Page 55 of Friendshipped
I still have manners even if she almost petted them out of me.
“You order. That’s sooo romantic.”
“Two prime rib dinners, baked potatoes, sour cream on the side not on the potato. House salads. What dressing do you want?”
“I’ll have what you’re having, Trevvy.”
I make eye contact with Jed, our waiter. He’s biting his cheek. I’m going to write a note to him on the bill bribing him to never breathe a word of that nickname outside this restaurant. I’ll tip big. I’m not beyond buying a man’s silence when it comes to things like Trevvy.
“Ranch for both of us.”
“Be right out with your salads,” Jed says, walking away with an amused look on his face.
Dinner isn’t horrible. We eat. Meg tells me she got a job working as an accountant at Shannon’s dad’s office. She starts Monday. She plans to move out from her parents’ home as soon as she’s able.
“Mom reminded me about the street fair next month for Fourth of July,” Meg says. “I hope we can go together.”
“I’ll be going with a group of friends, but you’d be welcome to come along.”
That’s safe. All of us in a group.
“With Lexi?” she says as she scrunches up her nose like she smells something burning or rancid.
“Yes.”
“She’s still around?”
“Very much so. Actually, we work together at the Tribune. And she happens to rent the other half of my duplex.”
“You’re her landlord?”
“No. Dad owns the property, but I’m renting to own, so one day, yeah. I could be.”
I hear Meg’s next words even though she says them under her breath.
“She’s like a bad rash.”
I ignore the comment. Sometimes it’s better not to fan a flame.
I’m wondering how things will be with both Lexi and Meg in town together now. I picture one of those old western scenes where two men stand at opposite ends of the dusty road that runs through town with their hands on their holsters, only it’s Meg and Lexi. Meg spits into the dirt and spreads her legs in a confrontational stance. Lex runs her hand along the brim of her ten-gallon hat and says, “This town’s not big enough for the two of us, Megalodon.”
I laugh out loud without meaning to.
“What’s so funny, Trevvy?”
Not my new nickname, that’s for sure.
“Nothing,” I say. “I’m just thinking of a scene from a western movie.”
I end up letting Meg talk me into sharing a dessert. She seems to loosen up a little and her ridiculousness simmers below a boil as the night wears on. Maybe she was nervous.
I pay the bill and drive her home. When we pull into her driveway, she sits in the car with me, turning toward me as if we’re going to hang out and either chat, or who knows what. And I’m for sure not up for who knows what with Meg. I hop out and walk around to open her door.
She steps out and puts her hand on my chest like she did when I first arrived to pick her up and she threw herself at me. I take a step back.
“It was good seeing you, Meg.”
“It was good seeing you too. Aren’t you going to walk me to my door?”
