Chapter 55 (2/2)

She grins at me wholeheartedly . . . and then I make a U-turn in our conversation: “Second thing, part B: if you want to talk about Dakota, we can.”

Nora shoots me an annoyed glare. I ignore it. I want her to know that I’m not one of those guys who doesn’t tell you what’s on his mind and makes you guess, and by the time you figure it out, you’ve already forgotten what the problem was in the first place. That guy is not me.

I was raised by a single mom, and I credit her for my communication skills.

I don’t just swallow half-truths, and I don’t give them out. I wouldn’t just leave with my ex and not want to explain everything to the girl I was actually on a date with. I don’t want her to create this version of me that she thinks she knows. I want her to base her opinion of me on facts and good experiences.

But so far, I haven’t given her a great example of what type of man I am. I wipe out the pan and spray the nonstick spray onto the nonstick surface. Neither product actually works completely, but still, only half of my meals get stuck to the bottom of the pan. That’s a win, the way things go for me.

“Come on,” I say, trying to guide her into the conversation.

Nora eyes me tentatively. “Since I get the feeling that you aren’t going to let this go, I’ll talk about how insane it is that she’s my roommate and you’re Tessa’s roommate. Talk about a small fucking world.”

She tilts her head back and shakes it.

It is such a small world—too small, if you ask me. I’m so curious as to how it could be possible that my ex-girlfriend ended up rooming with my . . . friend Nora.

“How did you meet her? If she’s in the ballet academy and you’re a baker—”

Nora’s neck rolls and she holds up her hand. “I’m not a baker. I’m a chef.”

Her tone lets me know that she gets that a lot and she doesn’t care for the generalization. Oops.

“Anyway,” Nora continues, “my old roommate from college, Maggy, posted an online ad for a third. Dakota showed up one day with one bag around her arm and the biggest attitude I’ve ever seen.”

I can tell by the face she’s making that she regrets saying this in front of me. “No offense,” she