My send-off party is in full swing on Friday night. I’m keeping a brave face, pretending I’m thrilled to be moving up in the world, but I’m not sure that’s what I’d call this. Moving away from Aria seems like anything but moving up. It’s a definite downgrade.

I scan the back room of Last Call, finding her near the back talking to David. Maybe he’ll fill my shoes while I’m gone. He’s a good guy, and I know he’s into Emily, so I don’t have to worry about him hitting on Aria in my absence. Not that I have any right to worry about who she dates anyway.

She turns her head as she sips her Corona Light, and our eyes meet. She raises the bottle to me in cheers. I mimic the gesture with my own bottle, though right about now I’m wishing I had chosen a much stronger drink.

A heavy hand slams down on my free arm, and I turn to see Caleb. “Shame you never got the balls to tell her how you feel.”

“Shut up.” I slug down the rest of my beer.

“You don’t get many chances with a woman like Aria. Someone else will come along and snatch her up in no time. Mark my words.”

Even though I know he’s operating under the assumption tough love is the only way to get through to me, I’ve never wanted to take a swing at him more. I take a deep breath and remind myself he’s my best friend. My male best friend at least. “You’ll keep an eye on her, right?”

“Sure, although I’m not sure how often she’ll come in here without you.”

He’s right. Aria isn’t the type to hang out at a bar on her own. Sure, the crew at Priority News goes out on occasion, but other than that, she’ll probably spend most of her time at Ashley’s and at work.

God, I’m pathetic. As if I’m Aria’s entire life. She’s going to move on fine without me. Like Caleb said, she’ll find another guy to date. They’ll probably wind up getting married, and I’ll hear from her once a year on Facebook when it notifies her it’s my birthday.

“I need another drink,” I say, walking toward a server with a tray.

Caleb follows me. “What is this, pity party for one?”

I grab what I assume is a Rum and Coke and face him head-on. “Look, I get it. You think I’m being a pussy. Maybe I am, but my entire life is about to change. I’m losing out on...” My eyes scan the crowd for Aria, but she’s nowhere in sight.

“On what?”

I turn around at the sound of her voice. “Hey,” I say, running my free hand through my hair. “Didn’t see you there.”

“Because you don’t have eyes in the back of your head.” Her brow furrows, and she cocks her head. “What’s wrong? I can tell something’s bothering you.”

“Well, that’s my cue,” Caleb says, clapping me on the back. “You two have fun.” He hides his smile behind his glass as he walks away.

“So, what are you losing out on?” Aria asks, bringing her beer bottle to her lips. I force my eyes away from her mouth.

“Oh, um, you know. All my friends here, that kind of stuff.” I couldn’t sound more unconvincing.

“Planning to abandon us for good?” Her tone is light, but her eyes are filled with worry.

“Never.” I step toward her without realizing it at first. I awkwardly start swaying on my feet, hoping to cover up the fact that I tried to close the distance between us.

“Are you attempting to dance, or do you really have to pee?” She smiles and motions to my legs.

“Neither. I’m... Can we go somewhere and talk?”

“You want to leave your own party?” She looks around the room at all the people who have gathered to see me off. I was surprised by the turnout, but then again, it’s a party with free alcohol on a Friday night.

“I’m not really in a partying mood. I’d rather veg out on your couch and talk to you.”

She nods. “Who am I to deny the guest of honor?” She loops her arm through mine, and we head for the door.

A few people glance in our direction, but everyone is so used to seeing us together that no one gives us a second thought. I’m sure they think I’m walking Aria to the bathroom and we’ll be back in a few minutes. Frankly, I don’t care what they think. I need to be alone with her.

Every second of the short ride to her apartment building, I think about coming clean. Telling Aria how I feel. But no matter how I look at it, it seems like a dick move. Tell a girl you love her and then turn around and leave? I can’t do that to her. Not her.

She unlocks her apartment door and tosses her keys onto the table by the door. She grabs two Coronas from the fridge and hands me one. “Give me a sec. I want to change out of these clothes.”

