wasn’t hard to figure out. It was because of Ollie and the way he’d ordered all the wrong things without asking my opinion on Friday night. It occurred to me that Jared had known me a lot longer. That was why he already knew that I wanted fruit instead of meat with my breakfast. Ollie hadn’t been around long enough to figure out all of the little things.
I massaged my temples, trying to sort through the mish mash of feelings and emotions cluttering my brain. I wanted to make excuses for Ollie. I was almost hardwired to do it since I wanted so badly for our relationship to grow and flourish. But it was difficult to ignore the simple fact that Jared could order my food because not only had he observed closely, he’d asked questions. In fact, we’d had a couple of discussions about it because Jared’s a red-blooded, meat-eating American male who thinks I’m crazy but respects my decision anyway.
“Megan?”
I looked up in response to my softly spoken name. How could I not when his concern for me was a tangible thing between us.
“I know we left things kind of tense the other day and I’m sorry.” He fidgeted, restlessly running his fingers through his wavy hair. “But if you ever need anything, I want you to know that I’m here.”
The earnest expression on his face touched me. Was Anna right and he was really going through some sort of relationship growing pains with a stranger I’d never met? Was I going to lose this friendship forever?
The waiter brought our food, giving me something else to concentrate on. Grateful for the distraction, I watched from the corner of my eye as Jared dug into his Cajun-style eggs and potatoes while I picked at my French toast and fruit salad.
It was now or never. If I didn’t try to straighten this entire thing out before some other woman took him away from me, I would never get another chance. “What were you really asking the other day when we were talking about sexy and attractive and responsible?”
He paused, and I could practically hear his mental sigh. “I just think you judge a book by its cover too often, that’s all.”
Could all of this really be explained in one old cliché? “Because I don’t date guys who don’t meet the criteria on my list?”
“I think it’s easier to explain from a slightly different angle. What is it that attracts you to Ollie?”
The million dollar question. What was it anyway? “He’s easy to talk to, for starters.”
“What else?”
“He’s funny and we laugh at a lot of the same things, so there’s a lot of that witty back and forth that makes you feel like you really connect with someone.”
“And?” Jared pressed.
“We share a lot of the same personality traits.”
Jared frowned. “Like what? You haven’t really known him long enough to decide that, have you?”
Those words coming from Anna might have made me mad. Jared’s casual comment made me think. What were Ollie’s personality traits? “He’s not controlling, he likes to try new things…” I couldn’t really come up with anything else.
“Okay, what things does he like to do?” Jared asked gently. “Remember that stupid quiz you and Anna got out of Cosmo?”
“The one about couple identity?”
Jared nodded, sunlight glinting off the gold highlights in his short hair.
A knot formed in my stomach and I put my fork down before fiddling restlessly with my napkin. “Well, he listens to all kinds of music, but he likes Country. He likes reality television, hanging out with friends and going on float trips in the summer.”
“So where, in all of that, is there a stretch of common ground for the two of you to build your relationship? You hate Country music, you don’t watch much TV, and we both know float trips are just an excuse to drink the same beer in a new environment.”
“If both of us like to try new things, we’ll find new activities to do together,” I stubbornly insisted.
Jared chuckled. “You keep using that same
I massaged my temples, trying to sort through the mish mash of feelings and emotions cluttering my brain. I wanted to make excuses for Ollie. I was almost hardwired to do it since I wanted so badly for our relationship to grow and flourish. But it was difficult to ignore the simple fact that Jared could order my food because not only had he observed closely, he’d asked questions. In fact, we’d had a couple of discussions about it because Jared’s a red-blooded, meat-eating American male who thinks I’m crazy but respects my decision anyway.
“Megan?”
I looked up in response to my softly spoken name. How could I not when his concern for me was a tangible thing between us.
“I know we left things kind of tense the other day and I’m sorry.” He fidgeted, restlessly running his fingers through his wavy hair. “But if you ever need anything, I want you to know that I’m here.”
The earnest expression on his face touched me. Was Anna right and he was really going through some sort of relationship growing pains with a stranger I’d never met? Was I going to lose this friendship forever?
The waiter brought our food, giving me something else to concentrate on. Grateful for the distraction, I watched from the corner of my eye as Jared dug into his Cajun-style eggs and potatoes while I picked at my French toast and fruit salad.
It was now or never. If I didn’t try to straighten this entire thing out before some other woman took him away from me, I would never get another chance. “What were you really asking the other day when we were talking about sexy and attractive and responsible?”
He paused, and I could practically hear his mental sigh. “I just think you judge a book by its cover too often, that’s all.”
Could all of this really be explained in one old cliché? “Because I don’t date guys who don’t meet the criteria on my list?”
“I think it’s easier to explain from a slightly different angle. What is it that attracts you to Ollie?”
The million dollar question. What was it anyway? “He’s easy to talk to, for starters.”
“What else?”
“He’s funny and we laugh at a lot of the same things, so there’s a lot of that witty back and forth that makes you feel like you really connect with someone.”
“And?” Jared pressed.
“We share a lot of the same personality traits.”
Jared frowned. “Like what? You haven’t really known him long enough to decide that, have you?”
Those words coming from Anna might have made me mad. Jared’s casual comment made me think. What were Ollie’s personality traits? “He’s not controlling, he likes to try new things…” I couldn’t really come up with anything else.
“Okay, what things does he like to do?” Jared asked gently. “Remember that stupid quiz you and Anna got out of Cosmo?”
“The one about couple identity?”
Jared nodded, sunlight glinting off the gold highlights in his short hair.
A knot formed in my stomach and I put my fork down before fiddling restlessly with my napkin. “Well, he listens to all kinds of music, but he likes Country. He likes reality television, hanging out with friends and going on float trips in the summer.”
“So where, in all of that, is there a stretch of common ground for the two of you to build your relationship? You hate Country music, you don’t watch much TV, and we both know float trips are just an excuse to drink the same beer in a new environment.”
“If both of us like to try new things, we’ll find new activities to do together,” I stubbornly insisted.
Jared chuckled. “You keep using that same
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