Chapter 4
1143 Words
Jaime
The next day, I was supposed to be negotiating with a vendor about decorations for a client’s birthday party. Supposed to be. Truth was, my mind kept wandering back to Kevin—and the fact that we had a date tonight.
I hung up the phone after realizing I hadn’t heard half of what the vendor said, and decided there was only one person who could talk me off this ledge.
I hit FaceTime, and Jay’s smiling face filled the screen.
“Cous! To what do I owe the pleasure of this surprise call?” he sang dramatically.
“I was at Keira’s yesterday, helping her plan the baby shower,” I told him.
“How’s my little mama doing?” he asked.
“Keira’s good. No issues so far, and she isn’t nearly as sick this time around as she was with Eliza.”
Keira’s morning sickness with Eliza had been brutal. Hospital-trips brutal. Afterward, she swore she’d never get pregnant again if it meant living through that nightmare. So when she and Adam announced another baby, I was shocked—but also thrilled. Especially since this pregnancy has been so much easier, and it’s a boy.
“And how’s my little goddaughter niece?” Jay pressed, his grin widening.
“Growing like a weed,” I said, smiling. “And apparently she has a thing for my hair. She grabbed a handful last night and wouldn’t let go. Kevin had to untangle her little hand for me.”
“Wait. Did you just say Kevin? As in you and Kevin in the same room?” Jay’s eyebrows shot up.
“Yeah.” I shifted in my chair. “That’s actually why I called. I wasn’t expecting him to be at Keira’s.”
“Darling, he’s her twin brother, Adam’s best friend, and Eliza’s favorite human. Plus, he lives ten minutes away. How on earth did you not expect him to be there?” Jay gave me a look.
“Jay, it’s been two years since I’ve physically seen him, okay?”
“Ahhh,” he said knowingly, drawing out the sound. “Bet he surprised you.”
“Wait. Did you know he has a killer body now?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.
Jay smirked. “Darling, he’s my tenant. He lives with Mitzi. Trust me, I’m well aware. Mitzi drools over him from afar. His body is… let’s just say, sculpted.”
“Wait, wait—he lives with Mitzi? Since when? Why didn’t Keira tell me?” I demanded.
Jay held up a hand, already amused at my spiraling. “Good lord, no, he is very much straight. Mitzi just appreciates the art. But yes, Kevin lives at my condo. He needed a place, I was moving down here with Evan, and it worked out for everyone. I wasn’t about to kick Mitzi to the curb. Kevin knew if he wanted to rent, Mitzi came with the package. And Jaime?”
“Yeah?”
“It takes a strong, secure straight man to live with a drag queen—especially one like Mitzi, who’s part mother hen, part diva. That says something about who Kevin is now.”
I blinked, processing that. “I… never thought of it like that. Honestly, I never pictured Kevin being a good roommate for her.”
“Well, he is. Jaime, he’s not that eighteen-year-old boy anymore. He’s twenty-four. He’s a man now.” Jay’s tone softened.
I hesitated before admitting, “We… actually have a date tonight. He’s taking me to Giordano’s.”
Jay’s eyes lit up like he’d just won the lottery. “Giordano’s? Ohhh, girl, he is serious about winning you over.” He tapped his chin dramatically. “You know what this calls for? Twenty-Seven Dresses.”
“The Katherine Heigl movie?” I asked flatly.
“Exactly. The perfect prep for you.”
“I’ve seen it a few times. I don’t see the connection.”
Jay let out a sigh as though he had to explain life itself to me. “In the movie, Heigl’s character is secretly in love with her boss, and she always puts everyone else’s needs ahead of her own. Then she meets Kevin—annoying, infuriating, pushes-all-her-buttons Kevin—and she slowly realizes that her ‘perfect’ boss was just a fantasy. The real man of her dreams was the irritating reporter named Kevin. You see where I’m going with this?”
I opened my mouth to argue, but my voice trailed off as the memory hit me. “Wait… didn’t she end up with the reporter named Kevin?”
Jay’s grin turned smug. “Ha! Yes. James Marsden’s character. And his name was Kevin. That proves my point.”
“Shut up. That’s just a coincidence,” I grumbled.
“There are no coincidences, darling. Only signs. Actually, this is giving me Fools Rush In vibes, too. You know, the whole ‘signs are everywhere’ thing? That movie should be my new Bible—well, along with Legally Blonde. Can a person have two Bibles?”
“Jay,” I said, rubbing my temple, “you’re babbling. Can you get back to Twenty-Seven Dresses?”
“Fine, fine,” he said, rolling his eyes dramatically. “The point is, Heigl hated Kevin at first. Everything about him irritated her. But once she truly got to know him, she realized her fantasy wasn’t real—and that the real man was right in front of her the whole time. It only took twenty-seven dresses to figure it out.”
“And what does that have to do with my Kevin?” I asked, beyond confused.
Jay raised a brow. “Your Kevin?”
“You know what I meant,” I muttered.
“Uh-huh,” he teased. “Look, you were in love with high school Kevin—the sweet, funny, idealized version. Then college Kevin came along—the cocky asshole who drove you crazy. But now? Now you’re about to get to know the man he’s become. And once you do, you’ll realize that high school Kevin was just a fantasy. It’s going to take you a bunch of steps—maybe not twenty-seven, but enough—to get back to each other. Mark my words.”
I chewed on that, reluctant but not able to dismiss it entirely. “Okay… that makes some sense. But twenty-seven steps?”
“It’s a metaphor, darling.” Jay’s eyes twinkled. “The point is, buckle up. You two are going to go through a lot before you realize he’s the one you want to marry.”
I groaned. “I don’t know about that, Jay. This is Kevin.”
“You already agreed to go out with him after two years of avoiding him. Just enjoy the ride, sister.”
- Writer
