“Just shut up about this in front of Mom and Rich. I’m not sure they would find it amusing that you think I like one of my students in a romantic way.”
“Romantic?” he said, making a face. “I just want you to get some.”
“And I’m sure they’d like you talking like that even less,” I added.
“All right, all right! Your secret’s safe with me,” he said, giving me a conspiratorial wink.
“There’s no secret,” I muttered, although there was. Matt just didn’t know it.
We sat down to dinner and I was pleased that he didn’t mention anything else that would have forced me to plunge my fork into his arm.
“Stephen, you’re not seeing anyone right now, are you?” my mother asked during dessert.
It was a rhetorical question. My mother knew that I had been single for my entire life. Matt perked up across from me, looking like he wanted to add something to the conversation. I shot him what I hoped was a menacing look before turning to our mother.
“No,” I said. “Why?”
“One of my friends has a daughter who’s recently moved here and she doesn’t know that many people in town. Would you like to take her out one night?”
My mother is setting me up on a blind date. How pathetic is my life?
“I don’t know,” I said hesitantly.
“I’ll do it!” Matt piped up.
“No,” Mom said, quite firmly.
“Why not? I’d show her a really good time.”
“That’s what I’m afraid of,” she muttered, giving him a stern look.
Our parents were aware of Matt’s womanizing ways and I’d overheard several conversations between them in which they expressed their worries about both their sons. One was a regular Lothario and one was basically a monk. I didn’t know which they thought was worse.
“Stephen, this woman is just right for you,” my mother coaxed. “She’s thirty-one, she teaches high school, and she’s very down to earth.”
“Boring,” Matt mouthed across from me.
“What’s her name?” I asked.
“Lily. Should I give her your number so that she can call you?”
“Sure, I suppose that would be all right,” I answered with a shrug.
“Wait, you’re not even going to ask what she looks like?” Matt asked.
I rolled my eyes at him. As long as she wore decent clothes and knew how to apply her makeup without the use of a paintbrush, I didn’t care. In my opinion, common values and interests trumped physical appearance when it came to dating. I didn’t think I was that much to look at myself, so I never expected to end up with a stunner, so to speak, nor had I ever attempted to pursue one.
At least, not since becoming an adult. Now I knew better than to think physical beauty equaled a good heart, but it was a lesson I had learned the hard way.
“Wonderful,” my mother said. “I’ll tell her to give you a call, then.”
I nodded and dove into my cheesecake although I’d lost my appetite. I hated meeting someone new and all the anxiety and nervousness that came with it. I didn’t know how my brother did it, dating a new woman every week and feeling perfectly at ease with all of them.
* * *
The second we left the house, Matt pounced.
“You’re not really going to go out with that boring chick when you have a hot piece like Ms. Wilde, are you?”
“First of all, Lily sounds like a perfectly lovely woman, and second, I don’t have Ms. Wilde. She’s just my student.”
“If you say so,” he muttered. “I just want you to have a little fun, Stevie. Not always focus so much on work.”
“I do have fun,” I defended myself. “We’re still on for the gym and lunch afterward on Sunday, right?”
“Yeah. I have a date tomorrow night, but I plan on going to bed early.”
“Really?” I asked, raising my eyebrows.
“Oh, yeah, I should have her between the sheets before ten!” he guffawed.
“I thought you were devoted to getting to know Ms. Wilde’s friend. You said that you liked her.”
“I do. But since you won’t get me her number and I can’t find her online, there’s not a lot I can do.”
“Oh.” I snickered. “Her last name is actually Wilson, not Bilson. I guess I forgot to tell you.”
“What? I spent like an hour looking for Megan Bilson!”
I just grinned at him and shrugged.
“Well played, bro,” he said, looking rather impressed. “Now you’re starting to have a little fun, even if it’s at my expense.”
“I’m sorry, I couldn’t help myself.”