Page 59 of Friend Me

The lady next to me gathered up her coat before she turned to me. “Is Cooper all right? He never misses the shows.”

Of course. These were his season tickets. They’d probably been sitting together for years. “He had to travel. For work.”

“Tell him we missed him. And Jamila, too.”

Jamila.I drew my stiff cheeks into a smile and said, “Of course I will.”

“But I’m glad you could come. I can tell you enjoyed it. Drive safely, now.”

“You, too.”

She nodded and followed her companion down the aisle.

I turned to find Tyler standing so close I could’ve bumped his chin with my nose. “Ready to go?” he asked.

“Yeah.” It’d been a magical evening, but it was time for Cinderella to return home where she belonged. I walked down the now-empty aisle, clutching my playbill to keep from finding comfort in Tyler’s hand.

Outside, the sun was gone, leaving the sky a hazy charcoal. The lights reflecting off the theater’s façade lit up the short distance to the subway stairs. I stopped under the yellow glow of a streetlight. “Thanks for coming with me. I had a great time.”

“Want to get a drink? It’s not late. There’s a place near here—”

“No.” I laid a hand on his sleeve. “I’ve got to get back. Alma’s probably ready to go home.”

He drummed his fingers on the side of his leg. “I’ll drive you.”

I shook my head. “The train station’s right here, and Oakland is completely out of your way. It’d take you over an hour to get to my place and back home.”

His dimples disappeared, and he seemed to shrink. “Are you sure? It’s late for the train.”

I smiled. “You just said it wasn’t late. You can’t have it both ways.” I lifted onto my toes and kissed his cheek, right where the dimple had been. Tyler froze, like I’d gotten him with my imaginary phaser. But I kept moving, making sure not to breathe him in. A quick peck and a quicker exit.

“I’ll see you at work on Monday,” I said, already passing him to get to the subway stairs.

Just before I took my first step down, I looked back to where I’d left Tyler. Still standing where I’d left him, he raised his long-fingered hand in a wave.

I waved back, then descended the stairs.

We could stay friends. I didn’t want anything more. Need anything more. Not from him. We needed to stay in the friend zone. He’d said that was important to him, too.

Still, on the train ride home, I finally ordered that new vibrator. If I was going to stay friends with Tyler and get over Cooper Fallon, I was going to need it.

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