The Love Wager by Lynn Painter

            Hallie had always said she “wasn’t ready” when he brought it up, because the mere thought of dating after Ben made her mildly nauseous, but now she felt almost desperate. It had occurred to her in the shower that morning that in addition to all the other ways she wanted to jump-start her life, she wanted love.

            She did.

            Maybe that made her pathetic, but she suddenly didn’t want to be alone anymore.

            “Can I call Jamie?” Chuck pulled his phone out of his pocket. “She’s going to lose it—”

            “No.” Hallie shook her head. Jamie was like an overcaffeinated version of Chuck, and there was no reining her in when she got excited. “No Jamie.”

            “You know I’m going to call her the second we’re done, right?”

            “Yes, but I can’t handle both of you at once. You’re too much.”

            His mouth slid into a big stupid grin. He said around a dreamy sigh, “We are, aren’t we?”

            “That wasn’t necessarily a compliment.”

            “Quit being a grouchy twat.” Another thing about Chuck—he watched a ton of British programming, so he threw out the t-word all the time. He stood and dragged his chair around the table, not stopping until he plopped down right next to her. “Let’s create a profile while we’re here, so all you have to do later is sip on a glass of wine and scroll through the available gents.”

            “You make it sound like shopping,” she said, watching as he grabbed her phone, punched in the passcode (030122), and immediately went to work on creating an account.

            “It’s basically the same thing,” he replied, his eyes on the phone. “Only instead of the perfect handbag, you’re shopping for the one person in the universe who will make you blissfully happy for the rest of your life.”

            “Well,” Hallie said, irrationally excited underneath her feigned cynicism, “that sounds impossibly simple.”

            “Shut up and let me do this for you.”

            By the time they’d finished dinner, Hallie had an actual dating profile on an actual dating app. Chuck had come up with kickass verbiage that made her sound fun and smart, and she was genuinely excited to go home and start “shopping.”

            Only when he pulled up in front of her dumpy apartment to drop her off, Chuck gasped loudly and said, “Holy shit.”

            “What?” Hallie looked out the window but couldn’t see any reason for alarm.

            He said, “I think there was a delay or something when you told me about your new leaf, because your words are just hitting me right now. Did you say you’re going to get your own place—without Ruthie?”

            “Yes.”

            He tilted his head. “Have you thought about how you’re going to tell her?”

            Hallie narrowed her eyes and said, “I’m just going to tell her. We’re both adults—it’ll be fine.”

            “Really?”

            “Yes.”

            “Really?” His voice was higher in pitch.

            “Yes.”

            “Really.”

            “Ohmigawd, Chuck, quit trying to freak me out. I will tell her, she will accept it with a smile, and all will be well.”

            He nodded and said, “Sure it will.”





Chapter

THREE



“Oh, thank God you’re home!” Ruthie, Hallie’s roommate, stood in the doorway as if she’d been waiting for Hallie to return. She was wearing an apron that had a man’s ripped chest and speedo-covered junk drawn on it, and the cartooned Speedo had the words Got meat? written across the crotch in cursive. “I just made banana bread, and I want to get your opinion. Butter or no butter?”

            Hallie moved around her and went inside. “My opinion on butter or no butter?”

            Ruthie cackled at that. “Your opinion on the bread. Do you want butter or no butter?”