Single, Available, and Completely Attached (27 page)

“Did you need any help setting up?”

“I think I’m all set here—but maybe you could see if Luis needs anything?”
 
She pointed toward the man setting up various heavy looking speakers and lights.
 
He was the guy Drew worked with, who had volunteered his band to play.
 

“Sure thing.”
 
He smiled at her before crossing the gym, and Anna offered a small smile back.
 

People were slowly beginning to arrive, and she put on her best happy face and acted as hostess—greeting familiar faces and introducing herself to those she didn’t recognize.
 
Crystal arrived, offering to take over at the door, and Anna accepted the relief so that she could check on everything inside the gym.

“Hey, Anna—you remember Rachel, my wife?”
 
She turned to find Dave standing behind her, his flame-haired wife standing next to him.
 
They’d met at Drew’s work gathering a few weeks ago.

“I do; it’s good seeing you again!”
 

“The place looks great.”
 
The other woman told her.

“Oh, thank you.
 
I’m hoping to impress at least a few people tonight.”
 
Anna said with a hopeful shrug.

“Well, you’re starting off on the right foot.”

“Thank you, Rachel.
 
I really appreciate that.”
 
She smiled broadly at the woman before turning back to Dave, prepared to part ways.
 
Instead, though, she felt her smile falter slightly.
 
“Hey, have you seen Drew?”
 
As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt like a desperate fool, begging for just the vaguest word about her former flame.
 

“He’s not here yet?”
 
Anna shook her head, trying to force herself to smile.
 
“I’m sure he’ll be here soon—you know Drew.
 
Loves to make an entrance.”
 

“You’re probably right.”
 
She told him.
 
“Well, I should go mingle some more—I think I just saw the Mayor come in.”
 

The next hour passed in a blur, with Anna so busy talking, she didn’t have time to think.
 
Jonathan finally caught up to her, offering her a champagne glass filled with water.
 
“You could use a breather, I think.”

“I think you’re right.”
 
She agreed, taking the glass and draining it.
 

“Think you’ve got time to squeeze in a dance?”

“Of course,”
 

She let him guide her to the dance floor and they stood at arms length.
 
Anna was reminded of her original prom, when she’d danced with a boy she knew had only taken pity on her because her date had taken off to the restroom with another girl.
 

She’d always been attracted to the worst kind of guy, hadn’t she?

When was she going to learn?

It wasn’t until their second dance had nearly finished that Anna caught sight of that head of dark, perfectly disheveled hair.

Her breath caught in her throat as she stared.
 
He was standing in front of her drawing—the one of him.
 

Her heart was beating so hard she thought she might pass out.

As soon as the song was over, she excused herself from Jonathan and crossed the gym, almost running now as she slid through the crowd.

It took everything she had not to throw herself into his arms.
 
Drew had turned in time to see her approaching, and as soon as their eyes met, a wave of relief washed through her.
 

There was barely a foot of space between them, but it felt like an ocean.
 
She longed to melt into him, to let him soothe away her nerves and make her laugh like only he could.
 

But she did nothing.

“I wasn’t sure you’d come,
”
 
she
finally admitted.

“And miss your big night?”
 
He took a small step toward her, a half-hearted smile on his lips.
 
“I couldn’t do that.”

“I’m really glad you’re here, Drew.”
 
The words poured out of her, and she found that her eyes were tearing up.

“There’s nowhere else I would rather be, Annabelle.”
 
And he’d closed the space between them, his hand resting on her cheek, catching the tear before it ruined her makeup.
 

Anna leaned into his palm for just a moment before stepping away and clearing her throat.
 
“Well, I should get back to everyone.”

“You’ll save a dance for me?”
 
Anna nodded at him before turning away.
 

She was so happy just to know that he was here—but as the emotions coursed through her, she knew she shouldn’t be.

Drew wasn’t a forever kind of guy, she reminded herself.

