He forged onward. “I just mean, don’t give up on this. We haven’t even begun, and I don’t want us to be over.”

“You’re right. We haven’t begun, and we never will. Thank God, this was over before I let you fool me any longer, before I actually acquired feelings for you.” He winced again. She was saying these things just to hurt him now, and it was working. “Now, let. Me. Go,” she demanded, indicating with her forehead that he was still tightly holding onto her elbow.

“I really am sorry, Lex,” he said finally releasing her.

“Save it,” she said cutting off any further retorts. “Just do me one thing, Jack.” She yanked open the front door.

“Anything,” he volunteered eagerly.

“Don’t you dare ever lie to me again,” she said as she slammed the door behind her.

CHAPTER 3

PRESENT

Open the door.

Don’t open the door.

Open the door.

Lexi hovered in front of the plain black door with the silver handle resting in her palm, indecision distorting her features. The lock had already been clicked to an open status with the metal key still sticking out from the hole. Her bright purple luggage lay against the blue and cream patterned carpet. She had made it this far. There was no turning back. Taking a deep breath, Lexi twisted the handle and shoved the door open to Jack’s apartment.

Adjusting her black laptop sleeve, Lexi hoisted her carry-on bag to her shoulder and threw her black purse on top of it. Grabbing a hold of the extended arm from her rolling suitcase, she pushed through the open door, down the hallway, and into the living room. She recognized the brown suede furniture he had owned in college. The furniture was facing a mounted flat screen with several video game consoles underneath and surround sound hooked into a killer receiver. Two black bookshelves sat on either side of the TV, each overflowing with movies. An assortment of vinyl records covered one wall with an original copy of the Beatles White album proudly showcased at the center. Glass sliding doors opened to a balcony overlooking the Atlanta skyline. To the left was a stainless steel kitchen with black granite countertops and a breakfast bar. Lexi peeped into the adjoining room and found a small dining room with four high-backed chairs tucked into a rectangular wooden table.

Lexi left her bags resting against the loveseat and ventured down the hallway on the right. She chose the first door on the left and entered a large master suite. Each piece of furniture was in pristine condition and appeared as if it had been directly relocated from an Ashley’s Furniture store. The deep walnut collection looked exquisite against the caramel coated walls.

Lexi paused in the doorway. She didn’t want to overstep her bounds and being in his room made her feel as if she might be invading Jack’s privacy.

Quickly closing the door, she turned and faced the one across the hall. She assumed this would be the guest bedroom Jack had mentioned. Her breath caught at the sight as she passed through the frame. She felt as if she had just traveled through time. The room was laid out in exact replication of his college apartment. Memories flooded her vision, and she took a steadying breath. She wasn’t sure if she enjoyed having memories rush her mind about that room...that bed.

Recovering her state of composure, she raced back into the living room, snatched up her luggage, and distributed it in the bedroom. She quickly stripped down into a red satin tank top and black sleeping shorts.

Despite the fact that she had taken a late flight into the city and had worked for nearly fifteen straight hours the day before, Lexi couldn’t even imagine falling asleep yet. Jack was away on business until the next morning and had offered her his guest bedroom. She had been wary at first; even more wary now that she was actually situated in his apartment with all the familiar sights and smells surrounding her. However, with the alternative of driving forty-five minutes out of town to stay at her parents as her only other option, the convenience of the arrangement had won her over in the end.

Lexi grabbed her cell and dialed Chyna’s number. “Hola chica,” Lexi uttered into her cell phone. She made her way back to the kitchen to search for something to get her mind off the fact that she was in Jack’s apartment. Rummaging through his cabinets, she zeroed in on the box of snack bites. After fishing out a pack, she pulled out a Coca-Cola from the refrigerator and set it on the counter.

“Alexa!” Chyna yelled through the blaring background noise.

“Where are you?”

“What?” Chyna screamed into the phone. A giggle broke through the line.

“Chyna, where are you?”

“Hold on. Gimme a second.” Lexi pulled the phone from her ear to cancel out the obnoxious techno vibes blasting through the wireless. A short minute later, the noise started to fade. Then, it turned into just a buzz in the background. “Alexa, I’m so sorry,” she slurred slightly into the receiver, clearly inebriated.

Lexi laughed. “You’re drunk.” She should have guessed that Chyna would be in this condition on a Saturday night. She had known her for a long time, and this was pretty much par for the course.

“Psh, I’m just a liiiiiitle tipsy. It’s my natural state of being, but you know that. What’s up?”

“Just wanted some other human being to know that I landed fine.”

“Oh fantastic,” she said another giggle filtering through the line.

“You don’t sound concerned,” Lexi said feigning hurt feelings.

“Why would I be concerned? Flying is way safer than driving,” she said nonchalantly. “Stop, stop,” she squealed obviously flirting with some random guy.

“Do I know your man of choice for tonight?” Lexi asked popping open the soda and taking a long swig.

“I have no idea what you are talking about,” she feigned innocence.

“Sure…right.”

“Ohhhh…”

“Are you moaning into the phone? Are you fucking serious, Chyna? Can you chill out for one second to talk to your best friend who just traveled a thousand miles away from home?”

“You’re from Atlanta so it’s like going to your home away from home. So…no, I’m not concerned.” Lexi heard her shoo her boy nonetheless.

“I’m locked up in my sorta-non-ex-boyfriend’s apartment, and you’re not concerned?”

“Is that how you refer to me?” a voice questioned from behind her.

Lexi whipped around in surprise. Her mouth dropped open and the phone slipped from her hand hitting the tile floor, and shattering into several pieces.

“Jack.”

He looked exactly as she remembered him. Maybe a bit more handsome. He leaned against the kitchen doorframe, one leg crossed over another, hands resting in his pockets staring at her with his piercing blue eyes. His shaggy brown hair was at her favorite length, just before he needed a haircut. Black slacks with charcoal pinstripes hung loosely on his narrow hips. A black long-sleeve button-up was open at the neck where a charcoal tie had been pulled loose from its proper place; a matching overcoat had been left unbuttoned. A smirk crossed his face as his eyes scanned her scantily clad body. Lexi couldn’t really be embarrassed that he saw her in her ridiculously small night clothes. Let’s just be honest, he had seen her in less.

She could feel her heart beating like a marathon runner at the sight of him. Yet, she felt frozen in place. She hadn’t been prepared for this. She assumed she would have all morning to look presentable, and get herself into the right state of mind. Then, she would have been able to face him. But this was completely unexpected. What was he doing here? He wasn’t supposed to be back until tomorrow.