how well she could extract the underlying meaning in the things he shared with her. For a few seconds, he felt like he was running on air. Until the dawning crept upon him that he was divulging parts of himself again. Damn. It was like she was a neodymium magnet with a pull so powerful he didn’t even detect the divide. He ignored the gratifying stirring her acuity had generated and steered the conversation back to less personal ground.
If she noticed the shift, she didn’t let on, and before long, she was telling him about a prank she and Karen had played on Mike while they were working on their doctorates.
“So, you know how he is about football?” She shot him a glance, checking for confirmation as they headed up a small hill.
He tried to focus, pulling his gaze away from the small dimple in her left cheek that accompanied her mischievous grin. “Yeah, saying he’s a fan is a bit of an understatement,” he said dryly.
Jordan’s brow rose. “A bit?”
“Okay. In your world, it might even be diagnosable,” he conceded.
“Hmmm, you’re probably right.” She looked up like she was considering his suggestion.
He lightly elbowed her in the ribs. “So get on with it. I want to hear this.” She’d piqued his curiosity when she began laughing before the first words of the story even left her mouth.
“Well, when they lost the big game against Florida, he was devastated. Moped around the entire night, like it was the last game they’d ever play. Karen and I had early clients at the counseling center the next morning. While we were there, Karen came up with the idea to fill out a fake client intake form for him. We listed the presenting problem as grief related to FSU’s loss the night before. We even got the secretary to go in on it with us, and she completed the form so it’d look authentic down to her handwriting.”
“Did he buy it?” Chase wasn’t sure if he was smiling about the prank or because she looked so cute completely lost in the funny memory.
“I didn’t think he would. I mean, that would be pretty ironic. But sure enough, he drifted in later, still looking like he’d lost his best friend, and pulled the intake form out of his box. When he read the client description, he got this look of panic.” She stopped for a minute to catch her breath, not from the running but from her laughter. “Turned on his heel and was about to run to the secretary to say he couldn’t see the client. He was sure there would be too much countertransference.”
“He said that?”
She nodded. “Oh, yeah. In his own words, ‘There’ll be so much countertransference, I won’t be able to tell if it’s his issue or mine.’”
“What stopped him?”
She pressed her lips together but her eyes were still lit with amusement. “My face. Later, he said I reminded him of the cat who’d eaten the canary.”
Chase snickered. “I can see that.”
“Yeah. I’m sure I did. A joke like that is something I never would’ve done on my own. Karen and Mike are good for me in that way.”
They circled back toward her house. The jog had done wonders for his mood. Looking over at Jordan, he felt sheepish about his behavior earlier. He wasn’t a moody guy. Maybe he needed something more than a change. Maybe he needed a vacation from work. Days lounging around outside and nights spent without his laptop within his reach. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d done that.
Jordan flipped through the mail she’d retrieved from her mailbox. A few wisps of hair had escaped from her ponytail, and small beads of sweat dotted her hairline. If possible, she looked even hotter than when he’d first laid eyes on her this morning.
“I completely forgot to check it yesterday,” she said without looking up as she tore open an envelope.
Her eyes widened when she unfolded the bottom half of the paper. A car whizzed by them, but she didn’t seem to notice. The contents of the
If she noticed the shift, she didn’t let on, and before long, she was telling him about a prank she and Karen had played on Mike while they were working on their doctorates.
“So, you know how he is about football?” She shot him a glance, checking for confirmation as they headed up a small hill.
He tried to focus, pulling his gaze away from the small dimple in her left cheek that accompanied her mischievous grin. “Yeah, saying he’s a fan is a bit of an understatement,” he said dryly.
Jordan’s brow rose. “A bit?”
“Okay. In your world, it might even be diagnosable,” he conceded.
“Hmmm, you’re probably right.” She looked up like she was considering his suggestion.
He lightly elbowed her in the ribs. “So get on with it. I want to hear this.” She’d piqued his curiosity when she began laughing before the first words of the story even left her mouth.
“Well, when they lost the big game against Florida, he was devastated. Moped around the entire night, like it was the last game they’d ever play. Karen and I had early clients at the counseling center the next morning. While we were there, Karen came up with the idea to fill out a fake client intake form for him. We listed the presenting problem as grief related to FSU’s loss the night before. We even got the secretary to go in on it with us, and she completed the form so it’d look authentic down to her handwriting.”
“Did he buy it?” Chase wasn’t sure if he was smiling about the prank or because she looked so cute completely lost in the funny memory.
“I didn’t think he would. I mean, that would be pretty ironic. But sure enough, he drifted in later, still looking like he’d lost his best friend, and pulled the intake form out of his box. When he read the client description, he got this look of panic.” She stopped for a minute to catch her breath, not from the running but from her laughter. “Turned on his heel and was about to run to the secretary to say he couldn’t see the client. He was sure there would be too much countertransference.”
“He said that?”
She nodded. “Oh, yeah. In his own words, ‘There’ll be so much countertransference, I won’t be able to tell if it’s his issue or mine.’”
“What stopped him?”
She pressed her lips together but her eyes were still lit with amusement. “My face. Later, he said I reminded him of the cat who’d eaten the canary.”
Chase snickered. “I can see that.”
“Yeah. I’m sure I did. A joke like that is something I never would’ve done on my own. Karen and Mike are good for me in that way.”
They circled back toward her house. The jog had done wonders for his mood. Looking over at Jordan, he felt sheepish about his behavior earlier. He wasn’t a moody guy. Maybe he needed something more than a change. Maybe he needed a vacation from work. Days lounging around outside and nights spent without his laptop within his reach. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d done that.
Jordan flipped through the mail she’d retrieved from her mailbox. A few wisps of hair had escaped from her ponytail, and small beads of sweat dotted her hairline. If possible, she looked even hotter than when he’d first laid eyes on her this morning.
“I completely forgot to check it yesterday,” she said without looking up as she tore open an envelope.
Her eyes widened when she unfolded the bottom half of the paper. A car whizzed by them, but she didn’t seem to notice. The contents of the
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