What century are we living in again here? Didn't people have friends of the opposite sex they shared houses with at university? Didn't they have partners who had friends of the opposite sex? Haven't they worked with people of the opposite sex?
Do people really still believe that every single person of the opposite sex who is, or has been, a friend is someone they want to shag and not only that but they can't even be trusted to get through a dinner together without ripping each other's clothes off.
Aaaarrrrrrrrghh!
I have quite a few female friends. Some of these are single. My wife has quite a few male friends. Some of these are single. We've had some of these friends for many years, some from even before we started going out.
Sometimes I go out for dinner/ drinks/ gigs with a female friend. Sometimes my wife does the same with a male friend. Sometimes we get drunk with them. Sometimes we're back in time for Eastenders. Amazingly, we manage to get through all of these encounters fully clothed.
I don't fancy my female friends. Maybe they fancy me. Next time I go for a drink with a female friend I shall ask them if they fancy me just to make sure although practically, I suspect they'll laugh til they throw up.
Having friends of opposite sex is not an issue. It's not even a question of trust. If my wife says she's seeing Mike for a dinner tonight, it registers no more on me than her saying she's seeing Lucy for a dinner tonight. I think no more of seeing Jules for drink than I would of seeing Alex (although the former would probably involve watching a bit less football and a few more cocktails!)