Kendra Wright is a journalist and single mother to a preteen son. Her high school sweetheart leaving her to raise her son alone, has left her with a caged heart, and a promise to never be with a man like that again.
Eli Carter, a photographer, run...
Wendell's Corner, a tiny building close to where I worked, was the best burger place in DC. The owner, Wendell, was an army veteran and a beast in the kitchen. I've never tasted anything as good as his food. It was so good, it made you want to go into hibernation after you ate it. He is the absolute best!
Don't tell my mom.
Iris had brought me here on my first day, and it had turned into our official lunch spot. Our entire lunch hour was spent munching on fries and burgers and talking each other's ear off.
Today though was a bit different.
A single crunchy fry was about to make its way to my mouth when I heard a giggle come from across the table. I looked up and saw Iris immersed in her phone, her burger, and fries untouched.
I didn't know you could be a third wheel to someone who wasn't even there.
"Alex must be soo funny," I said in my valley girl voice
"Stop being a hater," she joked as she looked up from her phone for what might have been the first time since we got here
"I'm not being a hater. You're just being very...thirteen year old girly, and it's creeping me out."
"Oh shut up!" she waved me off
"But I'm happy for you though. At least you found someone, on the first night."
"Beginner's luck I guess."
"We both know you're far from being a beginner," I joked
"You're doing way too much right now," she pointed at me
When she said we would go hunting for men after our talk about Kyle, I didn't think we would have started that night. Luckily for me, I found a last-minute babysitter.
Our night had started off slow with me refusing to talk every guy Iris pointed out.
That was when I realized that I may not be as ready for this as I thought I was. Or maybe I was just afraid.
Things got interesting when Alex and Eli walked into the bar. The second Iris laid eyes on Alex, she called dibs.
I spent two hours of our night trying to hold her drunk ass back from talking to him and embarrassing herself. She made her move when I had left to use the bathroom. It was a bit embarrassing, but everything had turned out in her favor. I'm pretty sure they hadn't stopped talking since she woke up from her hangover.
"Your time will come, Ken," she said before a devious look made its way to her face "Specifically tomorrow night."
"Tomorrow night? What's happening tomorrow night?" my eyes squinted in suspicion "What did you do?"
"I may have set you up on a blind date with one of Alex's friends."
"Iris!"
"I know you said you weren't down for blind dates. But I felt bad that I met someone and you didn't, so I asked Alex if he had any single friends I could hook a girlfriend up with and he said yes."
I immediately thought of Eli and the little fun we had at our friends' expense.
"I really don't wanna go on a blind date Iris."
"He's a nice guy though, Alex promised he was," she said before pleading "Please? Just do this for me? For Kyle? He could be good daddy material."
I sat there and thought. Was this all worth putting myself in an uncomfortable situation?
"Ok, I'll do it," I said and she cheered. I stopped her excited shrills "But only under two conditions."
"You name it."
"One, you better be there in case this all goes south, and two, if this goes bad, I'm never letting you set me up again."
"Deal!" she quickly answered
"Fine," I sighed "Let's do this."
Her body shook side to side with excitement "This is going to be great."
"I hope so," I said, ignoring the tiny hope that the friend was Eli
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
It's a lively Saturday night. Usually, I'd be at home with my son, trying to convince him to do something only I saw as fun. But tonight, I was patiently waiting on my date to arrive at Barry's.
Iris and Alex were sitting in the corner, too into each other to realize that this guy was late.
I hope he knows he's losing some points.
Every few minutes, my hands went under the table to pull down the hem of my tight brown dress. I wasn't planning on wearing anything this short for a first date, but Iris insisted that I had to make a good first impression.
I spent my time waiting either adjusting my dress, playing on my phone or dwindling my thumbs. Was I nervous? Worried? Of course I was. It's been a long time since I've been on a proper date. Did I even remember how to date? What if I completely embarrassed myself in front of this person? What if it does go well and I actually like them? Did the boyfriend-girlfriend thing still work the way it did in high school? If it did, I'd have to make some changes. Things didn't work out so well for me back then.
"You must be Kendra," I heard a smooth deep voice say
I looked up and immediately recognized the feeling of disappointment in my chest. But the man standing before me was good looking and we'll put together, so I quickly got over it.
"Yes, I am," I said putting on my best smile
"I'm Greg, nice to meet you," he reached his hand out for a handshake
I shook his hand and was surprised by how good it felt. Somebody took care of themselves.
He may gain back some points for that.
Is that weird?
He was tall, mocha-skinned, had a well-kept beard going.
I was digging it. Ten points!
The hair on his head was kept low, and he was wearing a well-fitted suit. Who doesn't love a man in a well-fitted suit? Ten points!
"Sorry for being a little late," he apologized, taking his seat "Something came up at work, and I needed to get it out of the way."
So he had a job. Fifty Points!
"I understand," I said
"You look beautiful by the way," he said with a charm that rivaled an actual prince "Just had to let you know that before the night ended."
"Thanks," I smiled "You don't look too bad yourself."
"I try," he shrugged "So, why don't you tell me about yourself."
My grin widened as I told him about my life. I had a feeling that this was going to be memorable.
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Sorry for taking so long to post this chapter. Got back from my vacation last week and I'm finally ready to start writing again. Hopefully the next update doesn't take so long.