~*~

 
It was near the end of the night by the time she heard the familiar chords of one of her most favorite songs—
Here
Comes the Sun.

Drew crossed the room very slowly, and neither of them breaking the gaze even when he reached her.
 
She wrapped her arms around his neck, and his around her waist.
 
“Did you put them up to this?”

“No, Annabelle.
 
This was fate.”
 
She rested her head against his chest, letting herself take it all in.
 
“You look beautiful, you know.”

“I bet you say that to all the girls.”
 
Anna tried to tease him.

“I never meant it more than I did just now.”
 
His tone was so
sincere,
Anna raised her head and looked up at him once more.
 
She longed to say so many things to him, but she was just too afraid to.
 
“You did a good job on that, by the way.”
 
He nodded over his shoulder, toward the area where the drawing of him was hanging.
 

“Well, I guess I just couldn’t get you out of my head.”

“I have that effect on the ladies.”
 
And for the first time that night, Anna’s smile was genuine.
 
She dropped her head as she shook it.
 
“Personally, I think you could have taken a little creative liberty and gone
without
the wrinkles, but…”

“Oh, I thought I did.”
 
He spun her away from him then, and she was still laughing as she crashed against his chest.
 

“I like this, Annabelle.”
 
He told her.

“Me, too,
”
 
she
agreed, resting her head against his chest again.
 
When the song ended, she went to pull away, but he stopped her.
 

“One more.
 
I’ve got something I need to tell you.”
 

“Oh, fine.
 
You’ve twisted my arm into it.”
 
She settled back in, enjoying the way she fit so well in his arms.
 
She was curious about what he had to say, but she didn’t mind the silence, either.

The song hadn’t been on for very long when she heard someone clear their throat and she looked up, her surprise written across her face.
 
“Mind if I cut in?”
 

“Jeff?”
 

Obviously it was Jeff—she didn’t know why she’d spoken his name as a question.
 
He stood just beside them, tuxedo and all.
 
She could smell alcohol on his breath, and all of a sudden, the reality of her situation came crashing down on her.
 

“Hey, man, I didn’t know you were coming—
”
 
Drew
started.

“Oh, I tried calling, but you left your phone at your apartment.”
 
The light brown haired man smacked the darker haired one in the chest with the sleek piece of technology.
 
“Nice wallpaper, by the way.”

Anna felt her cheeks burn.
 

“Maybe we should take this outside.”
 
She suggested.

“Why would we do that?”
 
Jeff asked, his eyes looking over her knowingly.
 

“Don’t make a scene, man.
 
You know how important this is to her.”
 
Drew’s voice was very quiet.

“I don’t need a lesson from you on how to treat this girl, Drew.
 
In case you’d forgotten, she and I were together for seven years.”

“Come on, Jeff.”
 
Anna reached out and took his hand, leading him from the gym.
 
Drew followed, though he kept some distance.
 

“So—what’d he say, Anna?
 
How did he convince you?”

“Jeff, it wasn’t like that—
”
 
She
started, but Jeff didn’t let her finish.

“You know you mean nothing to him, right?”
 
The words hit her hard, and she bit her lip.
 
“I mean, he didn’t even want anything to do with you until
I
asked him to—”

“That’s enough, Jeff,
”
 
Drew
warned.

“How could you let him use you like that, Anna?”

“He wasn’t using me.”
 
Jeff laughed then, turning to Drew,
who’s
expression was blank.
 
“Tell him, Drew.”
 
Anna urged him to tell Jeff the truth.

“Yeah, Drew.
 
Why don’t you tell me all about it?”
 
Jeff shook his head when Drew said nothing.
 
“He played you, Anna.
 
And you fell for it, just like all the others.
 
Are you going to keep lying to her, Drew?”

Anna glanced toward Drew, who wouldn’t even
so
much as look at her.
 

“He’s right.”
 
Drew’s voice was so low Anna hardly heard him.
 

