I glance at her as I put the paperwork down, and that’s when it hits me.
“Oh my god. I’m so sorry.”
She waves me off. “I forgive you, only for the fact that I know you never forget shit. Now tell me why you forgot my birthday.”
“Did you get your flowers?”
“That doesn’t count. You have me scheduled on the calendar every year with the florist, so it’s automatic.”
I smile at her. She knows me so well. Delaney was one of my first friends here in New York. I’d moved out of the home where I lived with my mom and into a shared apartment, and Delaney was one of my roommates. At that time, my mother was okay, so I took life into my own hands when she got married again, and I knew I no longer wanted to live with another man.
“The flowers were beautiful, as always. Thank you,” she gushes, then notices the pile of work on my desk. “You do look flustered though. Should we reschedule?”
“No, no. I’m sorry I missed your birthday lunch, but it’s almost dinner now. So, should we pick up where we normally would?” Every year, we spend our birthdays together. We meet up for lunch and treat ourselves to dessert. Then, for dinner, we have cocktails and the best food money can buy. “Do you need me to find somewhere?”
“No, there was a new place I wanted to try if you’re up for it.”
“Of course. Let me hand this to my assistant to fix, and then we can get going.” I touch her shoulder as I walk past her.
When I was with Arlo in his office, I should have been with Delaney. Then, on the way back, I had to stop at a few properties, which took up most of my afternoon. I had planned to get this contract fixed and sent over to him as soon as possible to get it done and dusted, but he can wait. Even though I don’t think waiting is one of his strong suits.
I tell my assistant what I want her to do, then I walk back into my office, grab my bag, and say to Delaney, “Now, let’s go.”
I’ve been here before, but I don’t bother telling Delaney. The place looks different from how it did when I was here with Arlo. I didn’t even taste the food that night, but I plan to change that tonight.
“It’s hard getting a reservation here, but I got us one,” Delaney says excitedly.
We walk in, and the hostess greets us before directing us to our table. I glance around the restaurant, and my gaze falls on the table Arlo and I had sat at. Another couple is seated there, and they’re holding hands across the table.
Once we’re seated, Delaney grabs the menu, and I order a bottle of wine before the hostess leaves. She nods and walks away.
“So, I met someone.” Her words throw me, not because I’m upset that she met someone, but because she doesn’t normally start talking about a man like that. Usually, she fills me in on who her current hookup is, and she isn’t shy about sharing all the details with me. So when she says it like that, it kind of startles me because I haven’t heard of anything serious going on with her. Granted, we’ve both been so busy with our jobs that we haven’t had a real chance to catch up for a while.
I place a napkin on my lap as I wait for her to tell me more. I guess I can’t feel any type of way about what she is about to say because I haven’t even told her about Arlo. Not that there’s much to tell because that man really confuses me. And I haven’t told her I ended things with Luke. Delaney knows Luke, so it wouldn’t surprise me if he’s already told her.
“Okay, I’m listening. How much do we like him?” I ask.
And she blushes.
Uh-huh, she likes him a lot.
“Wow, okay. You’ve got it bad.”
“How do you…” She touches her cheeks, and we both laugh because she always turns red when she drinks, gets nervous, or is crushing hard on someone. She pushes her dark-brown hair behind her ear and smiles. “Yes, I do. We’ve gone on three dates. It took him until the last one to kiss me.”
Ha. And here I am, getting asked to be fucked. How romantic. Not!
“Was it a good kiss?” I ask.
She nods and touches her lips as she whispers, “Mind-blowing.” I watch as she fans herself, trying to cool her flushed skin.
“I love that. You deserve the best, Delaney.” And I’m not lying when I say that. Delaney has not only been an amazing friend for well over a decade, but she’s also beaten cancer twice and managed to build a career while doing everything on her own. Her parents died before she moved to New York, so I never got to meet them, but she’s told me a lot about them. We bonded over being alone in a big city. I’ve held her hand through chemo. I’ve held her hand when her last boyfriend broke her heart, and she swore off dating. She was afraid to get hurt again, and I don’t blame her. It’s one of the reasons I’ve only had sexual relationships, and it’s worked well until now.
“He wants to go on a vacation with me and pay for everything—basically, take me away for my birthday. But he has work commitments, so we still have to work out a date.”
“Oh, wow, that’s a lot.”
“Should I say no? I haven’t given him an answer yet.”
