A State of Jane by Meredith Schorr Read Free Book Online

glass for a new one, Jim and I joined the small group surrounding table A. I half listened to the curly haired woman discuss the floral flavors of the New Zealand Pinot Grigio while secretly hoping Jim would ask for my number.
    After we'd tried all six of the wines on the list, Jim asked, “Which was your favorite?”
    “I think the Chilean Sauvignon Blanc. I liked that grapefruit aftertaste. Which did you like the best?”
    “To be honest, I'd prefer a Guinness over a glass of wine anytime.”
    Smiling, I said, “A beer guy, huh? I never acquired much of a taste for beer, except maybe Hoegaarden. I like the lemon flavor.”
    “I'm not much into fruity beers.”
    I thought about Randall's fruity wine and decided that Jim's preference for beer was a good sign. Poking him playfully in the arm, I said, “Not manly enough for you, huh?”
    Shrugging he said, “Is that bad?”
    “Not at all. I kind of like my men ‘manly.’”
    “Not into metrosexuals?”
    Noticing his Detroit Lions jersey, I said “Not at all. I like guys who enjoy sports and beer. They can leave the shopping to me.”
    “My kind of girl, Jane. Into football?”
    “Admittedly, I just don't get it.” Lying, I said, “But I've always wanted to learn.”
    “Really? Well, I'd be willing to teach you, if you want. I'm a diehard Lions fan – never miss a game. If you watch one with me, I'd be happy to give you a play-by-play lesson.”
    “That would be awesome.” I'd gladly suffer through a football lesson for those dimples.
    “How about Sunday? There's a game at four against the Titans. Wanna watch the game with me somewhere?”
    “Would love to!” I said.
    Giving me a toothy smile, Jim removed his phone from his pocket and said, “What's your number?”
    I gave Jim my number and tried to contain my excitement. If things had worked out with Randall, I'd never have met Jim who Icould tell already was a much better match. A fellow football fan! My dad would totally approve. Although, being a Giants fan, he might question Jim's allegiance.
    I practically skipped to the subway station and was barely shaken when the E train didn't stop at 53 rd and I had to take a cab to get back to the east side. I'd put in a lot of overtime that month and had certainly earned the right to splurge on a single taxi ride. Besides, my mom didn't like me to take the subway after 10:00 anyway. She said she didn't like the “element.” She and my dad had lived in Manhattan well before Rudy Giuliani had cleaned it up.
    Lainie was sprawled across the couch watching The Real Housewives of Atlanta but she muted it when I walked into the apartment. “How was the wine event?”
    I threw my bag on the coffee table and plopped myself on the couch next to her. “It was great!”
    Lainie sat and up, looked at me questionably and said, “Seriously?”
    “Yes. Seriously! I met the greatest guy.”
    “You said that about Randall if I recall.”
    “That was different. Randall was Mr. Smooth. I should have spotted him a mile away. Nothing like Jim.”
    “Jim, huh? What's he like?”
    “He's a chemist. Works for Becton Dickenson and was just transferred from their Detroit office.”
    Patting me on the shoulder patronizingly, Lainie said, “Sounds like a nerd, Jane.”
    “Not at all. He's dorky-cute,” I said.
    “Did he take your number?”
    “Yep. He already asked me to watch football with him on Sunday.”
    Lainie started laughing. “Football? You? You don't even know who won the Super Bowl last year.”
    “The Giants!” Thankfully, Jim had mentioned it in conversation.
    Lainie smiled. “I had no idea you were such a football fan.”
    Smirking, I walked into my bedroom, said, “There are a lot of things you don't know about me,” and shut the door.
    A few minutes later, I was sitting in front of my computer reading about the history of the Detroit Lions on the NFL websitewhen Lainie tapped on my door. I turned around and said, “What's up?”
    Uninvited, Lainie sat