Page 31 of The Ex Next Door
Sure, what better gift to bring a bartender than beer. It came with almost no thought behind it, he’d guess. Declan held back his snarky remark because she meant well. It wasn’t her fault that he had Amy on his mind. Her sweet and gentle smile as she’d watched David play. The way she’d hugged his dad, as if little to no time had passed.
And realizing she was lonely.
“You sure had to rush out when we were talking earlier,” Samantha said, following him in when he unlocked the front door.
“Sorry about that. I promised David I’d be there and since I encouraged him to play baseball, I figured I should honor that.”
“Oh, I thought it was a work thing?” She set the six-pack on the table.
“No, I told Amy I’d meet her there. She had to bring David from his father’s place. It was a good practice, I’d say, overall. But David is going to need some coaching. He has to build up his confidence.”
He thought about how that ball had hit him, and how that kind of thing could make a kid feel. Weak. Scared. Yet David took it in stride, just like Amy would have. He just got right back up again. That’s just the kind of attitude that made champs. David was that type of kid, too, raised by a mother who believed in him.
Within a few minutes, Declan became aware that he was talking about baseball more than he should. Samantha had a glazed look in her eyes.
“Sorry. I’m talking too much baseball.”
“Wait. David isAmy’sson?” Samantha’s eyes tightened and narrowed.
“I thought I mentioned that. She moved in next door, a single mom. Two kids, David and Naomi.”
“You neglected to mention you’re coaching her son!”
“I’m not coaching him, just giving him a little advice here and there. He hated soccer so I suggested he try baseball.”
“Which sounds an awful lot like coaching,Declan. So, you’re basically going to be spending time with your ex-girlfriend, your first love, who lives next door and also works with you? Have I got that right? Am I missing anything?”
“Hang on there. You’re overreacting.” The minute the words came out of his mouth, he wished he had the superhero power to stop them.
“I’mwhat?”
“Not overreacting, sorry, I didn’t mean that, but I’m not dating Amy. We’re friends. What do I have to do to convince you?”
She crossed her arms and jutted her hip. “Remember when we both first swiped right and we had that first incredible date?”
“Yeah.”
“We both said we wanted the same things. To settle down, invest time and energy into a relationship and make it work long term. We said we’d explore this spark between us because we both want something permanent.”
“I remember. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing here. Exploring this idea.”
And so far, he felt that this place that promised so much initially was barren.
“We both have. You know what? In every relationship, there are deal breakers, like cheating and unhealthy arguments.”
“I’m with you so far.”
“And in addition to that, I believe in every relationship each couple should be allowed to make at least one unreasonable demand of each other. Even if it doesn’t make any sense. Only one demand like this is allowed in the course of an entire relationship. It shows a commitment to each other and making it work. This, of course, shouldn’t be anything unhealthy or which would intervene with our careers.”
“Give me an example.”
She shrugged. “Well, let’s just say there’s a certain guy that relentlessly flirts with me at the ice cream shop in town. Maybe your one unreasonable ask is that I never go in there without you.”
“And where’s the trust?”
She frowned. “Like I said, it’s just a one-off. It has nothing to do with trust. It’s our one unreasonable request.”
Declan did not like where this was going. “Have you ever done this before?”
