My fingers typed ferociously on the keyboard, line after line inputting itself as simply as possible. Yes, this work was dry, but it was nice that there was no room for misinterpretations or alternate meanings. Simple sentences. No adverbs. No need for a creative twist. Usually, it bored me with the simplicity, but it gave me plenty of time to think.

A fluttering in my chest started and a smile crept across my lips. I did not mind thinking today.

There was a knock on the wall of my cubicle. I spun myself around to find Tiffany and a black haired guy standing there, both looking a bit haggard, but Tiffany's eyes caught my smile and her exhaustion seemed to vanish immediately.

"Hey Nic, this is Leo." Tiffany casually gestured in his direction.

"Nice to meet you. We were planning on heading out now. How much later are you gonna be?" He asked, leaning against the wall and noting my notes spread across the wrap-around desk.

"I was just going to finish this page and close up." I replied, looking over at him, but keeping an eye on Tiffany's ever-rising eyebrow.

"I don't know what his excuse is for working until seven thirty, but I was sick. Nicole, I didn't hear about you getting sick. Are you okay?" Her head nodded towards Leo when she spoke, but those watchful eyes never wavered from their target.

My smile flipped into a slight frown. "Oh, I just had a tough week so I've been distracted. It'd be nice to have part of a weekend so I figured staying really late once would be worth it."

Her eye twitched and Tiffany smiled broadly. "Well, I can't in good conscience let you walk out of here by yourself. We, women, have to stick together or bad shit happens as I've been so kindly reminded."

She winked at me before walking over to Janiel's chair and sat down. Her hands were already rapid-fire clicking away.

"Then, I guess I can hang out a little bit longer. It would tarnish my reputation as a gentleman if I left you ladies here without a proper escort. You know somebody stole parts off one of the cars in the parking lot two weeks ago, right?" He stepped out of my space and sat in another neighboring cubicle.

"Wait, you guys don't have to..." I said, but neither one popped back in. "All right, all right, I'll be done in a few minutes."

With a couple glances over at my notes, I typed up the remaining few lines for the page and saved. A few more clicks and the computer was shutting down while I collected my bags.

"Sorry about that. Thanks for waiting." I stood up and waited for them now.

Tiffany smiled at me as Leo guided us out of the building and in the general direction of our cars. He waved us off and headed away for his own.

"Are you hungry? I'm famished and the kids are getting ready for bed now so shall we get something together?" She shrugged and gazed out at her car. "I've got a good 30 minutes to burn and know a really good Indian place around the corner."

I checked the time on my phone and then back up at the sky. "I don't know. Don't you want to see your family before they go to sleep?"

"I spent more time with my children last week than I have in months. Nathan already knows where I am and with whom. Unless you already have some plans with someone."

The way she said that sentence, did she know?

"Come on, Nic. Let's go and you can tell me all about him." She grabbed hold of my hand and tugged me towards her car.

"Okay, okay. But I'll drive separately over. This place is a bit spooky with the lights starting to flicker on." I squinted as I surveyed the empty lot. The back of my head tingled. "I don't want to have to come back here for my car after dark. You heard what Leo said."

She released me and waved me off. "That's fine by me."

"By the way, how do you know Leo?"

"I think he works in human resources. I don't remember." She called out to me with an extra tease in her voice. "Why? Do you think he's cute?"

I waved her off, then unlocked and climbed into my car. Once she settled herself in her own car and started pulling away, I turned my parking lights on and followed her bright yellow SUV.

~

Tiffany handed off the menu to the waiter and interlaced her fingers, staring at me with a Cheshire cat's smile. "Now that we've ordered. Let's cut to the chase. Who? When? What happened?"

I shrank back in my seat a bit from her verbal onslaught. "What makes you think there's someone in my life? Can't I just smile sometimes? Do I really look that depressed normally?"

Her head tilted slightly to the side and balanced on her palm. "Nic, I've seen you smile more today than in the rest of the three years that you've been working here. Writing manuals is boring so I know you weren't thinking about work. Don't think I didn't notice the sporadic pleasant sighing you kept doing. I had to threaten Janiel with a three-hole punch to leave you alone. She was going to interrupt your lovely daydreaming."

My cheeks burned like I'd forgotten sunscreen in the Sahara Desert. I looked down at my utensils and began carefully and deliberately unwrapping them.

"Oh, don't leave me hanging. It was cute. You reminded me of what it was like when I first started dating Nathan: the sighing, the daydreaming, the goofy smiling. The air about you changes. You don't need to give me a name, but," she reached out and placed a hand on mine. "It's nice to see you happy for once. Why else do you think I drag you out with the girls all the time?"

"I could just be really excited about some trip coming up or a concert." I said, retracting my hand into my lap.

"Well, that's about as believable as him being just some guy who literally blew your mind. Or is he a she and that's why you're so embarrassed? It's cool. To each their own." She leaned back and shrugged before taking a sip from her iced tea.

