Page 39 of Meeting Mr. Adorkable
Goats? What the fuck…?
“… at the bandstand for the picnic…”
Bandstand? Picnic? He was still stuck on goats. And… suitable. He scrambled to catch up, fighting against the strong current of Francine’s enthusiasm. If he were to escape with his life, he needed to swim hard and fast for shore.
“What do you mean by suitable? A veterinarian who’s into goats? Come on.”
Francine’s hesitation was tiny. It wouldn’t be noticeable to anybody who didn’t know her well, but Arlo did.
“He’s nearer your own age. To our age. I just figure you’d have more in common with somebody like that.”
“Somebody who wasn’t younger. Like Tony, you mean.” Arlo’s shoulders tensed.
“What I mean is, what a person wants from life depends a lot on how old they are. Dreams and aspirations, they’ll differ.”
Her words sucked the breath from Arlo’s lungs. He and Tony, what they’d wanted, what they’d needed from life, had differed and in the end they’d ripped them apart, leaving them both beaten and bloody.
“Francine,” he rasped, “I’m not meeting up with you. Or with cousin Marty, no matter how suitable you think he is. I’m going to stop by Jake’s Day, but I’m going with a friend.” Who you won’t think is remotely suitable…
“Arlo, are Hank and I not your friends?” Francine asked quietly.
Arlo squeezed his eyes closed and counted to three in his head before he spoke.
“More than that, and you know it. But please, you have got to stop trying to fix me up with random guys I have nothing in common with. I mean it. I don’t want you doing this anymore. When I’m ready to meet somebody, it’ll be for me to decide who is and who isn’t suitable.”
“Okay,” she said, her voice quiet. “Perhaps I’ve been a little too pushy. It’s just that I — we — worry about you. Hank and I. We…” she hesitated, as though unsure how to continue when she was never unsure about anything. Arlo’s eyes narrowed, and he sucked in his lower lip as he waited.
“We both know splitting up with Tony hit you hard. Of course it did. But you came home to make a new start. And a new start means new attachments. Attachments of the heart. Romantic attachments. You may think I’m a meddler, always trying to hook you up. And yes, I’m guilty as charged. But somebody’s got to give you a nudge in the right direction, because you won’t do it yourself.”
“Francie,” he said quietly, “I am making a new start but I don’t think I’m ready—”
“For what? Ready to live life again to the full? Ready to take a chance on somebody? Ready to put your heart on the line? Sure, you risk it being hurt, but the bigger risk is missing that special person who makes waking up in the morning worth it. You tell us you’re happy, but neither Hank nor I believe it. We know you too well, and we can see you’re, I don’t know, unsettled, I guess. You seem kind of adrift, and you need somebody to anchor you. Arlo, you have the kindest of hearts and you have a lot of love to give. Don’t waste it, because you’re not meant to be alone.”
A weight pushed down on his chest, crushing the air in his lungs.
“Arlo? You still there?”
“Sure,” he croaked, forcing the word past the hard lump filling his throat. “What is this, tough love?” He forced out a laugh.
“Maybe it’s what you need to hear. Okay, so it’s a no to Marty—”
“And his goats.”
“Yeah, maybe he’s not the best of matches.” Arlo heard the amusement in her words, and he smiled. The tightness binding him like rope loosened. “So, who’re you going to Jake’s Day with?”
Who’s your date, in other words. Even though it wasn’t adatedate, as Lucian had said, stumbling over his words. Arlo grinned, because it was impossible not to, when he thought of the awkward young Englishman. There was no reason not to tell her who the friend was he was going with, because she was sure to spot them together.
“Lucian. Do you remember him? He came to the BBQ with Bibi.”
“Luci-Ann! My, that boy was so cute. And that accent. Not that I was always sure what he was saying. Hank told me he threw beer all over you, at Randy’s. Sounds to me like he’s dangerous to be around.”
“It was an accident. Could have happened to anybody.” His skin tingled. There was nothing dangerous about Lucian, nothing at all.
“So, you’re going to be meeting up with Mr. Adorkable!”
Arlo pulled his cell away from his ear and stared at it, not sure he’d heard right. He pressed it back. “Mr… What?”
“Adorkable,” she said, laughing. “An adorable dork. Just about sums him up, from what I could see. Especially with those glasses he was wearing.”
