Lucky 33 (Love in the District #2)

13. Amy’s Younger and More Talented Sister

CHAPTER 13

AMY’S YOUNGER AND MORE TALENTED SISTER

A my wasn’t used to romantic relationships escalating so quickly and intensely as hers had over the last month. Her whirlwind romance with Drew had tempted her to take some time off to spend with him, but she couldn’t. More like shouldn’t, technically. Belinda would probably be cool with me working less. But her business was her first and most important relationship. She had clients counting on her. She had Belinda counting on her, too. She couldn’t abandon all her responsibilities for a guy. But Drew wasn’t any guy. He was magnetic. He was her first thought in the morning and the last one at night. Which wasn’t surprising since he was usually in her bed during those times.

Amy had to get it together. She didn’t get summers off like he did. This wasn’t how a realistic romance played out, either. It was closer to the honeymoon that Brit had described than real life. She hated to pull herself out of it, but duty called.

“What time do you finish up today?” Drew asked from the bathroom where he was brushing his teeth. She liked seeing his things alongside hers on the counter. Her mom would have called it “playing house,” but it felt right.

“My last client is at 4:00, and it’s a new one, so Belinda and I will be there longer than usual. I'll be home by 7:00. ”

“Will you be too tired to go out?”

“I’m never too tired for you. But I’ll need to make it an early night since we have a client first thing tomorrow morning.” Amy ignored the fact that she was exhausted from juggling work and Drew. Being with him was too exciting to let a little fatigue stop her.

“Okay, I’m heading out,” Amy called to him while zipping up her purse. “Stay as long as you like. The coffee is ready, and I have a few Pop-Tarts left.”

“I have my day wide open. I’ll hit up Safeway and get you some real food. If you’re good, I’ll make us some dinner and we can stay in tonight.”

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re perfect?”

“Judging by my student evaluations, many people would disagree,” Drew responded, leaning out from the bathroom to wink at her. Amy blew him a kiss in response as she walked out the door.

Drew’s mention of student evaluations gave Amy an idea. While waiting for the elevator to arrive at her floor, she looked around to make sure no one could see her. She got out her phone and searched for an anonymous professor feedback website that had been popular when she was in school. Surely, Rate My Professors still exists. It did. She was still navigating to American University and searching for Porter in the list of professors as she stepped into the elevator. There he is, she thought excitedly. I shouldn’t snoop. Well, just a little peek at what his students think of him. It’s a public website.

The elevator stopped at another floor on the way down and a woman got on, nodding hello. Amy clapped the phone to her chest, afraid she’d be caught looking at Drew’s ratings. That’s dumb. This lady doesn’t know me and doesn’t care what I’m doing. Calm down. Trying to look nonchalant, Amy resumed looking at Drew’s profile.

4 out of 5 rating. Tough grader.

“Skip class? You won’t pass.” Two more reviews about not skipping. What are these kids paying for if they want to miss class so badly?

Amy scrolled past ratings without comments and stopped immediately when she saw a rating of 0/5 for quality, posted over a year ago.

“Porter is unfair. All the 'grades' he hands out are incredibly ambiguous, and for some reason, he thinks very highly of himself,” the faceless student had commented.

Judgmental brat. He should be proud of himself for his accomplishments.

She fumed from the elevator to her car in the garage. She sat in her car and continued to read the ratings, trying to talk herself out of leaving a review of her own to clap back at the negativity from some students.

“This class killed my interest in politics. It's more hateful than the gridlock in DC. Porter loves the sounds of his own voice.”

She found a positive review that made her almost as mad as the negative ones.

“Dr. Porter is the best professor at this university. He’s charming, handsome, and always willing to get coffee or lunch and talk about life. It doesn’t hurt that he’s built like a Greek god.”

Amy tried to let Drew’s reviews go on the drive to pick up Belinda. She listened to the radio. She sang along. She mentally walked through the day’s schedule. None of it took her mind off the Greek God review. It had sparked a twinge of jealousy inside her.

