"No," she said firmly, as much to herself as to Laura. "No one at work."
Laura's eyes narrowed, and Elena knew she'd hesitated a beat too long. "That was interesting."
"What was?" Elena asked, attempting to feign innocence.
"That little journey your face just took," Laura said, leaning forward. "Care to share with the class?"
"There was no journey," Elena insisted. "Just me realizing how pathetic it is that I can't think of a single dateable person in my entire professional sphere."
Laura studied her for a long moment, then seemed to decide not to push. "Well, lucky for you, I think I know someone. You remember Jessica from the book club we used to go to?”
“A woman?”
“No, a hot man. I ran into Jessica recently, and she mentioned a single friend of hers.”
Elena suppressed a groan. "Laura, no."
"Laura, yes," her friend countered, already pulling out her phone. "His name is David, works in healthcare. Maybe he can relate to some of the struggles you’ve been having lately. Shared misery can be a great bonding tool.”
"I just don’t think I have time for this," Elena muttered.
Laura ignored her, scrolling through her phone. "Here he is."
She slid her phone across the table. On the screen was a photo of a handsome man in his early forties, with neat dark hair and a distinguished smile. She had to admit…he was attractive. A good bone structure, decent suit, pleasant features. The kind of man Elena should find appealing.
She felt nothing. No spark, no curiosity, not even a flicker of interest. "He's... nice-looking," she offered lamely, sliding the phoneback.
"Nice-looking?" Laura echoed incredulously. "Elena, he looks like Jon Hamm you son of a bitch!” Laura’s booming voice and sailor mouth was beginning to draw the attention of pretty much everyone populating this city block.
Elena could feel strangers’ eyes all over them. “Laura, please modulate your voice.”
“Modulate? I don’t even know what that means, Miss Science.”
“I’m just saying. Other people exist.”
Laura scoffed. “Yes. But we’re more fun. And your love life is important!”
Elena shrugged, swirling her wine. "I'm sure he's lovely. I just don’t know if I’m ready yet."
"Elena..." Laura's voice softened, and Elena knew she was about to break their unspoken rule. "It's been five years since Mateo left, and you've barely dated."
This was true. Elena had focused on two things since Mateo left: her career and Miguel. There was no energy left for anyone else. And lately, she was afraid she didn't even have enough for those two things. It hurt to think about the time she was sacrificing with Miguel because of the new deadline. "I thought the number one rule was that we don't say his name or talk about him," Elena said, her voice tight.
"Sometimes rules need to be broken," Laura said. "Especially when my best friend is letting life pass her by."
Elena stared into her wine glass. Why didn't she feel any interest in this objectively suitable man? David checked all the logical boxes: age-appropriate, successful, stable. Meanwhile, she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about a five-minute dance with her research assistant.
"One dinner," Laura pressed, sensing weakness. "Just a couple of hours of adult conversation with a handsome man who can discuss something besides brain waves."
"I talk about other things," Elena protested weakly.
"Name three topics you've discussed this week that weren't work or Miguel-related."
Elena opened her mouth, then closed it again.
"Exactly," Laura said triumphantly. "Look, I'm not saying marry the guy. Just have dinner. If it's terrible, you never have to see him again, and I'll stop bugging you about dating for at least three months."
"Six months," Elena countered.
