Potholes

Chapter 8

L.A. and Tulip were laying down in the bed of L.A.'s truck, looking up at the star-sprinkled sky. Tulip had her head on L.A.'s chest, while he had one arm wrapped around her to keep her close.

"What happened with your last relationship?" Tulip asked as she gazed at another shooting star rip across the sky.

"My last serious relationship?"

"Yeah."

L.A. sighed as he looked up at the sky and thought about the last serious relationship he had. He's had some dates in past few years, but his last actual relationship dated back more.

"I was about 26 when we were first started dating. She was the granddaughter of one of my grandma's friends. She was a sweet girl. Pretty, down to Earth, a little too into herself at times, but nothing obnoxious. We were on and off for a couple of years."

"Why?"

"She was a flirt, so we'd get into fights about it and break up for a month, maybe 3. But I'd get bored or horny, so I would apologize for getting mad or 'blowing things out of proportion', and we'd get back together. I wasn't the same mature man that you see now."

Tulip giggled, lightly hitting his chest. "So, what happened to completely end things?"

"When my grandpa died and I took over the ranch. It was a lot to handle, both dealing with my grandpa's death and the ranch. She couldn't be there for me the way I needed her to be. We both saw that, realized nothing deeper could ever come of our relationship, and ended it completely. There's no bad blood between us. We're cordial when we see each other. Last I heard, she's engaged with a kid or 2."

"Do you have any regrets about that relationship?"

"I don't have any regrets. Getting back with her multiple times out of boredom wasn't my smartest idea, but we were, eventually, able to see we weren't the right ones for each other. We didn't have to go through that awkward moment where you see each other in a bar years later, wonder 'what if', sleep together, and then date for a few months until you both realize that you're wrong for each other."

"How... oddly specific. Do you watch a lot of moves where that happens, or has that happened to you before?"

"The couple of times I've been in a bar and wondered 'what if" when I saw a woman, it usually ended in a one-night stand."

"At least you're getting answers to all of your burning bar 'what if' scenarios." She chuckled.

"And how are you still single with that sharp wit and amazing sense of humor?" He asked, sarcastically.

"You'd be surprised by the number of men who are not okay with their girl making more than them and being smarter than them." She spoke with sarcastic shocked tone in her voice.

L.A. laughed at her statement. "Is that how your last relationship ended?"