Whatever It Takes

Secret Weapon

"Oh, my God," I groaned, burying my face in my hands.

"I'm so sorry, Eddie – she started asking a bunch of questions because I kept trying to help you today," Jonathan explained, his facial expression pained.

"Oh, my God," I repeated, feeling mortified.

"I could tell something was off! And Jonathan can't resist my line of questioning once I start," Nancy continued, brushing his hair out of his face.

"Oh, my God," I whined, shaking my head.

This was absolute worst-case scenario. Nancy was going to put a stop to anything I would try with Dovey. I was never going to get my dance with Dovey. I was never going to be able to hold her hand. Steve was going to ride off into the sunset with her, with his nice haircut and preppy clothes. Dovey and Steve were going to have little, tiny children with perfect hair and the ability to bully me.

"Ed, why are you freaking out?" Nancy asked kindly. I set my head on the table.

"Because I know you probably think it's a terrible idea—"

"What? No, I don't," she insisted. I froze. I slowly lifted my head, watching her incredulously.

"You...you don't?" I asked nervously. She smiled kindly, patting my forearm gently.

"Ed, you are a wonderful guy. And Dovey is the best person in the world," she insisted. She turned to Jonathan, patting his chest. "Sorry, honey – you know how much I love you."

"I know, I know," he answered, his eyes crinkling from how big he was smiling. Nancy turned back to me.

"And now things make so much more sense – you were just acting like a second grader with a crush instead of an adult!" she explained. I felt my face flush and looked down at my hands. I really wasn't that bad, okay? Just a little rough around the edges. "But also – she's my best friend. I know how to help you."

I felt my heart surge with hope and looked up at her, grinning nervously.

"Wait...you're going to help me?" I stammered. She smiled brightly and nodded.

"I think this is such a great match – Dovey will see it eventually, too," she insisted. My heart was hammering at the thought of having a secret weapon on my side – Nancy Wheeler.

"But what about Steve?" I asked, wringing my hands together. She waved a hand at me, shaking her head.

"Steve-Schmeeve – they're not as compatible as they used to be," she continued. She winked at me. "But you two...as soon as Jonathan broke down and told me, I could see the vision."

"You make it sound like I was being interrogated by some FBI agent," Jonathan sighed. I glared at him.

"That better be the kind of tactics she used against you, because you promised not to tell anyone," I seethed. His jaw dropped.

"Eddie – I was getting ulcers from this secret!" he whined. Nancy giggled and kissed his cheek sweetly.

"I might as well have tied him to a chair and played good-cop-bad-cop with him with how tough my tactics were," she teased.

He smiled at her and pulled her close to him. They were sweet together, each of them balancing the other out. Jonathan was prone to anxiousness but was often grounded by Nancy's relentless confidence.

"Nance...you can't...I mean, you can't just outright tell Dovey how much I like her, okay?" I begged. I started wringing my hands together again. "She won't react well to that, I am trying to win her over, whatever it takes."

"Oh, Ed," she said, laughing mirthfully. It would have sounded patronizing if anyone but Nancy said it, but I could sense she was being genuine. "Do you think this is my first rodeo? Trust me, I know Dovey. She needs just a couple seeds here and there to plant the idea."

I felt a surge of joy. I hadn't wanted to tell Nancy, and I was still upset with Jonathan for having absolutely no spine, but this was the kind of ammo I needed. Before, I was going into battle with water guns. Nancy and her influence were a bazooka.

Whatever it takes – I was going to win Dovey Henderson over.

---

I paid the bartender, glaring at the drunk guy who had continued to bump into me while I ordered our drinks.

"Do you need help drinking that, gorgeous?" he slurred, getting close to my face. He was tall, and blonde, and if someone sneezed in his direction, I'm sure he would fall over from how drunk he was. I flashed him a patronizing smile.

"I think you've drank enough for the whole bar, big boy," I shot back, trying to get all of the drinks in one go. He stepped forward, cornering me against the bar.

"What's your deal? Why's a pretty girl like you up here by herself?" he continued, smiling a wolfish grin. I shrunk away from him, overwhelmed just by how much bigger than me he was.

"That's none of your business," I shot back, my voice sounding much weaker than I had intended. He set his hand on the counter behind me, further trapping me.

"Hey, sweetheart – sorry, the line for the bathroom was long," a voice interrupted, saving the day.

I continued to stare up at the large, drunk man as someone took my hand, pulling me out of his orbit and close to them. I let out a sigh of relief as the superhero set their arm around my waist. I looked up, and my relief gave way to shock as Eddie smiled down at me.

"Hope you didn't get into too much trouble," Eddie continued, keeping up the façade he had employed to save me. I smiled brightly, playing along.

"Not too much!" I replied. Eddie winked and nodded his head, pulling me tighter to him. I felt my heart pick up a bit as he held me.

"Good – thanks for keeping my girl company, but I've got it from here, buddy," Eddie said to the drunk man, his tone stern but friendly. The man looked Eddie up and down.

"She's your girl?" he asked, bewildered. He stood taller, trying to intimidate Eddie.

"I know – I can't believe how lucky I am that she settled for me," Eddie replied coolly. I felt my face blush a bit at the compliment. Eddie was tracing my side with his thumb like it was second nature for us to behave like this.

"I don't believe some scrawny dweeb like you landed a girl like her," the drunk man insisted. Eddie squeezed my side.

"Not scrawny where it matters, big boy – let's get these drinks to the table, sweetheart," Eddie announced, shutting the drunk guy down once and for all.

Eddie took two of the drinks, and I took the other two. He managed to block out the drunk guy, ensuring he didn't get close to me again. I looked up at Eddie as we started walking back together, smiling about the whole exchange. He grinned back at me.

"What?" he asked.

"Did you know I called him big boy earlier, too?" I asked. He laughed, shaking his head.

"Great minds think alike," he quipped. He cleared his throat. "Sorry for the whole 'sweetheart' bit – guys like that don't really respond to anything besides that."

"No, it's okay," I replied too quickly. I shook my head, trying to be cool. "Thank you, I mean, for saving me – he was a little intense."

"No problem," he replied once we got to the table. He leaned close to my face, winking at me. "Sweetheart."

My smile grew, and I felt my stomach flip for some reason. I cleared my throat, handing the drinks out, and tried to calm my racing heart. I sat down next to Eddie, smiling at him as he offered his drink to toast mine. I took a sip of my gin and tonic and watched Eddie as he started telling stories about his new job as I wondered something.

Was...was Eddie Munson...charming?