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“How about tomorrow?” His eagerness betrayed him. He knew it wasn’t good to play with open cards when dealing with a woman like Nadine. He pictured Nick giving him hell for it.

“I wish I could. I have a deadline, actually,” Nadine said.

“What kind of deadline?”

“A client brought a dresser and wardrobe to me and I told her I’d have them back to her by Tuesday, and they still need another coat of varnish then a beeswax treatment, so I’ve got a lot to do tomorrow and Sunday.”

“Can I help?”

“No, no.” She seemed utterly shocked at his offer, and he wondered if that was because she wasn’t nearly as used to receiving help as he had assumed. Her oblique references to her ex had him curious as to whether he was the kind of guy who’d given her a hand when she needed it or if he was more self-centered. He couldn’t imagine taking someone like Nadine for granted, but he had noticed that often the best kinds of girl were treated the most poorly.

“Well, can I come watch?”

She looked at him quizzically.

“I’ll be good. I promise. I can bring my guitar and entertain you,” he said, because if playing the hippie philosopher was a way to insinuate himself into her presence, he was happy to do it.

“Serenade me while I varnish in my coveralls? Hmmm. Well, that would be a first.”

David could tell that Nadine didn’t know how to answer. She pulled away and sat up in a stiff manner.

“Look, I’m on a mission, kick-starting a new life for myself, and if I’m going to turn my dream into reality, I can’t afford to get distracted.”

David understood her intention completely. He’d also had similar spurts of ambition and he knew that it took total concentration to achieve the stuff worth striving for.

“I respect that,” he said. “I wouldn’t get in your way. I’d just hang out and play music for you.”

“David, I’m flattered by all this…attention, but I…”

“Okay,” he interrupted. He didn’t want to let her finish the sentence that could very well exclude him forever. “Well, what about next Friday? I have a Criterion collection edition of
Vertigo
. I could bring it over—or you could come to my place.”

David pictured himself bribing his roommates. They’d clear out if he let them take his car and if he gave them twenty bucks each to go to the all you can eat Japanese buffet downtown. Then all he’d have to do was clean the place from top to bottom. No sweat.

“Yeah, why don’t you bring it over next weekend?” she said. He breathed a sigh of relief. The longer he could delay her seeing his place, the better for him.

He took this conversation as his cue to leave. It would serve him best in the long run to be gentlemanly and considerate. She’d just agreed to see him again. This was it. They were dating.

“Nadine,” he said, taking her hand in his. “Thanks for having me over.” He got up. She followed him as he went to the door. He started to put on his shoes and jacket. He was thinking about how he might be able to steal a kiss.

Nadine opened the door for him. He was about to go without a kiss when all of a sudden, he knew he’d kick himself if he didn’t make it happen.

“Nadine?” he asked.

“Yes?”

“I had a really nice time tonight.”

“I’m glad,” she said. “Me too.”

She motioned to hug him, and he opened his arms to her and without any hesitation, he kissed her. As soon as their lips touched, he closed his arms around her and held her tightly, his lips firm against hers. Kissing her felt so right. Nadine felt almost limp in his arms, as though she wanted him to hold her, take her, keep kissing her. Her eyes were closed and her arms were around him.

After a couple of minutes of unbridled passion had elapsed, they both simultaneously pulled back. David noticed that Nadine looked dizzy.

“Wow,” she said. “I was not expecting that.”

He took her hand again and this time he pulled it to his lips and kissed the back of it. He hadn’t felt that kind of uncomplicated connection in ages.

“See you next Friday,” she said.

“Yes, Friday.” He took a step into the cold. “Goodnight, Nadine.”

“Goodnight, David.”

Chapter Ten

Nadine went back to her living room and flopped down on the loveseat. She hadn’t experienced anything like that kiss in years, especially the way he’d taken her hand and kissed the back of it. She could still detect David’s scent, a combination of detergent and a manly hint of musk. She was smitten. There was no denying it. Against her own rationale, she was deeply attracted to this young guy who gave her the delicious attention she’d been craving for so long. He didn’t ask her about the future, about kids and weddings. He didn’t seem to evaluate her against the rubric she’d grown accustomed to. That in itself was intoxicating. There was more to it, though. She got the sense that he had a pure heart, that he had a positive outlook on the world and that, too, was something she hadn’t come across during the past decade. Perhaps the reason the corporate world was so exhausting and draining was that it required a certain cynicism and selfishness. She was so glad to be free of that and grateful for this evening of bliss.

