She sat down on the stool next to me and regarded me carefully. She was dressed to kill in a tight dress with a neckline that was cut so low that it fell between her breasts.
“You look good,” I said, without feeling.
“Do I?” Lindsey asked, and she leaned in towards me. “Well, you look…pretty scruffy at the moment, actually.”
I gave her a half-hearted smile. “I haven’t shaved in a few days.”
“I can see that.” She nodded. “But lucky for you, I find the caveman look extremely attractive.”
I smirked. “Can I buy you a drink?”
“Not necessary,” she said. “There’s a tall drink of water that I prefer to dip myself in.” She leaned in a little further and caressed my arm suggestively.
I gave her a polite smile and withdrew my arm. “I don’t think I’ll be much fun tonight.”
“Maybe you need me to show you how,” she suggested. “Fair warning, though: it doesn’t involve any clothes.”
I looked up at her, wondering what her end goal was. I was fairly sure she wasn’t really interested in me. “We’re friends,” I pointed out.
“So?” Lindsey said. “Friends can still have sex and not have it mean anything.”
“A year ago, I would have agreed,” I nodded. “In fact, that would have been my ideal situation. But now…it doesn’t make sense to me anymore.”
“Because of Natalie?”
I tried not to let the sound of her name bother me. “Yes.”
“A good fuck might help get your mind off her,” Lindsey pointed out.
“I can’t even imagine looking at another woman that way, let alone sleeping with someone else,” I said. “And to be completely honest, pity sex isn’t a huge turn on.”
“What makes you think I’m offering you pity sex?”
I gave her a pointed look and Lindsey smiled. “You really do love her, don’t you?”
“I do,” I said, with confidence. It was the first time in a long time that I’d been completely sure of something.
“And you’ve heard nothing from the little shit who orchestrated this whole thing?”
“Nothing,” I said. “He knows to stay out of my way now. I’m not beyond punching him in the face.”
“Hmm… Well, it doesn’t seem right that he gets away with this.”
“No, it’s not,” I agreed. “But such is life.”
“Fuck that,” Lindsey said, shaking her head. “Life is what you make of it. And you’re no victim, even though you’re acting like one right now.”
“What am I supposed to do?” I demanded. “I have no alternatives.”
“There’s always an alternative,” she said. “You just have to find the right one.”
I turned back to my beer and took a big swing out of it. “My alternative right now is getting drunk and sleeping through this weekend.”
“I was suggesting something a little more…proactive.”
“Like what?”
Lindsey looked at me carefully and then shook her head. “Sometimes men can be a little hopeless,” she said. “I suppose it’s up to the women to save the day.”