The Coworker

by Freida McFadden

She’s beautiful and she’s nice and she’s smart and everybody likes her.

Maybe we can be friends after all. After all, there’s nothing that binds two people like a shared secret.

That first kiss was wonderful in a way I hadn’t expected. I had never been kissed before, not by a man. It wasn’t one of those gross kisses from the movies where a guy’s tongue is practically in her stomach. It was a nice kiss. Just his soft lips on mine—he had popped a mint after dinner so even his breath smelled nice.

He took things so slowly, for my sake. He was satisfied for a long time just holding hands and kissing. He bought me thoughtful presents, like a gold chain with a turtle charm on it. We were together almost a year before we made love. I won’t lie—I was terrified. He was really slow and careful about it though. He made it special.