Married This Year

by Tracey Pedersen

  “Yes. It’s closer to the athletics track here, and pays better money, too. Here’s your nachos, would you like anything else?”

  “No, thanks,” Luke answered for her. She could tell by the glint in his eye and the twitch of his lips that he knew exactly who Geoffrey was. “Actually, do you have any red sauce?” he asked.

  “Which one are you after, sir?”

  “You know, the red one.” Jordan was dying to giggle, but she didn’t dare.

  “The hot sauce? Like some chilli, or Tabasco?”

  “Either of those will do, as long as it’s red.” He left with a frown, and Jordan kicked Luke under the table.

  “Stop it. He’ll work out that I told you he was wearing all red that day!”

  “Hmm… I don’t think so, Jordan. He doesn’t seem quite bright enough for that.”

  Tabasco sauce was deposited wordlessly on their table, and Geoffrey moved away to serve another customer. The nachos was hot, and there was a lot of it as they crunched their way through the meal.

  “So, three of your potential suitors have been here within the space of an hour. Four, if you count me.”

  “We’re not counting you.”

  “Okay, three, then. No, wait, it’s four.”

  “I said you couldn’t count yourself.”

  “I’m not,” he said with a grin as he nodded over her shoulder at someone who’d entered the bar.

  She closed her eyes, worried about who it could be.

  Please don’t let it be Richard!

  Fish leaned across the table and shook Luke’s hand. “Hey, I know you from the club, don’t I?”

  “Jordan.” He smiled down at her. “Nice to see you again.”

  “You too, Fish. What are you doing here?”

  “I’m going for a job interview. The hotel wants a DJ on their books, so they can offer all the services to potential wedding events.” He looked uncomfortable as he stood there, and Jordan wished he’d go away. Instead, he said, “Uhh… could I borrow you for a minute?”

  “Me?”

  “Yes, just for a minute.” He looked at Luke, “You don’t mind, do you?”

  “Of course not—if it’s only for a minute.” Jordan glared at him as she stood and followed Fish to stand a few tables away.

  He didn’t waste any time getting to the point. “Listen, I had a really nice time with you back in January. Do you want to catch up sometime? You know, minus the alcohol? I’ve tried to ask you a few times, but you’re always with him.” He inclined his head toward their table.

  Jordan could hardly believe her ears. “You want to go on a date?”

  “I do. I want to be able to remember it, though.”

  She smiled at him and patted his arm. “I’m off dating for quite a while, but I appreciate the offer, Fish, I do.” He was disappointed, but he took her rejection well. “Don’t let this conversation ruin your job interview, okay? You’re a great DJ—you’ll kill it.”

  “Oh, thanks.” He perked up a little at her praise, and she returned to the table.

  “This is better than a movie. We are absolutely not leaving here any time soon.”

  “Oh, shut up. We have to get out of here. I’m worried about what else can happen. I’m ticking them off in my head and there’s only a few left.”

  “Who are we looking out for, then? I can recall shark-diving Peter and the guy with the liquorice.”

  “Oh God, don’t remind me about the liquorice! There’s also George, who tried to get me killed after buying me a Big Mac,” she paused, reluctant to say his name, “and, you know.”

  Luke patted her hand just as a voice called out from across the room, “Jordan, is that you? Why didn’t you ever call me after that baseball game?”

  ***

  An hour later, they’d gotten rid of David, who’d insisted on sitting at the table and trying to get Jordan to tell him why his “quirk” meant she wouldn’t consider a second date with him. He’d only left when Luke lost his patience and rattled off a raft of reasons that David didn’t know he was aware of. Realising he knew all about what had gone on between them in May, he hastily made his excuses and left.

  Jordan was thrilled to see him go. “What the hell is going on today? Why are they suddenly all tracking me down?”

  “It’s the universe trying to tell you something,” Luke said in a sing-song voice, making fun of what she’d been telling him for weeks. “You better work out what the message is quickly—I don’t think there are enough hours in the day to handle all your dates showing up in a twenty-four hour period.” He grinned at her, and she flicked her straw at him.

  “Why are you so mean to me?” she asked.

  “Why are you so blind?” he muttered.

  She didn’t hear him, though, because her phone had beeped. Her eyes widened as she read the message and then she turned the screen to show him. Luke couldn’t believe his eyes, either, as he read:

  HI, IT’S RICHARD. CAN WE MEET?

  ***

  “I can’t believe you’re going to meet him.”

  “Neither can I. He said he’s left his wife, though. He misses me.”

  “He’s lying.” Andrea asserted in her usual forceful way. “The man is pond scum, and you’re letting him slither in the door.”

  “I agree with you, but I kind of couldn’t resist. It’s only coffee, anyway, and it’s not until the week before Christmas. Maybe it will be what I need to be able to understand how this happened to me.”

  “Maybe it will be what we need to be able to beat him to death in an alleyway.” She looked at Jordan without an ounce of humour. “After your date, of course—we wouldn’t want to mess with your closure.” She made air quotes as she said the last word, and Jordan looked away, not wanting to see that Andrea was disgusted by this new turn of events.

