"Jacob?" Elle asked incredulously. "You"re seeing Jacob?""That"s right."
Elle picked up her fork and began poking at her food as she processed this information. Abby looked at her as she awaited her verdict. Of course she wanted her friend"s blessing, but since Abby knew about Elle"s complicated relationship with her new family she didn"t think she would get it.
"When did it start?" Elle asked finally.
"We first met at that party back in the fall." Abby explained. "We spoke a bit there. Then that time I came to Tae to have lunch with you but you were busy he overheard and took me out instead. That"s when I started liking him I suppose, but we didn"t start dating until recently. When you and I went out to buy clothes..." Abby trailed off.
"Ah your important dinner meeting. Of course." Elle said with dry humour.
"Are you angry?" Abby asked hesitantly. "Please don"t be upset."
"Why would I be upset?" Elle asked, this time with a soft smile. "You seem happy, and that"s all that matters to me. I just hope you pace yourself. You know how you always getting, rushing along head first."
Abby felt as if she wanted to cry. "Thank you Elle. I know it must be uncomfortable for you, I"m really happy to have your blessing."
"Why should i disapprove. Its true I don"t care for Jacob but that"s because he is a stranger to me. I have no impression of his personality or his character, but you"re old enough to judge both for yourself."
Abby smiled, feeling much lighter now that she had shared her secret. Elle, however felt heavy under the burden of her own secret.
"You know," Elle said finally, "I"ve been seeing someone too."
"What?!" Abby asked, slamming one hand against the table.
Here we go. Elle thought regretfully. "I didn"t tell you sooner because it was still so new." Elle said in her defence.
"I should have known something was up. You received those flowers and then that necklace." Abby muttered to herself. "Wait, how long have you been seeing each other?"
"Not that long. We met in the fall and then began dating just after new years."
Abby laughed. "Poor fellow, must have been a long chase." Elle kicked Abby lightly under the table. "Who is he anyway? Would I know him?"
Elle"s heart fluttered. "I don"t think you would have ever met before. He"s in business as well. We met through a related project." Elle lied. It wasn"t that she didn"t trust Abby, but Elle felt it wasn"t a good idea to reveal their relationship. Not when it was still so secretive, and especially without consulting Adam first.
"I"m jealous, it must be nice to be able to work together with your partner."
"It was fun." Elle recalled, but that was mostly because she didn"t really do much work.
Later that night, after both girls had gone back to their respective homes, Abby recounted her day to Jacob over the phone.
"It"s actually quite funny, I never would have expected that that girl finally found someone she liked." Abby said with a laugh.
"I knew she must have been seeing someone." Jacob murmured.
"How did you know?"
"She kept coming home late. She stopped driving as much too, she always gets rides back home. Either she"s seeing someone or she"s hired a driver." He joked.
"Do you know who she"s seeing?" Abby asked excitedly. "She said she met him through a work project."
"It must have been a project from before I started there, I have no idea. Are we still on for this weekend?" Jacob asked, eager to get off the topic of the sister he was currently working against.