movie. Bobby painted them as the perfect parents and fiercely loyal to each other. He had mentioned on more than one occasion that he would never settle for a relationship that was less than what Betty and Stan had.
“So I’ve been meaning to ask you something,” Bobby started timidly, and Piper could tell he was feeling a little awkward about his question. “Did Jules give you the same speech about how we have her blessing if anything should happen between us?” Bobby looked straight ahead, focusing on the road.
“She did. It was strange and uncomfortable but very sweet. Don’t worry though, I told her nothing was going to happen.” Piper was desperate to move on from this conversation. She hated any deep discussion that didn’t come with an exit strategy, unless she considered diving out of a moving truck an acceptable form of ending a chat. She knew everything she had been doing over the past weeks was playing with fire. She couldn’t go around blending herself into this peculiar but delightful group without them wanting more from her. And she couldn’t go around swinging on a porch swing week after week with a gorgeous cop and not think he’d expect something to come of it.
“Well that’s not completely true. We kissed.” Bobby felt a small pang of disappointment at Piper’s reaction. He had hoped this conversation might be a jumping off point for something more.
“That wasn’t really a kiss. It was a thank you between friends. It didn’t mean anything. It was how you would kiss your grandmother for goodness sake.”
“I guess the next time I kiss you I better not leave any doubt about my intentions then,” he smiled unapologetically at her.
“There isn’t going to be a next time. I’m not sure how to put this so bear with me while I think of the right way to say it.” She bit her lip and searched out her window, hoping maybe the right words would be painted on the passing trees.
When Piper remained silent for several moments, Bobby spoke up. “You’re very beautiful when you’re speechless. Let me see if I can help you. Are you dating that lawyer guy you’re doing all that research for? Because that won’t stop me from pursuing you. I’m not above stealing another guy’s girl,” Bobby said with a forced seriousness that broke into a smile.
“No, Michael and I are barely even friends. We’re more like acquaintances. That isn’t it at all.” She looked down at her lap still searching for the right words to say. She fiddled nervously with her hands until Bobby reached over to hold one.
He intertwined his fingers with hers, and she was taken aback by how warm and large his hand felt. Her hands were always cold regardless of the outside temperature. It seemed to be ages since she had felt the warmth of another person in this intimate way. She let the comfort and connection of his hand take over for a moment before realizing what she had to do. She pulled her hand away and began to speak.
“I’m not even a whole person, Bobby. I’m no Betty to your Stan. There are some girls out there who are worth the fight and the hard work, but you’re going to have to trust me when I tell you that I’m not one of them.” She had her hands back in her lap now and stared down at them. It had only been a minute and she already missed the feeling of his hand enveloping hers.
“I’m a pretty insightful guy, Piper. By now I’ve realized that you don’t talk about your past. If you haven’t noticed, I’ve stopped asking. I can see that you’ve got some history that maybe you’re still dealing with. That doesn’t make you some damaged girl unworthy of a relationship.” Bobby pulled the truck up to the front of Piper’s house. The thought of the conversation ending was relieving to Piper and disappointing to Bobby. She pushed open her car door instead of waiting for Bobby to come around and do it for her as he usually did, another gesture she had always imagined but never expected. Before she could hit the first step of her apartment she heard Bobby following behind.
“Bobby, I know you have this whole hero complex thing, and you probably see me as this great cause you can work on. I don’t need that right now. I need a friend, and you, Jules, and Betty have been wonderful. That’s