“Like a fireman?” Jordan said hopefully.
I raised an eyebrow at him. “Maybe. Put in a few months at the gym and maybe you’ll bulk up to that point.”
He barked a laugh, which made me grin. It was ridiculous to imply that Jordan was anything other than a huge, hulking, burly man. He must have been two hundred and fifty pounds of pure muscle.
“Regardless of my opinion of the ending,” I said, “I had a great time watching it with you.”
He slipped his hand into mine and squeezed. “Even though I’m a movie-talker?”
“Everyone is allowed one huge flaw,” I said. “I just hope you don’t have another one.”
“Guess I’d better cover up my third nipple, then,” he muttered.
I gave him a playful little smack on the arm. “You donothave a third nipple.”
“Of course I don’t.” He winked dramatically. “How many nipples does this guy have? Just two! That’s what my buddies say whenever they see me. There goes the guy with the totally normal number of nipples.”
We laughed and held hands all the way back to his truck.
The drive home was spent discussing our favorite rom-coms. I thought Jordan had chosen the movie tonight for my benefit, but it turned out he reallydidlike romantic comedies. He knew his stuff.
“Love Actuallyis not a rom-com,” he argued. “There’s hardly any comedy in it. Also, it’s a bad movie, regardless of genre.”
“I watch it every Christmas!” I shot back.
“Remind me to avoid your house around the holidays.”
I scoffed loudly in faux-offense. “It’s better thanTen Things I Hate About You.That movie is just a rip-off ofTaming of the Shrew.”
“Rip-off? It’s aretellingof it! It’s intentional!”
“Intentionallybad,” I muttered.
“Keep this up,” he said, “and I’m not showing you my third nipple.”
“You don’t have a third nipple.” I hesitated. “Do you?”
“You’ll never know.”
He pulled the truck into the restaurant parking lot. My car was the only other one still there. Before I could say goodnight to him, he hopped out of the truck, came around the side, and opened my door.
“You could have parked right next to my car,” I said, pointing.
Jordan grinned. “But then I wouldn’t get to walk you to it.”
We slowly crossed the parking lot together. He didn’t hold my hand—he shoved his hands in his jeans pockets.
Is he going to kiss me goodnight?I wondered.I hope he does.
“So is this the reason you guys order food every Friday?” I asked. “Just to see me?”
He shook his head. “Sorry to burst your bubble, but Tony’s has the best Italian food in town. We’ve been ordering from here for five years, since Tony himself was around.”
My smile slowly faded at the mention of my father. Time had healed the wound, but it still hurt if you pressed on it.
Jordan seemed to realize he had said something wrong, so he added, “He was a great guy, your dad.”
“Thanks. He really was.” I stopped next to my car and turned toward him. “I’m glad you asked me out.”