Jennie
Smoothing down the maroon colored blouse I'd decided on, my eyes shifted to the window again. I was already nervous enough about my first date in eight years, but the fact that someone would be driving my child around was what was making my heart really pound.
Mentally cataloging, I made sure I had everything I'd need in this stripped-down diaper bag. Lily's car seat was on the floor next to us, ready to be put in Lisa's car as soon as she showed up. She'd insisted on driving, something I was having a hard time letting go of control for.
I was showing up to this date with literal baggage. I let out a quick laugh, thinking that if she could handle that, then the woman must be too good to be true.
"Mommy, where we go?" Lily danced around the lobby of our apartment building, jigging to some imaginary music in her head.
"We're going on a little adventure with a friend." I stared out the glass front doors again.
"Yeah, but where?" Her questions never stopped these days.
"You'll see when we get there." I couldn't very well tell her that I wasn't sure myself, because this would only attract more attention and questions.
My palms were sweaty, and I examined my white jeans and simple white Keds. I'd gone cute and casual for the date, but was a little daring with my white before Memorial Day. My long dark hair was down, blown dry thanks to a few minutes of Sesame Street distracting Lily. And I was panicking. At least I had a buffer in my daughter, and an excuse if the "date" got weird or I just wasn't feeling it.
Part of the reason I was a little schitzy was because before now, I guess I hadn't allowed myself to really appreciate how attractive Lisa was. Sure, I'd had a few fleeting images of her since we'd met, or I guess seen each other again, outside of the monuments. She had that classic movie star look, like Mila Kunis or Jessica Alba. Pure American female, the brown hair dusted with gold, and a dimple to boot. I hadn't seen her standing outside of her truck yet, but from what I'd seen, I wasn't going to be disappointed.
"Park! I want to go see ducks!" Lily grabbed onto my leg, pulling at my shirt.
Back in Seattle, I would take her to the park almost every Saturday to throw little bread crumbs at the ducks in the pond. It was the first time she'd asked me since we'd moved, and I guess I now had to find a similar park somewhere close to us.
"Hey." A female voice and the glinting of the sun off glass as the lobby doors open attracted my attention.
Damnnnnn. Would it be inappropriate for me to whistle?
Lisa strolled across the lobby on long, jean clad legs. Her hair was brushed back but still a little wild, a grin covered her full lips, the dimple popping out and making my stomach drop.
This woman looked like one of those supermodels for Celine Bvlgari, but all grown up. Like at any moment, you could pop her on a beach on Nantucket with a classic pigskin football in her hands and she would look totally natural. If DK was anything to go by, Lisa was completely opposite of my type. It was odd that this woman, who I embarrassingly did not remember from college, was doing something for me.
"Hi, Lisa." I smiled back, genuinely happy to be doing something different this Saturday.
"Ice cream!" Lily ran to her, holding out her hands like Lisa was going to provide her with a loaded cone from her back pocket.
She chuckled, bending down to Lily's level. "Hey, Lily, good to see you. I don't have any ice cream today, but maybe we'll get you something later." She looked up at me, green eyes taking in my entire body. "If it's okay with your mom, of course."
My daughter doesn't even look at me. "It's okay, promise."
I roll my eyes as Lisa stands. "You can see who the boss is around here."
"I'll be sure to remember that. It's good to see you, you look really nice." She leaned in, her lips meeting my cheek for the briefest of seconds, sending tingles across my skin.
The move was a statement; while my daughter might be accompanying us, this was definitely a date. My heart rate kicked up.
A tiny hand reached out from below and latched onto Lisa's. Looking down, Lily had already claimed Lisa as her own. "We go now?" She looked up at Lisa with her big brown eyes, and I swear I saw the minute Lisa fell under her spell.
I hiked the bag on my shoulder up and bent to retrieve her car seat, but it was lifted before I could pull it up.
"I got it. Need me to take that too?" She held the car seat like it weighed nothing, while Lily gripped her other hand.
Jeez. My ovaries may have swooned. "I've got it. So where are we going?"
We walk to her car, a smaller black SUV, and she fishes out her keys to unlock it.
"Who's more impatient, you or your daughter?" She smirks, her dimple mesmerizing me.
She was teasing me, and I liked it. It felt better that she wasn't trying to yes me to death, or act like an overly-smooth gentlewoman. I smiled to myself as I put Lily's car seat in the back, strapping it in well.
"I sit up front." Lily crossed her little arms across her chest and gave that pouty lip that made me want to scream and kiss her at the same time.
"Maybe in a year or two, big girl. But for now, why don't you help me navigate from the back seat? I need someone to help me look out the windows."
Lisa seamlessly pacified her, and Lily climbed up and into her seat with her help. Amazed, I silently buckled myself into the passenger seat, noting how clean her car was.
"Did you get your car cleaned for today?" I had my suspicions, and it just popped out.
As she slid her seatbelt across her broad torso, she paused. "Is it that obvious?"
