Page 115 of My Infatuation with Isabella

She gasps, her mouth dropping open. “Is it weird that I want to have sex with you again?”

“Very...but I’m not opposed to the idea.”

She takes a running start from the door and throws herself at me. I laugh and wrap my arms around her, pulling her closer until she kisses me. Yeah, my morning routine is definitely not the same anymore.

* * * * *

MY DAY GOES BY WITHonly one minor crisis – an order of steak that doesn’t get delivered. Very manageable. Dana now volunteers full-time at the homeless shelter, so I only see her when she swings by the restaurant around lunchtime every day. I leave the back office when she taps on the door and we sit down at the booth in the far corner.

“So...” she begins awkwardly, an apprehensive expression on her face.

“So?” I urge because I can see she wants to tell me something, but she’s nervous to say it.

“So...I was talking to Isabella about this...and she said I should just come out and tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

“You remember that guy from choir practice.” She waits for me to nod. “Well...I sort of...I mean, I kinda...asked him out.”

My eyes widen with shock, and I take a second to let that sink in. “You asked him out?”

“He hinted that he wanted to, but he’s petrified of Scott and Peter, so he wasn’t sure if he should. Even though I go there by myself now, he still thought they were hiding in the shadows somewhere...so I had to make the first move.”

She pauses for a response but I don’t know how to react. I know I should be happy, but at the same time, I’m worried.

“Are you freaking out?” she asks when the silence stretches out too long.

“A little.”

“Well, don’t because he’s a really nice guy and I like...I like hanging out with him. He’s going to start volunteering at the shelter on weekends as well. We just have a lot in common.”

I run both hands down my face and release a slow breath. “This is so weird.”

“You’ll be fine,” she says, reaching over to stroke my arm. It’s an odd habit of hers that I’ve never understood. She’s been through the worst ordeal, yet she still tries to make sure we’re okay.

I nod and try to relinquish control of yet another small thing. It’s a strange thing that happens. It takes a lot out of me to give up a small element of control. I assigned myself to the role of being the overprotective big brother, and she’s been forcing me to give up small chunks of that control in sporadic intervals. And it’s hard, but as I let go of one small chunk, I simultaneously let go of a piece of paranoia as well. It’s anxiety-inducing and liberating at the same time.

“Will you just let dad and I know where you are and text me when you get home?”

She smiles. “I will.”

“So, you told Isabella about this and not me?”

She shrugs. “It’s...it’s girl stuff.”

I’m not sure how I feel about that either. Ever since I told Bella about what happened to her, their bond has only grown stronger. Dana doesn’t bring up any of the bad stuff, but there’s a lot of othergirl stuffthat she feels comfortable talking to Bella about because she understands her past now. Things like boys and kissing and...other stuff I don’t want to know about. It’s another small sign of her gaining independence and needing me less, and that’s a tough pill to swallow.

“I’m still your favorite, though, right?” I ask.

She reaches over the table to hug me. “Always, big brother...but don’t tell her that.”

She tells me about this guy, Jamie, as we eat lunch. I have to admit that seeing her blush and get all smitten over a guy is a welcomed change from her having her guard up all the time. Our parents join us mid-way through, both of them sliding into the booth on Dana’s side.

“So, what did we miss?” Mom asks.

“I was telling Dylan about Jamie. I...I worked up the courage and finally asked him out.”

My dad hides his wariness with a smile. “That’s...great.”

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