Page 88 of The Hopelessly Bromantic Duet

“That’s awesome. You sound stoked,” he says.

I smile as I stare out the window. “I am.” I’m beyond stoked, and I don’t want to scare off Jude by telling him that his invitation to meet up and then see his play is kind of like a fantasy.

And it feels too good to be true. So good that I need to settle down. I gesture to the radio. “Love this band.”

“Me too. Saw them the other week at Whisky a Go Go and they killed it.”

“No kidding? That’s a great club.”

We talk some more about the Los Angeles music scene, and not once does he ask if I’m the guy who was dumped on TV. The front desk clerk doesn’t do a double take when I check into the hotel an hour later. No one stares at me, and it’s awesome.

New coast, new city, and I feel like a new man.

After I head into my room, I shower like the wind, get dressed at the speed of sound, then head downstairs to meet the guy who looked me up seven years later.

Nerves fly through me as I try to picture the scene. What to say. How to act.

I want to put on my best face for Jude. No way do I want to be the guy in a funk in a coffee shop.

I want to be the guy who’s on the other side. Someone who’s witty, clever, confident. The guy who helps his work wife find thedress of her dreams. The dude who entertains a security agent. The man who chats with a Lyft driver about new tunes.

That’s a start, but is it enough?

Pretty sure there’s no guidebook for how to act when you see the guy who got away.

Except, maybe there is.

Maybe I’ve been writing the guidebook over the last several years, for all intents and purposes.

As I push the stairwell door open and head to the lobby bar, I ask myself who I want to be tonight when I see Jude in a couple minutes.

Easy.

I’m gonna play this reunion like I’m one of the heroes in my books.

31

ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE

Jude

I’ve always believed in luck.

Signs, even.

Helen coming to see my play was one of those signs.

Almost like the universe said, “All right, you served your time. Learned your two-year lesson. Here’s your reward. The man from your past.”

But one big question nags at me—will TJ like who I am now? Years ago, we connected because we were both questing. But we aren’t in the same boat anymore. He’s a big-deal bestselling author, and I’ve yet to earn a starring role in a film or be cast as a lead on a TV show. I don’t want him to be disappointed in me.

Maybe for tonight, it’s best if he sees me as the guy he fell for so many years ago. I’ve never forgotten his private words:He’s the swooniest man I’ve ever known...

Clearly, I’ll have to be so damn charming, he’ll be blown away by how worthy I am.

The scene will open like this. I’ll wait at the bar. I’ll order us both drinks. I’ll have a witty word at the ready.

As I near the glass doors of the hotel, I practice possible opening lines.