Page 38 of Book Boyfriends
He twists to face me, determination sparks in his eyes. “I’ll answer all your questions at the restaurant.”
Curiosity bubbles over inside me like a pot of water left on the burner too long. I want to know everything. How did Davis the ass turn out to be Kenny the thoughtful grandson? Despite his proclamation that he wanted to be on our date and never meant to make me feel otherwise, he is the same man who insulted me. The same man who belittled the idea of a happy ending.
“We don’t need?—”
“Please,” he says, a soft plea punctuates that single word.
“Alright,” I say, not knowing if it’s due to hunger pangs or the pull of curiosity.
CHAPTER TEN
HAPPY ENDINGS
Davis pulls into the blacktop parking lot and parks his car. My gaze flicks to the neon glow of Fisher’s Landing’s sign above its main entrance.
“Back to the scene of the crime?” A cheeky smile slants my lips.
He turns off the car, twisting his head to meet my stare. “Maybe this time you won’t leave halfway through our first drink.”
It’s a tease-filled comment, but I bristle nonetheless. As rude as leaving midway through a first date is, let’s not forget that Davis’s dismissive comments led us there.
“Maybe you won’t insult me this time,” I say, my tone stern but not curt.
“Georgia…” He leans back.
“Davis…” I narrow my eyes. “Or should I call you Kenny?”
“I’m both. Pop gave me the nickname when I was ten.” He sits up and shifts in his seat to face me. “And I never insulted you.”
“Not everyone is lucky enough to live in a fairy tale, Georgia,” I repeat his words from our date, pitching my voice low to mimic his deep timbre.
“I…” His indignant expression falls.
“You don’t know anything about me,” I say as hurt surges in my chest.
The snide remarks about romance aren’t what stung. It was annoying, but not hurtful. As a romance reader and author, I hear those misguided characterizations of the genre all the time.It lacks substance. It’s not realistic.All from folks who haven’t read the genre. The twinge in my chest isn’t about that, but rather, from Davis’s assumptions about me. Assumptions that are far too much like the ones my brothers—especially Rem— have about me.
“Just because I believe in happy endings doesn’t mean I live in a fantasy world. Contrary to what you think of me, my life hasn’t been a fairy tale. People have hurt me. Disappointed me…” A small tremor shakes my voice. “But you wouldn’t know that because you weren’t present at our date. The stimming with your phone aside, you weren’t engaged.”
“I was engaged.”
I roll my eyes. “Yeah, like one-word answers and very few questions about me scream engagement.”
He releases a heavy sigh. “Peopling is hard for me.”
“It’s not easy for anyone.” Despite the certainty in my retort, my squared shoulder slump at the hint of sadness underscoring his confession.
What I know about autism is that it can create barriers to connecting with others. It’s different for each person, but there are varying degrees of challenges with social interactions.
“Sorry. I’m being insensitive.” I meet his stare.
“It’s okay.”
“It’s not. I shouldn’t dismiss your experience like that. I don’t know what it’s like for you.”
“To be fair, I don’t know what it’s like for you, either.” His mouth tugs up into a boyish smile.
“I’d like to know.” I rake my top teeth over my bottom lip.