Tonight was a big night, and Amy had been a little nervous for the past few days. On the morning she’d read Drew’s Rate My Professor reviews, she invited Drew to Wednesday night dinner to meet Laura. She had been fueled by jealousy, however unwarranted, and wanted to take another big step in their relationship. Introducing Drew to Laura would bring him into the fold officially. He already knew Brit and Katie, so Laura was the final important person in her life that he needed to get in good with. Not counting my parents, but one step at a time. Let’s be boyfriend and girlfriend for that.

Amy was sure Drew and Laura would make fast friends, but it was still a little scary for her to share him with someone else so formally. His meeting Brit and Katie had been by chance. This was intentional and meant a lot to her. She had gotten quite comfortable in their little bubble where they existed, just the two of them.

Amy placed a lot of value on Laura’s opinion. Sure, her friends approved, but their opinion didn’t hold as much weight as her sister's. She was anxious about the two of them meeting, even though she had no reason to believe it wouldn’t be a delightful evening. She spent the hour before they left to meet Laura prepping Drew.

“You make it sound like I’m going on a job interview,” he said, somehow able to just hang around her apartment casually like they weren’t about to take a big step in their relationship. “It’s making me nervous.”

“You don’t need to be nervous at all. You and Laura are going to get along great. I’m just making sure you’re ready for this.” Amy paced the apartment like a caged tiger.

Drew got off the sofa to step into her path and stop the pacing. “Amy, she’s your sister. I’m sure I’ll love her if she's anything like you. If you’re worried about her liking me, I get that. I’m a pretty confident guy, but I can’t predict whether everyone will have your excellent taste in men.”

Amy laughed uneasily. Why am I so worried? Just because I don't date a lot doesn't mean haven’t made a good choice with Drew. What if Laura likes him too much? Katie and Brit both flirted with him when they met. I don’t want to compete with my sister. Amy knew that this line of thinking was ridiculous. Laura’s engaged to the love of her life. If Drew left her for someone else, it wouldn’t be anyone in her circle.

“Why do you look like you just got terrible news? Your face is all wrinkled up. Careful: it might stay that way.”

Amy came back to the present moment. She used to have a hard time with negative thinking when she was younger. A review on a website from a stranger had undone years of work to stay in the moment and not let negative thinking take her away.

She tried to make light of the situation. “Oh, just thinking about how I hope you won’t fall madly in love with my sister and run away together.”

“You’re a nut,” he said, shaking his head. “I only have eyes for you.”

“What if some supermodel showed up in your class and threw herself at you?”

“Um, I don’t know. Report her to the dean? Enough bizarre hypotheticals, hot stuff. We need to go. The Uber’s here,” Drew said, herding her toward the door.

That’s enough assurance for me. Amy’s mood brightened as she followed Drew out to the car. Let’s put that negative thinking back in the past where it belongs. I’m here in the present with my guy.

Their Uber stopped at a light, and Amy patted Drew’s leg excitedly. “Look! There’s the psychic I went to,” she pointed to the alleyway that led to Mystic Natasha’s shop.

“Excuse me, can we stop here instead?” Drew asked the Uber driver.

Amy looked at him questioningly.

“Trust me.”

They thanked the driver and Drew added a big tip in the app before pulling Amy toward the psychic’s shop.

“What are we doing here?” she asked.

“I just want to take a gander at the place. There’s something in my gut about it, and really, I just want to take a peek since I’ve never been in a psychic’s shop.”

“It’s that insatiable academic curiosity, huh?”

“That’s why they pay me the big bucks.”

The shop was set to close in half an hour, and Amy was pleased they had a little time to go in and look around. Maybe I need a crystal for my apartment. Wow, who am I ?

The chimes on the door rang a mysterious melody, and Mystic Natasha came out through the heavy curtains.

“I knew it,” she sighed.

Amy had to laugh. That could mean anything, and it was the ideal level of drama for a psychic. “We only wanted to look around. I told my friend about your shop, and we were in the neighborhood,” Amy explained. “No readings for us today.”

