Single, Available, and Completely Attached (14 page)

It had been difficult enough, teasing him as she’d done the other night.
 
She had seen how torn Drew had been, and for just the briefest of moments, when she was in his bedroom looking around for a t-shirt to wear, she had considered crossing that line.

They hadn’t been alone since then, and she wanted to ease her way back into that platonic state she’d been so sure she could maintain.

Still, Anna couldn’t deny that she was excited to see him.
 

She hated to admit it—but she was really beginning to wonder whether her sister was right.

~*~

Anna spent the rest of the day looking forward to the evening ahead of her.

Until she got home from work a few hours later and found out that her sister was bailing on her.

Alice stood in Anna’s bedroom doorway, unapologetic as Anna protested.

“This was
your
idea, Allie—”

“I know, but Patrick is doing a show tonight.
 
His band was invited to perform at this, like, swank swingers club or something.
 
It’s kind of a big deal.”

Patrick was Alec’s cousin, from the other night.
 
Anna sighed, crossing her arms over her chest.

“Allie, you promised.”

“I know, but I figured you’re going to have Drew over anyway.
 
I thought you might want some privacy.”

“It’s not like that and you know it.”
 

“I know exactly what it is.”
 
And with a dramatic wink, Alice turned and dashed down the stairs.
 
Anna heard the door slam a moment later and she sighed loudly, debating for several minutes whether she should just cancel on Drew.

But then the decision was made for her as a knock sounded on the door downstairs.
 
She took a moment to glance at her reflection in the mirror, hoping she looked casual enough in her black leggings and oversized, off-the-shoulder sweater.
 
She’d put her hair up in a ponytail, but it was already beginning to escape.

It would have to do.

When Anna finally made it to the door, she was half hoping that he had left—but of course he was there, his dark hair perfectly disheveled, a faint shadow of stubble on his cheeks.
 
His blue eyes shined down at her as she bit her lip.

“Alice bailed.”
 
Drew’s first response was to raise an eyebrow.

“Was there an emergency at the hipster warehouse?”
 
Anna laughed, nodding her head.

“Apparently, Patrick is doing a show at a
swingers
party.”
 
She informed him.

“
Oooh
,
and we weren’t invited?”
 
He nudged her aside so that he could step into the house.
 
“I’m heartbroken.”

“I thought you might be.”

“It’s a good thing I brought beer.”
 
He said as he held up a six pack of bottles.

“And I have popcorn.”
 
She pointed to the bowl already sitting on the coffee table.

“Let’s not forget
slasher
movies.”

“Oh, I’ve got plenty of those.”
 
Anna gestured toward the stack of DVDs on the floor in front of the TV.

“See, who needs Alice?”
 
Drew asked.
 
A sense of relief rushed through her as she took the beer from him and carried it down the hall to put it in the refrigerator.
 
When she returned, she found him on the couch, remote in hand.
 
“I’ve taken the liberty of first choice.”

“It’s only fair, since technically
Valentine’s day
is supposed to be all about the lady.”
 
She told him with a smile.

“And already with the insults!”
 
He grinned at her before patting the open spot next to him on the couch.
 
“Come on, I saved you a seat.”

“I just want to warn you in advance that Alice was in charge of the movies.
 
I was in charge of food.”

“And popcorn was the best you could come up with?”

“And pizza.”

“Stuffed crust?”

“Of course.”
 
Drew grinned, and Anna felt her heart do a subtle flip-flop within her chest.
 

“Then I think we’ll be just fine.”
 

She wasn’t too sure about that.

~*~

Three movies later, Anna was stretched out on the couch, her feet inches away from Drew, whose feet were resting on the coffee table in front of them.
 
She had spent the greater majority of the last five hours trying to act as normal as she possibly could, commenting on the violence here and there—but mostly focused on how nicely he smelled, or how well he wore that t-shirt, or how close he was to her.

She was definitely losing the battle with herself.

“Well, I guess I should get going.”
 
Drew announced suddenly.
 
Anna tried to ignore the sense of disappointment she felt.

