Page 46 of Friend Zone to End Zone

Then, remembering the toothbrush in my hand, I held it out to her. “Here’s that toothbrush, by the way.”

“Thanks.” She glanced at her watch after taking it from me, and my gaze followed hers to see that it was 10:32 on the dot.

“Happy birthday, Cole,” she said, looking up at me through her lashes. “You are officially twenty-six years old.”

“Thank you,” I said, my body temperature rising slightly as she gazed at me. She was close enough that I’d only have to bend over slightly if I wanted to kiss her.

I pushed those thoughts away. Kissing her now would be a mistake.

“T-thanks for everything tonight,” I managed to say. “I’ve never had a surprise party before so this was nice.”

“You’re welcome.” She gave me a soft smile. “I hope all your birthday wishes come true.”

My throat constricted, because I knew that while I was so lucky to have so many blessings in my life, the one thing—one person—I wanted would never be mine.

Arianna stepped forward and kissed my cheek. Then with her breath against my ear, she said, “You’re the best guy I know. You deserve everything you’ve ever dreamed of having.”

And I don’t know what flipped inside me with her words, but suddenly, just being friends with Arianna wasn’t enough.

I’d been the good guy.

A good friend.

I’d sat on the sidelines and watched her stay in a bad relationship for almost two years now.

But I was tired of waiting.

Tired of being the nice guy who sacrificed what he wanted most in the whole world for the hope that the universe would someday smile down on me and make everything work out the way I wanted.

But I couldn’t hold my breath forever waiting on maybes and someday.

Those things weren’t real. But this… Her and me?

We were real. My feelings for her were very real.

It was time for me to finally show her exactly how I felt about her. Because even if she pushed me away and rejected me, at least I would have tried. At least I’d know that I’d put myself out there for once in my life and not have to always wonder,what if?

When Arianna turned to go back into the bedroom, I grabbed her arm and said, “Wait.”

She stopped and glanced over her shoulder with a look that was half hope, half fear.

“Yes?” The word came out sounding like a gasp.

I stepped through the threshold and took her hands in mine. “You just said you wanted all my birthday wishes to come true. And that I deserved to have everything I ever dreamed of having, right?” I searched her eyes.

She nodded, the hope and fear in her expression only seeming to grow.

Just go for it.

I drew in a deep breath, hoping it would give me the guts to keep going. “There’s only one thing in the world that I can think of that I still want,” I said. “I have this house. I have my dream job. I have a great family and the best friend I could ever ask for.”

“Then what’s missing?” She released a shaky breath.

I stared down at the carpet and blinked, willing myself to find the courage to finally do this thing. And when I met her gaze again, I knew what I said next could either change our friendship into something more or make me lose her forever.

But I had to do it.

“The only thing I’m missing in my life is a…” I swallowed, planning to say that the only thing I was missing was for my best friend to love me the way I loved her. But when a sudden surge of anxiety showed on her face, the words got stuck in my throat and I knew I couldn’t do it.

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