Marnie called.

“How was your date with the boy toy?” she wanted to know.

“Um…well,” Nadine didn’t know how to put her feelings into words that her friend would understand.

“Oh no,” Marnie said. “Don’t fall for him, okay? He’s just a baby. There’s no way you two are actually compatible.”

“You’re the one who encouraged me!”

“Yeah. That should be your first clue. I don’t know shit about men.”

“He’s not a baby, by the way. He knows himself better than a lot of people I know.”

“Oh, please. He thinks with his penis, like every other guy.”

Nadine changed the subject. She didn’t want to spoil her precious evening by trying to convince her best friend of anything. She realized in that moment that it really didn’t matter to her what anyone else thought. They discussed Marnie’s co-workers instead.

* * * *

Nadine’s brow was sweaty. The doors were wide open and the cool October wind permeated her workspace. The scent of varnish was strangely appealing, a reminder of her grandfather. How she missed him. It didn’t take a degree in psychology to guess that Nadine’s love of furniture restoration connected her to her childhood, which she had spent helping her granddad at Winston’s Fine Furniture. She’d been so sad to see the business sell after his death but her parents didn’t want it and she had been too busy with her supposed career. Selling the shop had been easy. Grandpa Winston had an excellent reputation and the turnkey operation was off the market two days after it was listed.

Her phone rang.

“It’s David. Just wondering if you’d like some takeout. I know you’re busy. I won’t distract you. I just happened to be in your area and thought maybe it’d be hard to do everything you need to do and make food too.”

“You’re too sweet,” she said. “I do have to eat.”

“Great. I’ll swing by with some Thai food in about half an hour.”

How did he know that Thai food was her absolute favorite? She was almost finished with the final coat of varnish on the dresser but wouldn’t have time to clean up and look presentable. She considered stopping but decided it was best if David saw the real her. Maybe it would change his puppy-dog infatuation and solve the problem of their relationship before it even began, she rationalized.

As she hurried through the last strokes, she couldn’t help but wonder whether any of the guys she’d ever gone out with, especially Allan, would have come by with food for her, if she’d asked. Certainly none had ever called and offered.

* * * *

David, dressed in his best work clothes, pulled into Nadine’s driveway at quarter to three in the afternoon. He had felt on top of the world driving home the night before and he knew that he had no reason to play it cool with Nadine. He had no interest in playing games with her and he figured she would either appreciate that about him or not, and it didn’t much matter. He had to do what was right in his heart and that meant seeing as much of Nadine as possible.

He saw Nadine put down her brush and walk toward him, smiling in spite of the chilly gray afternoon. She threw her arms around him.

“Thanks for bringing lunch,” she said.

“My pleasure.”

“You really didn’t have to.”

“That’s what makes it pleasurable.” He gave her a telling smile.

He grabbed the bag of coconut curry and spring rolls and closed the door to his car. They walked up to her open garage.

“So let’s see what you’ve got going on,” he said. “Wow. Nice pieces.” He examined the wardrobe and the dresser carefully.

“I’ll show you the ‘before’ photo inside.”

“Impressive finishing.”

“Thanks. I’m not finished yet, though.”

“Should we eat out here?”

“No, no,” Nadine said. “Let’s go upstairs and get out of the fumes.”

He followed her up the stairs, through the living room they’d cuddled in mere hours earlier, into the kitchen where she gestured for him to put the bag of takeout on the table in the dining nook. He could imagine belonging here, being a regular part of her life. He felt comfortable in her surroundings and though he tried not to appear too comfortable too soon, he also wanted her to see him there.

“Where do you keep the plates?” he asked. “I’ll get us set up while you go wash up from your work.”

“Really?”