"No, it's not like that. He's a guy and we haven't." I blurted out rather loudly. Cringing, I glanced around the nearly empty restaurant. Nobody was paying us any mind after my outburst. Gosh, why did everyone keep assuming we slept together? Sighing, my fingers curled into a fist and then straightened back out several times. "It's complicated."

"When isn't it? Okay, now, how did it start?"

"Do you remember a few months back when I slipped in the shower and hit my head? He came downstairs and checked on me." Leaning on my left hand, I stared at the elephant painting on the wall.

"Aw, that's sweet. He's the doting type then?"

I coughed and took a sip from my water. "I'm not sure about that. He's a bit overbearing and bossy at times. I thought I had trust issues. This guy takes the cake."

"Sounds like you guys have something in common then." She unraveled her own utensils now as the delicious smell of fresh, warm nan filtered through the restaurant. "The fact that you're even here willingly talking to me, perhaps I should meet this guy and give him a huge hug. Nathan tells me I'm a bit overbearing myself at times. Sorry."

"I don't think he'd hug you. It's probably more realistic that he'd make you stand at attention or tell you to go away. Things tend to escalate quickly with him and he's definitely not afraid to get physical."

"Wow, I see why you've gotten behind at work with him behind you so much." She winked at me.

"No, I already said we haven't..." I exhaled tersely, then rolled my eyes. "It's not like that. I don't know if I should even be feeling this way. He's secretive and frustrating and I swear he's going to get me killed someday."

Tiffany's eyes narrowed on me, taking it all in. "Well, you're just starting out so maybe you'll loosen up each other's tongues. I'm sure you've been forthright with him on everything too, right? We may not have talked much before, but I've noticed you don't ever mention anything about your family. I'm sorry about that, by the way, whatever IT is. I may get sick of my kids at times, but I love them. I can't imagine what my life would be like without them, without Nathan. What I'm saying is that you have time to sort through all those secrets and frustrations. Don't run away before you give it a chance."

The clinking of dishes could be heard behind the counter.

"Look at me," Tiffany gestured to herself. "I'm getting all preachy now. Stop it, you're making me act my age."

We chuckled as the waiter brought out two trays of Set A with naan.

I grabbed my napkin and laid it across my lap. "You're right. That was weird. Aren't you supposed to be eighteen or something? You were starting to sound, dare I say it, old."

"Well, one last thing before I string you up by your toes for that last comment. Never go to bed angry. It's not worth it for you or your relationship so just apologize or take a deep breath and ask yourself if you're overreacting."

"I'm not sure if he's apologized for anything in the last forty years." I paused and looked down at the now slightly green bruise on my wrist. "Okay, he's apologized once. Maybe twice."

Silence settled between us.

"Did he hurt you?"

My eyes darted up to hers, which were glistening with concern. Did I really look like that much of a distressed damsel? Gosh, I needed to grow up. She was the victim here. I should be comforting her. "No, I was helping him with something and got injured. He felt really bad about it, but appreciated what I did for him."

"Good. It's not okay for him to beat you. This isn't the 1960s. We have moved on from those dark ages and I will call the cops on his ass."

I laughed, my lips curling into a half smile and muttered under my breath, "I'm not sure that would help much."

"It definitely sounds like you like him though. If he actually loved you back, he'd apologize and mean it." She stabbed a piece of chicken and held it up to her mouth. "That's the important part, meaning it. You're not just some piece of meat to be chewed up and spat out later."

I watched as she proceeded with eating the curry covered chicken chunk. Thankfully, she didn't spit it out. Slowly I brought my own food to my mouth. Was this some game to him? I'd already offered myself up to him and yet he hasn't taken me up on it. How tempting must it be to interact with your food, but not eat it?

Frankly, I was impressed she could eat like this after all that vomiting. "Um, I'm sorry I couldn't remember anything from last Friday night, you know, to help you out. Sorry to bring up a sore subject. Will you be okay?"

"Yeah, this isn't my first time dealing with it unfortunately. I figured I was too old to get targeted now, but apparently not. That's what I get for thinking I'm invincible, I guess, and being hot still." She took another bite and chewed while looking at me. After she finished chewing, she smiled at me. "Don't worry about me. I'm fine now, just a little shaken up. Did you get a little crazy Friday too? That's unexpected."

I chuckled and took another bite of naan. "So I'm told. I have to rely on what everybody keeps telling me because I can't recall a thing. And what I've learned is that I was an utter clutz because I managed to get bruised all over, including on my face."

Tiffany's smile plummeted into a frown as she stared at me. "But you didn't get sick like me, right? Trish said everybody else was fine. How much did you drink? You're normally drinking would-be bouncers under the table."

My mouth opened, but I sighed and bit my lower lip. Crap, she remembered that from the first girls' trip? "Um, I'm not really sure. I've cut back a bit on drinking so I guess my tolerance is down."