“Oh—right, it is getting late.”
 
She placed her feet on the floor.
 

“Alice certainly has a flare for the zombie genre, doesn’t she?”
 
Drew asked, and she knew he was just making small talk.
 

Ugh, was she being that obvious?

“Well, you know.
 
She thinks the zombie apocalypse is probably going to happen in our lifetime.
 
We’ve got a little survival stash down in the basement.”

“That doesn’t surprise me at all.”
 
Anna shrugged.
 
“Is she dating that guy?”

“Alice doesn’t really believe in dating.
 
She’s more of
an…
adventurer.
 
Always looking for Mr. Right Now, as opposed to Mr. Right.”
 
Anna informed him.

“It seems to be working out for her.”

“I know.
 
I’m starting to think I could use a little Mr. Right Now myself.”
 
The words were out of her mouth before she’d even realized what she was saying—and she waited for Drew to jump on it and make some sort of innuendo.

“That, my friend, is all there is.”
 
He told her, his tone stoic.

And Anna found herself faintly let down.
 

Drew had gone the entire night without once crossing the line.

Which, deep down, she knew she should be grateful for.
 

“Thanks for spending the evening watching terrible movies with me, Drew.
 
I really appreciate it.”
 
Anna rose to her feet, deciding she should send him away before she made things any worse.
 
Drew followed suit.

“Oh, any time.
 
And don’t forget—you still owe me another round of
Call of Duty.
”
 
He grabbed his jacket from the back of the opposite couch and slipped it on, making his way toward the door.
 
Anna followed him, pulling the door open.
 
A gust of cool air greeted them.

“Good night, Annabelle.”

“Good night, Drew.”
 
She offered a small wave as he stepped off the porch.
 
Once he’d made it to the car, she closed the door and turned off the lights, heading upstairs to bed.

She stopped at the bathroom first, where she brushed her teeth and splashed a little water on her face before she pulled the band from her hair, letting it fall.
 
She stared into the mirror for several long moments, trying to will away the emotions welling up inside her.

Finally, she padded across the hall to her bedroom, pulling off the leggings and climbing into bed.

As she stared up at the ceiling, she thought back to the first night she’d met Drew—how bold and unabashed he had been.

She remembered how it had felt when he’d kissed her.
 
She brought her fingers to her lips, remembering how breathless she had been.

Before she could stop herself, she reached for her phone on the nightstand and typed out a quick message.

Are you home yet?

And then she waited, her heart pounding loudly in her ears.
 
It was only a couple of minutes before he replied, but she felt like she’d been waiting an hour.

Drew:
 
Not yet, why?

Anna swallowed hard before she replied.

Could you maybe…come back?
 

Drew:
 
Everything okay?

Just can’t sleep.
 
It’s okay if you can’t.

Drew:
 
I’m pretty much already here.

Her heart was pounding so hard, she was really beginning to worry she might be having a heart attack.
 

She tossed her phone aside and hurried down the stairs, heading straight for the door and pulling it open.
 
Drew was just getting out of his SUV and she rested her head against the heavy wooden door, suddenly very aware of how cold it was outside.
 
He opened the screen door and she stepped back, letting him inside.

She didn’t miss the way his eyes roamed over her, or the way he swallowed once he finally found hers.
 

“Want to watch another movie?”
 
he
asked.

“Sure,
”
 
she
agreed, nodding her head.
 
She led the way to the living room, bending down so that she could put whatever random movie she grabbed into the player.
 
Her hand was shaking, and she did her best to steady it.
 
When she turned around, Drew was sitting on the couch—a little closer to the middle than he had been earlier.

She went and sat next to him, curling her legs up underneath herself so that she was angled slightly in his direction.

The movie began to play, but ten minutes in, and she had no idea what was going on.

She felt like she was in high school all over again.
 
The room was dark, except for the light from the TV, and the tension was considerably higher than it had been earlier.
 

“Did you want anything to drink?”
 
she
asked abruptly.

“I—maybe a beer?”
 

“Sure—
”
 
They
both went to stand up at the same time, bumping into each other.
 
