Un-Valentine's Day

Scene 11: Meddling Mama

Noah pulled on his boxers and exhaled harshly as he sat on the edge of the bed. His mom meant well, but man, the mix of horror and fascination on Cassie’s face when he’d turned around and flashed her would be engraved in his gray matter for the rest of his life. “I suppose Cassie told you I was just getting out of the shower.”

“Mmm-hmm.”

“And what? You thought it would be funny if she walked in on me getting dressed?”

“I didn’t know that would happen. I only hoped it would,” she said with a chuckle. “If she really hadn’t wanted to see you, she would have called out to you from the hallway. And…” She trailed off.

“And what?” he asked, irritation lacing the question.

“And if you hadn’t wanted her to see you, you would have shut the door, dear.”

Was she right? Had he subconsciously been willing this to happen? Had he wanted Cassie to see him naked, hoping the sight of him in the flesh would force her to see him as a man? If so, he was an idiot. As soon as he’d realized where she was looking, all pretense had disappeared and desire had shot through him, straight to his junk. Which had stood up and waved at her. Shit. At least he hadn’t touched her.

“What did you want, Mom?”

“Nothing really. I just wanted to see how things were going on your non-date.”

“Un-Valentine’s Day, and it’s going great.” At least it was up to now.  Except for the kiss. Although for him, that had most definitely been the best part.

“What are you making her for dinner?”

“Beer, pizza, and chips and dip.”

“Son?”

He leaned his elbows on his knees and rubbed a temple with his free hand. He was in for it now. “Yeah?”

“Shouldn’t you have taken her to a nice restaurant? Maybe something in little Italy? Your father and I got engaged at Marvello’s. It was very romantic. ”

He groaned. How could he possibly explain any of this to his mother? “She doesn’t want romantic. That’s why it’s an Un-Valentine’s Day.”

“She sounded nice on the phone, but maybe she’s not the girl for you. Your Aunt May’s neighbor has a daughter about your age. I could have May invite all of us over to dinner next week.”

He shook his head. “I’m not interested in anyone else. Cassie’s had a bad experience and she’s a little gun-shy. That’s all.” God, he hoped that was all. She’d been on and off the whole day, but he’d seen enough and felt enough when they’d been kissing to know she was attracted to him too. He just needed to break past her barriers.

“I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“I know.” He didn’t want that either. “Okay, I’ve got to go. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

After pulling on a pair of jeans, he slipped on a clean shirt, and buttoned it while walking back to the living room. The pizza box sat on the coffee table, and Cassie stood by the far window, eyeing him cautiously. He quirked a brow as he did up the last button. “Everything okay?”

“Ah… yeah.” She gave a small smile and pointed to the table. “Pizza’s here.”

“I can see that. What’s going on? Are you upset about what happened?”

She dropped onto the couch, staring at his bare feet. “Not upset exactly.”

Noah suppressed a groan. His mother’s little joke might just have ruined everything. “Want to talk about it?” They really needed to clear the air. If he couldn’t have Cassie as a girlfriend, he at least wanted to have her as a friend.

Picking up her beer, she took a sip. “Let’s eat while we talk. I’m starving from all that running around.”

He joined her on the couch, careful to leave enough space between them that they wouldn’t accidentally touch. He was in enough trouble as it was. “Did you have a good time today?”

As he doled out slices of pizza, she opened the bag of dill pickle chips and took a handful. Her eagerness for the chips pleased him ridiculously. The girls he knew usually pretended they didn’t eat anything that wasn’t green or orange.

“Fantastic. It was the most fun I’ve had in years.”

“You weren’t even a little upset that we didn’t go antiquing on Adams Avenue?”

A puzzled look came over her pretty face. “Why would I have wanted that?”

“Too romantic?”

“Too boring. I like pretty things, but I don’t want to spend all day poking around in dusty shops. I do most of my shopping online these days.”

Some expert Joey turned out to be. What he knew about women wouldn’t fill a shot glass. “So go-karting and paintballing wasn’t too extreme for you?”

Shaking her head, she swallowed a chip. “It was perfect.”

“Un-romantic.”

She shot him another puzzled look.

When the silence dragged on, his stomach clenched. Whether in anticipation or dread, he wasn’t sure. “Cassie?”