  ***

  “That’s it, I’m done. Fuck these stupid apps.” She swiped through her phone to the last screen, where she’d stored all the new apps together. Deleting them one by one gave her such relief that she marvelled that she hadn’t thought of it sooner. She deleted the goal-setting app, too, and even the list of her perfect man. As each one disappeared from the screen, she felt a weight lifting off her shoulders.

  “There!” she announced when they were all gone. “I’m free. Single, but free.”

  “Well, that’s a relief. Now I can go back to trying to woo you in a distraction-free environment.” Luke looked at her from his spot on the couch.

  “Don’t you dare start with me, Luke Turner. I never want to hear another word about dating. I’m done, totally done.” She threw her phone onto the coffee table and lay on the couch. As usual, Rex was giving all his doggy love to Luke.

  “Except for your upcoming date with Richard.”

  “It’s not a date. It’s just coffee.”

  “You should tell him to take a flying leap.”

  “I probably will. I need to see him first.”

  “What if I told you some juicy secrets about me? Would that increase my chances?”

  “Nope. I’m done, remember? A relationship is plain, old hard work, and I need a rest. No more surprises—that’s what I’m in the market for, right now.”

  “Oh, damn.” He flicked through the channels and settled on a replay of the original Cape Fear. “This looks good. Hope it doesn’t dredge up too many memories of surprises.”

  “If I wasn’t feeling so lazy, I’d throw something at you.”

  “Guess we can stay on this one, then.” He slipped the remote onto the table, but she felt him watching her, instead of watching the screen.

  “What?”

  “What do you mean?” His eyes skated sideways to the television.

  “Why do you keep looking at me?”

  He sighed and swung his legs off the couch, so he could sit up. Luke picked Rex up and put him on the floor, much to the dog’s disgust. “We need to talk.”

  “No, we don’t. We need to lie here and relax.”

  He re
ached out and pushed a button, and the television flicked off. She groaned and rolled over to look at him. “Alright, hurry up. Tell me what’s so important, so I can say no and we can go back to relaxing.”

  “I’m not sure where to start.”

  She groaned, “Start at the beginning, Luke.”

  “I need a favour again.”

  “A favour I can do. Let me guess: you need a lift somewhere?”

  “Well, kind of.” She watched him beat around the bush, and his features rearranged themselves.

  He looks… almost guilty.

  She sighed and sat up, stretching her legs out in front of her. “Tell me what you need.”

  “My motorbike is being serviced, and I need you to drop me to get it and then follow me home. There’s a storm predicted, so I’d kind of like someone to make sure I get home in one piece.”

  “Your motorbike? When did you get a motorbike?”

  “About three years ago.”

  “Why haven’t I ever seen it?”

  “Because I keep my pushbike at work and use it to ride around town whenever I go out. The motorbike is to get me to and from work.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Where do you work? I’ve always wanted to ask you.”

  “Three blocks away, on the main street.”

  “Which business?”

  “Turner’s Shopfitting. I gave you my card.”

  “Oh, that big store? Isn’t there a business next door with the same name? Turner’s Car Mechanic, or something?”

  “Yep. Turner’s Auto Tune.”

  “That’s it. I’ve always thought it was a coincidence that two different businesses like that had the same first word. I guess ‘Turner’ is pretty common.”

  “Guess so.” He was watching her as they had this inane conversation back and forth, and she scowled as she got up to get her bag and keys.

  As she was slipping her shoes on, she noticed he hadn’t moved off the couch. “Are we going?”

  “Yep.” He finally roused himself and put the dog in the laundry. When he came back, the strained look on his face was still there.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Sure. Never better.”

  “Alright, weirdo. Let’s go, then.”

  She drove down the street and parked outside the Auto Tune shop. It was peak hour, and she’d promised to follow him home to drop off the bike. He got out and walked toward the entrance, and a staff member dressed in a yellow polo came out and high-fived him as he walked past.

  He disappeared inside, and then came out and walked toward a huge motorcycle nestled around the side of the building. The black beast sprang to life, and she watched as he tightened the strap on his matte black helmet. On the side of the helmet was a shiny gold T. Her eyes glanced back to the shopfront; the T matched the style and colour of the one on the sign. Craning her head, she could make out the Shopfitting sign next door. The same T stared at her in the same gold colour.

  Shit.

  She suddenly realised that Luke did have a job. His last name was Turner, and both of these businesses were named after Turners. How had she not known this?

  Because you lost his business card. This can’t be right, anyway. The man is always at my house—he never goes to work!

  December

  She followed at a safe distance, squinting through the window to see him in the pouring rain. She felt so sorry for him, having to ride in this weather, but he was determined to get the bike home.

  Why couldn’t he just agree to come tomorrow? This is bullshit.

  The radio announcer stopped talking, and the first chords of her favourite song rang out, so she cranked up the volume. Jordan drove behind him, singing as loudly as she could, and suddenly the rain didn’t seem so awful, anymore. They’d be at his place soon, and she could turn around and get back to the girls before they even realised she was late.

