nearly eight hours both days. I didn’t have much time to shop, but would have loved to. You and I are going to need to take a trip out there. It was actually a lot of fun, just being in an urban jungle like that. Closest to New York City I’ve ever been. It’s completely different from walking downtown L.A., I don’t know what it was, but it was fun.”
“And how was that Callem guy?” Erin asked before taking a bite of her cornbread. “Did he show you around the town or did he have one of his other guys do it?”
“No, it was him,” I explained. “He was really nice,” I said simply.
Erin looked at me sideways, not buying it. “What does that mean, ‘he was nice’?” she asked mockingly.
I shrugged. I was a horrible liar. I was even worse at being intentionally vague with my details. I knew she’d see right through it. “It just means he did a wonderful job transporting me.”
“He’s not Jason Statham, and if he were, I’d demand you to introduce me. What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing is sacred when you’re around,” I said smiling. “I think, I don’t know, I might, but I couldn’t. It doesn’t make any sense. I just, you know, it’s one of those things that you, well,” I stammered, pushing some beans around my bowl.
Erin stopped eating to watch me struggle. She finally held up her hands, clanking her spoon against the side of her bowl. “What is happening here? Are you trying to tell me you’ve got a crush on this guy?”
I shifted my weight in my chair uneasily. “I don’t know. I just can’t stop thinking about him. It’s so strange. I’ve had crushes before, but with those, I just wanted to stare at the guy all day or I just wanted to hear him singing or something. With Callem, it’s different. I want to know about him. I want to know where he comes from and what his interests are and what makes him happiest. I think there’s something wrong with me.”
“So you have to be sick now to be falling for a guy?”
“Erin, he’s thirty-six. He’s fifteen years older than me. He could be my father.”
Erin turned her head. “Oh come on, no he couldn’t.”
“Teen pregnancy is on the rise. It’s not just the mothers who are teens.”
“Calm down, Doc. He’s not old enough to be your father. Okay, theoretically he is, but that’s not important. That’s why you think there’s something wrong with you. You’re working yourself up over this for no reason. There’s nothing wrong with an age difference. It’s perfectly normal and happens around here all the time.”
“Yeah, for women who want to sit on their asses their entire lives and have everything handed to them,” I spat.
“That’s no true at all. Look at Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas. Besides, you’re not one of those women. You’re independent, making mad loot for a twenty-one year old. You don’t need a man to support you. The fact that he’s loaded too is just a perk. It’s not like you’ve been searching for a sugar daddy to sweep you off your feet. You just so happened to meet a nice, successful man, who is a little bit older than you. What’s the big deal? Are you afraid of what people would think, because I don’t think anything of it?”
“I know you wouldn’t think anything of it,” I said.
“Not unless he was looking for a sugar momma. I would put a stop to that shit real quick,” Erin jumped in.
I smiled. “I get it. Thanks.”
“So what are you going to do about it? Are you going to wait for him to make the next move or are you going to suck it up and do something about it?” Erin asked.
That was a good question. What was I going to do about it?
2013 - Olivia
A long soak in the warmth of a bath was more refreshing than I had anticipated. My skin felt stripped of the scum I’d been carrying with me for the past week. I was
“And how was that Callem guy?” Erin asked before taking a bite of her cornbread. “Did he show you around the town or did he have one of his other guys do it?”
“No, it was him,” I explained. “He was really nice,” I said simply.
Erin looked at me sideways, not buying it. “What does that mean, ‘he was nice’?” she asked mockingly.
I shrugged. I was a horrible liar. I was even worse at being intentionally vague with my details. I knew she’d see right through it. “It just means he did a wonderful job transporting me.”
“He’s not Jason Statham, and if he were, I’d demand you to introduce me. What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing is sacred when you’re around,” I said smiling. “I think, I don’t know, I might, but I couldn’t. It doesn’t make any sense. I just, you know, it’s one of those things that you, well,” I stammered, pushing some beans around my bowl.
Erin stopped eating to watch me struggle. She finally held up her hands, clanking her spoon against the side of her bowl. “What is happening here? Are you trying to tell me you’ve got a crush on this guy?”
I shifted my weight in my chair uneasily. “I don’t know. I just can’t stop thinking about him. It’s so strange. I’ve had crushes before, but with those, I just wanted to stare at the guy all day or I just wanted to hear him singing or something. With Callem, it’s different. I want to know about him. I want to know where he comes from and what his interests are and what makes him happiest. I think there’s something wrong with me.”
“So you have to be sick now to be falling for a guy?”
“Erin, he’s thirty-six. He’s fifteen years older than me. He could be my father.”
Erin turned her head. “Oh come on, no he couldn’t.”
“Teen pregnancy is on the rise. It’s not just the mothers who are teens.”
“Calm down, Doc. He’s not old enough to be your father. Okay, theoretically he is, but that’s not important. That’s why you think there’s something wrong with you. You’re working yourself up over this for no reason. There’s nothing wrong with an age difference. It’s perfectly normal and happens around here all the time.”
“Yeah, for women who want to sit on their asses their entire lives and have everything handed to them,” I spat.
“That’s no true at all. Look at Catherine Zeta-Jones and Michael Douglas. Besides, you’re not one of those women. You’re independent, making mad loot for a twenty-one year old. You don’t need a man to support you. The fact that he’s loaded too is just a perk. It’s not like you’ve been searching for a sugar daddy to sweep you off your feet. You just so happened to meet a nice, successful man, who is a little bit older than you. What’s the big deal? Are you afraid of what people would think, because I don’t think anything of it?”
“I know you wouldn’t think anything of it,” I said.
“Not unless he was looking for a sugar momma. I would put a stop to that shit real quick,” Erin jumped in.
I smiled. “I get it. Thanks.”
“So what are you going to do about it? Are you going to wait for him to make the next move or are you going to suck it up and do something about it?” Erin asked.
That was a good question. What was I going to do about it?
2013 - Olivia
A long soak in the warmth of a bath was more refreshing than I had anticipated. My skin felt stripped of the scum I’d been carrying with me for the past week. I was
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