Two words—two simple words, but they were enough to bring tears to her eyes.
 
She tried to remind herself that they had agreed from the very start that it hadn’t meant anything—that what he was saying shouldn’t hurt.
 

But it did.

Because it had all felt so real, hadn’t it?
 

“Of course he is, Drew.”
 
She couldn’t bring herself to say anything more, but as she began to walk away, Drew looked up, his eyes begging her.

And suddenly it all made sense.

Jeff.
 
It wasn’t about her at all—it was about Jeff.
 
It was about Drew protecting the only person who’d ever believed in him—the guy who had insisted Drew go to college, and had threatened him when he acted out, the one who had probably been more of a parent to Drew than his own father had.

How could she have been so stupid?

As she stepped through the doors leading back to the gym, Anna closed her eyes, willing the pain in her chest away.

So maybe Drew was the forever type.
 

But she would never be able to find out.

Drew was sitting at the bar, his tie loose around his neck.
 
The glass in front of him was empty and he held it up, signaling for another.
 

He wasn’t sure how many he’d had, but he figured so long as he was capable of rational thought, it wasn’t enough.
 

A man sat down beside him and Drew knew without looking who it was.
 
He said nothing, though, instead, picking up the glass that had just been placed in front of him and tipping it back.
 

“That’s right, Drew.
 
Run away from this like you’ve done everything else in your life.”

He remained silent, holding up the glass for another.
 

Jeff had every right to be angry.
 
He couldn’t blame him.

“It must have just eaten you up, watching us together, all those years.
 
I bet you didn’t even wait a week before you started in on her.”

“I did what
you
asked me to do.”

“Oh, I asked you to have sex with my ex-fiancé?”

“Girlfriend, Jeff.
 
She wasn’t your
fiancé
.”
 
Drew raised the refilled glass and tossed another one back.
 

“Is that how you justified it?”
 
Drew inhaled a deep breath as he pulled out his wallet, tucking several bills under the empty glass.
 

“I’m not doing this with you, man.”
 
Drew shook his head and walked away, heading through the door.
 
Jeff was right behind him, following him out into the rainy night air.

“I thought you had a code or something, Whitman.
 
Shouldn’t messing around with your best friend’s ex be off limits?”
 

“Just drop it, Jeff.”
 
His temper was beginning to get the best of him as his best friend just kept egging him on.
 
Drew tried to breathe.
 
He tried to tell himself to let it go—that Jeff was angry, and that it would pass, and eventually, it would all be behind them.

He thought back to earlier tonight, when things had been so perfect.
 
He’d been right on the verge of telling Anna that he didn’t want to lose her.
 
That he hadn’t been alive until that stupid football game he’d taken her to—that she’d changed something within him, and he knew he would never be the same.

He wanted to tell her that he’d been just as desperate as she was, that day they’d struck up their friendship on the bleachers, there at the community center.
 
And, if he was being completely honest, he’d felt that way since the very first night he’d seen her at that party.

But he hadn’t said any of it, and now…now it was too late.
 

“How do you expect me to drop it, Drew?”
 
Jeff grabbed his shoulder, turning him around to face him.
 
“You knew how much she meant to me!”
 

And before Drew could stop himself, he’d grabbed his best friend by his shirt and shoved him against the brick of the building behind him.

“Because you did it to me first!”
 
Drew barely noticed the rain as it poured down around them.
 
He gave Jeff a shake.
 
“You did it to me first, Jeff!”

“What are you talking about?”

“I saw her first, or did you forget that?
 
I saw her at that party, and I…I knew.
 
I knew that she was something special.
 
And
you
took her from
me.
 
But I never said anything, because I wanted you to be happy.
 
I knew she was special, and I knew you were more worthy.
 
So I walked away.”
 
Drew unclenched his fists and backed away.
 

“I walked away, so you could be happy.
 
And then she left you, and now I’ve left her, and we’re all miserable.”
 
