One of the Guys (4 page)

           
“Hi,” Kate said, dropping into the
chair across from Lucy. “How are you?”

           
“How are you?” Lucy asked, peering
at Kate. “Where were you last night?”

           
“Me?
 
What do you mean?”

           
“Jackson called me to tell me that he
won poker last night. He also said that you weren’t there. He said that Chris
said that you had a date. So where were you?
 
Who did you go out with?
 
And how
did I not know about it?”
 
Her eyes
narrowed.

           
“I didn’t go out with anybody,” Kate
sighed. “I just said that to Chris. I stayed home and watched a movie.”

           
“What?” Lucy cried. “You mean you
didn’t hang out with the boys for once and you just stayed at home by yourself?
 
You should have come out with me and my
sister!”

           
Kate folded her hands on top of the
menu. “If I tell you something, you have to promise not to think that I’m
crazy.”

           
Lucy’s eyes widened. “What?”

           
“I told Chris that I had a date so
I’d seem more… desirable.”

           
“Desirable?” Lucy repeated.

           
“Desirable.”

           
“What?
 
Why?” Then it dawned on Lucy. “Oh, Kate, shut
up.”

           
“What?”

           
“Please tell me you’re not thinking
of going after Chris.”

           
“Why not?”

           
“What do you mean, why not?
 
I told you the other day, he grosses me out.”

           
“He’s all right. He’s a good guy.”

           
“He’s full of himself.”

           
“He’s a good-
looking
guy!”

           
“He’s a man-whore. Even Jackson said
so.
One of his best friends!”

           
“Hear me out. Yes, he’s kind of a…
player. He dates around a lot. But he’s even said it’s just because he just hasn’t
met the right girl yet.”

           
“Oh, my gravy,” Lucy said, covering
her mouth. “So, I take it that you think that you’re the right girl?”

           
“I haven’t met the right guy. He
hasn’t met the right girl. We get along really well. We have tons in common. We’re
good friends.”
 
Lucy was shaking her head.
“We could be like you and Jackson!” Kate insisted. Lucy giggled. “I’m serious. I
think we’d be a good couple.”

           
Lucy took a deep breath. “I don’t
know what to say.”

           
“Don’t say anything,” Kate warned. “I
just want to see how this goes. And don’t say anything to Jackson, either, because
I don’t want all of the boys to know.”

           
“Don’t say anything to anybody about
Max. Don’t say anything to anybody about Chris. What are you doing?
 
Why are you so worried about dating someone
all of a sudden?”

           
“Because sometimes I feel like I’m
all alone,” Kate admitted. “I deal with these happy people getting married and
planning weddings all day long, and I’m single. I’m getting kind of tired of
being single. My mom calls and the first thing she wants to know if I’ve been
on any dates lately. You’ve got Jackson. I’ve got… nobody.”

           
“This has never bothered you
before,” Lucy said.

           
Kate shrugged. “I know. That’s why I
just want to see what happens with Chris. Who knows?
 
It could be a good thing. Or… nothing could
happen. I don’t know.”

           
Lucy sat back in her chair and
folded her arms across her chest. She smiled at Kate. “You’re crazy.”

           
Kate giggled. “I know.”

           
The waitress came and they ordered
lunch. “Okay. I know you. You probably have this all figured out already. So, what’s
your plan?” Lucy asked.

           
“It dawned on me that Chris and the
guys just think of me as another one of the guys. So first, I’ve got to be…
more girly,” Kate said.

           
“So that’s why you went on a pretend
date last night.
Gotcha.
What else?”

           
“Then I’ve got to flirt with Chris,
I guess,” Kate said. “And get him to see that I’m
not
just one of the boys. And maybe get him alone. Go on a date or
something.”

           
Lucy nodded. “And then?”

           
Kate threw her hands up in the air. “I
don’t know!
 
See where it goes, I guess!”

           
“Okay,” Lucy said. “See where it
goes.”

*

           
Kate sat staring down at the crappy
cards in her hand.
A six and a three, off-suited.
The
flop was two kings and an ace.
 
Her pile
of chips was pretty small and she knew that the game was probably going to come
down to Jackson or Kevin, who had the big stacks at the table. Chris was in the
same boat she was; he wouldn’t be in the game much longer himself.

           
Jackson checked. Chris checked. Max
checked. Kevin bet. Kate folded her hand. She didn’t feel like bluffing. She
watched the rest of the hand, quietly sipping her beer. Jackson called. Chris
called. Max folded.

           
She liked playing, but poker was
kind of boring when you were just sitting there watching everyone else.

The next card
was a ten. Jackson bet. Chris called, putting him all in. Kevin called. They
flipped their cards over. Jackson had three kings. Chris had two pair. Kevin
had a full house, aces over kings. Chris was out of the game; Kevin gathered up
all the chips and slid them towards his pile.

