Grin and Beard It(83)
Sienna: Thinking about you.
Yep. That’s all it took. I read and reread the words for at least a full minute, probably longer. Three words on my phone staring back at me, evidence that what we had between us wasn’t one-sided.
Two hundred twelve messages and thirty-six hours later, I was in deep, drinking the text-messaging moonshine and waiting for my next fix. Of course it helped that every time she sent a text I got an eyeful of the avatar she’d set next to her name. Plus, she was just as irresistible via phone as she was in person.
Sienna: If you re-arrange the letters of Jethro, you can spell ‘Hot Jer’
Sienna: Also ‘OJ Reth’, ‘Thor Je’, and ‘JT Hero’ All of which would make an excellent name for a DJ.
Jethro: Whereas yours spells ‘A sin’ with ‘ne’ left over.
Sienna: FYI mine also spells ‘insane’
Sienna: So watch out!
Sienna: ;-)
I chuckled, covering my mouth with my hand. Throughout the day she’d sent various pictures of herself doing funny things. In one she’d posed with a guy on Hollywood Boulevard who was dressed like Smash-Boy, both of them making angry faces, with the caption: “You make Smash angry when you don’t send shirtless pictures.”
We’d been doing this since she left, sending dumb stuff back and forth or just conversing about our day.
Jethro: Insane and Sienna… That’s quite a coincidence.
Sienna: I often wonder if my parents did it on purpose.
Jethro: What time do you get in tonight?
Sienna: Past midnight.
Jethro: Do you want me to pick you up?
Sienna: No. Get your sleep.
Sienna: And dream of me.
Sienna: Naked.
Sienna: I mean: you should sleep naked. And dream of me.
Jethro: But not you naked?
Sienna: If we’re both naked then I want details!
We also texted about our families. She had a large one too, three sisters and two brothers, and they sounded like fun. Getting ahead of myself—again—I liked the idea of our kids having cousins on both sides, lots of aunts and uncles nearby and lots to visit. Sienna was the youngest and I learned her manager was her oldest sister, Marta.
Sienna: Send a picture of yourself so I can show Marta.
Jethro: No.
Sienna: What? WHY??
Sienna: I want to tell her about us. I can’t tell her if you don’t send a picture. She’ll want photographic evidence.
Jethro: I don’t do selfies
Sienna: That’s not what your brothers said…
Sienna: GET IT?
“What is so funny?”
I glanced up, finding Claire peeping out of the kitchen, an expectant smile on her lips.
It was Sunday afternoon and, as was my habit, I was over at Claire’s, checking in to make sure she had everything she needed. As usual, she’d invited me to stay for dinner. As usual, I’d accepted.
“Nothing.” I shook my head, slipping my phone in my pocket and resuming my work on her kitchen drawer. I was fixing the roller track.
“You’re still smiling,” she teased, stepping into the doorway and placing her hands on her hips. “This wouldn’t have anything to do with a certain movie star, would it?”
I tossed her my best impression of irritation, but it wasn’t very effective seeing as how I was still smiling. “None of your business.”
She returned my glare, the effect also lost since she was still smiling. “Come on, Jet. I’m dying here. Cletus said you had her over for dinner?”
“You two girls gossip about anyone else? Or just me?”
“Stop being coy. I’m excited for you.” Claire sounded exasperated. “Cletus seems to approve, and if Cletus approves then she’s got to be great.”
“She is great,” I said without thinking, the words slipping out easy as breathing.
“Then tell me about her. How did you meet? How serious is it? What’ll you do when the movie wraps up?”
I was with her until the last question, and then I felt my smile slip. “We haven’t talked about what happens when the movie wraps, but we’ll figure it out, I guess.”
“You guess? Meaning you’ll still be seeing each other after?”
“I hope so.”
Now that was an understatement.
“I’m so happy for you.” The quiet sincerity in her tone had me looking up from the drawer and into her big sapphire-blue eyes. “I’m so happy to see you finally putting yourself out there. I was starting to worry you’d never fill that house with kids.”
“Now hold on.” I stood, picking up the fixed drawer and scooting past her into the kitchen. “This thing just started. Ain’t nothing serious yet.”
“Come on, give me some credit.”