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  Lexi ground her teeth in frustration. She couldn’t believe that after all of this time, this was why he was calling her. He called her because he was in love with another woman. Well, he hadn’t come right out and said that, but it didn’t matter. Jack would never contemplate marriage without due cause. She shook her head hoping she could wake herself from the nightmare of what she had just heard. When that didn’t work, she pushed herself off the ground, careful not to put too much weight on her sore toe, and stalked out of her bedroom into what only a resident of New York City would consider a living room.

  In all honesty, the living room, dining room, and kitchen were all compacted into one puny space with two doors leading into the bedrooms on either side. Grimy yellow paint crusted the walls with navy smudges appearing more prominently in some places where the topcoat was peeling off. The crown molding was cracked and grungy. Her roommate’s sofa, which luckily had a maroon cover to hide the seventies-esk pattern, took up the majority of the room. Two large bean bags, one brown and one turquoise, sat to one side, and a black Ikea table donned the other. A brown coffee table, left over from the previous owner, was cluttered with old newspapers, coffee stains, and seemingly endless dents from late night escapades. The only remotely spectacular item in the living room was the flat screen television her parents had given her as a move-in present.

  Dusty wood floors creaked as she walked to the kitchen to brew the pot of coffee she so desperately needed. An off-white refrigerator hummed noisily along the far wall closest to Lexi’s door. A window was etched into the wall above the aluminum-plated sink revealing a glossy view of the street below. After Lexi prepared the coffee, she leaned back against the cool counter and ran her fingers through her brown matted waves.

  Her laid back Saturday had gone from relaxing to a spastic panic attack in the span of a fifteen-minute phone call. When the timer went off, she poured herself a mug and guzzled the steaming coffee as quickly as she could muster before moseying back into her room to take a shower. Even though she drank the coffee black, the caffeine barely hit her. She knew by the time she was out of the shower, any signs of consuming it would have all but dissipated. She scrubbed her body vigorously with cranberry body soap. After applying shampoo through her long tresses and rinsing, she cut the shower off, dried her body, and slicked her hair back into a high ponytail. She threw on a pair of red Nike track shorts, a flimsy black tank, and a pair of running shoes. Making her way back into the kitchen, she poured the remaining pot of coffee into a traveler’s mug and scribbled a quick note for her roommate since this was the one morning she had actually woken up before her.

  Forgoing a cab, Lexi trekked on autopilot across town, haphazardly knocking into eager tourists staring skyward. She remembered being one of those clueless people when she had first arrived in town. Now, she could navigate the city nearly as well as any homegrown New Yorker, except for her best friend, Chyna.

  That was precisely who she was after as she meandered down Park Avenue on the way to the Upper East Side. It always baffled her that her best friend was wealthier than she would likely be in her lifetime. But they got along and Chyna didn’t seem to mind the financial discrepancy.

  Lexi and Chyna had met nearly two years ago standing in line at a nightclub. Well, Lexi had been in line. Chyna absolutely refused to be subjected to waiting outside, when there was fun to be had on the inside. Lexi was next in line, wearing a scandalous outfit more fit for her home in Georgia than fall in York. She had been freezing her ass off for the past hour when Chyna arrived at the front entrance of the same locale gliding out of an onyx-colored town car, and directly through the rope.

  Having seen one too many of these girls flounce into the club in front of her, Lexi began throwing a fit yelling about another skanky whore taking her place inside, not even caring that the bouncer looked like he was itching to kick her out of line. Surprisingly, Chyna stopped in her tracks, turned toward her, and asked her directly what she had said. Lexi repeated herself, smiling through chattering teeth the whole time. The bouncer’s eyes had bulged at her comments and moved to remove her from the line, but Chyna put her hand out stopping him in his tracks. She then demanded he allow Lexi inside. Ever since that night, they had been all but inseparable.

  Lexi planted herself on the front steps of Chyna’s apartment building, smiling at the doorman. “You’re here early, Miss Lexi,” Bernard said, opening the door for her and signaling for her to enter.

  “Yeah, I had a pretty shitty morning to be honest, Mr. B.”

  “I’m sure it was nothing you can’t handle,” he said with his ever-enthusiastic smile.

  “Thanks, but you give me too much credit,” she said, producing a smile of her own. “Chyna upstairs?” she asked, as she stepped through the entranceway.

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Alone?” She threw the question over her shoulder.

  He smiled that all-knowing smile and winked at her. Lexi laughed wondering if Chyna ever slept alone.

