endorse it.”
“You know what, Cody? I like your style and your honesty.” Patricia smiled. “To coin a phrase from my favorite movie, ‘This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.’”
“ Casablanca .” I laughed. “It one of my favorites too!”
“And you’re not gay, huh?” Serina jibed.
I glanced at the clock hanging over the cafeteria doorway.
“We’d better get rolling before we’re late for class.”
The girls looked at each other, then Patricia asked me for my number. “It is not often that we want to share their private lives with people we hardly knew, but you seem like a kindred spirit.” Patricia said, looking into my eyes.
“Listen, we have a regular Wednesday night pasta night,” Serina casually as we walked to class. “We drink wine in front of the fire while watching old movies. Wanna join us this week?”
I almost shit my pants right there. I couldn’t decide if they asked me because they liked me as a friend or something more. Either way, I was honored and embarrassed all at once.
“Since we all like old romantic movies, I guess you’ll fit right in.” Patricia smirked and glanced at Serina. Her emphasis on the words “fit right in” seemed almost sexual in nature. The smirk that grew on Serina’s full lips sent my imagination reeling. We made the date for Wednesday, exchanged numbers and addresses, and headed to class. I could hardly concentrate on anything else the rest of the morning.
Considering it was Monday, I had two agonizing days to go through before I could see Serina again and hoped we shared some classes together. Fortunately for me, both Serina and Pat had the same anatomy class I did the next day and we shared lunch. The brief but fun luncheon was enough to tide me over until Wednesday.
* * * *
I told them I would bring the wine and dessert. I stopped and picked out a couple of pretty expensive Pinot Noir and some great-looking Italian pastries at the local bakery on my way to their place.
I rang the bell and waited outside for someone to answer. I felt little awkward as I stood on the stoop of a strange house in complete silence, wondering what the hell to expect from the evening, so nervous my palms were sweating and my glasses kept slipping off the bridge of my nose. A few seconds later Patricia opened the door and invited me in.
“Hey, Cody!” She was bubbly and fresh.
“Hi there,” I said coyly. “I bought some pastries and I hope you like Pinot.”
“Perfect,” she said, grabbing the bottles and pastry box.
“Hang your coat over there.” She pointed to the rack standing next to the door.
“Serina, our guest has arrived,” she yelled through the apartment.
The house smelled amazing. A mélange of tomato sauce, garlic, fried meat, and basil permeated the air. My mouth watered as the fragrant aromas tickled my olfactory lobe. Pat was dressed in a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt while I wore a pair of dress pants and a short-sleeved shirt buttoned to the top. She hugged me and if my mouth wasn’t watering from the smell of food, her perfumed skin drove me wild. Studying me, she shook her head, then immediately reached for my buttoned collar and undid the buttons partially down my chest. My crisp white T-shirt beamed from the opening.
“If you’re going to hang out with us, you shouldn’t be so uptight. You always have that nervous look in your eye, Cody. Relax, we don’t bite—not hard, anyway!”
I really did need to relax. Either she was filled with innocent friendship or she was making obvious advances. I had difficulty figuring out which. I was always naive when it came to women. I never knew what they expected or wanted. It sucked.
We walked through the small living room with a cozy fire smoldering in the fireplace and into the kitchen where Serina was cooking. She looked radiant in a long kimono. Barefoot at the stove she tasted the tomato sauce with a wooden spoon. Her beautiful red painted toes