I titled my head and smiled. "It smells like that nice wash the professional carwash uses, and there are no crumbs in your cup holders. I should probably never have you in my car."
Lisa kept her eyes on the road, but I could feel the proximity now of my body to hers. Lily hummed in the back, occupying herself like she sometimes did.
"So how was your week?" She breaks the silence.
I sigh, resting into the seat because I'm glad it's the weekend. "Busy, but productive. I'm getting up and running at work, trying to settle us both. It's been an adjustment, but it's nice to be home."
I couldn't remember what she studied at Madison, and I hoped she didn't know more about me than I knew about her going into this. Honestly, I couldn't even remember her from back then, which showed how much attention I must have been paying to overlook a girl like Lisa.
"And what is it that you do? Sorry, I can't remember what you were studying. Not that I knew or anything … we barely said hi in college. I wasn't some creep."
That made me laugh, because maybe we were thinking the same things. "Good to know. I work for the National Parks Departments as a … coordinator of sorts. I'm the contact in the national office for every park ranger around the country."
Lisa weaves us through traffic as she raises an eyebrow. "Impressive. Is that what you went to school for?"
It was nice to have someone genuinely asking about what I did. It wasn't often that I got to talk about my career, something that I was, in fact, very proud of.
"Actually no, not at all. I went to become a teacher and kind of … ended up working for a national park out in Seattle after school." I didn't know if I should disclose anything about DK, or the relationship I'd had with Lily's father.
Was that too heavy for a first date? Then again, I had brought my three-year-old so, clearly, she knew I wasn't a snow white virgin.
"That's cool, and now you're big time, huh? I bet you're awesome." She smiled, casting a quick glance on me. "I didn't know you grew up in the area."
We take a turn off the highway onto familiar territory, and I try to guess in my head where she might be taking us. "Yep, went to high school just outside near my mom's house in Virginia. How about you, was Madison close to home?"
Lisa's hands grip the steering wheel, her fingers flexing and controlling the car with ease. "No, actually, I'm from upstate New York. Buffalo area, wing capital of the world."
Her wink has me laughing, and Lily laughs from the backseat too just to mimic me. "So you've always been focused on food then, huh?"
"Truthfully, I went to college for business. Which I guess is good, since I started one. But my family is all still up there, running the largest chain of car dealerships in the region. It just wasn't for me."
Her voice is tinged with something, but I leave it alone. Maybe I'm not the only one with baggage in this vehicle.
"President!" Lily shrieks, pointing to a big white building that is most definitely not The White House.
I can't help the laugh that bubbles forth. "Ever since I told her we'd be moving back, she is obsessed that we live in the same town as the president. Not that I think she even knows half of what the president does or even who he is, but it's a selling point so I'll take it."
"Lily, are you going to be president someday?" Lisa yells to the back.
She claps her hands, her sweet baby noises still melting my heart. "Yes!"
"Believe me, she can do anything she sets her mind to. Like clogging the toilet with a baby doll, painting the rug in spaghetti sauce. She's really very talented." I reach my hand around the seat and tickle her legs, her loud belly laugh filling the car.
"It takes real talent." Lisa nods soberly and pulls the car into a parking lot.
Looking up, my lips spread wide in jubilee. "You didn't."
"I did. One of the funnest places on earth, not to mention DC Come on, let's go."
Peering up at the building, I can't wait to get inside. I know Lily is just going to love the Smithsonian National Zoo.
Lisa
The zoo had been a brilliant idea on my part, if I did say so myself.
Lots of meandering time to talk, cute animals to occupy the silent spaces, kid friendly, and great snacks along the way. All around, I'd planned a kickass date. And with my connections and some strings I'd greased and pulled, I'd gotten us up close and personal with the penguins, an activity that Lily had loved.
I wanted to impress Jennie, but I also wanted to knock her socks off by how well I was treating her daughter. Not that my intentions were insincere; Lily was truly cute and fun to be around, and her comments made me laugh my ass off. I don't think I'd ever gone out with a woman who had a child, much less taken one on a date with kid in tow. I'll admit I'd been intimidated leading up to it, but all in all, we'd done great.
Well, until Lily had a major hissy fit in the elephant exhibit and all hell broke loose. I'd never seen a little body convulse like that, or a woman act so calm as a child ripped apart at the seams. I'd panicked, trying to calm her and compromise with her until Jennie shot me a look that said I'd better shut up or I'd lose my balls.
So I shut up and stood against the wall as Jennie stood by, her arms crossed over her perky chest, quietly speaking to Lily as she wailed and whined. After a while, she'd picked her up, asked me to lead us to the car, and we hadn't said a word since.
The sun was just setting over the buildings as I pulled up in front of their high-rise, and my nerves were still unsettled. What I'd witnessed was real life shit, and I was just a bachelorette looking to take a pretty woman on a date. It was a gutless move, but I stayed quiet, knowing that I wasn't this girl's parent and honestly, I didn't really want to be.
I helped Jennie remove her things from my car, a relieved breath moving out of my chest as the realness moved out of my universe.
