by Tara Sue Me
I’m not able to find anything recent, however, so I filter the results to only show items from the last year. Even then, almost everything references back to the past. Finally, on the bottom of the fourth page, from a website I’ve never heard of, is a “Where Are They Now” article that gives him three paragraphs of text.
I’m floored by what I read. He currently lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains where he has built and oversees a year round camp dedicated to improving the lives of underprivileged children. I wonder if Elliott knows this, but of course he does, as the article states Tate is still in contact with numerous sports programs and also alludes that the camp is an organization that many of those programs support with donations.
In fact, didn’t Elliott say that I had met Tate at one of the charity balls I went with him to or did he only say ‘an event’? And why the hell do I not remember this at all?
Without thinking about it too much, I send Elliott a text.
Did I meet Tate at a charity ball?
His reply is quick.
IDK, he just said an event.
That doesn’t help me at all.
Why don’t I remember?
Maybe you were drunk.
I rarely get drunk.
It’s the truth and he knows it. Our high school senior trip had been to the Bahamas and the drinking age was eighteen. We partook a bit too freely and later on we were both too sick to enjoy most of the trip.
My guess is you didn’t recognize him when introduced as Tate.
I stare at his text for a long time, thinking back to the last few black ties I went to with Elliott and searching my brain for when I possibly met Tate. Unfortunately, I come up with nothing.
I text Elliott back.
I guess you’re right. Makes me feel bad.
His reply is almost instant.
Don’t worry about it. I didn’t remember it either.
I send him a heart, knowing that even if he did, he would say he didn’t so I wouldn’t feel bad.
I’m not expecting a response, so when my phone buzzes a minute later, I look at it in shock. But after reading what he sent, I laugh.
You’re welcome, by the way. Also, I expect an equally as awesome date. :P
I have to admit, he’s raised the bar considerably. Before discovering who he selected for me, I had planned on a woman from my yoga class, but now I’m not sure. She’s nice and attractive, but she is nowhere near as great of a date as Tate is. I could probably work myself into a panic if I think about it enough. After all, the entire date thing was my idea and I did tell Elliott that I know him better than he knows himself. Because of that, I have to ensure the partner I pick for him blows his mind.
I text him back.
Just you wait…
He doesn't answer back and after waiting a few minutes, I start scrolling through the contacts on my phone. Come hell or high water, I will find him the date to end all dates.
Ten minutes later, I admit she is not going to be found in my phone. Undeterred, I begin to look over my email lists. She's in here somewhere. She has to be. And I won't stop until either I find her or she finds me.
Someone knocks on my office door before I get too involved in my search. It's a good thing and even, though I'm irritated, I need to put it away until after work. Reluctantly, I close my email and tell whoever is at the door to come in.
It's my boss, Meredith, but she’s not alone. With her is a stunningly beautiful woman. She’s tall with gorgeous red hair that is so fiery there's no way it's a bottle job. Her eyes are green and when she smiles, they light up her entire face.
“Darcy,” Meredith says. “This is Kara Devine. She’s going to be our spokeswoman for the new Asia-Pac sites. I thought since you’d been there recently, you could give her some inside information.”
Normally, this is not my favorite thing to do. I have too much other stuff to get through. Meredith knows this and as she’s been speaking, her eyes have been pleading with me.
I surprise her by saying, “Sure.” I turn to Kara. “Do you have time now?”
Kara takes a backward glance at Meredith, who is obviously still shell-shocked that I didn’t argue. “Of course,” she says. “I’ll be in my office when you finish,” she tells Kara.
Meredith hurries out my door as if expecting me to call her back and tell her I’ve changed my mind. I don’t, of course.
Instead what I do is wait until she closes the door and then turn to Kara. “So,” I say to her. “Do you like lacrosse?”
Chapter Six: Elliott
“Date someone because you already see a future, not because you want to see if you would work out.” Sarah Moores
A week after I set Darcy up with Tate, she calls me with the name of the woman she’s selected for me. Kara Devine. Darcy says she’s a local actress who is doing some marketing and promo for the hotel chain. She admits Kara isn’t the woman she originally selected for me, but that she recently met Kara and after talking with her for the last week, she believes we’ll be perfect together.
She’s wrong, but I don’t correct her. Let her think what she wants. Technically, I suppose, Kara could be my soulmate. There’s also a chance little purple men will invade Atlanta, which I think is far more likely, but you don’t see me preparing for battle.
Darcy tells me to call Kara today and confirm the date. For some reason, Darcy has in her mind that our dates should occur on the same day. I don’t see the point, but I’ll do it because it’ll make Darcy happy.
Before I make the call to Kara, I do a search of her name online and I'm pleasantly surprised by what I find. It's not that I thought Darcy would lie, it's just that sometimes she stretches the truth. The way she kept going on and on about how gorgeous Kara is actually had me thinking she was the exact opposite.
I'm typically not a big fan of red hair, but as I look at the pictures of Kara online, I realize it's probably because I've never gone out with a natural redhead before. Kara’s eyes are also captivating. A deep green that pulls your attention. Granted, there is no way she will ever take the place of Darcy either in my life or my fantasies. But to hang around with? It might actually be fun to go on more than one date with a woman.
