"Thanks." She walks ahead of me until we get to the door. I push it open while I put the umbrella outside and pop it open.
"After you," I motion in front of me. I make sure to hold the umbrella over her head and walk behind her. I'm getting soaked but that doesn't matter.
Once we get to her car, she opens the door and slides into the seat. I close the umbrella and hand it over. "Thank you. I'll call you later."
"I'll look forward to it." Rain is hitting me and I'll have to change before I go to work, but I'm fine with that. What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't get her to her car safely? "Be careful."
"I will." She closes the door, starts her car and drives away. As far as first dates go...that wasn't too bad.
11
Caroline
"So,how did breakfast go this morning?" Kate grabs a rain poncho out of her bag.
"Why are you asking?" There. Answer a question with a question. I wish I understood why they are so invested in my romantic life, or lack thereof.
She sighs as she struggles to unfold the plastic. "Because I want to make sure you aren't self-sabotaging anything before you have a chance to get to know him."
"Here," I hold my hand out. A few years of little league football, and I'm a pro at doing this. I pull the edges and snap it in the air to get the folds to loosen up. "It was fine. He's supposed to call me so we can set up our next date. It's a little tricky with having to get a sitter and all that."
"You could always call him," she says it as if it's obvious and I haven't thought it of myself. "Then your date is on your terms."
Rolling my eyes, I give her back the flimsy piece of plastic. It's hilarious that she thinks that thing is going to keep her dry in this rain, especially when it's coming down sideways. "He knows my situation. Besides, you hounding me about it isn't going to make me do it. You should know this by now, we've only been friends for our entire lives."
"So, if I tell you to do the opposite, you will?" She's never going to give this up.
The back door slams open and we both jump at the outburst. "Whoever ordered the rain needs to send it back," Sam grumbles. "It's not as if we have a wedding to decorate with a pain in the ass bride."
"For some reason, I don't think the powers at large are listening to you."
"Obviously," Sam snorts. She walks further into the storeroom and scrunches up her nose. "Please tell me that isn't what you wore this morning."
I glance down at my yoga pants, oversized shirt, and combat boots. Even if I had, I don't think there's anything wrong with it. "No, not that it matters." Then I take a peek at Kate who is suddenly silent. "Is there anyone that doesn't know about my breakfast date?"
"I'm sure there are people who don't," she squeaks. "I only told Sam and Emily. Oh, and your mom."
"Excuse me, what?" I hadn't planned on telling her just yet. "Why would you do that?"
I can see her swallow the lump in her throat. "Well, she came in here looking for you. I'm sorry, Care, I thought she knew. Otherwise, I wouldn't have said a word."
"She's lying," Emily sing-songs as she rushes into the room. "Sorry, I'm late. There was flooding at the end of my neighborhood and I took the long way around. What did I miss?"
"Well, Kate is telling everyone about me going on a date with Carlos. Sam is bitching about the rain, and I need to call my mom." I walk out of the room and head straight to the office. This is going to be an interesting conversation. I needed to call her anyway, but this isn't a topic I wanted to broach.
Once inside, I close the door and lock it. Blessed silence. Well, except the rain pounding on the roof, and thunder booming in the distance. At least this wedding is inside. If my friends know what is good for them, they'll keep working and won't hover outside the door and listen in on my conversation.
I pull my phone out of my bra and tap my mom's name in the contacts. After a few rings, she finally answers. "Hello?"
"Hey, Mom." I sit in one of the chairs around the circular table. This space isn't big enough for us to each have our own office, and this table was decided on so that we could all equally give our input. Kind of like the round table the knights used, but without the knights. "You have a few?"
"You know I have all the time in the world for my kids," she laughs. "What do you need?"
Brownie points to her for not bringing Carlos up right away. "First, our time to decorate the venue got pushed back a couple of hours because of the rain so I'll be home later than I planned. Can David spend the night with you tonight and I'll pick him up after we're done with the wedding tomorrow?"
"Absolutely," I can hear her grin over the phone line. He's not her only grandchild, but she loves any moments she has with him. "If you need him to, he can stay the whole weekend."
"Why do you say that?"