Rain showers made the Monday morning commute wet, but Meg was glad to go to work. She didn't want to stay home and listen to her mother talk about a wedding that Meg didn't want. They joked about thirty-five, except Ty wasn't joking. A lot could happen in five years and she wanted to fall in love. Memories of Cade filled her mind. Love should feel that good if not better. The moment their eyes met in the lobby, she felt like a rom com.

Meg greeted the receptionist, as she entered the Beantown Magazine office. The young girl smiled. Her nanny growing up taught her kindness was free, but its reward was priceless. At the office, she was one of many hard workers trying to advance, but her goal was to get ahead by merit and hard work.

Once she hung up her wet coat, she sat down to wade through her email. There were several articles for her to review.

"Margaret, let's make a game plan." Jeff, the features editor and her boss, loved sports analogies. He stood in the doorway to his office, as she stood. "This week is the fifty-yard dash."

She nodded. Dashing fifty yards wasn't a strain for her. She had been on the track team at her private high school. "I've got my running shoes on. Um, proverbial, of course."

He laughed. "We need to get the cover story ready for layout. You've been through it. I've been through it, but I need you to go through it again."

He rub his hands together and smiled. Meg wasn't excited about the subject matter. The mafia didn't intrigue her.

"Did we get confirmation of the questionable facts?"

"We can't tie all the players listed to the Patriarca family."

The Boston mob was a faction of the family with influence in Boston and Providence, RI. There were other shady characters listed in the article. They trafficked everything from guns to drugs and people. Meg didn't romanticize the mafia. Reading details on the greasy criminals made her uncomfortable.

A week before, her mother chastised her for asking her father about the history. It wasn't appropriate for the dinner table. Knowing the organizations existed while normal people went about their business was unpleasant. Tyler's brother, Eli was an assistant DA, so he probably knew more than the article conveyed.

Her morning flew by as she wordsmith'd facts about extortion and other crimes. The writer added some new information about a hit over the weekend. Meg didn't care to learn the details.

At noon, Addelyn stopped by her desk. "Lunch?"

She stretched her neck. "Sure, but not too long. There was a small cafeteria with subsidized catered food. With limited choices, it was better than wasting time going out. Meg didn't bring lunches from home, but Addelyn did. Or she used to until her promotion to dining editor. Although features was the department with the most pages, Meg would settle for any department if she became an editor. A little envy didn't stop her from being happy for her friend.

Once they sat with their lunches, Meg bought a cardboard container of Italian wedding soup. Did they serve it at the mob weddings? Frowning, she didn't want to think about marriage.

"What's wrong?" Addelyn asked, but didn't pause for a response. "How was your party? Sorry I couldn't make it."

Meg smiled. She had blown off her friends at her birthday celebration. "It was fun." She bit her lip as she debated how much to tell.

"So did Tyler and Lucy hook up?"

"Urgh! No! I mistook their private conversations."

"So he's still single, except for pretending with you?"

"He doesn't want to pretend?"

"What? Shut. Up."

"Something like, he was giving me time and now I'm thirty." Meg rolled her eyes. "Somehow our parents got involved. I think I agreed to move in with him."

"Do you mean sex?" She whispered the last word.

"Addie, he's my best friend, but never once have I considered having sex with him. Even drunk, I never wanted it and I sleep in his bed most weekends." Hanging at Tyler's place allowed her to forget she lived at home. "I wish I could get an apartment, but now Tyler told our parents I'm moving in. Our parents want me to have a rock on my finger, but I put them off."

"This is crazy! I mean I think he's cute. I would sleep with him."

"But hooking up is radically different from sleeping with your best friend. Stranger sex is just the moment without shared histories and high expectations."

The moment with Cade turned out to be amazing. If only she had the freedom to get her own place. In a rom com, Cade would move in next door and Tyler would be the bad guy, but he wasn't. He was sweet and caring. Tyler was like his dog, a golden retriever, except with darker hair. He was loyal, protective and playful.

"I'm awful. Why can't I love him?"

"When are you seeing him again?"

Meg sighed. "Probably not until the weekend, because this is our crunch week. I need to get back to the mafia."

"Nothing like a sexy mob man."

"These guys aren't sexy. Plus, who falls for an exploiter or murderer?"

"You need to read steamy novels."

"No, thanks."

"Maybe if you had a little steam in your life. I bet Ty could boil your blood if you gave him a chance."

Biting her tongue, she stopped from mentioning the steam she had. Looking at her watch, Meg stood. "Thanks for the chat."