He laughed at the irony of it all, shaking his head.
 
“Maybe I should have told you, I don’t know.
 
Maybe I broke some rules.
 
But if I did, then you’re just as guilty as I am.”
 
He pointed at his best friend—the one and only person he’d ever been able to count on.

Until now.
 

Drew sighed, walking down the street.
 
Eventually, he hailed a cab, not even bothering to change as he tossed himself on his couch, a bottle of scotch in hand.
 

He hadn’t been sitting there for very long when the door opened and Jeff walked in, collapsing in the chair next to the couch.
 
He reached out and took the bottle from Drew, taking a swig before handing it back.
 

“You’re in love with her, aren’t you?”
 
Jeff asked, and Drew couldn’t bring himself to say the words aloud, so instead, he simply nodded, handing the bottle back to his friend.
 
Jeff took a very long drink before handing it back.
 
“So what are we going to do about that, then?”

“Well, the smart thing would be to let her go.
 
Let Johnny-Do-
Gooder
have a chance.
 
I’m sure she’ll get tired of him eventually, but there will be another to take his place.”
 
Drew told him.

“Who the hell is Johnny-Do-
Gooder
?”

“He’s a firefighter.”

“Oh.”
 
Jeff took another drink and handed the bottle back.
 
“Well, I think we should come up with an alternate plan, then.”

“Why?”

“Because.
 
You’re my best friend.
 
If she’s going to make you happy, then she’s where you belong.
 
I’m not saying I want details—I mean, wait, did you guys have sex on this chair?”
 
Jeff stood up.
 
“It might take me some time to get there.
 
But I’m willing to, if it’s what you want.”

“You mean that?”

“I’m awfully drunk right now, but I’m pretty sure I do.”
 
Jeff sighed, settling on the couch beside Drew.
 
“You know, I think…I think I kind of knew.
 
I mean, that there might be something there between you two.
 
I remember seeing her and thinking how gorgeous she was—and how, just once—
I
wanted to be the guy that got the girl.
 
But when I look back…I’m not sure she was ever really in love with me at all.
 
I wanted her to be, and maybe she did too.
 
I convinced myself that she was…but Anna never laughed with me like I saw her do with you tonight.”

The two fell quiet for several moments, Drew lost in thought.
 
He considered Jeff’s words, wondering if they were true.
 
He’d never quite understood their relationship, but they’d always seemed happy enough.

Happy enough.
 

Images of Anna’s olive eyes smiling up at him, of that silly grin on her face when she sang off-key, of that
real
laugh—her head back, her entire body relaxed.
 
He hadn’t spent a lot of time around she and Jeff after things had gotten serious, but he couldn’t recall seeing the two of them so carefree together.

But she’d been happy with Drew, hadn’t she?

He thought back to the look on Anna’s face when he’d told her everything Jeff had said was true.

She’d been so devastated.
 
He’d watched as the joy faded from her eyes, replaced by that bitter sadness Drew was all too familiar with.
 

That had to mean something, didn’t it?

~*~

Drew was nervous.
 

He wasn’t much for expressing his feelings—and even less for doing so publicly.

But he’d spent the last week trying to get in touch with Anna, and to no avail.
 
She hadn’t returned any of his texts or calls, and when he’d gone to the community center under the guise of checking in to see how much they’d raised from the
prom,
Crystal had insisted that Anna wasn’t in.

Obviously, she was avoiding him.
 
He got that.

But he couldn’t let her go without
trying
.
 

Hadn’t that been his mistake from the start?

Dave eyed him suspiciously as Drew tapped his foot obnoxiously on the floor.
 

Normally, Drew was always calm, cool, and collected.
 
Obviously, something was going on.
 

Rather than put it off any longer, Drew interrupted his partner mid-sentence.
 

“Sorry, Dave—I just…I’ve been sitting here all morning, trying to convince myself not to do this.
 
But…it didn’t work.”
 

“What are you even talking about, man?”

