pepper.
“Do you want to come see the place with me next Saturday? I’m going to check out the kitchen to see what the former people left. We might be able to save some money on equipment if there’s anything there we can use.”
“Sure,” Wendy answered on automatic pilot. What the heck had she agreed to? She had no free time to meet him. And given her behavior over the past few days, she shouldn’t trust herself alone with a man. The control she had worked so hard to maintain for so long had begun to slip.
Did she just agree to a date?
The satisfied expression on Franco’s face indicated that she had.
Chapter Four
“Are you sure you still want to be my lab partner?” Wendy asked.
One Monday afternoon every month, Wendy had to take off work to attend the chemistry lab. She and Gloria shared a pizza before heading over to identify an unknown compound through a series of impossible-to-comprehend experiments.
“Who else would I want to be partners with?” Gloria asked. “Besides, it was only the ends of my hair that got singed, and I needed a trim anyway.”
Wendy rolled her eyes. “I forgot to tell you, Franco stopped by my house this weekend.”
“No surprise there. He’s looking for a repeat performance. Did you oblige him?” With dramatic gusto, Gloria took a huge bite of pizza.
Wendy rolled her eyes on an even wider arc. “Gloria, my mom was there. She was the one who invited him in. He cooked for us and asked me out.”
“I can’t believe the nerve of that guy. Coming to visit you, being nice to your mom, cooking for you and asking you out. What kind of woman does he think you are?” Gloria shook her head with mock disdain. “Really, Wendy. I could see dumping the dentist, he did nothing for you. But pushing Franco away without giving him a chance. And don’t feed me that line about not having time for a relationship.”
“I’m not going to chase fantasies, never face reality, like my dad.”
“And having a boyfriend would be living a fantasy?” Gloria’s brow furrowed in confusion.
“I can’t explain it.” Wendy knew she shouldn’t explain it. She had obviously inherited some of her father’s hedonistic tendencies, and she had to work overtime to keep her sex drive in check. And she couldn’t bring herself to see Franco end up the way her mother had—heartbroken and alone.
“That’s why I joined my club. It’s a place where you can just be yourself, people accept you for who you are. And there’s always someone up for having fun,” Gloria said.
“Not interested.”
“Just come to hang out and be yourself, unwind a bit.” Gloria said.
Wendy shook her head.
“Okay, at least come for a screening. Even if you’re accepted, you can still say no.”
“You mentioned a screening before. If this is some elitist club, they’re certainly not going to let someone like me in. I’m a poor hotel maid, daughter of a single mother who was once on welfare. Can you see me in a club?”
“It’s not about money or social status. Come on, we can probably meet Dr. Romero now.” Without waiting for an answer, Gloria pulled out her cell phone and placed a call.
Wendy didn’t focus on Gloria’s end of the conversation. She worried about the lab she was due at in about an hour. She planned to get there early, scope out the equipment and read through the instructions. Maybe this time she wouldn’t break the pipette. She certainly didn’t have time to meet with some doctor and fill out a bunch of forms.
“Great, we’ll come right over.” Gloria ended the call. “He says he has time now, no patients for the rest of the day. His office is just across from campus and we’ll make it back for Lab.”
“You’re not going to take ‘no’ for an answer, are you?”
“Nope.” Gloria removed some bills from her Gucci wallet and placed them on the table. “Lunch is on me today, for being such a good sport.” She took Wendy’s arm and marched her out of the restaurant to
“Do you want to come see the place with me next Saturday? I’m going to check out the kitchen to see what the former people left. We might be able to save some money on equipment if there’s anything there we can use.”
“Sure,” Wendy answered on automatic pilot. What the heck had she agreed to? She had no free time to meet him. And given her behavior over the past few days, she shouldn’t trust herself alone with a man. The control she had worked so hard to maintain for so long had begun to slip.
Did she just agree to a date?
The satisfied expression on Franco’s face indicated that she had.
Chapter Four
“Are you sure you still want to be my lab partner?” Wendy asked.
One Monday afternoon every month, Wendy had to take off work to attend the chemistry lab. She and Gloria shared a pizza before heading over to identify an unknown compound through a series of impossible-to-comprehend experiments.
“Who else would I want to be partners with?” Gloria asked. “Besides, it was only the ends of my hair that got singed, and I needed a trim anyway.”
Wendy rolled her eyes. “I forgot to tell you, Franco stopped by my house this weekend.”
“No surprise there. He’s looking for a repeat performance. Did you oblige him?” With dramatic gusto, Gloria took a huge bite of pizza.
Wendy rolled her eyes on an even wider arc. “Gloria, my mom was there. She was the one who invited him in. He cooked for us and asked me out.”
“I can’t believe the nerve of that guy. Coming to visit you, being nice to your mom, cooking for you and asking you out. What kind of woman does he think you are?” Gloria shook her head with mock disdain. “Really, Wendy. I could see dumping the dentist, he did nothing for you. But pushing Franco away without giving him a chance. And don’t feed me that line about not having time for a relationship.”
“I’m not going to chase fantasies, never face reality, like my dad.”
“And having a boyfriend would be living a fantasy?” Gloria’s brow furrowed in confusion.
“I can’t explain it.” Wendy knew she shouldn’t explain it. She had obviously inherited some of her father’s hedonistic tendencies, and she had to work overtime to keep her sex drive in check. And she couldn’t bring herself to see Franco end up the way her mother had—heartbroken and alone.
“That’s why I joined my club. It’s a place where you can just be yourself, people accept you for who you are. And there’s always someone up for having fun,” Gloria said.
“Not interested.”
“Just come to hang out and be yourself, unwind a bit.” Gloria said.
Wendy shook her head.
“Okay, at least come for a screening. Even if you’re accepted, you can still say no.”
“You mentioned a screening before. If this is some elitist club, they’re certainly not going to let someone like me in. I’m a poor hotel maid, daughter of a single mother who was once on welfare. Can you see me in a club?”
“It’s not about money or social status. Come on, we can probably meet Dr. Romero now.” Without waiting for an answer, Gloria pulled out her cell phone and placed a call.
Wendy didn’t focus on Gloria’s end of the conversation. She worried about the lab she was due at in about an hour. She planned to get there early, scope out the equipment and read through the instructions. Maybe this time she wouldn’t break the pipette. She certainly didn’t have time to meet with some doctor and fill out a bunch of forms.
“Great, we’ll come right over.” Gloria ended the call. “He says he has time now, no patients for the rest of the day. His office is just across from campus and we’ll make it back for Lab.”
“You’re not going to take ‘no’ for an answer, are you?”
“Nope.” Gloria removed some bills from her Gucci wallet and placed them on the table. “Lunch is on me today, for being such a good sport.” She took Wendy’s arm and marched her out of the restaurant to
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