Page 32 of My Best Friend's Dad

I’d like to come again. Or at all. On Rowleigh’s fingers, tongue, and cock.

Oh my god, get yourself under control.

I’m in a public place right now, and my face is probably redder than the huge barn at my back.

“I’ve been trying to come up with things that make him feel alive. I thought if he could do those things, it would bring him back to life and prove that he can still feel and does still want to feel. And that getting into an arranged marriage that does exactly the opposite and just…just stopping everything makes no sense.”

“Ahh. Well, date number two should definitely be seduction then. Kissing and touching makes everyone feel alive.”

“Sigh.”

“It’s not a sigh if you have to say it.” Mika’s laughter rolls over the phone.

It’s slightly windy with good cloud cover, so I’m not roasting out here, but Mika is probably getting a whole lot of wind in her ear.

“I went about it all wrong. I messed up the first time because it was about what makesmefeel alive. Even if I had planned tacos, and a freak rainstorm hadn’t trapped us in a gazebo and drenched us to the skin, it still wouldn’t have accomplished what I wanted it to because I didn’t think about what would give him the most joy in life.”

“That sounds like the most romantic first date ever.”

“Not a date,” I grouse.

In the distance, someone swings, and another guy down on the green yelps and dodges aside, then yells profusely about opening eyes and licking buttholes. It’s followed by a burst of good-natured laughter from everyone, so at least no one is going to start taking off anyone’s face by throwing clubs around.

“Fine. The most romantic not-a-date ever. And by the way, he hates tacos. I could have told you that.”

“Better to have learned the hard way than not learned at all?”

“So what’s on the agenda for Sunday?” Mika pries.

“Taking the word agenda out of his schedule and going back to his roots. I thought, what’s something he loves that he hasn’t done in a very long time?”

“Getting laid?”

“Mika! Noooooooo. Think older.”

“My dadisway old. At least older than you.”

“Mika!” I say exasperatedly.

“You like geezers. I know you’re afraid to do anything that will make your parents get all up in your face and your business, which is why your condo is so bland and you date guys that are super boring, capitalize the wordboring. But remember that party we went to years ago? You had a few beers and confessed to me that you think older guys are hot. Specifically, it was our film professor. And I concur. He was super hot.”

I start breathing all over the place, sucking in air loudly to try to encourage my lungs to come back to the ship after they try to jump.

“Relax. Age gaps are hot. Everyone is all about the zaddies now,” Mika adds.

The most unfortunate part of that statement is that it’s true. I don’t know about the zaddies thing, but age gapsarehot. Rowleigh is hot. He’sinconvenientlyand almosthorriblyattractive.

I desperately need to change the subject. Unfortunately, that means circling back around to the very reason for this conversation. “Anyway, I want to find a place where we can go picking.”

“Picking? Antique picking?”

“Yes! I got my car back this morning.” It was the alternator that went bad and not the transmission after all. It’s hard to believe one part could cause so many problems. It cooked my battery and some of the belts, so those had to be replaced too. It wasn’t cheap, but at least the shop got the work done somewhatquickly. “I’m out at this super cool barn right now, checking it over as a potential venue. Technically, I’m done already. I’m just sitting out here because it’s beautiful and I have an apple to eat before I go venturing down a few different back roads out here.”

“That sounds like a really good way to get abducted or shot.”

My stomach pinches and sours so badly that I’m glad I haven’t started eating anything yet. “I thought so too. I’ll be careful.”

“Avoid the yards that have posted trespassing signs.”