           
Chris left the table, went to the
kitchen, and got a beer. He flopped down on the couch and put his feet up on
the table. He found the TV remote and started flipping through the channels.

           
“Hey, first one out is supposed to
deal, you know!” Jackson called.

           
Chris extended his middle finger in
response and everyone at the table chuckled.

           
Kate turned her attention back to
the game. She had lousy cards again.
A four and a seven.
The flop was a nine, ten, and a jack. Jackson folded right away. Max and Kevin
both bet, and this time she called them, hoping that she’d have an excuse to go
sit with Chris. She was all in, with little chance of winning, unless she
pulled a straight.

           
The next two cards were a seven and
a queen. She ended up with a pair. Kevin beat everyone again with three
tens
. Kate pushed her chips over to Kevin and joined Chris
on the couch.

           
“You’re out already, too?” he asked.

           
“Tried for a
straight.
Kevin won with three of a kind.”

           
“He’s been on a roll tonight,” Chris
said, sipping his beer. He stopped flipping through the channels for a few
minutes to watch Saturday Night Live. “No date tonight?”

           
“Not tonight,” she said.

           
“
Gonna
see
him again?”

           
She paused for a minute. “I don’t
think so. Not my type,” she added.

           
“What
is
your type?” Chris asked.

           
“Hmmm.”
 
Kate pretended to think about this.
“Somebody with a good job.
Nice looking.
Fun
to hang out with.
Likes to goof around.
Gets along with my friends.
Know anybody like that?”

           
Chris chuckled.
“Yeah.”

           
“Who?”

           
He took a sip of beer. “Me.”

           
“You?”

           
Chris looked at her.
“Yeah.
Me.”

           
Kate smirked. “You think I’d go out
with you?” she asked, crossing her fingers that her plan didn’t backfire.

           
“You mean you wouldn’t?” Chris
asked.

           
Kate took a shaky breath. “I don’t
know.”

           
“What do you mean you don’t know?”

           
She took a sip of her beer and
smiled at him. “I don’t know. You haven’t asked.”

           
Chris smiled back. “Would you?”

           
“Would
I
what?” she asked, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.
This is fun!
 
She wasn’t used to being so flirty. She
didn’t have the chance very often.

           
“Would you go
out with me?” Chris asked softly, so that the guys at the poker table wouldn’t
overhear.

           
“
Mmmaybe
,”
she said.
Don’t want to seem too eager. But
holy crap – this is working!

           
“Friday night.
Dinner.
And then maybe we can see if there’s music at the Sand Bar.”

           
Kate chewed on the inside of her
cheek, pretending to mentally check her calendar. “I have a big rehearsal
dinner that should be done around eight.”

           
“Eight-thirty it is. I’ll pick you
up.”
 
Chris gave her a heavy pat on the
knee and then stood up. “You want some pretzels?” he asked.

           
“I’m good,” she said. She leaned
back against the couch, trying to hide the grin that was threatening to break
out across her face.
Holy
crap.
It worked.
A date with Chris.
I can’t believe it!

           
Chris got up and hovered at the table,
eating pretzels out of the bag and watching the game, so Kate grabbed her purse
and pulled out her phone. She sent Lucy a quick text. “Date with Chris on
Friday!!!!!
 
Be home soon!”
 
She stuffed her phone back into her purse
just as Max flopped down on the couch next to her.

           
“Fucking Kevin,” he groaned. “He has
a horseshoe up his ass tonight or something.”

           
“You’re out?”

           
“Yeah.
Are
you heading home soon?” Max asked.

           
“Well, yeah.
Eventually.”

           
“Want some company?”

           
“No.” Kate took a long sip, finishing
her beer.

           
“Come on.”

           
“Not tonight,” she hissed.
“Besides, Lucy’s home.”
 
And besides that, if I’m going to
be going out with Chris, you can’t keep coming over whenever you feel like it,
she
thought. Max pouted and Kate gave him a playful nudge. “You can walk me to my
car, though.”
 
She got up and stretched. “Well,
boys, I think it’s time for me to go,” she announced. She went around the table
and said goodbye. “I’ll bring beer next time,” she said.

           
“You better,” Kevin grinned. “I
think it’s your turn, anyway.”

           
Kate ruffled his curly hair and gave
him a kiss on his temple. “Good night, everybody!” she said. She squeezed
Jackson’s shoulder and gave Chris a fist-bump. He winked at her.

           
Kate was out the door and almost to
the first landing when Max came out behind her. “So, when are we going to hang
out again?” he asked.

           
“We just hung out for three hours
playing cards,” she said. “You miss me already or something?”

           
“Well, yeah,” he said, following her
across the parking lot.

           
“You don’t mean that.”