Pretty Sweet - Christina Lee Page 0,67
You’re almost done with something you hate. You don’t want to go into finance. You want to make people feel pretty, and there is nothing wrong with that.”
He was right. I did. Still, I didn’t want to get his hopes up. I didn’t want to get my hopes up. “I’m just getting information.” That I could get online…but I wanted to go there, to be there and pretend that was my life.
“It’s a step.”
We did makeup, and then I drove us to one of the schools in Portland. They had a bunch of pamphlets out, and we got those, but that wasn’t enough for Jesse. He asked to talk to someone, and they gave us info on the program and the classes that could fit around work schedules.
“I’m just feeling things out right now,” I told the woman. “I don’t know if this is something I’ll be able to do.” But I wanted it, God, did I want it.
“We’ll always be here,” she replied.
“Thank you.”
She handed me a card with her phone number and email address on it. “I think you’d be a great fit, Seth.”
“Thanks,” I replied. She stood, and we shook hands.
The second we got outside, I pulled my phone out, took a photo of the pamphlets, and texted it to Jake.
Holy shit, sweetheart. Is that what I think it is?
I melted every time he called me sweetheart.
I probably won’t do it…
You should. Damn, I wish I was with you right now. Come over tonight to celebrate? I know it’s scary, but you can do this.
I smiled. I was getting closer to thinking I could. I’ll come over when you get off work.
I’ll bring dinner home. Oh, and don’t forget to ask Jesse about this weekend.
I bit my lip, shoving my phone into my pocket again.
“Damn, boy. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen you smile like that,” Jesse said.
I was pretty sure I hadn’t. “Hey, do you have plans on Sunday?”
“No.”
“Jake is having a barbecue at his place, and we wanted to see if you and Dane could come. His friends will be there, so this is…it’s kind of a big deal for him.” This would be the first time Jake was with a man in front of the important people in his life.
“We wouldn’t miss it for anything.”
26
Jake
It was Sunday afternoon. I had just marinated the chicken breasts and placed them in the refrigerator for the barbecue I was suddenly nervous as hell about.
Why had I thought this would be a good idea? On the surface, it was. I hadn’t had people over in a while, and it would be good to kick back with friends. And as it turned out, Seth’s friends and mine pretty much overlapped. Outside of my coworkers, we were both friendly with Dane and Jesse, as well as Mark, Bree, and Hailey—and Mom, of course—so there wouldn’t be many awkward introductions.
Mostly, I wanted Seth to feel comfortable, but I wasn’t sure what that would entail. Did he want me to admit out loud that we were dating, or would that simply become evident to everyone in attendance?
My stomach rolled over at the thought. I had given Mark the heads-up the other night when I’d heard he was back in town and stopped over after work. He seemed completely taken aback at first, probably because it’d come out of the blue for him, but Bree was thrilled and supportive, so in a way she’d helped him snap out of it by the time I’d made my departure, and I was grateful for that.
And by now Mark would’ve had a couple of days for it to sink in, Tucker too. But I’d admit it felt a bit like we would be on display, and yeah, maybe that was a strange thought, but this was all new for me too.
Who knew admitting your sexuality to people would be such a game changer? Christ, our world was fucked up, when people cared who you were attracted to instead of how good your heart was.
At the knock on the door, the butterflies in my stomach kicked up like always when I was about to see Seth. I pulled the door open to a shining smile that made my nerves settle a bit.
I pulled him inside and kissed him until that smile was transferred to my face. Then he followed me to the kitchen, where I began stacking paper plates and plastic utensils on the kitchen island.
“Feeling nervous?” he asked in a hesitant voice.
“Maybe a little,” I admitted,