Page 41 of The Dating Mishapp

When it pings again, Jack chuckles. “Someone wants to chat.”

“Yeah, probably another idiot Kylie was trying to set me up with.”

“Another?” he asks, walking behind me back into the kitchen. “How many were there?”

I shrug. “I’m not sure. I thought the guy she was meeting tonight was this guy Tre, but it turned out not to be him.”

“Tre?”

I hum in response, beckoning with curled fingers that he take off his jacket. “Do you want to change?” I motion with my chin to his shirt. “Let me throw it in the wash.”

“Sure.” He shrugs out of his jacket and hands it to me. “Thanks.”

Right there in my kitchen, Jack starts to unbutton his shirt as if it’s the most natural thing to do.

“Help me understand. Kylie invited him there to meet you, but you didn’t know about it?”

I blink several times and break myself out of a spell, pulling my eyes upward from his waist. “Yes. Apparently, my daughter doesn’t think I’m capable of getting a date.”

Jack tips his head and stares at me. “You seem to be doing all right on your own.”

The sight of him undressing makes my mouth water. “Beer?” I ask, turning on my heels and opening the fridge.

When he doesn’t reply, I glance back and catch him watching me as I stretch to reach the two cold bottles. He stands there shirtless, his chest and ripped abs covered by a smattering of dark hair. Before I close the door, I inhale the cool air, hoping it will extinguish the heat rising in my body.

“Sure,” he says with a small smile. “I like Stella.”

I hand him one. “There’s an opener in the top drawer.”

Once both bottles are uncapped, Jack raises his and clinks his with mine. “Cheers to no more online dating.”

I laugh as my eyes travel down the length of his body. “Amen to that!”

Leaning against the counter on opposite ends of the island, he lifts his beer, looks at it, and then takes a sip. “You always drink this?”

I nod. “Pretty much.”

“So, this guy Tre…”

“Ugh.” I hang my head. “Truth is I was curious about this guy Kylie kept talking about, so I created a profile. Oddly enough, my screen name was Stella because I was drinking a beer when I opened the app.”

“Original.”

“Anyway, I got matched with the same guy she did. I mean, what are the chances of that happening?”

“You sure it was the same guy?”

I replay the first conversation in my head and realize that she never mentioned said his name but rather just an initial and gave a vague description of his profile picture- a man with a dog. My forehead wrinkles. “I’m not sure.”

“You and this guy clicked?”

I smile dreamily. “Yes. He was great… online, but wait…”

“What?”

Grabbing my bag, I pull my phone out and keep my back to Jack. He doesn’t need to know I’m checking the app.

“Mind if I use your bathroom?”

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