I’m a little sad to see the tight black sleeveless top and khaki shorts go, but I’m sure she’s changing into pajamas, and I know several of her pajama bottoms barely cover her ass. I sit down on the couch and kick off my shoes. Aria tends to leave the TV on at all times so it sounds like someone is always home, so I flip through the channels to find a movie or some sitcom to put on as background noise as we talk. I settle on Jurassic World, knowing Aria loves Blue, the velociraptor.

“Much better,” she says, walking out in a tank top and short shorts. She curls up on the couch next to me, beer in hand. “Ooh, Blue!” She never refers to the movie by the actual name. It’s always just “Blue.” She puts her beer on the coffee table, and I do the same with mine.

I smile at her, my eyes landing on the dragonfly necklace. “You sleep with your necklace on?”

“Oh.” She wraps her hand around the dragonfly. “I guess I forgot to take it off.”

Liar. I can’t suppress my smile. What does that mean, though? Does she really love the necklace that much, or is there more to it? I drape my arm across her shoulders. “Do you have plans for tomorrow?”

“Big plans. I have to see my best friend before he leaves me for bigger and better things.”

With my index finger I tip her chin up so she’s looking at me. “Impossible.”

“I know; I’m your best friend.” She rolls her eyes, but I lower my mouth, capturing hers. Her eyes widen, but then she kisses me back.

My arms wrap around her, pulling her closer and deepening the kiss. The next thing I know, she’s on my lap, straddling me. My hands lower, cupping her ass, which is mostly exposed in those tiny shorts. I groan and kiss her neck. She angles her head, giving me better access, and presses herself down on my lap. My lips trail across her shoulder, and I use one hand to lower the strap of her tank top.

Her fingers find the hem of my shirt and start lifting it. I let go of her long enough to raise my arms so she can remove my shirt. Her eyes take me in for a moment, and then she dips her head, kissing my bare chest and neck.

I want to savor every moment. The warmth of her lips on my body. The taste and feel of her skin. Every single sensation is surreal, and I want to capture it so I’ll never forget it. Our eyes meet again, and I take her face in my hands, bringing her lips back to mine. She kisses me with more passion than I’ve ever felt before. I don’t know if it’s because she’s afraid we’ll grow apart or if maybe she does have feelings beyond friendship for me. Right now I’m not sure I care.

I reach for her shirt and pull it over her head in one swift motion so we don’t have to break apart for long. Tossing it on the couch next to us, I resume kissing her, my hands caressing her bare chest. I turn slightly, lowering her onto the couch, and gently press my weight on top of her.

Our eyes lock and for a moment, neither of us moves. God, how I’m going to miss her. She must feel it, too, because her eyes start to water.

“Aria.” I wipe her tears with my thumbs.

“Nate, I can’t do this.” She presses her palms to my chest but doesn’t push me away. “I’m sorry. You’re my best friend. You’re leaving. I feel so lost, and now...” A sob consumes her words.

“Please don’t cry.” I dip my head to kiss her, but she turns away.

“I need you to go.” This time she gently pushes my chest, indicating she means it.

I’m torn between not wanting to let her go and wanting to respect her wishes. I sit up, pulling her to a sitting position with me. She grabs her tank top off the couch and puts it back on. I search for my shirt, finding it on the back of the couch behind me. Neither of us says a word while I get dressed again.

Finally, Aria stands up and says, “If you’ve had too much to drink, you can sleep on the couch.”

That’s it? She’s going to bed without talking to me about what just happened? “Wait.” I reach for her hand, and her eyes lower to our fingers.

“I can’t do this right now, Nate. Don’t you see? We’ve both been drinking and you’re leaving in less than two days.”

Wow. Is she implying she only fooled around with me because she’s drunk and upset I’m moving away? Ouch.

“I’m fine to drive home. I haven’t had much to drink at all.”

She nods and removes her hand from mine. “Be careful.” She wraps her arms around her midsection.

“Are you feeling okay?”

She shakes her head. “I think I may be sick.” She rushes for the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

I follow and try the knob, but the door is locked. She doesn’t want me to witness her throwing up. She doesn’t want me here at all.

“Can I get you anything before I go? Aspirin? Water?”

“No. I’ll be fine. Good night, Nate.”

She doesn’t sound like she’s throwing up, which makes me think this was a ploy to get away from me.

I pull my keys from my pocket and walk out of her apartment, wondering how badly I screwed up our friendship while kissing her tonight.