Page 46 of Not How I Saw That Going

I lean across the counter to address the teenager working the register. “I’ll get a Happy Meal and a small ice cream cone.”

He sniffs and pushes his glasses up his nose. “The machine isn’t working.”

I barely refrain from rolling my eyes. Of course it isn’t. I think it’s been broken since I was a child.

Lyndi orders a Big Mac and fries. I order a double. I’m not sure if the meat here is real or not, but I’ll need all the protein I can get to make up for the saturated fats.

The playroom is bright and full of rambunctious kids having the time of their lives. Crew plops down on the floor to take off his shoes, his tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth as he concentrates. It’s adorable.

Lyndi finds the closest table to the play center and angles her chair so she can watch Crew. Despite my question from earlier, this definitely feels like a date.

I’m not sure what to do with my hands. I’ve never been nervous with a woman before. I’ve also never found the woman I’m with so intriguing and beautiful. The way her dark eyelashes keep flitting as she keeps track of Crew is mesmerizing. From this angle, I can count each of the freckles across her cheeks and nose. Thirteen, fourteen—

“Are you okay?” Lyndi asks.

My neck heats up, and I blink. Checking Lyndi out is not appropriate friend behavior. “What?”

“You’re killing your water cup.”

I glance down at my hands and the cup that’s now half empty. When did I pick that up?

I ease the cup to the table and wipe up the water, then hide my hands in my lap where they won’t betray me.

“So.” She adjusts in her seat and studies me. She’s all confidence while I’m making a fool of myself. “What do you like to do?”

“Besides killing water cups?”

She rewards me with a smile, one that reveals a tiny freckle in the middle of her upper lip. How did I miss that one? “Yes, besides that.”

I have to look away to answer. “Well, I like astronomy.” That’s a vague enough answer.

She nods like it’s acceptable, then pulls out a napkin and starts ripping it to shreds.

Is it possible she’s nervous too?

“What about you? What do you like to do?” I say, finding myself crossing the threshold separating Lyndi from just another woman in the world to a woman I might like to get to know better.

She rips another piece of napkin. “Oh you know, binge-watch reality tv and eat carbs.”

So she’s not a gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free vegan like Sophie.Score for Lyndi.

Wait, no. This isn’t a competition. I’m not dating either woman. Nor do I want to. I study the specks on the table while mentally removing my thoughts to safer topics.

Our food is delivered, and we eat in silence for a few minutes. Crew grabs a french fry and returns to the slides. He comes back again and again, pecking at his food like a bird, but never staying for more than a bite or two.

“Since we are friends, eating together, we should get to know a little bit about each other,” Lyndi says.

Does she really mean that?

No one wants to know more about me. My dates never turn into second dates, and not just because of my choice to stay away from relationships. Women don’t like gruff types like me.

Despite my better judgment, I want to ask Lyndi everything. From her favorite color to the reason she’s no longer with Crew’s dad. Not so I can develop feelings for her. I simply want to understand her.

“Okay,” I agree.

“I’ll tell you ten things about me, then you tell me ten things about you. Let’s see…” She scrunches up her nose, like Crew did earlier. It’s just as cute on her.

She pauses to look for Crew, and I do the same.