Drew reached out to steady her and Anna’s breath caught in her throat.
 
He stared down at her, using the backs of his fingers to graze her cheek.

“I…”
 
She shifted her gaze to her hand, which was resting on his chest.
 

And, slowly, she raised it.
 
His eyes drifted closed until her hand was resting on his cheek.

“Annabelle…”

“Maybe it’s best if we just don’t talk,
”
 
she
whispered.
 

She wasn’t sure who kissed who first, but the next thing she knew, his hands were in her hair, her hands wrapped around his neck.

A longing swept through her and she pulled herself closer to him.

Kissing him was much better than she had remembered—and the memory itself had been pretty outstanding.

But she wanted more.

The urgency within her was growing and she broke the kiss, trailing her lips down his neck.
 
He moaned quietly when she paused, touching her tongue to his skin.
 
His hands gripped at her hips, pulling her impossibly closer.

She pulled back ever-so-slightly, reaching for the hem of his shirt and tugging it over his head.
 

His fingers gripped her even more tightly as she touched her lips to his chest—and then he was lifting her, and she responded by wrapping her legs around his waist.
 
“Upstairs,
”
 
she
whispered into his ear, nipping at it.
 

Her body was coursing with life for the first time in—forever, as far as she was concerned.
 
Drew carried her away, stopping at the top of the stairs and leaning into her as he pulled her sweater over her head.
 
She nearly cried out as he caressed her bare skin.

And then they were off again.
 
He set her down once they were inside her bedroom and she took in the sight of him—and only one word came to mind.

Passion.

She pulled him close again by the waist of his jeans, which she had already unbuttoned at some point.

There was nothing she wanted more than to feel him—to experience everything he had to offer, regardless of the consequences.

Drew laid there for as long as he possibly could, the usual urgency to run itching at him.

He’d always had a strict policy about spending the night with a woman—there was a certain limit to how long he could stay without the woman getting the wrong idea.

But this…the desire to run came from some place very different from that.

He wanted to run because what he
really
wanted…was to stay.
 

And that was just ridiculous.

He had every reason to want to go—maybe even more reason than he had with any other woman.
 

Here was a girl who was off limits to him on several levels.
 
First, he was supposed to be her friend.
 
Second, she was possibly still on the rebound.
 

Oh, and third, she’d had a very serious relationship with his best friend.

As if one and two weren’t enough…

But when he glanced over at her, illuminated only by light from the window, he felt
something
.
 
He couldn’t put it into words—but whatever it
was,
Drew knew that he didn’t want to go.

And that…was bad.

He shouldn’t have come back last night.
 

When he’d first arrived, he knew that the evening was going to be a lot more difficult to get through than he’d anticipated.
 
There was just something about Anna that was…tempting.
 

Surely, it had something to do with the fact that she was forbidden.
 
And it didn’t help that he’d been spending so much time with her that he still hadn’t paid any attention to his own needs.

Okay, and, if he was being honest with himself, she was
still
the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen.

But he’d been careful all night—he kept his distance, he was certain not to get even just a little tipsy, and, most importantly, he had made sure he kept any suggestive comments to himself.

It had almost been painful to leave.

And then, right after he’d finally forced himself to put the car into drive and pull away from her house…his phone went off.

Drew had known the moment she texted him that it was a bad idea.
 
And then when he’d stood on the porch, taking in the sight of her in that thin little sweater—exposing just enough to set his imagination racing…he knew then that if he stepped inside this house, there would be no turning back.

And he’d gone through with it anyway.

That was the Drew Whitman he knew—
act
now, think later.

He turned his head so that he could take in the image one more time.
 
She was curled up beside him, hugging her pillow, her bare leg tossed over his.
 
Some small part of him longed to reach out and brush the hair from her face…but he didn’t.
 
Instead, he watched her for just a few more moments, enjoying how peaceful and happy she looked.
 

He was pretty sure this wouldn’t be a view he would be privileged to take in again.

With a glance toward the clock sitting on her nightstand, he filled with dread.
 
If he didn’t leave soon, he was going to be late for work.
 
