“So, you and the steak are meeting at Micky D’s?” Chelsea asks. “Kinky. You going to make out in the tunnel slide?” Chelsea takes a bite of her turkey sandwich.

We’re at a deli on the main floor of the building we work in. The Sandwich Place is our go-to for lunch if we’re all in the office. It’s owned by an Italian family who, get this, have one son who’s a police officer, one who’s a paramedic and one who’s a firefighter. I haven’t met them, but Chelsea knows them—the girl knows everyone, I swear—and if the rumors are true, I may have to fake faint in front of them for some mouth to mouth action.

“Steak?” Hannah asks, the spoon from her soup hovering right in front of her matte red lipsticked lips.

“Yeah. Vic is the Doberman drooling over the steak,” Chelsea says as if that explains things.

“I’m missing something.” Hannah takes a graceful sip of her soup.

I’d love to set a meatball grinder with extra sauce and provolone in front of Hannah and see how delicately she can eat it.

“Let’s take a poll,” Chelsea says, setting her sandwich down. “Hannah, would you date the best man from your wedding?”

Hannah chokes, soup dribbling down her chin. I guess I don’t need to do the meatball grinder experiment. I grab a napkin from the black holder in the middle of the table and pass it to her. She dabs at her chin, leaning over the table so she doesn’t stain her dress. I’d be worried too. It probably costs more than Jade’s tuition for the year at St. Pats.

“No.”

“See.” I shoot Chelsea an I-told-you-so look.

“Why not?” she asks.

“For one, the best man at my wedding was my brother.”

“That’s completely different. The steak isn’t related to her or her ex.” Chelsea leans back like she just gave the best closing argument, and everyone is having an ah-ha moment.

“Okay, who is the steak? Is this some riddle?” Hannah’s confused, and she looks at me to clear things up.

“The steak is my ex’s friend who stood up as his best man at our wedding. The steak is the guy who I ran into at Jade’s school last week. The steak manipulated the system, so we’d have to work on a carnival booth together at the school fundraiser.” I sip my soda once I’m done.

“The steak wants you to eat him.” Hannah grins.

“Exactly,” Chelsea says.

“No. The steak probably heard some bullshit from Pete about me in bed.”

“So, I’m right. I totally pegged you for the kinky kind.” Both Hannah and my heads whip in Chelsea’s direction. She holds up her hands, laughing. “Well?”

“No. I mean...just no,” I sputter.

“We’ll let you plead the fifth on that one.” Hannah’s perfectly manicured hand graces my leg with a pat. “But don’t be ashamed. It’s bullshit how men can brag or downright lie about their performance, but we’re supposed to act like we’re laying there with our legs open and have the ability to come with a soft whisper. I’m a screamer and I’m not ashamed.” She smiles, and I can’t tell if she’s entirely serious or not.

“I’m a cowgirl. I ride,” Chelsea adds.

“That doesn’t surprise me.” I take a bite of my sandwich.

God, this is good.

“Come on Vic, we all shared. Tell us something.” Chelsea leans forward on the table and even Hannah’s eyes are set on me.

I feel the flush heat my cheeks. Having Jade so young I forget it wasn’t just my education I left behind when I married Pete. I left friends who cared more about going out Thursday through Saturday than waking a sleeping baby for her feeding. It’s been a long time since I’ve had close girlfriends to confide in.

“I don’t know.” I shrug. The meat on my sandwich is looking really intriguing right now.

“Don’t make her say anything she doesn’t want to.” Hannah picks up her spoon and goes back to her soup.

“I’m a biter.” I rush the words out super fast like it will somehow make them less embarrassing.

“Hah!” Chelsea’s hand smacks the table and a few people look over. “I knew it,” she says in a quieter voice.

I roll my eyes.

“Nice. You have to be pretty damn good at what you’re doing to make me a biter.” Hannah brings the spoon to her mouth and takes a small sip. “Few have been successful in that department.”

Chelsea seems to be deep in thought for a second and I guarantee she’s committed everyone’s sexual preference to memory.

“Anyway, back to the steak.” Hannah’s gaze shoots my way.

“The steak will remain untouched.” I sip my drink.

Chelsea scoffs. “Please, I guarantee you’re gonna to have that meat in your mouth at some point.”

I almost spit my drink all over the table I laugh so hard.

“Does the steak have a name?” Hannah asks after we’ve settled ourselves.

“Reed.”

“Is he still close to your ex?” she asks in response.

“He says no. I haven’t seen him since we moved out of Chicago to Los Angeles, so he’s probably telling the truth.”

“Then go for it. If anything, it might get to your ex.” Hannah waggles her eyebrows and grins.