“You found him,” Natasha said cryptically.

“Excuse me?” Amy felt tingles travel up and down her spine.

“I told you this was going to be a magical year. He’s the one I saw in my vision.”

“Hmm, you didn’t mention that, so call me a skeptic,” Amy said.

“You weren’t ready to know.”

“Uh, hi. Mystic Natasha, I presume?” Drew asked.

She nodded.

“Word on the street is that you give a heck of a value in your readings. Amy here has come across the number 33 everywhere and encountered many coincidences. Are those typical results?”

“Only for people who are truly open to the Universe’s messages. I wasn’t sure she would be.” Natasha addressed Amy, “It looks like you’ve opened your soul since we last met.”

“Yeah, something like that. Okay, we need to get to dinner. Nice to see you again.”

Natasha clutched her rose quartz pendant, and her eyes grew distant. “You’re going to make a huge mistake.”

“What?” Amy and Drew responded in unison.

“You are going to make a mistake, young lady. You will close your soul and let your mind take over.”

“I’ll look out for that, bye,” Amy responded, pulling Drew by his forearm to get out of the store quickly.

Amy had the creeps. What was that supposed to mean? She was more determined than ever to keep herself in her Drew bubble. She felt free and like mistakes and bad things were impossible inside there .

Drew broke the silence a few blocks down from the shop. “Well, that was something.”

“Psychics aren’t real. Her whole schtick is to get me to come back because she scared me. We have more pressing issues now. Should we get the Potato Skins or Fried Onion Loaf as an appetizer tonight?” Amy smiled at Drew reassuringly.

“Yes.”

“We’re both going to need to go on blood pressure medicine before the end of the summer.”

Arriving at the restaurant, Amy spotted Laura who had managed to secure an early spot at one of Martin’s Tavern’s coveted patio tables. She waved at them as they approached and, from the looks of it, was already halfway through her champagne and hibiscus cocktail, a favorite of theirs during their visits to Martin’s.

Laura stumbled a little as she got up to hug Amy in greeting.

“How many of those have you had?” Amy asked, gesturing at Laura’s drink.

“Three. No lectures. This is a special night for us.” Laura stuck her hand out to Drew. “Hi, Drew. I’m Laura, Amy’s younger and more talented sister.”

Drew grinned, shaking her hand. “So nice to finally meet you. I think it’s cool that you two are so close. It almost makes me wish I had a sibling, but then I’d have to share an inheritance someday.”

Drew pulled Amy’s chair out and helped her move closer to the table. Laura sat down and moved her chair closer to where Drew had taken his seat.

“Only child. Yikes. Are you the ‘overly mature’ kind or the ‘got praised for simply existing and eating boogers’ kind?”

“Both.”

“He’s a professor, so I think he’s turned out okay,” Amy said.

“AU, right? So, I heard a rumor that you’re a Duke fan. I can’t believe Amy is walking around in public with you. ”

Drew raised an eyebrow at Amy. “She’s prepared you for this meeting, huh?” he said cautiously.

“Don’t worry. I only have a few pages of questions prepared for you.”

That’s probably not an exaggeration .

“Laura, this isn’t an interview. He's not a story you’re working on.”

Laura stuck her tongue out at Amy. “Fine. Speaking of things I’m working on, I’ll need another one of these drinks. Don’t give me that judgey face, Amy. What are you two having?” she asked, subtly signaling their server.

“I hear we’re celebrating an engagement,” Drew said conspiratorially. He winked at Amy. Slick. He’s a good one if he’s willing to start a wedding conversation by his own free will.

Laura got a dreamy look on her face. “I don’t want to make tonight about that since we’re here to get to know you, but yeah. Jake proposed at a Nats game, and it was a spectacle. I’d pretend that I’m embarrassed, but it was awesome. We made the team’s Instagram account, and the post has been very popular.”