I'm actually feeling a little excited as I punch her number into my phone.
Later, I’m meeting Darcy for dinner. It's the first time we've been able to get together since she proposed this plan. As per always, she's beaten me to the restaurant and is practically jumping up and down in the booth when she sees me. It's a casual bistro so no one bats an eye when she waves me over to sit with her.
“Elliott!” She calls and I can't help it. It's like whenever I'm around her I can't stop smiling.
“Hey, Darc.” I lean over and kiss her cheek before sliding in across from her. I can’t remember when I started kissing her, but now I never leave without brushing my lips across the smooth skin of her cheek. I’m not sure it’s body wash, shampoo, or something else. Likewise, I have no idea what the scent is, but it reminds me the summers we spent together as children.
“Kara said you called her,” she says by way of greeting.
“Did you doubt me when I said I would?” I arch an eyebrow at her.
“No. I just didn’t think you’d do it that quickly.”
I decide not to go down that road any further. I hadn’t planned to call her so quickly. For some completely illogical reason it felt like the whole deal wouldn’t be real until I called Kara.
“She seems really nice,” I tell Darcy, hoping that will steer her away from why I called her so quickly.
Because Darcy doesn’t need to know how ready I am to get this whole thing over and done with.
Chapter Seven: Darcy
“Love is when the other person’s happiness is more important than your own.” H. Jackson Brown, Jr
Tate is early to pick me up for our date and that, of course, endears him to me even more. Namely, because I’m always early no matter where I’m going, but also because in this case, I’ve been read
y for half an hour.
He isn’t able to hide his surprise when he sees I’m ready. “I’m usually not this early,” he says as I try to usher him inside, but he doesn’t take a step forward. Seeing my confusion, he hastens to add, “I have a few things I need to get out of my car. If you don’t mind.”
“Why would I mind?” I ask.
“You’d be surprised,” is all he says before he turns around and heads back to his car.
“You’re probably right,” I say because I’m always shocked by people. Especially, the way they can treat other people. Elliott says it’s because I’m too nice and always try to find the good in a situation or person.
My reply obviously isn’t the one Tate was expecting either. He glances over his shoulder and gives me a grin that steals my breath and suddenly I remember the function we were both at. It was the Holiday Charity Ball two years ago and Tate wasn’t a guest. He was working the buffet line with who I now know were some of the older kids he works with.
I’m shocked and humbled by that fact. Not to mention, a bit embarrassed. My fingers itch to call Elliott and tell him, but his date with Kara started over an hour ago.
“Anything I can help you with?” I manage to ask Tate, pushing everything else out of my mind for now.
“Sure,” he says, and I walk with him toward his car, but follow a few steps behind so I can take a good look at him. He still matches my definition of the Golden Son with his sun kissed, tousled hair and blue eyes. It’s his demeanor that has changed the most. There’s a settled calmness about him that indicates he is at peace with himself, the world, and his place in it. It’s not something I see very often and it’s definitely a turn on.
We make it to his car and he unlocks the doors. He opens the back one, revealing piles of grocery bags. So many.
“Are you planning to feed an army?” I tease.
“Something like that.” He hands me a few bags and I’m surprised at how light they are. I peek inside and all I see are loaves of bread.
“Are you sure you’re okay with me bringing all of this inside?” he asks again.
“I don’t mind at all,” I tell him. “In fact, you might win the award for Most Intriguing Way to Start a First Date Ever.”
He laughs at that and follows me inside. I live in a two bedroom townhouse. It’s really too much space for me since I live by myself and travel so frequently. But I love it. It’s the first place I ever bought and it was ridiculously cheap when I found it because the previous owners had to sell quickly due to an unexpected relocation. I could sell it and make a nice profit, but I can’t talk myself into it.
Tate follows me into the kitchen. I’m very curious about what he has in the bags he’s carrying and why in the world he’s bought so much bread. He places his bags on the island. We’ve talked several times over the last few weeks, on the phone and via text, but he’s never given a hint about what he has planned for tonight. The only thing he would tell me is that I should dress casual for the first part.
I’ve never been on a date with parts and I can’t lie about how excited I am. Tate is dressed similarly to me, wearing jeans and a teeshirt. He looks right at home in my kitchen, unpacking the grocery bags he brought. He takes out a few jars of peanut butter and a few more of jelly, and finally a box of disposable sandwich bags.
“It’s not a very common first date activity,” he says. “But I know from talking with you that you hold many of the same values and beliefs I do. So I thought we should make and deliver peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to the homeless downtown. Are you good with that?”
It’s like nothing I’ve ever done, first date or not, and it sounds wonderful. One of those things I’ve always think about doing, but never get around to actually doing. Usually, the thought will hit me as I’m walking downtown or somewhere similar. You know, I’m already there and probably on my way to somewhere else or to do something else. Bottom line is, I never think about it when it’s actually a good time to do something, though I’m shamed to admit it.
“I love that idea,” I tell Tate, and tension I hadn’t even noticed him having, leaves his shoulders.
