Total pages in book: 47
Estimated words: 44394 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44394 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 222(@200wpm)___ 178(@250wpm)___ 148(@300wpm)
She did not make a scene. Instead, she blocked him and refused to continue all contact. When he finally did get to her, she simply asked him how his wife was. That was it. She was not a man’s mistress or a home-wrecker.
After that, she decided she had the worst taste in men, and she was going to die alone, possibly with cats. She hated cats and was more of a dog person. However, her busy work made it impossible to own a dog. There was no way she’d leave her dog at home while she went and did her work. Dogs came with families. A family she didn’t have.
“You look amazing,” he said.
She glanced down at herself and nibbled her lip. “It’s not too much?”
“No, you look stunning.” He held his hand. “I didn’t bring my bike. I think the first time you ride my bike, you should be wearing jeans.”
She chuckled. “Yeah, I don’t think this is going to offer me much protection.” She felt nervous. This was not a date. They were two friends going to the same dance. That was all.
Nancy called her earlier and told her to have fun, and there were no hard feelings. Maeve didn’t like that her friend didn’t seem to mind her dancing with her ex. It seemed strange to her.
She took a deep breath, then stepped out of her home, closing and locking the door, and following him to the car.
“How is Charlotte?” she asked. His daughter was the safest topic.
“Enrolled in a beginner makeup course, and currently loving it.”
Maeve smiled. “I’m glad she’s loving it. Don’t worry. I didn’t try to paint a picture or anything. I told her what it was like and that it can be quite intense, and it can be. Trust me, it is a lot to take in.”
“Did you always want to be a makeup artist?” Doc asked.
“Yeah, I did. I used to love watching my mom put her makeup on. By the time I was ten I already had a lot of makeup, and I loved going to the beauty counters when I was a kid, looking at all the pretty lipsticks and eye shadows.” She couldn’t help but feel happy about the memories. “Eden was not one for makeup. She loved computers and they were always her thing.” She shrugged. “It didn’t stop her from letting me play with her face, though.” She wrinkled her nose. “That makes me sound like a serial killer, and I promise you, I’m not. I’m an ordinary person.”
Doc laughed.
“Did you want to be a biker?” she asked.
“You can say I gravitated to the role.”
He didn’t talk about his biking life, and that was fine with her.
She knew they both had different paths.
“So, uh, do you like Valentine’s Day?” She didn’t know the first thing about small talk.
“We don’t have to have this awkward conversation.” He held his hand out toward her, and she climbed into the car.
“I didn’t mean for it to be awkward.”
He laughed. “It’s Valentine’s day, and my ex put us both together.”
“You know, I noticed, does that bother you?”
“It doesn’t. Nancy has a good heart.”
“So, you two are as close as you seem?” Maeve settled into the car as Doc moved around toward the driver’s side and climbed in.
“We’re as close as two exes can be, and we do everything we can for Charlotte. She’s my only daughter. My everything.”
“I heard about your son. I am so sorry for your loss.”
Doc looked at her. “As I am about your parents.”
“Loss sucks.”
“It certainly does.” He turned over the ignition, pulled away from the curb of her house, and took off toward the bar.
“It’s a good night. Nice weather.” She never had a hard time talking to anyone. She was quite happy to talk to anyone and just enjoy their company.
This was different. This was Doc. She had no idea why Nancy would even put the two of them together.
The drive to the bar was not long, and she noticed he did park quite a bit away from the main bar. She imagined that was down to getting out at the end of the night, which made a lot more sense.
Maeve climbed out of his car, and he was there, holding out his hand for her to take, which she did.
“Thank you.”
Doc didn’t move toward the bar, though, he pressed her up against the car.
“This doesn’t have to be awkward between us,” he said.
“It doesn’t?”
“No, forget Nancy and everything else that has put us together. Let’s just have some fun tonight. You and me. Treat it like a date between friends.”
Maeve didn’t know if she was going to be able to forget that he was Nancy’s ex. She tightened her grip on his arm. “Agreed.” But it would be nice to remove this awkwardness.
They walked to the bar, and there was already loud music coming inside. She noticed people moved out of Doc’s way as they made their way toward the bar. It felt somewhat refreshing as they did that.