As it was, he wasn’t even going to have time to go home and change.

With a heavy sigh, he touched Anna on the shoulder.
 
“Annabelle?”

“Hmm..?”
 
She stirred beneath his hand, opening her sleepy green eyes.

“I’ve got to—I just didn’t want to leave without telling you.”

“Oh—okay.”
 
There was a strange tone in her voice, and he wondered if he’d offended her, or if she was just realizing who it was she was waking up next to.

“I just have to go—I can’t really be late for the show.”
 
Drew tried to explain.

“Oh!”
 
She lifted herself up on her elbow, pulling the sheets just a little bit higher.
 
“If you need to shower or anything, there’s a towel hanging on the back of my door.”

“You don’t mind?”

“Of course not.”
 
She offered him a sleepy smile.
 

“I’ll just jump in really quick—”

“It’ll have to be.
 
We’re lucky if we get more than six minutes before the water turns to ice.”
 
She told him, laying her head back down on the pillow.
 
Drew climbed from the bed, looking around for his jeans.
 
Finally he spotted them, tucked half beneath the bed.
 
He bent down to retrieve them.

“I’ll…talk to you later?”
 
He asked awkwardly as he took at step away.

“Oh, I’m sure we will.”
 
He wasn’t really sure what he was hoping for—but something a little more than that would have been nice.
 
He was dying to know what was going through her mind.
 
“Drew?”
 
She called as he reached the doorway.
 
He paused, glancing over his shoulder at her.
 
“Thanks.”

“Oh, sure.”
 
He shrugged a shoulder, feeling even more awkward now.
 
“No problem.”
 

What a response.

He pulled the door shut behind him and glanced down the hallway, spotting the bathroom.
 
He hurried into it, driven by the thought of Alice spotting him in his underwear, taking the walk of shame.
 

As if he needed to feel any worse.

He turned the shower on and let it heat up for a minute—though it felt like it was barely lukewarm at
it’s
peak.
 
He held out long enough to give himself a good rinse before hopping out.
 

Anna hadn’t been kidding when she’d said it would have to be a quick shower.

He made his way downstairs as quietly as possible, finding his shirt where it had been discarded in the living room and quickly tugging it on.
 
With a quick glance at his phone, he swore.

Yep, he was definitely going to be late now.

It was a bit longer of a drive to the station from Anna’s house than it was from his apartment, and he walked through the doors five minutes before the show was supposed to start.
 
Though he knew it wouldn’t save him any time, he took the stairs rather than wait for the elevator, just so that he could feel more productive.

Dave, his partner, eyed him warily as he breezed into the studio, hastily taking his seat and reaching for his headphones.
 

“You’re late.”

“So long as that light hasn’t come on yet, I’m technically still on time.”
 
As soon as he finished speaking, their producer counted down, signaling that they would be live.
 
He forced himself to make the usual early-morning talk—weather, traffic, the first sports update of the day.
 

It wasn’t until they were nearly through with the show that Dave brought it up.
 
“So, Mr. Platonic…how did things go last night?”

“I had a very nice evening; thank you for asking.”
 
Drew tried to signal to his coworker, who he also considered to be sort-of a friend, too, that this was something he didn’t want to talk about.

“I would say so—wasn’t that the shirt you were wearing yesterday?”
 
He bit the inside of his lip for a moment before he nodded.

“Yes, Dave.
 
How observant of you to notice—do you pay attention to all of my outfit choices?”

“For those of you who weren’t listening—Drew here announced yesterday that he has begun a platonic journey with an adorable little blonde who can play Call of Duty like nobody’s business.”
 
Dave paused, raising his eyebrows at Drew.
 
“I’m calling foul.”

“Call it whatever you want.”

“So you’re sticking by your claim?”

“I’m sticking with it.”
 

“So then…the fact that you walked into the studio this morning, literally as we were counting down to go live, wearing the same clothes you wore yesterday…”

“Means nothing.
 
I had a little too much to drink, so I slept on the couch.”

“And what about that hickey on your neck?”
 
