I dive into the Pad Kee Mao. “Wow, this is probably the best Thai I’ve had outside of San Francisco.” Moaning, I finish my first bite.
“Did you live in San Francisco long?” she asks as she picks up her wine and takes a drink. “Hmm, you were right. This wine is delish!”
“Yeah, every wine I’ve tried so far has been fantastic. I will have to have Lev help me replenish his stash here.” I contemplate answering the first question. “I went to Stanford Medical School, and when I graduated, I ended up settling in San Francisco for my residency and my first job. I was there for about seven years.”
Sarah’s eyebrows raise. “Stanford, wow. That’s a fantastic medical school. I can’t even imagine.”
“It was definitely my dream. Thankfully, I got a scholarship, or I never could have afforded it.” I change the subject before we get too deep into the past. “So, tell me how long you have known Lev?”
“Lev? OMG, you didn’t tell me your date is with Lev? Yummy.” She fans herself. “Spill.”
Head buzzing, my worries spill from my brain. “That man is definitely the poster guy for sexy and hot. He asked me out for dinner tomorrow night. Well, first he asked me on a date to a winery, but then we decided it would be better for our first date to be just dinner so we could get to know each other. He seems to date a lot, though, and I’m worried he’s a playboy.”
“He’s not, from what I hear around town. He dates, but he is not a heartbreaker. He is incredibly fun and an overall good guy,” she reassures me. “He moved here with Shaw, Lowell, and Thayer about three years ago, when they all got out of the Army. Well, Shaw was from Lockeland Valley, so I guess he just moved back, and they came with him.”
“Thayer?”
“Sorry, Dr. Bradford’s first name is Thayer,” she explains. “Shaw shocked us when he moved back. We went to high school together. He was three years ahead of me and outside my circles. Captain of the football team, All-American, dated the head cheerleader, straight-A student...basically, the town’s hero. We all thought he would go off to college and have a big football career, but after high school, he joined the Army, and we didn’t see him much for the next fourteen years. When he came back, Lev, Lowell, and Thayer came with him, and they all moved into Shaw’s family ranch together. They are all four outstanding men. They date, they have fun, but honestly, I’ve never heard anyone speak badly about any of them.”
“They all live together? I remember you telling me that before, but I must have forgotten. That seems odd for four grown men.”
Shrugging, she says, “I don’t know why. It’s a huge ranch with a lot of land, the house itself has ten bedrooms, so it’s not like they can’t all have their own rooms. Wait until you go out there. It’s incredible. Shaw’s family ran a large operation, and he inherited all of it when his dad died. We used to go to pool parties at his house when we were in high school, and they were a blast. Now, back to Lev. You said dinner?”
“Yep. He said we were going to Helena. I don’t know what to wear. If we were in San Francisco, I’d probably throw on an LBD. I wasn’t sure if that was a good idea here? Also, I don’t know. I kind of want to wow his socks off, and I don’t know if my usual safe choice would make much of an impact.”
“OK,” Sarah exclaims, throwing down her napkin, “Let’s go find a va-va-voom outfit to knock that man’s socks off.”
Giggling, I put down my chopsticks and stand up. “Let’s go look in my closet and see if this mythical outfit exists.”
Down the hall, I pull open the doors to my closet and stand back for her to dig through it.
“Hmm, OK. Your clothes are more geared to conservative style instead of hot dates. I think we can work with some of the items, though.” She thinks for a moment. “It’s still kind of cold out. That narrows it down to a dress and boots or pants,” she says as she starts pulling a few things out of the closet. Motioning me to get up, she lays four outfits on the bed. A dark green sweater dress, a pair of tight-fitting black pants with a blazer and a red bodysuit top, dark jeans with a dressy burgundy blouse, and a black wrap dress. “These are all good contenders. Try them on, and we’ll give them a rating and see which one works.”
I grab the black wrap dress, change, and parade in front of her.
“I give it a six. Nice dress but doesn’t say date, much less sexy. Next!” she demands.
I put on the dark jeans and burgundy blouse next.
“Hmm, keep this one in mind for your winery date. Gorgeous, but not for your first date,” she suggests.
I agree and put on the dark green sweater dress. It has a deep vee that shows off my breasts, skims closely to my body, and ends mid-thigh. Walking out, I turn in a circle.
“Wow. Ten out of ten. Who knew you were hiding that body in your scrubs? This is definitely a sexy date night dress. Do you want to try on the last outfit or go with this one?” she says as she holds up the last outfit.
I think about it for a second. I love the red bodysuit, but I’m going to hold off. Shaking my head no, I tell her, “It doesn’t really feel like it’s meant for a date with Lev. Lowell, maybe, but not Lev.” My eyes widen as I hear what I just said. “I mean, if I was having a date with Lowell, but I’m not.”
She stares at me for a second, then bursts out laughing. “You have a thing for Lowell, too? Damn, girl.”
Blushing, I groan and throw up my hands. “I do. It’s so weird. I haven’t dated anyone in years, and now I like two men...I mean, seriously?! What are the freaking odds? I can’t help it, though. Lev is hot, but it’s more than his physical appearance. He exudes this incredible warmth and sense of adventure. Lowell is definitely good-looking, but cool and restrained. More than that, his mind intrigues me. I don’t have a date with Lowell, though. I have a date with Lev. So, let’s go with the sweater dress.”
“It’s OK to date more than one person, you know. I can see you with both of them. They each bring out a different side of you. Lowell is probably more like your own personality, and Lev is a bit of an opposite.” She shrugs. “Don’t sweat it. Go out with Lev, and see what happens.”
Thinking about it for a second, I have to agree. It’s a date. “We’re not exclusive. I get it. But I want to be cognizant of the fact that they are friends. I don’t think I’d want the man I’m dating to also be dating my best friend, and I can’t imagine they would want to date the same woman.”
“You’d be surprised,” she murmured. “OK, so that’s the dress. You have the knee-high black heeled boots to pair with it. I’d add some dangly gold earrings and a long necklace. Done!”
“Phew, thanks so much.” As she stands up, I hug her. “I really appreciate it. Thanks for the advice, and the background info.”
