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“Friday. It starts at eight pm. It’s being held at the office.”

“I’ll be there.”

A heavy silence fills the kitchen, and it looks like Marcus wants to say something, but instead, he walks back to the living room.

I take a deep breath when I hear him pick up his keys.

“Thanks for coming over,” I say as I walk out of the kitchen.

I meet him at the front door and avoid looking up at him. I don’t want to ruin the progress we’ve made.

“Thanks for dinner.”

I open the door and smile as brightly as I can manage.

“Drive safely.”

When I close the door behind him, I lean back against it.

Chapter 9

MARCUS

I stare at Willow’s closed door, not at all happy with how the night went.

That was a total clusterfuck.

I’ve never seen her so uncomfortable around me before, which makes me wonder whether she even wanted a relationship with me. She never said the words out loud, I just assumed.

Fuck, I almost ruined our friendship with my stupid assumptions.

Why did I think she would want a relationship with me? She hasn’t shown that kind of interest in me. Fuck, she doesn’t even ask about my past.

I’m so relieved that I forgot the flowers in my car when I had to have it towed. That would’ve freaked her out for sure.

When I get outside, I call for a cab. On the way home I try to remember if she gave any indication in the past that she wanted to be more than friends with me.

By the time I get home, I’ve come up with nothing.

Willow only sees me as a friend. That doesn’t mean I’m backing down. I’ll just have to approach her with caution, so I don’t scare her away.

Damn, I need to Google dating. I have no idea what’s the right thing to do when you want to date your friend.

888

I haven’t gotten any work done. I’ve spent the whole morning researching going from friends to lovers.

“Act differently around your crush.” I frown at the screen. “Yeah, right. That’s what got me into this mess in the first place.”

I keep scrolling until I find something I can actually use.

“Give her compliments. Fuck, I screwed that one up by asking why she was wearing her pajamas.”

She actually looked hot in her pajamas. There was also the fact that she wasn’t wearing a bra.

“Pay attention to what she says. Ask her about work or a special interest she might have.”

I grab my phone when I remember what a shitty week she had before she slept over.