Single, Available, and Completely Attached

by Michelle Brewer

  Unable to stand it, Anna climbed into the shower until the hot water ran out—which wasn’t long, seeing as how their water heater had been declining for years now—but it was wonderful while it lasted.

  “There you are,” Alice greeted her when she finally entered the kitchen. “And just how are you feeling, sweet Anna Marie?”

  “Your voice is entirely too high pitched, Alice Maloy.” Anna glared at her sister.

  “Aw, dear sister.” Alice placed a paper cup in front of her. “I bought you coffee.”

  “That doesn’t change the tone of your voice one bit,” Anna told her, taking the lid off the cup and taking a hesitant sip. It was lukewarm, but it would suffice. “But I appreciate the caffeine.”

  “Well, the last I saw of you last night, I thought you might. Although I’m a little surprised you’re home already.”

  “I never made it further than the front sidewalk, actually.” Anna reached for the sugar dish.

  “Aw, really? That guy was kind of cute—maybe his nose was a little on the big side, but—”

  “I…” She shrugged. “I couldn’t go through with it—so I just came home and…went to bed.” Anna decided to spare herself the mortification she would suffer by telling her sister what had really happened.

  The part where she had not only failed to pull off the illustrious one-night-stand, but she had taken it even further and attempted to proposition her ex’s best friend, Drew Whitman—known philanderer?

  Oh, and that even he had turned her down.

  No, she was much better off keeping all of that to herself.

  “Oh well, there’s always next time.”

  “I’m not entirely sure there will be a next time, Allie. The way I’m feeling right now…I’m not even sure I’m going to make it through the day.” Alice sighed loudly, rolling her eyes. “And, just for that—I’m going to spend the day in front of the TV watching crime shows.”

  “Well, you enjoy wallowing in your sorrows, sissy. I’ve got a shoot anyway.”

  “I’m not wallowing. I’m recovering from your influence.” Anna hugged her coffee to her chest as she turned and walked down the short hallway, where she stretched out on the couch, reaching out for the remote. The bottle of rum still remained on the coffee table and she felt her cheeks flare as she remembered how uncomfortable Drew had looked.

  Though she knew she was alone in the house, she reached down and pulled a loose blanket up over her head. “What a mess,” she muttered to herself.

  She was beginning to come to terms with the fact that she just wasn’t built the same way as Alice.

  The idea of going home with some random stranger…it wasn’t exciting or liberating at all for her.

  It was terrifying.

  And deep down, she knew some meaningless encounter with an even more meaningless man…that wasn’t going to help her feel any better about what had happened with Jeff.

  She was once again reminded how grateful she felt toward Drew. Twice, now, he’d saved her from doing something she was certain to regret—three times, if she counted his own rejection.

  A subtle sting afflicted her pride for a moment as she wondered how many times Drew had turned down a woman who was willing and able.

  She was probably the first.

  Still, he had done her a favor, she reminded herself. Since the night she’d first met him so many years ago, the last thing she had wanted was to find herself counted among the barrage of women he’d used up and tossed away.

  Anna sighed as she lowered the blanket, reminding herself to take comfort knowing that, so long as she stayed out of his way, she wouldn’t have to face Drew ever again.

  She knew, with one hundred percent certainty, that he was going to do his very best to keep his distance, too.

  ~*~

  Drew stared at the building in front of him, drumming his thumbs nervously on the steering wheel.

  This was a terrible idea. No, worse than terrible—it was a ridiculous idea.

  But for whatever reason, unbeknownst to him, he was here.

  He watched as another group of kids wandered into the building, all carrying backpacks, looking excited to be here. He wished he could share their enthusiasm.

  He glanced down at the clock, realizing he had been sitting in his car for going on a half hour now. And considering all of the kids that were wandering around…he figured he’d better get on with it, or someone was going to call the cops.

  With a loud sigh, he pushed the door open and dashed toward the building, holding the door open for a pair of middle-schoolers before following them into the building.

  Drew hadn’t been inside the community center in a very long time, but he could tell that it had been through a lot of renovations in the last few years. The walls of the entryway were bright and boldly colored, various posters and works of art lining them. There was a desk off to the side, and a message board opposite it, filled with papers. Only the aged tiling gave the impression that the building was actually quite old.

  “Can I help you, sir?” The woman at the desk asked. Drew noticed her name tag, labeled Crystal, and he smiled his most charming smile at her.

  “Good afternoon, Crystal. I was actually hoping to see Miss Maloy.”

  “Is she expecting you?”

  Drew was willing to bet a significant amount of his net worth that, in fact, she wasn’t.

  “I’m an old friend, and I just found myself in the area…thought I might pop in for a quick visit.” Crystal frowned, and Drew tilted his head. “I’m sure it won’t take too much of her time.”

  Because she was probably going to murder him before he had the chance to speak.

  Yep, this was a really, really, bad idea.

  But it was too late, and he was already committed.

  “Let me just call her up for you.”

