Page 25 of Five Minute Man
“Works for me.” God bless Liz, shegotit.
After waiting much longer than usual, they gave their selections to the plump, middle-aged server with the bad dye job.
Liz wasted no time swooping in for the scoop the moment the woman moved away. “So ... What’s up with you and the contractor?”
Because Liz was her best friend, and because Holly felt like she was going to implode if she didn’t talk to someone, she brought Liz up to speed. Maybe Liz could help her sort things through, because Holly wasn’t doing very well on her own. A best friend’s biased, semi-objective analysis was just what she needed.
“Back to back evenings, then nothing?” Liz asked, frowning. “What’s up with that?”
“You’re the one with real-life experience. I was hoping you could tell me.”
“Maybe he’s afraid things are moving too fast,” Liz said thoughtfully. “If you guys hit it off as well as you say you did, he’s probably pissing his pants right about now. He might just be giving it a few days, letting things settle until he can make sense of them.”
“Maybe,” Holly said doubtfully.
“Or ... maybe he’s waiting for you to make the next move. He asked you to coffee, you invited him over, then he called and asked you out. Could be your turn.”
It sounded reasonable enough when Liz put it that way, but Holly didn’t think so. It just didn’t feel right.
“You think?”
Liz shrugged. “Hard to say. Some guys love it when the woman makes a move, some guys hate it. What’s your read on him?”
“I don’t know.” Holly wasn’t sure that second time really counted as her asking him out, especially since they spent most of the night talking about renovating her cottage. Adam had been the one to suggest and provide dinner, so technically, he was the one who turned it into something more than a professional consult, not that she minded in the least.
“I’m not sure I’d feel comfortable calling him.” If he was having doubts, he might see it as pushy.
“Yeah. I got the impression he likes to be the one taking the lead.” Liz tapped her fingernails, now a dark blue with silver sparkles, against the table. “You said he has pick-up games at the Y, right? Why not come to my yoga class with me this week? You could accidentally run into him on purpose and see how he reacts.”
After briefly considering the idea, Holly nodded. “Sounds like a plan.”
Liz had been trying to get her to go for a while now. As much as she eschewed the idea of exercising in public, it would be worth it to see Adam again. She could use his reaction to seeing her as a kind of sign post, hopefully providing direction into the nebulous realm of what-the-heck-is-he-thinking. She could stop all of this non-productive obsessing and guessing, and move on from there.
“Great. We can hit Target”—Liz pronounced ittar-jhay—“after dinner tonight and pick up a mat and some flattering yoga pants for you.”
Holly frowned. “Why can’t I just wear my sweats?”
Liz rolled her eyes and gave Holly a suffering look. “Because we want him to notice your ass.”
