Free Compromising Positions by Mary Whitney Page A

sure if it’s nice to meet you. You caught that last touchdown that knocked my Bears out of the playoffs last year.”
    “Aw, you’re gonna hold that against me?”
    “Hell, yeah.”
    Larry turned to me. “I like this guy, already.” Then he said to Michael, “So, you like sports?”
    “Sure. I’m excited for the NCAA Tournament coming up. A couple of Illinois schools are in the first round.”
    “Yeah, that’s right. My alma mater, North Carolina State, is in it, too.”
    “As is mine,” I said. “Arizona is a second seed.”
    Larry’s face brightened like he’d come up with a great idea. “Hey, Michael, my butt is gonna be parked on the couch all next weekend. You should come over one day and watch some of the games.” He then nodded to me. “Maybe Jessie will come up from the basement and watch, too.”
    I’d already been smiling, but my teeth clenched as Larry assumed the role of matchmaker. I wanted to hide with embarrassment as Michael turned to me. He was the one who’d been asked the question, but clearly, my opinion was the one that counted. What was he expecting? Was I supposed to say “Please come over”? Or did he want me to let him off the hook with something like “Next weekend isn’t really good”? I kept my frozen smile, hoping that was enough encouragement.
    “That sounds great,” Michael said as he looked back at Larry. “I don’t have many friends my age in D.C.”
    “Me either,” said Larry. Then he turned to me. “What do you say, Jessie? Will you be joining us?”
    Despite wanting to both punch and hug Larry for what he was doing to me, I managed to be nonchalant. “Sure. For a bit.”
    “Unfortunately, I need to take my mother home now.” Michael pointed to Evelyn, who stood by the door, staring us down, again. He asked, “How about I come over late Friday afternoon? I think that’s when Southern Illinois is playing.”
    Larry grinned. “The Salukis. Excellent. You can tell me then why a state school has such a prissy dog for a mascot.”
    “Sure.” He laughed. “I’ll do it then.” With a direct smile at me, he said, “It was really good talking with you. I’ll see you later.”
    Finding myself without words, I summarized what he said. “It was nice talking with you, too. Have a good night.”
    When Michael was far enough away, Larry whispered, “Does Trish know you like him?”
    It was better to ignore Larry for assuming I had a thing for Michael. Instead, I told him something he was going to have to deal with since he’d invited Michael to his home. “I’m sorry I didn’t warn you, but Trish hates his guts.”
    Larry’s abs of steel shook as he laughed hard, and he put his arm around me. “I bet she does hate him. Don’t worry. I’ll handle her.”
    “What are you going to say?” I pled. “Because there’s nothing to say.”
    “I’m not saying anything other than I met a guy my age who isn’t a meathead Redskin, and I invited him over to watch some basketball.”
    “Well, you can tell Trish I’ll join you for a little while, but only because it would be odd if I didn’t. Michael is a colleague who’s going to be at my chief of staff’s house on a social visit. I happen to live in that house, too. I have to drop by. Otherwise, it would be impolite to avoid him.”
    It all sounded logical to me, but Larry didn’t buy it. He nodded. “Uh, huh. Yeah. Work. That’s the reason you’re dropping by.”
    “And I like basketball.”
    “Don’t worry.” He winked. “Your secret is safe with me.”
    He was such a big, lovable teddy bear. I had to smile. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    ~~~
    When I got home to the safety of my apartment that night, I let Severus outside and then sank into my sofa with way too much Michael Grath on my mind. Because I was so lost in my jumbled thoughts, I was startled when the phone rang. I scrambled to find it in my purse, and was confused to see Alan Young’s name on the screen. Huh. Why