I drove through the gates of Yvette’s community, taking a right and going past the pool, going toward the end of a large cul-de-sac, where Yvette’s two-story farmhouse-style home took up most of the corner. I parked behind Tristan’s car, spotting him and Eric through an open window, the two of them laughing up a storm.

It was book club night, and honestly, it couldn’t have gotten here fast enough. Our bimonthly meetings were often the highlights of my weeks. Getting to hang out with my friends, talking books and playing games, was seriously more effective for me than therapy, and after all that had happened recently, I was in dire need of a session.

And of course, seeing Jake outside of work was another big perk to book club. We’d been texting a ton and were having lunches alone together when other colleagues didn’t invite us out to eat. Seeing his smiling face and ocean-blue eyes always helped make the day go by that much faster. Watching him walk past my desk to grab some water or take his fifteen-minute break usually guaranteed that I’d lost my spot in whatever Excel sheet I was working on at the time. Daydreams of our kiss would constantly float through my mind, distracting me with thoughts of Jake and his soft lips against mine, his hand moving to grip the back of my neck. It might have been a short kiss, but it had already proved to be one of the best I’d ever had.

I didn’t even want to think about how good everything after that kiss could have been.

I was (slightly) grateful Jake had the willpower and wherewithal to stop us before things got out of hand. I didn’t want to ruin this budding friendship; I didn’t want to complicate things. It happened to me before, getting close to someone and thinking we’d make great friends, only to end a drunken night hooking up together and waking up to awkward texts and an entirely derailed friendship. Twice already, I had ended up having sex with a friend, and both times ended in sporadic messages and brief interactions. One of those guys was actually Robby, who quickly went from trustworthy neighbor and reliable friend to relatively distant acquaintance after our awkward night together. We had zero chemistry, and the sex wasn’t all that great, which likely attributed to the new dynamic between us, but still, I just didn’t want to risk it with Jake.

Even though I was positive our sex would be tectonic-plate-shatteringly good.