Back at her desk, she looked at her phone. Tyler texted to see how her day was. Thinking about Cade, not Tyler, she wondered what would happen if she searched Cade. Cade. Boston. Graphic designer. Before she changed her mind. The first result was for KCade Designs, then several listings for Indeed and educational programs. At the bottom was an article about the sale of CEJ Games. Her friends played some of their games. No luck, but it was just as well, what would she tell Tyler?

After several long days, the cover story was complete. It wasn't a hard news piece because they weren't that kind of magazine. It sensationalized the lore of the mafia. The reader would associate the underground with Hollywood movies, but the men were living and breathing all around Boston. Meg wished they would all move away before some innocent person got caught up in their cross-hairs.

With the articles done on Thursday, Friday was a day of meetings to discuss the next issue. It was a never-ending cycle. By five, Meg wanted to go home and binge a show, but Tyler wanted to go for drinks. For a nanosecond, she wondered what the odds were of running into Cade a third time. She had to stop thinking of him and try to think about Tyler.

Instead of going home, she waited out front for Tyler to pick her up. Addelyn stepped outside. "Going out?"

"Drinks. You want to join us?"

She chuckled and shook her head. "Tyler will want you for himself."

"I bet the others will be there. Come on." She pleaded.

The car pulled up, and Tyler jumped out. "Addelyn. Hi Meggy."

"I was telling Addie, she should come."

Tyler's face dropped. "If you want."

She shook her head. "I'm beat. I'm heading home."

Meg enviously watched her walk away, before Tyler ushered her into the car. "I like her, but I missed you this week."

"It's like this every month."

"I know and I missed you all those months too." He cleared his throat. "Now I've stopped hiding my feelings." He squeezed her hand.

She never thought twice about being in a backseat with him. Sitting close enough for their arms to touch, she longed to feel something, a tingle. His hand felt comforting and soft with no calluses. She imagined his hands on her body and stopped immediately.

"Where are we going?"

"To dinner, just us."

"I thought you said drinks."

He laughed. "Part of dinner. We can plan our weekend."

"Binging the Great Race." Tyler hated reality TV. Meg had only watched it when a Beacon Hill hotty took part.

"I love you, but not your choice of shows."

"At least I'm not fascinated with the mafia."

"The mafia is interesting. There was a hit last Saturday night."

"I don't care. Let your brother clean up the city."

He laughed. "One criminal at a time. He works more than you."

"He's altruistic. I like that about Eli."

"I'm altruistic too. There's a charity event later this month. We can come out as an official couple."

"What's it for?"

"Kids, the arts. One of those."

Meg laughed. It had been a joke for years. Long before they attended occasional charity functions, they would guess what event their parents were attending. She stopped giggling. "Do you really not know?"

"Honestly, no. My parents have a table and invited us."

When the car stopped, she looked out at the restaurant. At least, the trendy fusion bistro wasn't overly romantic. Candle light and hushed whispers were the last things she needed. It wouldn't be pretty if she fell asleep with her head in her plate. She felt eyes on them when they walked to the table. Her cardigan stood out among the elegant beauties. At least she had a handsome date. Tyler looked exceptional in his suit. He held her chair when she sat. They fit into each other's lives perfectly.

As she looked at the menu nothing inspired her so she let Ty order some small plates to share. When he asked for no goat cheese, her heart melted a little. She had a love/hate relationship with cheese. Tyler knew her better than anyone, but was that love?

Normally they never ran out of things to say, but suddenly she was at a loss. It felt like a first date. He looked at her with concern. "Aren't you hungry?"

She shrugged. "I'm exhausted."

"Do you want dessert?"

"No, thank you."

When the check came she didn't reach for her wallet. Usually she offered, but Tyler declined. She had thought it was because he made more than her. Everything she believed had turned upside down. On the sidewalk, he took her hand. She looked up at his face hoping to see him as her date, not her best buddy.

His lips descended on hers in a kiss with too much passion for a sidewalk. Meg felt one step behind as she silently chanted Ty not Cade.

A week before Cade wouldn't even have been a consideration. If Tyler had confessed his love before her birthday, would she have welcomed it? Maybe. Maybe not. There were no do overs. Her gut told her if she could pick one, she would have given Cade her number. Maybe she would have stayed at the club and not gone to his room, only because her father would kill her if he found out. Whatever went down that night, she didn't want to be linked to it or to having been in a room with a man. Her parents thought she had been dating Tyler since high school, of course they thought it was time for the big wedding.

Pulling back, she tried to smile but her head was cluttered. "Come home with me."

She shook her head. "I'm too tired. We can take Blue for a walk and get the gang together tomorrow night."

"We still need to talk about you moving in."

"We will, but this was only our first date."

He was smart enough not to argue. In front of her house, he kissed her in the car and then walked her to the door. Once inside, she sighed and rushed up the stairs before her parents saw her.

Thanks for voting ⭐️