I continued, “Why do you want to date? What do you want to get out of it?”
“I want to date because it looks fun,” she answered, uncertainty tinged her voice.
I smiled, shaking my head. “You’re not going to have fun until you know why you’re dating.”
“What?”
“Dating is to get to know people and to get to know yourself. I date any man who can pass my preliminary screening. And I’ll date them for various reasons. I date for fun and entertainment. I date for content for my blog. I date because it makes me a better interviewer. I date because it highlights what I want and what I don’t want, what I can deal with and what I can’t. I date because I’m good at it.”
“So, sex isn’t a factor all of a sudden?” my best friend scoffed.
“Well yeah, I date for connection and sex, too. But most dates aren’t going past the first date anyway. And if there wasn’t a connection to make it to the second date, there’s definitely no connection for sex.”
“Well for the last year, you haven’t been giving these men a chance to make a connection because you keep fucking with Cameron,” she said in a sing-song voice. “I’m surprised Jeremiah was able to squeeze in a spot.”
I rolled my eyes. “Cam is not stopping me from a connection. He is keeping me from falling prey to lame sex unnecessarily. He’s…a necessary tool in the garden that is my dating life. Jeremiah… serves the same purpose in a different way. And anyway, the focus of this conversation is on you and your dating life, not me and mine.”
“Well then that’s my reason. I want to date to find a Cam—a reliable guy that makes me come every single time and no commitment. You call him when you need him and then you don’t worry about him again.”
“You make me sound so bad,” I chuckled.
“How am I making you sound bad?” Kia exclaimed. “I want your life! I would love that arrangement. You date who you want. You do what you want. But when you need someone to get you off, you know who to call. That is my goal. I want a Cam with a Jeremiah on the side.”
“To be clear, I do wellness checks. I check on them to see how they are doing from time to time. I don’t only call them for sex,” I corrected her as she giggled.
“Wellness checks,” she repeated, her voice riddled in amusement. “What are you going to do when you do meet the one?”
“I don’t have to worry about that.”
“What do you mean? You could meet the perfect man for you and then what?”
“The perfect man for me would have to be Dad-approved and since there’s no way that’s going to happen…”
I let the silence settle between us. I felt bad about bringing the conversation to a halt like that. But it was the truth. I swore that the next man I committed to would have to be the kind of man that my father would’ve wanted for me. He would have to be the type of man that my father would’ve approved of.
And since he’s gone, there’s no way that’ll happen.
“Oh!” she squealed, excitement changing her tone and the direction of the conversation. “Did you get the art to finish your office décor? How does it look? Can you work in it now?”
“It’s coming tomorrow. I couldn’t fit it in my car. It’s huge, so it’ll be delivered and mounted for me.”
“I can’t wait to see it. Is it—wait, you have a lunch date tomorrow and then we’re supposed to be going to Black Lotus tomorrow night? Do we need to just wait until next Thursday? Are you going to have time? You need your office completed.”
“I also need quality time with my best friend at open mic night. We’re going to Black Lotus. And don’t think I didn’t hear you try to slip the word date in there—I’m having a lunch meeting. It’s not a date.”
Kia sucked her teeth. “Did he or did he not ask you to meet him at his apartment building?”
“At the restaurant that happens to be on the first floor of the building where he lives, yes.”
“Did he or did he not ask you if you were single?”
“My blog is literally called The Single Life! He was confirming details.”
“Did he or did he not tell you that you are beautiful?”
“The man has eyes, Kia!”
We both burst out laughing.
“Joshua is a marketing