Talk. That’s what most people do on the phone.” Honestly, this is the longest I’ve ever been on the phone with someone other than my mom or sister. They’ll talk my ear off for hours. “What if we did this crazy thing called getting to know each other?”
“Okay,” she drawls. “What’s your family like?”
Damn, that’s not where I expected this to go. Most women I’ve seen have wanted to know about my career and how I got signed right out of college. “It’s just me, my mom, and sister. My mom worked a lot when we were growing up to put food on the table, so Gabby and I pretty much raised ourselves. We’re all pretty close to each other. Mom likes to meddle in my business, so I don’t tell her as much as she’d like. She only does it because she cares, though. My sister is the closest thing to a best friend I’ve ever had, and I don’t know what I would do without her.”
“What about your dad?”
Now it’s my turn to take a deep breath. He’s a sore subject, but if I’m going to give this thing with her an actual shot…“He’s been out of the picture since I was six. One minute we were this small happy family, and the next he was gone. Just walked out and never came back.”
“Wow. I’m so sorry.” There’s sadness in her eyes, but it’s not just for me and my family.
“It is what it is. I spent years trying to figure out what I did wrong. How I could have made him stay, but in the end, I realized he’s a douche for walking out and leaving us wondering.” Time to change the subject. I don’t want to think about my dad. “What about your family?” They have to be better than mine.
“I don’t know. I haven’t talked to them in years.”
Or maybe not. “Why?”
“They didn’t support my dream of traveling the world. They wanted me to go to college and find a real job. I didn’t want to do that. When I decided to be a flight attendant, they told me I could come back home when I decided to grow up and be an adult. That was almost five years ago.”
“That’s harsh. I guess we both have assholes in our families.”
“Yep. I won’t say I don’t miss them, but they only supported me when I fell in line with what they wanted. And that’s just not something I want to deal with. I met Lana when I was training to be a flight attendant, and she’s been my family since then.”
“I’m happy you have that. Other than my actual family, my team from college is like my family. We did everything together. Right now, they are struggling, so I’m going to give them a pep talk tomorrow. That’s the reason I was late calling. My former teammate, Derrick, called me freaking out about their playoff chances.”
“That’s cool they still come to you for advice. How long have you been playing basketball?”
I glance around my empty walls, wishing I would have brought some of my awards with me just so I could show her. That’s something that needs to be rectified soon. Maybe I’ll have Gabby come decorate for me, but with not so much girly shit. I want this to look like an actual home if Jolene ever comes to Austin. “Since I was a kid. Mom and Gabby didn’t want me to get mixed up in any sketchy shit, so they put me in a basketball program at the civic center. I never had any aspirations to play until then. After that, I did everything I could to become better. I started watching old college and NBA games to study the sport. I practiced every day. Even when it was raining until Mom would make me come into the garage so I wouldn’t track water throughout the house.”
A smile graces her lips and I know she’s impressed. That’s not why I told her, though. It was my life. It is my life. “That’s some serious dedication.”
“I wanted to be the best,” I grin. “It finally paid off.”
“That it did,” she yawns. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to do that. It happens when I sit still for too long.”