Page 67 of Just for the Plot

“How was the date?”

“Oh. Um, it was fine.” I shrug, thinking about Cougar and how it was just…eh. There wasn’t much we could talk about or much we had in common.

“Just fine?” he asks as I feel his eyes on me.

I cling tightly onto his arm as I say, “Yeah, just fine. We didn’t have a lot in common, but we did talk a lot about football, and I don’t really know sports, so that was kind of weird.”

“Sorry. I should have set you up with someone you have more in common with.”

“It’s fine. We’re going to go out again.”

He pauses and turns to me. “You are?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?” His brows pinch together.

“Why not? We’re not committed to each other, just having some fun.”

“But if you have nothing in common, why still see him?”

“Because I think we’re just at the tip of the iceberg. I could sense that he was guarded and maybe I was a little guarded myself. He already texted asking if I could go out next week, so we’re looking to see where that takes us, but he was open about seeing other people, and I’m chill with that.”

“Wait.” Bennett shakes his head. “I thought you were looking for a relationship, not a fling.”

“I am,” I say. “But sometimes relationships start off as just getting to know each other. Listen, who am I to stop him from seeing other people? I have no hold on him.”

“Does that mean you’re going to see other people?”

“Perhaps.” I shrug. “I mean, I can’t put all my eggs in one basket, right? Just trying to be breezy about all of this. I think once I start putting pressure on myself, that’s when nothing happens. So just letting the universe take hold of my love life, you know?”

He guides us toward the apartment again. “I guess so.”

Noticing how firm his jaw is and the stiffness in his body, I ask, “Are you okay? You seem tense. Is this about the book club thing? I don’t have to do it—”

“I want you to do it,” he says quickly. “With me. I want it to be something we do together.”

“Really?” I ask, excited that he said that, because I felt like I was clinging to something that maybe I wasn’t necessarily invited to, but more so invited myself.

“I’m not doing it alone, and I feel like you bring the best out of me, which will help.”

I pause our walk again and turn toward him. “That’s a really nice thing to say, Bennett.”

“It’s true,” he says, his eyes meeting mine.

For some odd reason, my cheeks blush from the compliment. “Well, thank you. That’s really sweet.”

He smirks and then pulls me into a hug, which I graciously take. His arms wrap around me like a protective shield as I place my cheek against his chest and just sigh into his hold. He’s so much bigger than me that it truly feels like a hug from Bennett garners me all the protection that Ineed.

When I pull away a few inches, I look up at him and he smiles down at me. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being there for me. You’ve always checked in on me throughout the years and now that I’ve moved here, you’re watching over me even though you don’t have to. I appreciate you, Bennett.”

He softly smiles. “I appreciate you, too, Bower.”

I return his smile and then pull away, looping my arm through his again.