“Come with me today?” I hear Wes say as he leans against the doorframe to my bedroom.
He looks different today. A wry smile graces his face while he smiles at me with a peculiar crinkle of his eye. This one look melts my heart and ignites by body because last night was more amazing than I’d ever imagined it would be.
“Where to?” I ask as I place my textbook on the bed and get up because it really doesn’t matter where he says we’re going. Today, I’ll be going with him, no matter what.
“I have my internship, and I’d like to share the experience with you. Plus, it will be fun to introduce you to everyone.”
I smile big, knowing his volunteering means a lot to him so the fact that he wants to bring me along and be involved in his world makes what we did last night even more special.
I slip on my shoes and grab a jacket. “Let’s go.”
He leans in and gives me a quick kiss before turning around and smacking my ass. I laugh, not at his antics, but because he’s still acting like the old Wes.
We take his car because according to him, my vehicle is a death trap.
“Why do you drive that heap of junk?” he asks as we drive to the nursing home.
“I have better things to spend my money on than a fancy new car.” I nod toward the Mustang we’re traveling in.
“It was cheaper than you think and runs a lot cleaner than yours. You know, for a girl who cares about the environment, your car is a rolling pollutant.”
I groan because I know he’s right. “A hybrid is too expensive. Plus, there are incentives to driving my old car. For one, it’s better to keep it moving than for it to take up room in a junkyard. Even if were scrapped for parts, it wouldn’t be completely recycled. If I could figure out how to convert it to a hybrid engine, now, that would be perfect.”
He takes my hand and kisses the top of it. “Maybe I can help with that?”
“Really?” I ask, dumbfounded.
“It could be fun.”
When we arrive at the senior home, he holds the door open for me as we enter. He introduces me to the staff, who all seem surprised to see he brought a girl with him. As he reaches for his name tag, he grabs a blank sticky one and bends down to write Wesley’s Girl across it with a black Sharpie.
As he places it over my right breast, I give him a sideways glance. “I do have a name,” I teasingly remind him.
“I know, but believe me, the women in here are going to love this. I’ve been coming here a long time, and they always tease me about being single. This will make their day. Or break their hearts.” He winks as he turns to lead me down the hall with his hand in mine.
It’s nice to not have to worry about being seen here. Knowing that nothing will ever get back to Chad or our friends adds a freeing feeling to our little excursion for the day.
“Edna, should you be out here without your cane?” he asks of a woman sitting on the couch as we make our way into a living area.
I glance around and enjoy the homey feeling this place radiates. Though residents have their own apartments, there is a common area that resembles a living room more than a nursing home.
In the center of the room is a large television with couches all around in a U-shape. With a decorative wood table in the center, it looks like a great place to either sit and chat or relax and watch TV.
Edna reaches for Wes’s hand. “Nope. I knew you’d be here soon and that you’d be happy to stand in as my guide, so I don’t have to use the silly thing.”
Wes’s face lights up as he helps the woman to her feet. “Edna, I’d like to introduce you to—”
Edna jokingly slaps his arm, cutting him off. “Are you cheating on me, mister, with this beautiful young girl?”
Wes leans in to whisper in her ear, “I totally am, but she didn’t know about you, so now, you really got me in trouble. Don’t you remember? You were always the mistress, so you were supposed to keep us quiet.”
Edna laughs before turning to me. “You got yourself quite the charmer here. Glad to see he’s finally got his head out of his ass.”
“Edna!” Wes fake admonishes. “Language.”
Edna waves him off. “Don’t act like you aren’t saying ten times worse when you’re playing on that team of yours.” She reaches her hand out to me. “It’s nice to meet you, sweetheart.”
“Nice to meet you too. I’m Stacey.” I point to my name tag. “I mean, I do have a real name,” I joke.
“Honey, if I were you, I’d ditch the real name and go with that one from now on,” she states matter-of-factly. “Now, are we playing some Scrabble today?”
Wes glances my direction, and I smile brightly. I’ve always loved the game even though he and my brother used to tease me about playing it, saying only nerds wanted to play a game that involved spelling.
I keep my mouth shut on that part, but Wes doesn’t bother. “I happen to know, Stacey here is a big-time Scrabble player. You might have met your match with this one.”
“Ah.” Edna nods her head like everything makes sense now. “That’s really why she’s here, huh? You’re tired of me winning every time we play.”
Wes lets out a belly laugh. “Come on. Let’s go to the den.”
With Edna on his arm, Wes guides us to a den in the back of the building. The atmosphere is different in here but still welcoming. Where floral couches and bright colors were the theme in the living area, here feels like a distinguished man’s study. On one side of the room, the wall is lined with hundreds of books while the other side has a dark wood wainscoting that gives it a dignified feel.
Filling the room are tables, which match the dark wood of the walls and are covered in cheeseboards, cards, and one for Scrabble.
Wes pulls out a chair for Edna before coming to my side and doing the same for me.
“Such a gentleman,” I say with a smile.
“And don’t ever allow him not to be, you hear me,” Edna says, pointing at me. “A man should always treat a woman with respect, and helping her with her chair or opening a door is always step one.”
“Yes, and step two is never leaving a room without a kiss,” Wes says, and my heart instantly melts.
“See, I’ve taught him well.” Edna smiles proudly as she flips over the Scrabble tiles.
We play some wicked games of Scrabble with Edna kicking our butts every time. I thought I’d have an advantage from the Words with Friends app I play on sometimes, but it is nothing compared to her vast knowledge of the English language and years of playing.
After Scrabble, Wes takes my hand and leads me down to a small room at the end of a hallway, where we enter a man’s room.
“Ron, I’d like for you to meet Stacey,” Wes says, surprising me by saying my real name and not joking about my name tag.
Ron turns his head in our direction with the same surprised expression written across it. “Stacey? You mean, Chad’s little sister, Stacey?”
Wes glances my direction while running his fingers through mine and holding my hand. “This is her.”
“Well, I’ll be damned.” Ron stands up to come greet me. “I’ve heard a lot about you, little lady.”
We shake hands as I look at Wes in question. “You have?”