"Oh, okay. At least you avoided the aftermath of getting roofied. The daze, the haze, and the blazing awful hangover would've been a dead giveaway. When it happened to me in college, I thought I was going to die. You lucked out." Her lips cracked up into a hesitant smile and she continued eating.

"Yeah, I did." The words left my mouth, I was already thinking about what happened with Emily and Ian later that night. His ludicrous line  about healing me after a fight stuck out in my mind. Maybe we needed to talk again about what happened that night.

Once our plates were cleared and our checks were paid, we walked out to the nearly empty parking lot.

Before I reached my car, I smiled at my crazy coworker. "Thanks for hanging out tonight, Tiffany. I had fun. Tell Nathan, hi for me and give the girls a kiss."

"I will. We should do this more often." She called back to me as she hopped in her SUV and started it up.

It was nice hanging out with different people. She'd probably hate me for it, but she definitely felt matronly tonight. I liked it. Waving at her as she pulled away, I opened my own door and tossed in my purse.

Someone cleared their throat and I turned around. It was a man about my height with blue eyes. My smile faltered as I noticed the sandy blond hair. Why did I think it'd be Ian? That would be creepy. I hadn't told him anything about my plans after work. I didn't even have his number.

"I think you forgot something." The man said as he approached. "There's a purse back there."

I waved him off and leaned against the driver's seat, ready to hop in. "Not mine. I've got it here."

"Perhaps, it was your friend's?" He stopped a few feet away from me and smiled.

Shaking my head at him and starting to slid into the vehicle, I answered. "She has one of those keyless starts. She couldn't have started the car without it. Thanks though. Have a good night."

"Oh, I see. Technology these days." He chuckled to himself.

"Tell me about it. Goodbye," I looked up at him and met his gaze.

"Wait. You should come with me."

"Excuse me?"

He stared at me with an eyebrow raised and now a slight frown. "Come with me."

This guy was definitely a creeper. No way. Quickly I tucked my legs inside and closed the door. "No thanks. Bye."

He caught the door with his hand and brought his face too close to mine. He was inside my personal bubble. His eyes narrowed into slits, then he jerked back and stared wide-eyed at me. "Oh, my bad. I thought you were someone else. My mistake."

Without another word, he stepped back from the car and turned away on his cell phone.

After slamming my door shut and locking it immediately, I started the car and peeled out of the parking lot. Only after a couple of minutes did my heart and brain slow down enough for me to realize I'd forgotten my seatbelt. Once that was secured, I continued taking a roundabout way to get home.

"Creeper. I hope whoever you meant to find gets the jump on you with the cops," I yelled, knowing full-well that my windows were up and he was blocks away and out of earshot. What, was he blind? It took him until he was in my face to realize I wasn't the person he was looking for. He'd make an awful detective.

Even though he'd said it was a mistake, I couldn't stop myself from turning a normally fifteen-minute drive into a forty-five-minute journey around town. There was this tingle at the back of my head that had me checking over my shoulder more than usual as I pulled into my designated spot outside the apartment. Most of the cars were back, but several, including Lisa and Ian's, were gone. It was a Friday night after all. Not everybody was a hermit like me.

My chest tightened as I stared at the empty spots. Perhaps she'd run into him somewhere and they'd start up a conversation since he's becoming more personable. Maybe she'd hand him her phone number or invite him back to her place. She always had her act together when it came to guys.

I blinked and pinched my cheek. Ian and I weren't dating, not even close. Even if we did share quite a bit of kissing and some heavy petting, that did not make me his or him mine. Plus, we weren't going to date unless he owned up to his actions and apologized. Just because he can do something like hypnotize my friend, doesn't mean he should, let alone do it twice. And the controlling, occasionally violent behavior was going to need to end pronto and the evasive omissions and the lying.

Yeah, we needed to draw some clear, respectable lines and if he didn't respect that he could go pound sand because he sure as hell wasn't getting anything else.

With my little pep talk complete, I exited the vehicle and entered the apartment building. All the adrenaline from the after-dinner creeper experience left me wide awake and on edge. When I finally reached my landing, there was a plastic bag sitting outside of my door. Looking around didn't reveal anyone hiding in a corner or watching my reaction. Cautiously I crept towards the unexpected delivery.

About three feet from it, my mouth began watering even though I wasn't hungry. I knew that smell anywhere. My eyes confirmed it with the logo on the take-out box: El Rey De Tacos. There was a note scribbled on the receipt:

Evening Nicole,

Sorry I missed you. Don't wait up for me. Taking care of some business tonight. Sleep well and know that you're on my mind.

P.S. Hope you don't mind tacos again, Beautiful.

My cheeks burned as my stomach churned and my heart fluttered while my breathing shuddered. After my body remembered how to function again, I picked up the bag, grabbed my keys, and unlocked the door.

The tacos didn't change anything. We still needed to have a serious talk.

Oddly enough though, there was a big, dumb smile plastered on my face for the rest of the night and I couldn't wipe it off.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Found a better song for this chapter. Yay!