Page 94 of C*cky Best Friend
She smiles, “Thank you, that looks delicious.”
I snort back laughter. He places my Irish whiskey down without a word. I cut a look up to his face for any sign of amusement. The guy is a robot.
“Thanks.”
We lift our glasses as he walks away, clinking them together with our grins fading.
“I might want some time,” she says.
“To patience.” We sip and I enjoy the smooth burn with honey undertones. “What is Hunter up to?”
“Your guess is as good as mine!” She rolls her beautiful, brown eyes. “We have yet to learn where he lives, who he dates, or what he does for a living.”
“Try to find out?”
“No. We kind of like the mystery now.” Looking for our waiter like she wants to order food soon, Sam adds, “Caden teased him that he was going to ask Sofia to do some digging. You should’ve seen Hunter’s face. Probably the first time we ever witnessed him afraid. He got pretty angry, told Caden that if he did that he would never talk to him again. Where is our server?”
“What did Caden do?”
Locking eyes with me, she says, “He shrugged it off. Told Hunter he was just fucking around. But it did cause a lot more curiosity. Mom and Dad trust him. They say he just likes his privacy and he’s always been like that. It’s true, but what do you think?”
I motion to our server that we would like the joy of his company again. “A grown man deserves his privacy if he wants it. But I also want to know what the fuck he’s up to. Hi, we’d like to order. I’ll have the fried chicken with a side of French fries. My gorgeous date will have charbroiled salmon with baby broccoli instead of spinach, if you have it.”
“We do.”
The guy and I stare at each other a second before I finally say, “Cool.”
He winks, turns on his heel, and leaves.
I mouth to Sam, “What was that?”
“Guess he has a sense of humor after all!” Her smile becomes intimate as she gazes at me. “I can’t believe you’re in Atlanta.”
“I came here for you.”
“Are you going to miss it all?”
Reaching for her hand I say, “It’s good to be home.”
“But there’re so many things to see in the world.”
“I’ve seen a lot of them. I’d rather be looking at you.” I lean back and sip my whiskey. “It was fun, really exciting. But from the first rehearsal in New York when I met your replacement, something went hollow inside of me. I know I just got here yesterday, but that feeling is gone. Moving from city to city is a hard life. You have no roots. Holidays are spent away from the ones you love.” I pause and hold her look until she smiles. “The cast becomes even more like family than it does on a short run here. But your family gets fired and replaced in theater, unlike real life. One day we’re all running around with Elliott—became really close with the guy—and then suddenly he’s sent back to the states. Never saw him again. It makes you close up.” I’m staring at her and it hits me again how much I love this woman. “Did I tell you how I quit?”
She bites her bottom lip on a smile and shakes her head. “Tell me everything.”
I launch in and make her glow with happiness as she hears that I announced it to everyone why I couldn’t take the promotion. That she was my reason for giving it all up. Every detail gets shared with my best friend, but this time we’re face-to-face, and the clock isn’t ticking.
No one is waiting for us to get off the phone. Ever again.