"Hey, can you meet me at Kildare's Pub tonight?" That was the only thing she said in the text. It was an odd request coming from Amanda. He had known her a long time, but only because she dated his good buddy Ray for years. He couldn't remember a time hanging out with her when Ray wasn't there.
"Sure, I can be there for 7," was his reply. She didn't answer. It wouldn't be weird to meet the two of them at a bar and get a drink, but then why didn't the request come from him? Ray's phone might be dead, but that's unlike him. Something felt off.
He arrived at 6:50 to find her already alone drinking at the bar. He grabbed the barstool beside her and said "Hey Amanda," as he leaned in and hugged her. She almost seemed startled by his arrival. She was wearing a black cocktail dress. Her dark hair was in the usual bob. Her makeup was done as if she was going on a date. By comparison Shawn felt underdressed. He did have the foresight to shave and put on a collared shirt, but his carpenter jeans didn't fit with the mood.
"Hi Shawn. I'm so glad you were able to meet me on such short notice."
"Yea, no problem. What are you drinking? Can I order you another?"
"Yea you better. I'm going to need the extra courage if I'm going to make it through this conversation."
"Uh oh, what happened?"
"Hold on one second," she said as her phone started to ring. She looked at her phone for a second before hitting ignore. "We'll talk once my vodka cranberry gets here. You talk now. How's working going?"
"It's um going ok." They continued to make awkward small talk for the next 10 minutes until her next drink and his first arrived.
"OK so I'm going to ask you a question that may seem random, but it's really important you answer me honestly."
"Yea of course."
"What were you doing last Friday?"
"I don't know I went to work, went home, it was a pretty regular day."
"You said you'd answer honestly. Now think hard. What did you do after work?"
"Um, last week was a bit of a headache at work so I grabbed a burger on the way home and then played Starcraft hours on end to detox. Not the most exciting of evenings to retell."
"So you weren't watching the football game with Ray?"
"No, Ray knows I don't care about college sports."
"But was Ray with you while you played, like he was on the couch while you were on your computer."
"No I didn't see him last Friday."
"I knew it! That lying bastard." She broke eye contact and angrily stared at her drink while fighting back the tears
"Whoa, whoa, let's calm down. What's going on here?"
"Ray is cheating on me."
"What? That's crazy. Ray loves you. You guys have been together forever."
"He started getting all weird the last month... lying, going through my stuff, my address book, my jewelry. Finally, Friday, he tells me he's going to watch the game at your place, but coworker Alynn of mine spots him over the Eastland center. I was hoping she mistook him for someone else, but I was just being stupid. It's over."
"Oh man, I'm so sorry."
"I've just decided I am going to experience life, you know, try new things. I'm going to sign up for a painting class and give new focus to my job."
"You know, they make paint you can eat now," was all Shawn could think of to fill the silence.
"And um," she downed the rest of her drink before continuing. "I was hoping you wouldn't mind being a rebound."
"Normally I prefer it, but are you sure you're ready for that? We can sit and drink for a while."
"Ray is the only guy I've ever slept with. I want to move on, but I don't want to regret anything. With you, even if it just one night, at least I know you care about me."
"And me being Ray's longtime friend certainly helps with the revenge angle."
"You don't think I deserve revenge?" Her big brown eyes stared into his as she grabbed his hand and placed it on her thigh.
"Ray? Screw that cheating bastard." Shawn leaned in and kissed her. It was a slow open mouth kiss, but no tongue.
The kiss was cut short when her phone started to ring. If only she just turned the damn thing off earlier. She looked at it and then pressed the ignore button. He didn't have to ask who was calling. "You want to get out of here?"
He draped his jacket around her shoulders and his arm around her waist as they walked back to his car. He turned up the music on the car ride back to limit the odds of an awkward silence. Thankfully he had a CD in the car, who knows which way a random love song would push her. And it almost worked had her phone not rang again on the drive to his place. He reached over and grabbed her hand, rubbing her knuckles and doing his best to nonverbally assure her that she's making the right decision.
She didn't wait once inside. She threw her body against his sending him stumbling back a couple steps, slamming the front door shut as he backed up into it. Her lips met his and their tongues danced. His hands roamed up and down her body. Right as his hands grabbed her ass, almost as if Ray knew, her phone beeped indicating that it received a text.
"Why don't you turn that off for the night?"
"I have a better plan. Since tonight is in part about getting revenge, how about we change positions every time he interrupts?"
"Oh I like the sound of that," Shawn said as he led her to the bedroom.