  “That would be great. Thanks, Crystal. You’re a peach.” He grinned at her before turning around and walking toward the board. Flyers were pinned all over it—a pick-up basketball game was open every Monday and Wednesday. Tutoring was offered every day. Someone was trying to start a comic book club.

  “What are you doing here?” If sound had the ability to kill, he would surely be dead right now. Drew turned around very slowly, suddenly very glad that they were in the public domain.

  “Hey, Annabelle—”

  “Don’t you Annabelle me—I asked you a question.”

  “I…” He glanced around nervously. “I was thinking I could use a little time on the court.”

  “This is a community center. For kids. I know you may have the same maturity level as a freshman in high school, but that doesn’t quite qualify.” Anna’s arms were crossed over her chest, her eyes narrowed.

  He didn’t know what she was so mad about. Really—he’d done her a favor by taking her home the other night. There was no telling what Big Nose had in store for her.

  For a moment, he considered telling her this.

  “Well, color me confused,” he shrugged. “I thought this was like one of those rec—”

  “What are you doing here?” She repeated, and Drew realized in that moment that it wasn’t so much anger that she was glaring at him—but embarrassment.

  Obviously, she hadn’t forgotten about her little…proposition.

  And Drew decided then that he couldn’t make it any worse for her. He’d come here so that he could tell her he hadn’t been stalking her—that, in fact, he’d just been doing Jeff a favor, like he asked, and that she was free to do whatever she liked with her life because he was officially off-duty.

  But it didn’t take a genius to figure out that a revelation like that would only make Anna feel worse.

  Having your ex’s best friend babysit you, at his request, because he was worried about you even after you broke his heart…

  That put you in the pitiful pile.

  Drew remembered her words from the other night, when she labeled herself as desperate.

  “I…found twenty dolla
rs in my car. I just wanted to see if it, you know, belonged to you.” And if that wasn’t the lamest of excuses, he wasn’t sure what was. For a moment, he worried she might buy it, and he tried to recall whether or not he actually had any cash on him.

  “Go home, Drew.”

  Without another word, she turned and began walking down the hallway she had arrived by.

  And, not knowing what else he should do, Drew listened to her, walking through the heavy front doors and back to his car.

  As he pulled out onto the street, he recognized something he’d missed earlier.

  It wasn’t just that Anna was embarrassed…

  If Drew didn’t know better, he would almost believe that, in some way, he’d hurt her feelings.

  When he walked into his apartment twenty minutes later, he knew he’d made a decision.

  With a sigh, he threw himself down onto his couch and pulled his cell phone from his pocket. He opened a new text message and typed quickly.

  How do I make Anna hate me…less?

  Within moments, his phone rang and he groaned, knowing he should have expected it. “What happened now?”

  Drew sighed, wondering why his friend always assumed he was to blame.

  “I don’t know.” The truth was, he really just wasn’t sure what he should tell him. Obviously, that whole part about Anna throwing herself at him should probably be left out of the conversation. “She’s mad.”

  Jeff sighed impatiently. “Could you elaborate a little?”

  No, Jeff, I really can’t. Drew leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “I don’t know. I ran into her at some club this weekend—”

  “She was at a club?”

  “She was with her sister.”

  “Oh, great—you know, I knew Alice had something to do with this—” Jeff broke off and Drew imagined him massaging his temples or pinching the bridge of his nose. “Go on.”

  “I don’t know, she was pretty drunk, and some guy was trying to take her home. So I—gallantly, I may add—stepped in.”

  “So you made her feel like a child.”

  “No, I—”

  “Anna hates being treated like she doesn’t know what she’s doing. In her mind, she’s been able to take care of herself since she was five.” Drew rolled his eyes as he threw himself back into the couch. “Then what?”

  “What? Nothing.” He heard the guilt in his voice and knew that Jeff wouldn’t miss it. He was a lawyer, after all.

  “Just tell me, Whitman.” Drew felt a panic rise up inside him as he frantically considered what to say. Finally, he settled on a censored version of the truth.

  “It was nothing, Jeff. I took her home. She cried. It was embarrassing for both of us.”

  “Did you say something again?”

  “No, I didn’t do anything this time, I promise. She was just…sad.” An image of her standing in front of him with tears in her eyes as they stood just outside her door crossed through his mind and he tried to ignore the way, even now, he longed to make her feel even just a little better.

  “So on top of making her feel like a child, you went and made her feel vulnerable, too.” Jeff interrupted his thoughts.

  “Hey—I didn’t do anything except what you asked me to do. So if you want me to keep this stupid thing going, then you’re going to have to cut me a little slack here and help me.” His tone was sharper than he’d intended. It wasn’t that he was angry with Jeff—more so, that he was angry with himself.

  Because he knew that he was involved now—and even if he wanted to, Drew wasn’t going to be able to walk away from Anna until he knew she was happy again.

  Or at least on the right track. Clearly, she had terrible taste in men.

  Jeff sighed again. “Start by apologizing.”

  “Then what?” Drew had the feeling he should be asking Jeff to send this to him in text form.

  “I don’t know, maybe try talking to her.”

  “About what?” If Drew had to hear Jeff sigh one more time, he decided he would throw the phone against the wall.

