Page 26 of My Last Fling
She turns back to her date. “I’m so sorry to cut this short. But you know how hard it is to find good employees these days. You practically need to hold their hand through everything.”
I give her a small pinch on the back of her arm, pleased when she flinches the tiniest bit.
He waves a hand. “I understand completely. Can I call you next week?”
“Definitely,” Layna says with a smile.
She drops some cash on the table and waves before turning and walking with me to the door.
“Don’t look back,” I say. “I think he’s sniffing your napkin.”
A small laugh escapes her as we walk out into the night.
“You’re such an ass,” she says, but she’s grinning.
I shrug. “You like it.”
“Your ass?” she leans back to look at it. “It’s not bad.”
This playful banter is something I worried would be lost after the other day. It’s something we’ve always been good at, and it’s one of my favorite parts of our friendship. I’m happy to see I was wrong.
“It’s amazing, and you know it,” I say, opening the car door for her to climb inside.
I run around to my side and climb inside. A snort of laughter escapes me as I pull out of the parking lot.
“Stop laughing,” Layna grumbles from the passenger seat.
I do my best to stifle the laughter I’ve been battling since I dragged her from the restaurant. It’s clear that guy isn’t exactly a catch.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I’m trying. It’s just so funny.”
“Try harder,” she says. “I’m glad my suffering amuses you.”
I glance over at her as I pull to a stop at a traffic light.
“Oh, come on,” I say. “You have to admit, it’s a little funny.”
She rolls her eyes, but I can see a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “Fine. It’s a little funny.”
“I’m guessing no second date with that guy?” I ask.
“Definitely not,” she says. “And what was that shit about a motion? Do you even know what a motion is?”
I shrug. “Nope. But I’ve seen cop dramas. Some lawyer is always filing a motion to dismiss or an appeal or something.”
“Not on a Saturday,” she says.
“Good thing your date didn’t think about that,” I say.
“I guess so,” she says, shaking her head. She sighs. “Back to square one.”
“What do you mean?” I ask.
“Just that I thought he was a decent guy, and it turns out I was way off base. Now I need to regroup. Why does dating need to be so hard?”
I want to tell her it doesn’t need to be so hard. I want to tell her I’m right here and ready to date her. But she’s made it clear that’s not an option. As her friend, it’s up to me to help her. Even if it kills me.
“You should try online dating,” I say.