I never knew she could be so spiteful, but from what I gather, her divorce was really nasty.

She has a point though. Anything that would annoy Pete has its benefits.

“I have too much on my plate right now to worry about getting back at my ex. This will have to be platonic.”

“Let me take Jade for a weekend. Have a weekend full of hot sex, leave your love bites on him, and get it out of your system.” Chelsea finds her voice once again with advice I won’t be taking.

“With how he’s inserted himself in my life already, I’m thinking he might want to put a ring on it if I sleep with him.”

The girls laugh, and we go back to our lunch. I’m hoping the topic of Reed will be tossed into the garbage along with our trash.

We’re almost finished eating when a gorgeous guy with olive skin, perfect dark scruff on his chiseled jaw and the darkest brown eyes I’ve ever seen walks in. Chelsea’s smile turns up to full wattage.

“Luca!” she says, standing and embracing the prime rib in front of us.

Hannah knocks her knee to mine and we share a look.

“This is my co-worker, Victoria and my boss, Hannah.” She swivels him toward the table. His chocolate gaze lands on us and I take in his paramedic uniform. “This is Luca.”

“Hi.” He puts out his hand to shake both of ours. “Chelsea told me your office is just upstairs.”

“If by upstairs you mean twenty floors, yes.” I smile, and he does, too.

He’s handsome, but the grin on his face says he’s Chelsea’s match in the partying arena.

He turns his attention back to Chelsea. “I meant to ask you, I saw on Instagram that your cousin is getting married.”

“Are you still stalking her fiancé?” Chelsea jokes and his shrug and his smile says he’s got no shame.

He turns to the table again. “Do you know that Chelsea’s cousin is a Winter Classics skier and she’s marrying a Classics snowboarder?”

Chelsea shrugs, but her proud smile says she’s not embarrassed by it.

“Really? Who? I was glued to the screen this Winter Classics,” Hannah says.

“Skylar Walsh is my cousin,” Chelsea says.

They share the same last name, so we should’ve guessed.

“That’s awesome. Do you think she’d be willing to speak at the gala?” Hannah asks, ever the opportunist if she sees something she thinks will help raise money for the charity.

“She knows all of them. Mia Salter, Demi Harrison.” Luca nudges his shoulder to hers like ‘why didn’t you share that you know all these famous athletes.’

That’s not Chelsea’s style and even I know that.

“You’re holding out on me girl,” Hannah says.

Chelsea eyes Luca. “I’ll make some calls. See what I can do.”

“Oh, it’s too late to get something together for winter and have them do a day on the slopes, but it’s something to think about for next year.”

The older woman who called out our numbers walks around the back counter and over to our little group where she hits Luca over the head with a menu.

Hannah and I stare on wide-eyed.

“Ouch. Mama.” He holds out his hands.

She shakes her head, her eyes piercing into him. “Don’t give the phone number out again.”

Chelsea laughs, obviously understanding whatever it is that’s going on here. “Still?” she asks him, and he shoots her a smirk as if to say, can you blame me?

“It was nice meeting you.” He swings his arm around his mama’s shoulders and the two of them walk away, speaking Italian.

“Cute,” Hannah says. “Too young for me, but you two should think about it.”

“You couldn’t be more than five or six years older than him,” I say.

“Doesn’t matter how old he is, that’s a big N-O from me,” Chelsea says.

“A paramedic with a body and face like his? I imagine there’s a lot of competition and he probably likes it that way,” I say.

Chelsea points at me. “You have good intuition, Vic. His mom is mad at him because he gives all the women he meets at bars the deli phone number.”

Hannah wipes her mouth. “Never mind then. He’s not the one for either of you.”

We all stand and dispose of our trash. Chelsea runs over and gives Luca a quick hug goodbye. He raises his hand in a wave to us and we each smile with a wave back as we’re exiting the door. I turn and run smack dab into a man wearing a suit and my heart halts for a moment before I realize it’s not Reed. Why would it be?

“Excuse me,” I say, sliding by the man.

“No, excuse me.” His eyes flit over my body like I’m on the menu.

“Is that the steak?” Chelsea jokingly asks as we walk by, ignoring the guy.

“Yeah, baby. King cut T-bone. Want a bite?”

Hannah and I stand there with our mouths ajar. Seriously, a little kid just walked by.

“I’d have to douse it in A1 sauce before I could even stomach looking at it.” Chelsea lets the glass door shut behind her and we rush to the entrance of our building laughing uncontrollably.

It really is good to have girlfriends again. Just another reason to stay single. I let a man distract me from growing new friendships before. Never again.