"Thank you for a fun day, I'm sorry about the ending." Her big, chocolate eyes regarded me apologetically as she held a sleeping Lily in her arms.
I shifted uncomfortably, not sure how to say goodbye. This was awkward, and nowhere near how I hoped we'd be ending the night. Our conversation, banter really, had been great during the trip to the zoo. I learned more about her, she learned about me. By all accounts, it should have been a success. But … here we were.
"Yeah," I rubbed the back of my neck. "Hopefully she'll be okay."
"Oh, she'll be fine." Jennie gave a small smile, and I think she felt the vibe that I couldn't handle this.
I felt like an asshole. Shooting out a hand, I weirdly rubbed her shoulder. "Well, have a good night."
Her head tilted and a strange expression came across her face before she turned and walked inside the glass doors.
Fuck me, I rubbed her shoulder. Who was I? Clearly all game had gone out the window due to a child's tears. I really was a prick.
I pushed open the door next to my apartment, and walked in, groaning as I saw that the Nationals were losing.
"Get off your knees ref, you're blowing the game!" Bambam shouted at the TV, a beer bottle in a hand appearing over the top of the leather couch.
The door slams shut behind me as I reach his fridge, grabbing a much-needed beer of my own. I grimace as I uncap it and take a swallow, my palette annoyed at the shitty suds of Bud Light sliding down my throat.
"You need better taste in beer." I sink down onto the leather lounger opposite the couch, and kick my brown Steve Madden slides off.
"You didn't seem to mind that shit when I was buying it for you senior year of college, ya cheap ass." Bambam doesn't even look over at me, his blond hair that usually hangs down past his shoulders was up in a ponytail.
"Yeah, well, I'll take anything tonight." I fisted a hand in my hair, sighing at the utter disaster that ended up being my date.
"Went that well, huh?" Finally, my best friend directs his eyes to me. And then sticks his hand down his gym shorts and scratches his balls.
"Nice, man, thanks for that. You're no better than a mangy dog."
"Is that why you kicked me out of the house?" He gave me his best puppy dog eyes.
I'd met Bambam my sophomore year of college, and we'd had that instant kind of friendship that hadn't waned or changed over the years. After school, we'd both stayed in the area, opting to get an apartment together. Now, it was my apartment. Once we'd hit thirty, we both agreed it was too weird and we made too much money not to have our own places. So Bambam moved into the one bedroom right next door, and things basically hadn't changed. Except now, I didn't have to put my headphones on when he was getting laid, and he didn't have to bitch at me about doing the dishes.
"I kicked you out because I thought having a bachelorette pad would be cool, mostly. Now I barely use it to bring women home." I was sulking.
"So things with the single mom didn't pan out?" The smirk on his face was a little told-you-so backhand.
"Don't look so smug. It was going great … until her kid had a meltdown in the middle of an exhibit. I freaked, I don't know the first thing to do when it comes to children. She looked at me like I was such a major disappointment."
The sourness of Jennie's one eighty was still bitter in my mouth.
"Man, I told you not to go there. So she had a nice ass in college … doesn't mean you know a thing about her now. Usually I'm charming a woman and asking her where she hopes to travel throughout the world … not what color grapes her daughter likes. You were in way over your head, bud."
Maybe he was right. But it still sucked. "I guess you're right."
We drank our beer in silence for a while, and I tried to push past the failed attempt to take Jennie out. The Nationals scored a run, and Bambam clapped his hands.
"Oh well, it's over now. What should we do tonight?" I did not feel like going back to my apartment and thinking about how worthless I'd been.
Or why it was bugging me so much. It was one stupid date.
"I don't know … McFlannery's?" Bambam shifted his eyes to me, raising a brow.
Our usual bar, just a block over, did not interest me tonight. "How about Jefferson Spy?"
We didn't normally frequent the showier nightclubs in the city, but I was feeling agitated. I needed to break out of my own head when I was this frustrated.
"The last time we went to the Spy, I brought home the freakiest chick, with one of the biggest bushes I've ever seen. Actually, it was kind of a turn on." Bambam tipped his beer back, finishing it.
"Dude, TMI."
"You know, I'm not really a man who requires grooming, or no grooming for that matter. I like 'em smooth, hairy, even with a little landing strip. I don't understand guys who discriminate. A woman is a woman, and I'd like to try all flavors."
He was babbling now, as my friend liked to do. Once he started, there usually was no shutting him up. But I had a short fuse tonight.
"So let's go out and I'll find you whatever type of pubic hair you're feeling tonight. Hell, it could even belong to a man since you sound so interested. Let's just go."
"Testy, are we? Sounds like somebody needs a good blow job."
I shake my head, laughing. "Are you offering?"
"Fuck you, go home." He finally rises off the couch, taking my empty bottle and his own and putting them in his recycling bin.
For a crude guy, Bambam was always obsessively neat. It's why he fit so well in his job at the Environmental Protection Agency.
"Fine, but pick me up in ten. We're going to the Spy."
