“In exactly that way. If they wanted more and I couldn’t give it, then I just said so. Sometimes they ended it with me or sometimes I ended it with them.” He shrugs.
“So how many women wanted a ring?” I tease him. He shrugs again and looks a little embarrassed. I get the sense that number is a lot. “Eric, are you a player?” I knock my shoulder against his to let him know that I’m just teasing him.
“What can I say? Women like guys in finance with nice condos.
However, women aren’t so into guys living with their mothers and trying to figure out their next steps.”
“What about guys who own coffeehouses?”
He bobs his head around in a way that says a little yes and a little no. “The jury’s still out.” He smiles at me.
Even though I’m teasing him, given our proximity and my knowledge that I’m completely over Neil, I can finally admit that the jury says I’m guilty as charged—I have a major crush on Eric. Unfortunately, I can divulge this only to myself, not to him. Therefore, I decide to end this discussion about dating and ask him about CrossFit, though this change of subject might sound a little flirtatious too. I’m not sure of much right now, except that I’m having a hard time keeping my hand steady whenever I reach for my glass.
Though he talks a little about his workout, Eric steers the conversation back to what happened at the coffeehouse.
“So no more fiancé and closure on that chapter. What’s next for you, then? Are you ready to start dating again?”
Sitting so close to Eric, I’m pretty sure I’m ready to start dating him. Oh boy, that would be trouble. I imitate his earlier yes/no bob of the head. “One step at a time.” I take a sip of my champagne.
“I can imagine that getting out of a five-year relationship you’d probably want to enjoy being single for a while.”
“I wouldn’t say enjoy is the right word. But I made some mistakes in my past relationship, and I don’t want to repeat them. So, yeah, I think right now I’m open to meeting new people, but I mostly want to focus on myself and getting my consulting business going.”
“Makes sense.”
We have an uncomfortable pause until I turn the conversation to business. “So, hey, I have this new idea.”
We talk a little shop and then talk about ourselves, mostly ribbing each other, and I try to treat him like any guy friend or client. Though I can’t stop admiring Eric’s arms and the way his jeans stretch across his thighs while he’s sitting next to me, and with each passing minute, I’m finding it harder to stay on my side of the booth.
After our drinks, Eric walks me home, even though we live in one of the safest neighborhoods in Chicago, and there are still plenty of people out and about. The closer we get to my place, the more my stomach flutters, and I’m not sure if it’s nerves or anticipation. I can’t help but wonder, Is he going to pull an Alistair move?
When we reach my building, he gives me a hug goodbye and I instinctually and needlessly run my hands over the sides of his shirt taking in his muscles. If I had hugged Jordan this way, she would accuse me of feeling her up. She would not be wrong.
When we pull away, I read Eric’s smile as a smirk. With his hands still resting on my shoulders, he leans in and my heart starts to pound. But he merely kisses me on the cheek and says, “Good night, Allison James.”
I walk into my building alone.
IN THE MORNING, I wake up to the sound of my phone ringing.
I see that it’s Eric and answer with a groggy and confused, “Hello?”
“Hey, I’m downstairs.”
“You’re downstairs?”
“Yeah, for our seven o’clock run. Remember?”
“No, I don’t remember. How much did I drink last night?”
He laughs. “Clearly enough to not remember our running date. But not enough to beg out of it.”
“O-kay,” I answer as my brain frantically tries to understand what’s happening. “Um, I need ten minutes.”
“I’ll be outside.”
I toss off the covers and head straight to the bathroom where I quickly brush my teeth, wash my face, and pull my hair into a ponytail. I likewise throw on my running gear and grab my keys and phone. I also down a large glass of water with an Advil for good measure.
“Good morning, sleepyhead.” Eric is standing outside my building looking bright and chipper and is wearing shorts. Even without my morning coffee, I can appreciate what’s in front of me. “Are you ready? A six-miler through the park and lakefront?”
“Uh, sure.” I’m a little rough the first mile and we take it slow until we hit our running groove in mile two.
It’s nice to run with someone else, and we make small talk noticing things around us. In particular, we run by a group of kids and adults all wearing Girls Run It T-shirts.
“That looks fun,” I comment. “I used to love doing events like that.”
“Maybe you should volunteer?”
“Maybe I should. I’ll check out their website later today.”
We end our run at The Cauldron where I get my usual latte, on the house since I’m “family” now. Brian comments, “Did you guys bump into each other running?”
“Nope. We made plans to run together,” I answer, and Eric suddenly starts laughing. “What?” I ask him.
“Don’t kill me, but we didn’t have plans. I had planned to run this morning and thought I’d see if you were up.”
“What?!” I hit him on the arm. It’s pure muscle. Eric simply laughs again. “What a jerk,” I say to Brian. “Can you believe this guy?”
“Unfortunately, I can.” Brian quips. “I’ll give you an extra shot so you can hit him harder.”
“But now you’ve just run six miles and have a cause to support. Plus, free coffee. You can’t really be mad,” Eric says, putting his hands out in an apologetic sorry-not-sorry gesture.
“True. I probably would’ve slept in, but now I’m full of endorphins and soon caffeine. You win.” I point my finger at his chest menacingly. “This time.”
“Understood.” He claps his hands once. “Okay, so I have to shower and then hit the box later this afternoon. Brian, what’s the news for today?”
I leave Brian and Eric to powwow while I walk home with my latte for my own shower.
THAT NIGHT AS Jordan and I sip our rosé in plastic cups on a picnic blanket at Grant Park while waiting for the movie Never Been Kissed to start, I tell her about my night and this morning with Eric.
Jordan is totally amused. “I’m going to have to stop by this coffeehouse and check out this Eric guy in person. Who does that? And who still likes someone who does that?”
“I know. Right?” But I still like him and Jordan knows it, though she is graciously not pressing the issue. “But because the universe is great and rewarding, while we were running we ran into Girls Run It and today I signed up to volunteer with them.”
“Good for you! That’s totally up your alley.” She clinks her plastic cup with mine. “Ah! It’s so good to get the old Allison back.”
The movie starts, and we settle onto the blanket to watch Drew Barrymore sitting with her crush on the Navy Pier Ferris Wheel under the Chicago night sky, and I let myself pleasantly daydream a little about my own blossoming crush.