Drew did glare at his partner then, and Dave only grinned bigger.
 
He was having way too much fun.

“
That
is from a previous engagement.”

“So you had
two
dates yesterday?
 
I thought you said you didn’t date on Valentine’s—”

“Well, if you saw the girl, you’d have made an exception, too.”
 

He hoped that Anna wasn’t listening, but when he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket several minutes later, he knew he was in for it.

After the show was finished, Drew decided he would wait to deal with the Anna situation until he got home.
 
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he threw himself down on his couch and pulled out his phone—and he was surprised to find that it wasn’t Anna who had messaged him earlier.

Jeff:
 
You spent the night at Anna’s?

Drew stared at the phone for several long moments, his heart pounding in his chest.
 

What was he going to tell Jeff?

He took his time, starting the message over several times.

It wasn’t like that.
 
Like I said, I really did just

have
too much to drink.
 
She wouldn’t let me drive.

His phone rang within seconds of him sending the message and he let it ring multiple times before finally drudging up the front he would need to get through this call.

“What were you doing spending Valentine’s day with her anyway?”
 

“Well, hello to you, too.”
 
Drew heard the exhaustion in his own voice, and he hoped it gave a bit of credence to his story.
  

“Was it a…date?”

“No, Jeff.
 
It was about as far from a date as it could get.
 
We watched zombie movies.”

“That sounds a little bit like a date.”

“Well, it wasn’t.”
 
Drew sighed, trying not to get irritated with his friend—when
really,
it was himself he was angry with.
 
He hated to lie to Jeff, and even though he and Anna were no longer together—deep down, Drew knew he had violated some unspoken rule between them.

“And what about that whole hickey thing?”

“Oh, Jeff, come on.
 
Dave was just giving me a hard time.
 
We’re there to entertain people.”

“I’m just trying to get the facts straight, Drew.”

“Why?
 
Wouldn’t you rather she spent the night with me than with some guy who’s just going to toss her aside next week?”
 

“Are you saying—
”

“I’m not saying
anything
,
”
 
Drew
sighed, running his hand over his face.
 
“What am I doing this for, Jeff?”

“What do you mean?”
 
Jeff asked.

“I mean—what am I doing this for?
 
Why am I opening myself up to your ex?”

“Because I asked you to?”

“But
why
?”
 
For being a lawyer, Jeff was a little dense.
 
“I mean, were you hoping for a reunion?
 
Did you want me to stand guard and make sure she doesn’t get involved with anyone so that door is still open for you?”

“I—”

“Because if that’s the case, then you need to be very clear with me.
 
I’m involved now—she’s my friend.
 
I’m not going to play games with her.”
 
On the other end of the line, Jeff sighed loudly.

“No—I mean, I just…I don’t know.
 
I don’t want her to get hurt.
 
You saw the kind of guys she used to go for.
 
I don’t want to see her get involved with someone who’s only interested in her for the wrong reasons.
 
Someone like…”

He didn’t need to finish the sentence.
 
Drew knew exactly what his best friend had been about to say.
 

Someone like him.
 

It was a fair
statement,
Drew had to admit to himself.
 
He didn’t want to see Anna with someone like himself, either.

~*~

It was Saturday afternoon before Anna heard from Drew—and she had to give him credit for breaking the silence first.
 

It wasn’t that she was mad at him—she just didn’t really know what she was supposed to say.
 
So when he messaged her asking to meet him at a park not all that far from her house, she had hesitated for a long moment before agreeing.
 

She pulled on her winter coat, gloves, and a gray knit hat she wore only when she was going to be out in the cold for a lengthy amount of time, and made the quick walk to the park.
 

Drew was already there.
 
He was sitting on a bench, a steaming cup in his hand and another beside him.
 
As she approached, he stood up, holding one of the cups out to her.
 
“Thanks,
”
 
she
told him, taking a seat.
 
He sat down beside her.

“It’s hot chocolate.”
 
He informed her and Anna’s only response was a nod as she took a small sip, testing the temperature.
 
“So…I just…you know, we should probably talk.”