Page 30 of Friend Zone to End Zone

But I did know one thing. I deserved better than Chad.

And when Chad got back in town on Wednesday night, I’d rip off the Band-aid and tell him that our relationship had run its course and it was time for me to move on.

Cole turned into the quiet neighborhood where I lived with my mom, the headlights of his SUV shining on the garage door of the ranch-style house when he pulled into the driveway.

“Here, let me walk you to the door.” Cole put the vehicle in park, unbuckled himself, and was opening my door before I could even release my seatbelt.

“Thanks,” I said after stepping out beside him into the cool spring air.

He shut the passenger door behind me, and then followed me up the sidewalk.

“Well.” I sighed when I got to the front door and turned to face him. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“You’re not expecting me to dance at the club though, right?” He scratched at a spot behind his ear. “Because I really don’t think that will help my chances in impressing women.”

“You dance just fine,” I said. “And if you’re worried about it, you can just come here before we go and I can give you that dancing lesson that I still owe you.”

He raised an eyebrow. “That might take a long time.”

I laughed. “You’re quick on your feet. There’s no way you’ll be that terrible after a few pointers from me.”

He sighed, as if the prospect of dancing at a club gave him hives.

For someone who was used to having millions of people watch him run a ball down the field every week, it was strange to see something like this making him nervous. But I guess we all had our strengths.

“If you think you need more practice, just watch a few club-dancing tutorials after your workout tomorrow. Then you can go impress all the ladies.”

“And you and Hannah can come up with many other theories about why I’m still single instead of critiquing my interactions with the women I’m meeting.”

“You didn’t need a critique tonight.” I gave him a slight smile. “I really don’t think you’re going to need any advice from me. You’ve just been missing the secret ingredient.”

“And what secret ingredient is that?” He arched an eyebrow.

“Desire.”

A spark of interest warmed his dark, brown eyes. “Desire?”

“Yes.” I nodded. “The desire to actually have a girlfriend.”

He seemed to think it over for a moment before saying, “I’m not sure desire is my missing ingredient. I’m pretty sure I have plenty of that.”

“Really?” I tilted my head to the side.

“Yes.”

And when I met his gaze, the warmth that had been in his eyes a second before now resembled more of a fire. It made my stomach twist and somersault.

He cleared his throat. “I just haven’t taken the initiative to go after what I want. Not because I didn’t want to, but because I wasn’t sure whether the risk would pay off.”

My body warmed with his words and I wondered what they might mean. “And you think it will now?”

Because he couldn’t be hinting at what I thought he might be, right?

He’d said kissing me that night was a mistake.

But what else could it be?

He had more opportunity than any other guy I knew to land any girl he wanted. Literally,anygirl.

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