“I…”
 
Drew looked down at the panel in front of him and closed his eyes, sighing softly.
 
“I have a few confessions I need to make.”

“Oh, no—are things about to get serious?”
 

“I’m afraid so.”
 
Drew sighed again.
 
“So…as most of you know, I recently embarked on my very first friendship with a member of the finer sex.”
 
An image of Anna’s smile flashed through his mind.
 
“Except that I’ve been lying about it…well, pretty much since it started.
 
It was never platonic, as much as I tried to convince myself otherwise.”
 

“Didn’t I call that from the beginning?”
 
Dave interrupted, and Drew rolled his eyes.

“
I
called it from the beginning.
 
I’m the one who’s always saying that whole idea of a platonic friendship is nothing more than a fairytale.
 
It’s inevitable that somebody develops feelings.
 
And I was right about that.
 
If I’m being completely honest, I entered into this knowing that it was going to be me, this time.”
 
Drew swallowed hard, his heart pounding so forcefully it was the only thing he could hear now.
 

“You see, about seven years ago, I saw a pretty girl at a party.
 
She was angry, and she was sad—and she was the most beautiful thing I’d ever laid eyes on.
 
I know I’ve always said I don’t believe in love, and especially not love at first sight…but I knew from the moment I laid eyes on her.”

The memory of that night conjured in his mind.
 
He remembered the way she looked up at him, her lips pink from his unexpected kiss.
 

“I know she isn’t listening right now.
 
But I’m hoping that someone else is, and they’ll—.”

“Why don’t you ask her to meet you—you know, and you guys can have that grand romantic reunion and ride off into the sunset together?”

“Because that’s a terrible idea, Dave.”
 
He shook his head at his partner.
 
“I’m just hoping that one of her friends, or her sister, or
anyone
will tell her—”

“To meet you at Deepwood.
 
Tonight, at eight.”

“No, Dave, that’s a stupid idea—”

The last thing he wanted to do was put Anna, or himself, for that matter, through something so embarrassing.
 

“Don’t listen to him.
 
Girls love this kind of thing.”
 
Dave ignored Drew’s protests.
 
“Belle, darling, you know who you are.
 
I know who you are.
 
Probably half of the city knows, by now.
 
You’ve left my partner in shambles.
 
Please, if you’ll accept his declaration of love—meet him tonight, at Deepwood.
 
Eight o’clock sharp.”

“Or just call me.
 
That’s fine too.”
 
Drew added in.

“Well, now that that’s taken care of—can we get back to last night’s game?
 
Fourteen innings, Drew.
 
That’s
ridiculous
.”

Drew did his best to carry on with the show, but by the end, he couldn’t recall for sure any one thing he’d said.
 
He didn’t linger at the office, already feeling like an idiot and unable to stand the pitiful looks all of the women were offering him.

He drove around for quite awhile, his mind racing.
 
He knew he was waiting for his phone to vibrate, and when, after several hours, it didn’t—he somehow convinced himself that maybe she really was going to show up at Deepwood.

So he stopped at his apartment and took a shower, almost dressing himself in the same black shirt she’d worn the morning they’d agreed to add benefits to their friendship.
 
But instead, he opted for a similar style in gray.

When he arrived at the restaurant, he was seated near the front of the dining area.
 
He felt his foot tapping on the floor as he ordered a drink, his nerves getting the best of him.

And then…he waited.

~*~

“You’re seriously not going?”
 
Alice stood in Anna’s doorway, her hands on her hips.
 
Anna shook her head, not taking her eyes off of the sketchpad in her lap.
 
“Why?”

“Just drop it, Allie.
 
Please?”
 
Alice sighed, obviously frustrated with her older sister.
 
Anna had taken the day off work today, having decided to take a long weekend to try and clear her head.
 
She’d been laying in bed, staring up at the ceiling, when her sister barged in, crossing the room and turning the radio on without Anna’s permission.