Page 31 of Second Time Around

“Thanks,” she said with a smile. Then she took a long sip of the cold, foamy beer. It was still hot outside, which reminded her of Beck dripping sweat earlier. Since when had she found a sweaty man so sexy?

“We haven’t exchanged names,” said the dentist as he sat in the chair beside her.

“Right. I’m Jenna, and you are…”

“Mitch. It’s nice to meet you, Jenna.”

“You too,” she said, holding up her cup in salute. Mitch the dentist. Sounded about right.

“Why’d you abandon your friends? Not that I’m complaining,” he said with a flirtatious grin.

She glanced over and saw that Stacy and Nick were in the pool, but they weren’t swimming. They were leaned against the side, heads bent together, looking lost in their own private world. Kelsey and Hudson were lounging on chairs that they’d pushed together, holding hands. Suddenly she wondered why she’d agreed to come here tonight.

“I’m like a third wheel, only worse. I’m a fifth wheel,” she said.

Mitch laughed. “A fifth wheel is an actual thing.”

She decided she liked Mitch the dentist. Not only did he have Patrick Dempsey hair and a nice smile, he seemed to appreciate her quirky sense of humor.

“I know what you mean, though. A lot of my friends have significant others too.”

“Even them?” she said, tilting her head toward his friends, who were engrossed with their phones and not paying them a bit of attention.

“They’re the exception.”

For the next twenty minutes or so, she and Mitch made small talk and drank beer. They cycled through the usual topics: jobs, hobbies, family, etc., and then the conversation waned. At some point, his friends had hopped into the pool and left them alone.

Based on her experience, this was the pivotal moment where they either parted ways or continued their conversation elsewhere.

“Would you like to take a swim?” Mitch asked.

“Or we could get out of here,” she suggested.

His eyebrows raised, but he nodded enthusiastically.

“Do you live in the apartment complex?”

“No, but my place isn’t far.”

“I’ll follow you there.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll tell my friends and meet you in the parking lot.”

“Sounds good.”

When she rejoined her friends, they bombarded her with questions again, but she could handle these because they weren’t about Beck.

“What’s his name?” Kelsey asked.

“Mitch.”

She pulled on her cover-up and started packing up her beach bag. She considered changing back into her regular clothes before she left but decided not to. With any luck, she wouldn’t need them anyway.

“Are you going home with him?” Stacy asked, a note of disapproval in her voice.

“Yes, Mom,” Jenna said.