  She laughed to herself as she replayed the first time she and Luke had met. She’d dismissed him out of hand that day because he rode a pushbike, and now here she was, following him home on another bike. Why couldn’t this impossible man have bought himself a car and ticked off the last item on her list? She snorted in the darkness as he carefully took a turn on the slick road. That stupid list—she’d thought it was the right thing to do all those months ago, but it had turned out to be one of the worst ideas she’d ever had. If they’d never written that list, she’d probably have gone on a date with Luke.

  You probably wouldn’t be friends, though. A date would have messed that up.

  It was true. He was so sexy and had such a good heart, as well, that she probably would have fallen for him, if they’d started dating. It was better this way; a girl needed a great guy friend in life, and Luke was hers.

  ***

  He pulled over to the shoulder and she tucked in behind him, making sure the headlights were pointed toward the bike. The rain had stopped, and she left the car door open as she went to see what was wrong. He was bent over beside the bike, shining a flashlight underneath the tyre as music pulsed out of her car.

  “What’s wrong?” She had to raise her voice over the music.

  Oops, should have turned it down a bit more.

  “There’s something rattling.”

  “Oh. Is that bad?”

  “Not on a car, but on the bike, it can be a problem. I don’t want you to have to scrape me off the road at the next corner.”

  She hummed along to the music as he continued his examination. Every so often, a drop or two of water fell from the sky. He reached into a compartment in the seat and withdrew a couple of hand tools. Tinkering with a screw here and there, tightening each one he came across, he finally satisfied himself that all was well. Luke stood up and turned to her. A new song had started on the radio, and she felt a tug at her heartstrings as she recognised the tune.

  He recognises it, too.

  He took her hand and pulled her toward him as she grinned at him. “What are you doing?”

  His other arm snaked around her waist, and her hand rested on his shoulder as he spoke. “Did you know this is the first song we ever danced to?” He blinked as she stared at him. “The only song I’ve ever wanted to dance to again and again.” He moved against her, swaying in the headlights to the gentle beat of the music.

  “Aww… we have a song.” She smiled and moved with him. “Normally, a couple having a song is reserved for when they’re having sex—or for when they’re only sixteen, you know.”

  He smiled a sad smile at her. “We are neither of those things.”

  She watched him watching her as he pushed her away slightly and twirled her under his arm. Her smile was contagious when she moved back to him, and he took her in his arms again. Tiny drops of rain began to fall on them, and the water beaded on top of their hair as they moved close together. She wanted to close her eyes and enjoy the moment, but she didn’t dare. She didn’t want him to think she felt something for him that she didn’t.

  “Cancel your date with Richard tomorrow. Come out with me, instead,” he whispered into her hair.

  “Luke, we’ve been through this,” she pulled away, and she felt like a part of her had been lost. The rain felt colder on her skin, now that she wasn’t snuggled up to him. “He meets—”

  “All the criteria, yeah, I know. He ticks all the stupid boxes on your stupid list that you wrote when you were stupidly drunk last year.” He grabbed her hand and pressed it to his chest. “Does he tick the most important boxes for you, though? The ones you forgot to include when you made the damn list? The ones where he makes your heart sing when you see him across the room? The box that says he knows what you’re thinking when he puts a piece of hot toast in your hand in the morning without you having to ask? The box that, when it’s ticked, makes you aware of him in every fibre of your being?” He looked into her eyes, daring her to argue with him. “You know as well as I do that the only one who ticks every single one of those boxes for you,” he ran his finger down her cheek and squeezed h
er hand a little tighter, “is me.”

  She struggled to breathe as a hot flush crept up her body. Being this close to him always made her feel like this. She’d always thought it was embarrassment, but now she wondered if it was something else.

  “Why are you doing this now? After all this time, why now?” she whispered to him.

  “You made it quite clear very early on that you weren’t interested in me.”

  “Why didn’t you pursue me, then?”

  “Because, by all accounts, you’d already said no. You want someone to love and cherish you, Jordan, but don’t forget that we men need that, too. Why would I want to chase someone who thinks I’m not good enough? You saw me leave on my bike and you put me in a box that didn’t meet your needs. I didn’t feel like proving myself to you; I thought you’d realise who I was and what I stood for by yourself.

  “I was mistaken, though, so I’m doing it now. I can’t bear to watch you make plans with that asshole. Don’t make a huge mistake by letting me get away. I don’t think I can be friends with you, anymore, Jordan. Watching you date all year has nearly killed me.

  “Let me take you on a date, please. Cancel with Richard and let me have Christmas Eve. If it’s weird, we’ll forget about it and I’ll never mention it again. I’ll be the best guy friend you ever had.” He squeezed her tight against him and she felt a fresh surge of lust pulse through her. “Give me a chance to show you how good we could be together, Jordan.”

  ***

  Luke picked her up in a yellow Toyota right on seven o’clock on the twenty-fourth. She’d wondered if he would pick her up on the motorbike and she’d dressed appropriately, so she was almost disappointed when she saw him walk to the passenger’s side of the car and open the door for her. “What’s this? Did you steal a car for me?”