Did he? From the look in his eyes, I guessed he probably did. Mark was such a good guy. Smart and attractive, with a great job. Why couldn’t I fall for him instead of my confused best friend Grady?
Madison finished her pizza and asked if she could go look at the fish tank across the cafeteria. I told her yes but to stay where I could see her. She skipped off, cast swinging.
Mark watched her go, then turned back to me. “She’s adorable.”
“Thanks. I think so too.”
He set down his fork and looked at me. “So the way I see it, there are two reasons you didn’t reply to my text.”
I held my breath.
“The first is that Madison broke her arm and you’ve been overwhelmed with it all. The second is this friend of yours. Grady, right?”
“Grady, yes. What about him?” Play dumb, I told myself.
“Ah, okay. So itisGrady.”
“We’re just friends.”
“Sure.” He smiled kindly.
“We are. But, yes, we’re close.”
“He spends a lot of time with you and the kids?”
“He does, yes.” I poked at a stray piece of lettuce with a fork, moving it around the plate in circles.
“What are you doing on a dating app when you’re clearly in love with someone else?” Mark asked, without malice or hostility. Instead, he sounded merely curious.
“Robbie put me on there,” I blurted out.
Across the cafeteria, Madison was pressing her face against the fish tank, watching the goldfish swim in slow circles.
“What?” Mark asked.
“The kids had this wacky idea.” I quickly told him about how our teenagers had taken it upon themselves to add our profiles to the dating app, Second Chance.
“And we matched,” Mark said. “But your heart is elsewhere.”
I didn’t say anything, pretending to suddenly be very thirsty for my water.
“It’s okay,” Mark said. “I understand, actually.”
“You do?” I looked at him.
“I have a friend I feel that way about too.”
“Have you told her?” I asked.
“No. We work together, so it’s complicated.”
“Why is everything always so complicated?” I asked.
“No idea, but it always is. Have you told Grady how you feel?”
“No. He’s not what I need.”
“Only what you want?” Mark asked gently.
