His Heart

Chapter thirty-three: Charlie

"Her name's Lizzie." I said.

"Yeah, hot mama Liz." He repeated.

I rolled my eyes.

"It wasn't really a date, the kids were there." I replied.

"Did you kiss her?"

"On the cheek, yeah."

He looked distinctly unimpressed.

"What?"

"The cheek? She's not your sister." He scoffed. "Unless you mean..."

"No I do not." I said, before he could give a detailed description in front of my seven-year-old son.

He held his hands out placatingly.

"All I'm saying is, it can't hurt to be more forthcoming." He said. "You don't want to wait too long that she loses interest. And a girl like that will lose interest quickly."

"What do you mean 'a girl like that'?" I frowned. "You've never met her."

"I looked her up online." He said, like it was no big deal.

"What on Earth for?"

"To check she isn't a serial killer or some weirdo!" He said. "Who knows the kind of woman you could date."

What does that mean?

"I married Jasmine." I argued.

"But that was so long ago. And girls like Jasmine only come along once in a lifetime." He said. "You can afford to be fussy, you're nice enough. But sometimes when you've been out of the game for so long, you lose your standards."

"So you're checking the suitability of the women I date?" I asked, again.

"Yep." He said. "And this one is perfect. No red flags, at least, that I could see."

I nodded. "Thanks. I don't need your approval to date someone but thanks all the same."

"You're welcome."

I rolled my eyes and fought back a smile. Despite my reservations about him internet- stalking a girl I barely knew, he always looked out for me. I appreciated that.

I watched him play with my son and let my mind drift back to Lizzie.

"So what's her deal?" He asked, after a while.

"What do you mean?" I frowned.

"Why is a woman like that single? And more importantly, what the hell is she doing with you?"

So one minute I'm nice enough but the next I could never get a girl like Lizzie? Right.

"Thanks." I raised an eyebrow.

"You know what I mean." He said. "I mean, come on, you're a great man but you don't know what you're doing. I bet she's the kind of girl who likes someone who has a clue."

"And you know this how? By a picture?"

"No. History."

I thought about the women he dated and kept quiet.

"She's divorced." I said. "A mother to twins. Most single men don't want that kind of baggage I guess."

"And you do?"

"I–"

"Charlie, can I give you a piece of advice?" He asked.

"Sure. If it's good advice."

"I always give good advice." He frowned.

"Alright."

"I could be your relationship guru." He said.