“I'm so glad you're excited about it,” he says. “I was afraid you wouldn’t like the idea, and I’d be stuck with a ton of peanut butter, jelly, and bread. I wouldn’t know what to do with it all.”
“No way.” I wonder about the women he’s been dating if that’s the case. “How could anyone not get excited and not want to do something like this?”
“You’d be surprised about what I’ve heard in the past,” he says. “Remember what I told you outside a few minutes ago, right before I went to get the bags from my car?”
“It seems to me,” I tell him. “That you've been hanging with the wrong crowd.”
“It certainly does seem that way, doesn't it?”
We stand in silence for a few seconds. The late afternoon air humming around us. I’m stuck again by just how perfect he looks and now it appears as if his personality is the same. He watches me so intently, it’s almost as if he’s studying me. I’m fully aware that even on my best days I’m nowhere near the person Tate is.
“What are you thinking?” he asks.
I give him a half smile while I get out a few butter knives so we can start on the sandwiches. “If you must know, I’m thinking two things. One, do you have any flaws? I’ll even take a minor one like you have toothpaste spatters on your bathroom mirror? And two, I’m too much of a bitch to ever consider going out with you.”
He steps toward me and takes a knife from my hand. “One, yes, I have plenty of flaws and the more you’re around me, the more you’ll see them and yes, I do have toothpaste spatters my bathroom mirror. As for your last statement, I don’t believe there is anything bitchy about you, and if it’s okay with you, I’ll be the one to determine who I go out with and for tonight it’s you.”
I’m speechless. There are absolutely no words in my brain to even try to think of a response to him. But a quick glance to the island shows he’s not waiting for one. He’s already setting up an assembly line so we can start on the sandwiches.
“How about if I get the bread out and spread the peanut butter and you take care of the jelly and putting them in a bag. Then when we go through all the bread, together we make sure the bags are sealed and pack them all into the grocery bags?”
I nod, still believing I’m not a nice enough person for him. But he looks pretty set on going through with this date. The way I see it, he’s been warned. However, at the moment, I don’t feel bitchy at all. I’m both happy and excited to see how this date goes.
I get into my position near the jelly and bags. “Hurry up with the bread and peanut butter up there,” I tease. “We don’t have all night, you know.”
He laughs. “Don’t rush me. There’s an art to spreading this stuff. You don’t want an incorrectly spread peanut butter on your conscience, do you?”
I hold my hand up to my throat as if that’s the most shocking thing I’ve ever heard. “Heavens, no. Whatever would we do then? What would the neighbors say? What if the peanut butter company found out? Why they might prohibit us from ever buying peanut butter again and then what would happen?”
With all seriousness, Tate looks at me and replies, “Then there would be no way for us to make PB&Js. We’d have to only make Js and no one knows what those are.”
I shake my head and match my tone of voice to his. “We definitely can’t have that. Forget what I said earlier, take as long as you need on the peanut butter.”
He laughs and I feel better about tonight. He grabs a few slices of bread and my phone rings as I’m waiting for him to pass me the first sandwich. I glance at the display and frown.
Tate waves at me. “Go on and answer it,” he says, catching my expression. “I’ve got this.”
“It’s okay.” I turn the phone off and slide it into my pocket. “It’s Elliott, but he’s out with a friend of mine. Probably a butt dial.”
“Are you s
ure you don’t need to talk to him, just in case?”
There’s no way I’m talking to Elliott now because I’d blurt out how we met Tate before and that wouldn’t be the best thing to do with Tate standing three feet from me.
“I’m positive. Let’s make some sandwiches.”
Chapter Eight: Elliott
“You never run out of things that can go wrong.” Edward A. Murphy
My call rolls over to Darcy’s voicemail, and I hang up with a curse. Tate Fucking Maddox. A look at my watch tells me that her date with the man has started. Just like mine was supposed to, almost an hour and half ago. I'm not sure what the problem is, I’ve already placed several phone calls to Kara. But none of them have been answered. I can’t believe she’s going to be a no-show, especially after all the things Darcy has said about her. But it appears as if for once that Darcy is wrong.
I have to admit, I'm surprised. I never heard any sort of hesitation on the phone with Kara. In fact, she’s always seemed very happy about the things I have planned to do today. Another look at my watch tells me that there’s no way we could be on time for kickoff, even if we were to leave right now.
I wonder absentmindedly, if this why she didn't want me to pick her up at her house and why she insisted on meeting here, at the food court of a local mall. I dial Darcy’s number again. If she’s ignoring me, maybe if I call enough she’ll have pity on me.
I feel like an idiot and pretty sure I look like one as well. For the life of me, I’m not sure why I’m still waiting here when my date is over an hour late. On second thought, yes I do. As soon as I leave, I’ll be admitting I got stood up.
Fucking hell. I slip my sunglasses on and head to the door. Before I can reach it, it opens and a stunning redhead enters. She glances around, obviously looking for someone. Her gaze lands on me and her face lights up. I must have ‘Fuck Off’ stamped on my forehead, because her expression dims just as quickly.