  “I don’t know, Drew. Whatever you guys talked about before.” It seemed like such a long time ago, Drew had almost forgotten that he’d known her before Jeff had.

  “She’s different now.” He scratched at his head, trying to recall what he had long made himself forget. He couldn’t talk to her about concerts or classes anymore—she was a grown up. She had a job—

  And just like that, he knew where to start.

  Roughly, anyway.

  ~*~

  Wednesday evening, Anna found herself sitting in the bleachers, a basketball game taking place on the floor in front of her. She was alternating between looking at the floor and doing research on her phone. Even though it was only a pick-up game, Anna liked the kids to know that she was still around. Before taking over as the Director of Affairs, she had spent most of her time with the kids—and sometimes, she found she really missed it.

  Even though she loved her job, she couldn’t deny how much easier things had been when she’d simply been a volunteer. No responsibility, no pressure…but she knew that what she was doing now was making a difference.

  She barely even noticed when someone took a seat beside her. Aside from herself, there were just a few clusters of girls scattered around the bleachers—most likely watching their latest crushes.

  “I thought you said this was just for kids. That guy looks like he’s at least twenty.”

  Anna’s head shot up, her eyes wide, as she stared at the familiar dark-haired individual. “Here, I brought you a peace offering.” He held out a paper cup. “It’s some sort of fancy Jasmine something or another tea. I thought I remembered you liking that kind of thing.”

  “Thank you,” she nearly stammered, her shock getting the best of her as she accepted his offering.

  And then she caught herself, pushing the warm cup back toward him. She noticed he already held one. “Wait—what the hell, Drew?”

  “Too late, you already accepted. You at least have to hear me out, now.”

  “Right, because we’re five years old.” She pushed the warm beverage back toward him, but he refused to take it. Instead, he lifted his own cup to his lips and took a drink, barely even offering her a glance. “I’m not above throwing this at you.”

  “Who’s joining the five year old club, now?” She clenched her jaw, realizing how ridiculous she was being. “Just give me a few minutes, Anna. I promise, I won’t be a jerk.”

  She could handle him being a jerk—that she was used to.

  What she was having a hard time with was feeling like a complete and total idiot.

  “There’s nothing to say, Drew. I was drunk. You did me a number of favors. End of story.”

  “Then why are you so mad at me?” She couldn’t bring herself to look at him.

  “I’m not mad at you.” Anna finally admitted. “I just don’t know what you’re doing here.”

  “I’m just watching a little basketball.” He glanced at her out of the corner of her eye. “Aren’t you going to drink your tea?” She looked down at the cup in her hands, thinking long and hard for several moments.

  Though she wasn’t quite sure what Drew’s sudden interest in her personal life was, she knew that, if nothing else, he meant well.

  He’d shown her that much, anyway.

  So, with a reluctant sigh, she raised the cup to her lips and took a small sip.

  She didn’t miss the quick smile on his own lips before he took another drink of his own beverage. “So—”

  “So, here’s what I was thinking.” He interrupted her, still watching what was happening on the floor. “You seem like you could use a friend.”

  “I—” But Drew turned to face her, reaching out and touching his finger to her lips. She immediately began to bristle around the edges.

  “You took the offering—you have to listen.” Anna narrowed her eyes at him, but Drew simply turned his eyes back to the floor. “I’m not saying you don’t
have friends, or that you have bad friends. I’m just saying that a person can never have too many friends.”

  “And you want to be my friend.”

  “Why not? We used to be friends. Sort of.” He paused, tilting his head to the side and furrowing his brow. Anna thought back to their brief relationship—she had always assumed he’d been trying to pursue her. “We were on the way to being friends, anyway.” As he nodded, Anna noticed the satisfied grin on his face, as if he was pleased with himself for figuring it out. A faint smile played at the corners of her mouth, in spite of herself.

  “I don’t need a pity friendship, Drew Whitman. Especially not from you.” She realized how it might sound and she decided to clarify. “I mean, I don’t need Jeff’s best friend—”

  “It has nothing to do with Jeff.” Now, he did turn to look at her. “Well, that’s sort of a lie.” He offered her a crooked smile. “I mean, let’s be honest here. I don’t have that many people in my life. It wouldn’t exactly hurt for me to make a new friend, myself.”

  “Or an old friend.” Anna corrected him.

  “An old almost friend.” Anna tried not to smile at his correction and instead turned away from him, shifting her eyes toward the court. She took a long drink of the tea he’d brought her, this time allowing herself a moment to savor the taste.

  If she were to be honest with herself, she knew she could benefit from having Drew in her life. He was carefree in a way Anna longed for—she had always admired that about him.

  She also knew he would make her laugh, so long as she could find a way to get over her recent humiliation.

  She sighed quietly. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to at least give it a shot.”

  “Well—all right then.” Again, Anna didn’t miss the grin as he stared out at the floor for several moments. “So—what now?”

  And Anna couldn’t help but laugh, shaking her head. She took another sip of tea.

  “You mean, you don’t have anything else figured out?”