Page 46 of Falling into Place
Carly:Ok my mom said that’s where the cucumbers will grow.
Carly:You did it!
Brooks:let’s not get ahead of ourselves. i won’t celebrate till i hold a big cucumber in my hand
Carly nearly fell off the couch.
Brooks:ah, shit
Brooks:never mind
It took her a full minute to stop laughing and type out her next message.
Carly:Please tell me you didn’t discuss this with your date tonight ...
Carly:(Was that a smooth segway? Because you know I’m dying to hear how it went)
Brooks:haha, i did not mention my garden
Brooks:but it went pretty good
Brooks:she left about twenty minutes ago
She left? As in, his house? He’d brought the woman back to his house on the first date?
Carly dropped her phone to her lap and rubbed her eyes, now recognizing the ugly feeling in her chest—the same one she’d had while chatting about Kendall dating him, earlier—as jealousy. Which the rational part of her brain acknowledged was ridiculous and uncalled for.
Where was this coming from all of a sudden? She wasn’t interested in Brooks. Not as more than a client and a friend. Hell, because of his relation to Sasha, he was almost like family. Was she feeling possessive because of the work she’d put in, preparing him for this moment? Helping him shop and practice small talk didn’t mean she deserved credit for how well things were going, or any claim on the funny, sweet guy he’d been hiding beneath that serious, analytical veneer.
Whatever the reason, she had to get a grip. Even before the PR near miss with the Princetons, Carly had considered all clients firmly off the table, and now that decision was more than a personal rule, it was a company one, too. She had no intention of considering Brooks in a romantic sense, but apparently some primitive part of her brain needed the reminder. Pushing the unwelcome feelings down, she focused on keeping up her encouragement of his success. It was good news that this first date seemed to go well, but Brooks could use some extra confidence in the bank for the one that would crash and burn. A bad date somewhere in the mix was inevitable.
She picked her phone back up.
Carly:!!!
Carly:She came to your place??
Carly:You baller
Brooks:she said she wanted to meet oreo! she works with animals!
Brooks:it wasn’t like that
Brooks:well, it wasn’t like that at first
Okay, off the table or not, she didn’t want any more details in that direction.
Carly:I take it this means the conversation part went well?
Brooks:yes, thanks to you
Brooks:i used your trick to guess backstories of the other customers and she loved it
Brooks:turns out I can be kind of funny?
Carly:You’re totally funny
Carly:Well done
