"I told her about you. She knows we're just friends. So that's the reason you haven't returned my messages?"
"That, and I've been busy. Work has been crazy."
"Same here. It's been nonstop since I got back. So how have you been?"
"Okay. Like I said, I've been working a lot. I could really use a break. That's kind of why I'm calling."
I wait for her to explain.
"When's the next time you're meeting up with your friends?"
"We're all getting together tonight. Why?"
"Were you serious when you said you might be able to set me up with one of them?"
"Um, yeah, I guess." I turn back to Pete. "That's why you're calling? To have me set you up with someone?"
"You don't have to. I just really need a break from work and I thought maybe I should get back out there and try dating again. You said you're meeting up with your friends tonight?"
"I'm at the bar right now. My friend, Pete, is here and the other guys are joining us later."
"Would you mind if I stopped by? You can totally say no if this is a guys only thing. I don't want to mess up your guys' night."
"It's not a guys' night. A few of the guys have girlfriends. Sometimes they show up. Sometimes they don't. You're totally welcome to come if you want."
"I do. I really need to get out of my apartment. What's the name of the bar?"
I give her the name and address.
"I'll be there in about an hour."
"See you soon." I end the call, looking at Pete. "She's coming here."
"Sophie? Did she say why?"
"She wants to go on a date."
"With who?"
"With one of our friends. I told her I'd set her up." I rub my hand over my jaw. "Shit. Why did I tell her that?"
"Because they're single and you're not."
I blow out a breath. "What am I going to do? She's going to want to go out with one of them. Or maybe she'll want to go out with you."
He shrugs. "I don't know what to tell you. You got yourself into this. You have to find a way out."
"Hey." Tanner appears behind us. "Let's get a table."
Tanner's a lawyer at a nonprofit that works to keep garbage out of the ocean. I could totally see him dating someone like Sophie. He's decent looking, laid-back, and originally from a small town in Ohio. He broke it off with his girlfriend last summer when she tried to get him to take a job that pays more. He hasn't dated anyone since.
We move to a long table and three other guys show up: John, a high school history teacher; Will, an orthodontist; and Griffen, an investment banker. I have an odd assortment of friends. Some are struggling to pay rent and others have more money than they can spend. I'm in the middle. I make more than enough to pay my bills but not enough that I can throw money away like Griffen does. He buys us all at least a few rounds of drinks every time we go out.
"What's everyone doing this weekend?" Tanner asks.
We all groan, knowing what he's about to ask. Every weekend Tanner has a new clean-up event going on. Cleaning up trash on the road or in the park or along the river. We don't mind pitching in, and we've done it many times, but every weekend is too much.
"I can't this weekend," I tell him. "I need to catch up on work."
"I'm going to see my parents," Griffen says. "It's my dad's birthday."
"Your dad's birthday's in August," Tanner says.
Griffen shrugs. "Then I'm busy doing something else."
"You don't even know what I was going to ask."
We all give him the look that says we know, and we're not doing it.
"This isn't a clean-up event. I have free tickets to a new rock climbing place. I was going to ask if any of you want to go."
None of us answer.
"Seriously? It's free, and it's something to do."
"We live in New York," Will points out. "There's a million things to do."
"So nobody wants to go?"
"I would," I say, "but my weekend is full. I have to work and then Celine and I are going to a wedding."
"Take a girl," Pete says to Tanner. "Turn it into a date."
"What girl do you know who would agree to that? Find me one and I'll ask her."
We all look at each other, none of us able to come up with anyone. The girls we know want to spend their weekends at art galleries or a play or out shopping, not climbing a wall. The only girl I could think of who might do it is Sophie, but I'm not going to suggest her.
I check my phone for the time. Sophie will be here soon. I wonder if she'll leave when she sees there aren't any other women here.
"Is your girlfriend stopping by?" I ask Griffen.
"That ended last weekend. I thought I told you."
"No. What happened?"
"She moved. Took a job in Sweden."
"Just like that? She's already gone?"
"She left on Monday. She might be back. It's a contract job, only for six months. We didn't want to do the long distance thing so we ended it."
"What about you?" I say to Will. "Is Heidi coming?"
He sets his drink down as he shakes his head. "We're taking a break."
"Which means it's over," Tanner says.
"Pretty much." Will leans back in his chair. "It wasn't going anywhere. It's time to move on."
"So everyone's single?" I ask. "This is a first."
"Everyone but you," Will says. "Is Celine showing up tonight?"
"I don't know. She wasn't sure."
The guys look at each other, like they're all thinking the same thing, that they hope Celine doesn't show up. She can be kind of intense, meaning she talks nonstop and yells at the staff if the service doesn't meet her standards. It makes everyone feel uptight, which is the last thing we want when we come here to relax after