“She’s practically a celebrity,” Amy said, smiling at her sister. “What she’s not telling you is that ESPN reposted it on their Instagram.”

“I’m honored to be in the presence of a celebrity,” Drew said, bowing his head.

“The pleasure is all mine,” Laura responded with a royal wave.

Amy and Drew did their best to catch up to Laura in the drinks department. The three of them enjoyed a long evening of chatting and laughing. Laura gave Amy many approving looks throughout the night, which relaxed Amy, though they weren’t exactly subtle.

Hours later, the summer sun started to set, and the patio had cleared out almost entirely. Amy didn’t want to leave. She didn’t know why she had been so worried about the dinner. Everything was going better than she could have imagined. Laura and Drew were already buddies and were planning a hangout that would include Jake the next time.

“I almost forgot to tell you. We stopped by that psychic we went to for my birthday on the way here,” Amy told Laura.

“No way. Twice in three months? That’s really stepping it up from your previous record of never.”

“Yeah, it was weird,” Amy said, a little afraid to analyze the encounter.

“What did you expect from a psychic’s shop?”

“She acted like she knew who Drew was.”

“Drew, have you been there before?” Laura questioned. "Don’t hold out on us.”

“Definitely not,” he confirmed.

“Then she got intense and strange. She said I’m going to make a huge mistake.” That’s not ominous at all.

“Vague,” Laura said skeptically.

“She told me I'm going to close my soul and let my mind take over.”

“That just sounds like you reverting to your factory settings. So what?” Laura shrugged, looking like she was losing interest.

“I don’t know. There was something chilling about it.”

“Can confirm,” Drew added.

Laura let out a big yawn. “Are we boring you?” Amy asked.

“Whoa, sorry about that. I need to call it a night. It was really great to meet you, Drew. We need to make plans to hang out again ASAP so you can meet Jake, too. You’ll get along so well.”

“I’m in. In fact, I demand it,” Drew agreed.

It was a quiet Uber ride home despite Amy's excitement over how well the dinner had gone. Amy was really feeling the effects of her drinks. She cuddled up to Drew and let her eyes droop closed. Before she knew it, they were in front of her building. Phew, I need some water and a place to flop.

“Laura’s really cool,” Drew called out from the bedroom, where he was turning down Amy’s bed.

“I’m partial to her,” she responded from the kitchen. She gathered some bottled water and carbs to soak up the alcohol from dinner. “What are your feelings on spray cheese?”

“It’s a marvel of modern science. Who doesn’t love a cheese food?”

Amy got ready for bed as Drew dug into the snacks. She loved how comfortable they could be together. It wasn’t her style to let people invade her space, but she didn’t want to be apart from Drew—even in her sleep. He practically lived at her place now, something she never would have allowed with another guy.

Objectively, Amy understood that their relationship was moving quickly. She pacified herself by thinking, A relationship in your 30s does that. We’re beyond the mistakes of our younger years and know what we want. Why play games?

Amy climbed under the covers and snuggled up to him. “I really like having you here at night,” she said, moving closer to grab the can of cheese that Drew was spraying into his mouth.

“I sure wouldn’t kick you out of bed for eating crackers. Well, literally, I guess,” Drew said, brushing crumbs off of Amy’s side of the comforter.

“Are you cool with us spending so much time together? I don’t want to make you feel like you have to.”

“I’m all about it, Amy. This is my ideal way to get to know you. We’re fortunate to have flexible schedules right now, so we can. Why not be together?”

“I don’t want to monopolize your time. Surely you have friends who miss hanging out with you.”

“I do see them. Most are also professors, so they want to hang out, play ball, and do things during the day. They have wives and girlfriends, so we can have guy time and be still there for our ladies.”

“Okay. I want you to know that I’ll take all the time with you I can get, but I’ll understand if you need a break. There will be no drama or hurt feelings at all.”

“Understood. I’ll let you know if I ever want to leave your side. Don’t count on that happening, though.” He sprayed a dollop of cheese on her nose and studied her. “Beautiful.”