Indirect Route Read Online Free

out her phone and chuckled when she saw her latest message.
    Aaron:  I don’t suppose Kenneth Brown could be a 38 year-old blues guitarist?
    Janie:  Not unless he was a sexually promiscuous fifth grader.  And my mom was a pervert.
    Aaron:  I’ll take that as a no. Are you available to meet later this week?  I actually do have some information you might find interesting.
    Janie:  Yes.  YES!  When?  Can we meet tonight?
    There was a pause, and Janie was afraid she was coming off as borderline bonkers.  She was just about to text him an apology for being overeager when his next message came through.
    Aaron:  Sure.  We could meet for dinner.  Or not.  I mean, we could also just meet at the coffee shop again, if you don’t want to get into a whole dinner thing.  No pressure.
    Janie rolled her eyes and grinned.
    Janie:  Aaron, I’d love to have dinner with you.  Do you like Italian?  We could try Gratzi’s over by the mall.  They have great breadsticks.
    His response was almost immediate.
    Aaron:  Yes.  Let’s meet there at seven, okay?
    Janie:  Great, see you then.  Thanks, Aaron.
    She dropped her phone in her purse, and found herself smiling for the rest of the afternoon.  Must be the promise of breadsticks, she thought to herself.
    ***
    Aaron was in the bar when Janie arrived at Gratzi’s.  She walked past him twice before he stopped her with a wave and a shy grin.
    “Aaron?  Oh, God, I’m so sorry.  I didn’t recognize you!”  Janie felt herself blush, probably because it wasn’t like her to be quite so rude.  But he truly looked like a different man.  His hair had been cut in a trendy short style, and she got her first unobstructed look at his eyes, which were so brown they were almost inky.  His face, which had previously sported a few days stubble, was clean-shaven.  And his dark jeans and pressed charcoal shirt made him look older, and a little more self-assured. 
    “Yeah, um, I got a haircut.  Apparently it was way past due.”  Janie wanted to kick herself for making him feel self-conscious.  She quickly looked over his shoulder and began to study the assortment of liquors behind the bar. 
    “Do you want to get a drink before dinner?” She could use a dose of something before they began talking about her father.  Just the thought of finding him, and possibly meeting him, brought butterflies to her stomach. 
    “Yeah, okay.  What would you like?”  Aaron looked a little shifty, and Janie backpedaled.
    “We don’t have to if you’d rather not.”  She grabbed her purse, ready to head to the hostess station, but he stopped her with a hand on her forearm. 
    “No, no, I’m sorry.  Of course we can have a drink.  I’m just not much for alcohol.  I used to drink quite a bit in college, but I found that it made me kind of stupid.”
    “That’s the point, silly,” Janie laughed.  “Life’s not worth it if you don’t act stupid every once in a while.”
    Aaron grinned and shrugged.  “Then set me up.  Luckily I walked here from my apartment, so I can get as stupid as I want.”
    “So you live close?” Janie asked, signaling to the bartender with an outstretched hand.
    “Yeah, about a mile away.  In the lofts by the waterway.”
    “Oooh, those are nice,” Janie gushed, impressed with his fashionable digs.
    “They’re okay.  There weren’t enough outlets for all my computer equipment when I moved in, so I had to spend a ton of money for an electrician to refit the whole place.  Other than that, it’s nice.
    “Wow, how much computer equipment do you have?”
    “Enough for you to run like hell if you ever saw my place.  Mark says my apartment is where the Geek Squad comes to die.”  His face was so serious that Janie was unsure whether to laugh or not.  She turned to order he drink instead.
    “Martini for me.  What about you?” She turned to Aaron and caught him staring at her intently.  “Aaron?”
    “Oh, sorry.  Yeah, give me a