“Sure.”

Nadine gave a brief overview of her kitchen then went to the bathroom to wash up. At the sink, as she exfoliated her hands, she recognized that something she’d only ever fantasized about was actually happening. A man had showed up to be supportive of her. This was highly unusual. He was making himself useful in the kitchen, and he was genuinely interested in her work. She looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. There wasn’t a trace of makeup or pretense about her in this moment, yet here he was.

They ate lunch quickly.

“How did you come upon the pieces downstairs?” David asked.

“I’m still working on the ones for the woman who wants them on Tuesday. They’re acquisitions from an old farm. Both are late nineteenth century, my favorite time period.”

Once they had finished eating, David said, “Well, I’ll take care of the dishes if you want to get back to work.”

Nadine looked puzzled, as though she’d seen a unicorn. David paid her look no mind and took the plates to the sink. He packed the remainder of the food into containers and put them in her fridge. Then he got to work on the dishes.

Nadine went downstairs and was just about to start up again when David reappeared.

“So, what can I do to help?” he asked.

“What?”

“Let me help.”

“You really don’t have to. I’m fine.”

“Four hands are better than two, and I’m kind of hoping you’ll finish before the deadline so we can spend a bit of time together.”

“Oh, I see,” she said flirtatiously. “So this is a ploy to spend time with me?”

“Well, yeah. But I also really would love to help. I’ve been studying a lot lately and it’s good for me to get my hands dirty now and then.”

“All right, mister. I accept.”

“Good. Show me what you’d like me to do and I’ll try my best to impress you, just like in the bookstore dungeon.”

“Let’s not talk about that place right now,” she said, but then she added, “You did impress me, by the way.”

He smiled. “I tried.”

She showed him what to do, how to apply the varnish, and let him take over on the wardrobe’s back side to get the hang of it.

They set to work quietly and Nadine became aware that it might be awkward that she didn’t have any music set up or anything. She liked to just be in her own thoughts when she worked. Maybe that was part of the appeal of furniture restoration—hours and hours of alone time. So she figured this was a good chance to get to know him.

“So, David,” she began. “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“Happy,” he said immediately.

“No, I mean as a career.”

“Whatever makes me happy,” he reiterated.

She rolled her eyes.
Cocky, youthful answer.

As though he could read her quizzical mind, David elaborated, “The way I see it, my life is an open book and I’ve only written a few pages. I took a couple of years off after high school to travel around and see something of the world and work on a couple of projects. I think I can be happy doing many things and being in many places.”

“So no plans?”

“Well, I’m studying right now. I’ve been looking forward to it and I’m enjoying it, so I’ll make the best of it and see what happens next.”

Nadine was envious of the implicit freedom in David’s answers. She had always meant to backpack through Europe, had always fantasized about drifting through life, but she’d never been gutsy enough to let go of her plans. Plus, she liked living in a nice home and having nice things. That’s why she had got her degree in business administration. Like every other aspect of her life, it made sense.

“So a Bachelor of Arts?” she asked. “What are you going to do with that?” She could practically hear the judgment in her own voice. She sounded like her parents. She sounded like every guy she’d dated in the past decade. “I mean, after university?”

She wanted to let it go, change the topic, but somehow she was programmed to need these answers. She couldn’t stop herself. It was as though she needed to be able to see him some years in the future, to see whether they were compatible.

“I’ll deal with that when I get there.”

“I see,” she said, even though she didn’t see at all. All she saw in his answer was student loans.

“I like to live in the now as much as possible,” he said. “After all, this moment is the only one that matters.”

She smiled.
I’ve got a crush on a hippie. This must be some kind of mix-up
. He was definitely not her type. She hadn’t slept much all week because she’d been up late worried about her future. She’d been doing spreadsheets in her mind, calculating her business expenses—what it would take to get a commercial space to work from, whether she could ever make enough to support herself, when she could quit the bookstore. She was a planner through and through. David’s idealism was not amusing to her and there she had it—the catch. Sure, he was nice to her, made her feel desirable, brought her food, helped her out, but where could this really go, she wondered. They were so different.