Page 83 of Friendshipped
* * *
Saturday mid-afternoonI’m taking the mower out of my trunk when Lexi steps onto our porch and gives me a shy wave. She comes walking down the steps toward me.
“Did you just mow Memaw’s yard?”
“Yep,” I say. “She’s good to go.”
“Thank you, Trev,” she says with a softness in her voice.
“I’m glad to do it,” I tell her. “What have you been up to today?”
Lexi face twists and her eyes get a faraway look in them. She stares across the street. When she looks back at me, she sighs.
“Just reading,” she finally says.
“That’s a big sigh for someone who’s just been reading,” I tell her.
“Well, this morning mom and I FaceTimed with Felicia from the dress shop,” she says. “I was trying on bridesmaid dresses and she wanted to see our options without driving up here one more time.
“Felicia spent most of the time during our video chat trying to talk me into going on another date. Then Laura called me and gave me a whole sales pitch about getting back on the app. It’s like they are in cahoots.”
“Yeah?”
So, Laura talked to Lexi.
“It’s not that I don’t want to date. It’s just …”
“What?”
“It’s not like being with you when I’m with these other guys. Everything’s so easy when it’s you.”
She means it to be a compliment. And it is one, but my gut feels like someone stuck a fishing knife in it and dragged it upward. I feel like screaming,Give me a chance then!But I know I can’t.
Either someone feels romantic feelings for you, or they don’t. But, maybe with Laura working her magic, I have a chance to switch all this around. I’m putting all my hopes into this last gasp effort to win Lexi over.
Instead of confessing my undying love, I pull Lexi into a hug.
“I’m sorry you had a hard morning,” I murmur into her hair.
She leans into me and wraps her arms around my waist. Her head fits snugly under my chin. We stand there, holding one another for a while. Longer than usual, actually. I inhale the smell of her. It’s familiar, warm, floral, feminine, Lexi. She sinks in a little deeper, letting me comfort her the way we always do for one another.
I hug Lexi occasionally. It’s not new. But, right now I know I’m tempting fate. I’m a thief, stealing what isn’t freely given to me for my own gratification. I break away and hold her by her shoulders, looking into her face.
“You’re going to be okay,” I tell her.
It’s the one thing I can promise. I’m not sure what I’ll be, but Lexi will land on her feet, I’m sure of it.
“Even if I have to wear a bridesmaid dress that makes me look like a peacock?”
I don’t even dare ask.
“Even if.”
* * *
A few daysafter my talk with Lexi, I’ve got a profile fully created and uploaded onto the app. I put a picture of me wearing my ball cap where you can barely make out my face due to the shadowing. Thankfully Lexi won’t be able to see my picture unless I make it viewable by her.
Lexi’s out to lunch with a few work friends today. The phone on my desk rings and I pick it up.
