All Summer on a Date: Three Romantic Comedy Short Stories Read Online Free PDF Page B

me and said, 'I'm Summer Hodiak.' And do you remember what I said?”
    “Uh … You shook my hand and said, 'Jeff Tracy'?”
    “Exactly! And everyday since, you've called me Jeff. Not 'IT Guy,' not 'Kid From the Basement,' not 'Computer Guy.' You're different, Summer, because you just jumped right in and started treating me like a person, not like a technogeek or a fanboy, both of which I am. But it doesn't seem to faze you. So, I never had to worry about approaching you. You were always just, like, 'Hi, here I am.'”
    Summer's face fell. “But I'm trying to be more aloof than that, more composed. Rein myself in.”
    “Why? Don't you like talking to me?”
    “Of course I do! It's just ...”
    “Summer, if you'd reined yourself in tonight, you wouldn't have gone racing into the rain in a thousand dollar dress to save an injured pit bull.”
    She looked at him.
    He took a step closer to her. “Do you really want to put away the woman who did that?”
    Summer took a deep breath. Then another. Then another. She shook her head. “No.” Her breath quickened. “No, I don't. No!” She ripped off the sweatshirt and tossed it to Jeff. “I'm going to take a shower and wash this disgusting hairspray off my head! Can you start the macaroni? It's in the cupboard next to the fridge.”
     
    Later, after consecutive hot showers and tag-team meal preparation, the two of them sat all warm and toasty, wearing Summer's flannel pajama pants and cotton T-shirts. They arranged their picnic on the living room floor and stretched their toes toward the real wood fire that crackled in the fireplace.
    Summer took a sip of her coffee-cocoa. “I'm impressed that you can make a fire.”
    “It's not that hard when you're an Earthling.” He took a bite of mac and cheese and his eyes almost popped out of his head. “Wow! Summer, this is fantastic .”
    “To my mac and cheese!” She held out her mug to clink with Jeff's.
    “And to my fire.” They clinked again.
    “And to The New Year,” Summer added.
    “Hey,” Jeff said, “Why don't you make a resolution. Something you really want to do, but you've been holding back.”
    “I want ...” Summer could feel the excitement churning her up. “I want … to wear jeans to work!” She looked at him and laughed. “I mean, I'm a director. I can wear what I want, right? There's no dress code. Consequence is way too crunchy granola for that.”
    “Steve Jobs wore jeans everyday,” Jeff added, “and he changed life as we know it.”
    “And I want to go to Ireland,” she blurted. “To see The Cliffs of Moher!”
    “Sounds spectacular.”
    “What about you? What leaps do you want to take?”
    “Me? I'm going to bite the bullet,” he decided. “From now on, when I like a woman, I'm going to ask her out. No excuses, no missed opportunities. I'm just going to do it.”
    “Sounds good.”
    “And I'm going to adopt a dog,” he said, as if suddenly realizing it. “But I live in an apartment, so I should get an old dog, who's not bouncing off the walls. And I work all day, so he'll need a friend. So I'll adopt two old dogs.”
    “And I'll get two big cats,” Summer chimed in. “Sometimes I can go on a painting bender all weekend and forget what day it is or that I need to eat. Not so good for a dog. But at least the cats will have a litter box and water and I can put dry food out all day.”
    “Maybe we could go adopting together,” Jeff suggested.
    “Absolutely,” Summer agreed.
    “Wait,” Jeff said. “No, that's not really what I want. I mean, no, I mean, yes, I want to adopt the dogs, but—”
    A flurry of noise drifted into the apartment. Horns, music, cheers. Summer looked at the digital clock on the DVD player. “Midnight,” she said softly.
    Jeff held up his mug of chocolatey coffee. “To keeping resolutions and living life to the fullest.”
    “To keeping resolutions,” she agreed. “And to Starbuck. And to us.” They tapped their mugs together again.
    Jeff put