Page 50 of Game Misconduct

His lips quirked. “I’m lucky enough to have a few, yes.”

I dropped my head. This was so much harder than I thought. “No, that’s not what I meant.”

“I hope not,” he countered and took a sip of his tea.

“Do you have any friends that you would be willing to set me up with?” I rushed out the words and then dropped my eyes to my drink. This was stupid. I couldn’t bring myself to see his reaction. I didn’t want to know anymore.

He coughed, choking on his drink.

“Oh no!” I stood and offered him some napkins as if that was at all useful to him.

He waved me off and calmed down enough to breathe normally. “Sorry, that’s just not what I was expecting to come out of your mouth.”

“Why not?” I was a single woman. He likely had single friends. It was pretty normal, as far as I knew, to ask your friends to set you up. At least, Kerry thought it was when I ran the idea past her. I didn’t mention any details. Just if it would be okay to ask a friend and if it would if it would make her feel like I was taking advantage of her, but she was encouraging. She said it was completely different than using someone. Besides dating apps, how else were you supposed to meet people?

“Because,” he paused. “I thought there was something going on between you and Parker.”

I shot back, “What? No. We’re just friends.”

He glanced down and nodded. “Right, my bad.”

“Why do you think there’s something going on between us?” Yes, I was letting my insecurity get the best of me. I wanted to hear someone else confirm that maybe this wasn’t all in my head.

“I’ve seen you two together. From when you first met to now, there’s a big difference. You’re really comfortable around each other. I’ve seen the looks and little innocent touches that seem to happen at every opportunity. It’s like you two gravitate toward one another.”

I didn’t think anyone else, outside of Kerry and maybe Jess, had noticed there was anything going on. Apparently, we weren’t as discrete as we thought.

“It’s all platonic.” I wasn’t sure who I was trying to convince, him or me.

“If you say so.” He watched me over his mug as he sipped.

It felt like he was peering into my soul, like he could tell I was lying.

“It started out that way,” I admitted. “We only ever intended on being friends, but I think I might have a little crush.”

He lowered his mug, revealing a smile. “But you want to go out with someone else?”

“I have to. I need to figure out if what I’m feeling is just the novelty of having a new guy around that’s nice to me and gives me attention, or if there’s something real between us.”

He didn’t say anything for a long while, then finally conceded. “Okay.”

“So, can you think of anyone?” My confidence in this whole plan was quickly diminishing. What was I thinking? This was stupid. If I really wanted to figure out if my feelings for Parker were genuine, there were better ways to go about it.

“A few,” he admitted, though it didn’t sound like he wanted to. “There are one or two guys from my boxing gym I can think of that would love the opportunity to go out with a woman like you, but I’m not sure I want them to.”

My shoulders slumped. “Why not?”

“Because you’re too good for them.” He shot me a look. “My barber might be a good choice too.” He stared down at his drink. “Are you sure you really want this?”

“Yes.” I tried to not leave any doubt in my voice. I had to do this. It was the fastest way to either get Parker out of my system or know for certain my feelings were real. “I’m not looking for a relationship, Mitch. I just want to see who’s out there. I haven’t dated in a while, and I think it’s time to try.”

“How long is a while?” he asked.

I pretended to have to think about it, but I knew exactly when my last disastrous experience had been. “A little over a year.”

He blew out a long whistle. “Why?”

Because some men sucked and could break your heart with a few choice words. “My last relationship ended badly, and I decided to take some time to focus on myself.”