Page 107 of Not That Into You

“No. At least he hasn’t said anything.” And I’m not sure I can handle another stuffy dinner.

“Are you going to stage a fake breakup?” Gina asks.

“Why? There’s no need to do that.” Right?

“So, you’re going to maintain the fake relationship while keeping your real relationship secret?” Claire asks.

“What? No. You’re making this much more confusing than it is.” I lift my glasses off the bridge of my nose and rub my eyes. “We’re not continuing the fake relationship.” At least, I don’t think we are. “And our real relationship isn’t a secret.” At least, I don’t think it is.

“You’re right.” Claire shakes her head. “It’s not going to get complicated at all.”

I blow out a breath. It’s not going to get complicated because we’re not going to let it get complicated. My feelings for Cameron are based on lust and proximity. I can handle them.

“Finally,” Gina says.

I look up at her in question.

She nods toward the door. “Anna just arrived.” Her eyes widen. “Oh.”

I look toward the front of the bar and spot Anna, dressed in a black skirt suit. Walking in behind her is a tall, handsome Black man with a low fade and closely trimmed beard, dressed in a dark gray suit.

My eyes meet Claire’s, and we smile at each other.

Hayley sighs. “They look so good together, like a Brooks Brothers advertisement.”

They walk up to our table, and we gamely shuffle our chairs around to accommodate them.

Hayley smiles. “Hi, Dre.”

A dimple appears on Dre’s face as he returns her smile. “Hi, Hayley. How are you?”

“Better now that you’re here.”

I snort into my drink as Dre’s smile warms and Anna’s expression cools.

“What brings you two here tonight?” Claire asks.

I stifle a laugh as Anna narrows her eyes at Claire. “It’s Wednesday night.”

True, but she’s never brought Dre with her to Blue Iris before. Not that I’m complaining. I like Dre.

He and Anna went to the same law school here in New York City. And while Anna doesn’t talk much about her law school years, she did mention she, Dre, and her ex-boyfriend had all been close before Dre got a job in Washington, DC, and Anna broke up with her ex.

When Dre moved back to New York and got a job at Anna’s law firm, they reconnected.

We all like to tease her that they’ve rekindled more than just a friendship, but Anna insists there’s nothing romantic between them, and they’re just friends.

“So, where are you coming from?” Gina asks.

“We were at a New York City Bar Association dinner,” Dre says.

“Sounds... exciting?” I ask.

Anna shrugs.

“It was mainly networking.” Dre smiles. “The food was pretty good, though.”

Anna frowns. “The drinks, however, were watered down.”

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