  Lexi took the elevator to the top floor, listening absentmindedly to the classical ballad playing through the speakers. After exiting, she located the door to Chyna’s apartment, slid the gold key into the lock, and twisted it. Swinging the door open, she smiled inwardly at the new renovations Chyna had effectuated into her foyer.

  Her taste was constantly changing, and with a trust fund hovering somewhere around the nine digit range, why not adjust your life, home, and wardrobe whichever way the wind blew. At present, a crystal cut vase overflowed with seasonal flora on top of a square, white, sculpted table in the middle of the pristine entranceway. She prayed she hadn’t tracked in mud or sidewalk grime on the freshly waxed marble floors as she strode through the foyer and down a small flight of stairs into the sunken living room. Lexi couldn’t imagine a space contrasting with her apartment more than Chyna’s den. In square feet, the living room along was larger than Lexi’s entire residence. The pure white carpet was constantly steam cleaned to maintain its perfection. A sofa, loveseat, and recliner—all a matching set of soft black leather—centered on an entertainment center rivaling a movie theatre. Original oil paintings Chyna had collected while traveling throughout Europe decorated several walls and black and white photographs floated in a collage of frames against one another.

  Advancing across the room and through the arching hallway, Lexi made her way to Chyna’s bedroom. She cracked the door open, and peered into the expansive room to see if Chyna did, in fact, have a companion in her king-sized, four-poster bed.

  “Chyna,” she whispered into the darkness. “Chyna. Wake up, chica.”

  A deliberate grunt sounded from the other end of the room. “Go away.”

  “Get your tiny ass out of bed! Is there someone in there with you? I’m not afraid to do jumping jacks on your five million thread count sheets,” she taunted with surprisingly more enthusiasm then she thought she was capable of that particular morning.

  “You wouldn’t,” a muffled cry emanated from the darkness.

  “Come on. How well do you know me?” Lexi questioned.

  The covers flew to the foot of the bed and Chyna sat up grudgingly. “All too well,” she grumbled, swishing her glossy black hair over one shoulder.

  Lexi pursed her lips with envy as Chyna slung her long olive-toned legs over the edge of the bed and hopped down. With the genetics of an Italian supermodel, Chyna was enviable from head to toe. Chyna felt more comfortable sauntering around in skimpy lingerie than probably anyone else in existence. But why not? She was rail thin with large perfectly perky breasts and a petite ass that didn’t even look remotely fat in white, ultra skinny jeans. Her flawless complexion had never seen a blemish. Her large emerald eyes were almost always smoky and seductive. She was one hundred percent her mother’s daughter in appearance and her father in personality, which explained why she didn’t get along with either.

  Her parents had made a public mess of their divorce when she was in high school, spreading their personal aff
airs all over the tabloids. Chyna wasn’t sure why they had gotten so angry at each other. She had known since she was ten years old that both of her parents were having affairs. It had been pretty obvious. She couldn’t understand why they hadn’t realized that as well, but they hadn’t. Or at least they had pretended they didn’t know, possibly for her sake, but more likely, they looked the other way to hold on to some semblance of why they had gotten married in the first place. Money. Love. Who knew? Now her father couldn’t look at her, and her mother couldn’t be around her.

  “What are you doing here so early? Unbelievable, Alexa,” she chided, using Lexi’s full name as always. “You know I need a minimum seven hours of beauty sleep or I look like shit all day. Do I look like I went to bed at midnight?”

  Lexi smiled at her. Chyna looked like she had never gotten less than seven hours of sleep in her life. “Oh wow, I’m sorry,” she said in mock repentance. “You look like an ugly old hag this morning. Perhaps you should sleep for another three hours.”

  “You’re right,” she nodded. “I’ve only been sleeping for four hours.”

  Lexi sighed dramatically. “The world will end.”

  Chyna poked Lexi’s shoulder playfully. “Shut up, you.”

  “Bernard mentioned there was someone with you?” Lexi asked, cocking an eyebrow at her.

  “Oh, phew on him. What do I pay him for anyway? I threw that boy out hours ago,” she said smiling mischievously. “Now, what in the world are you doing here so early? Our hair appointment isn’t for a few more hours.” Lexi brushed the flyaways behind her ear anxiously, a clear indicator of her anxiety. “Oh God, it’s a boy,” Chyna squealed in excitement. “Tell me everything!”

  Chyna always got excited when Lexi mentioned a new guy. Mostly, Lexi figured because it happened so infrequently. Pretty much since she had moved to the city, she had been too preoccupied with school, and relationships had been placed on the backburner. Every now and then, she would go out on dates with guys from class or someone Chyna recommended, but it never worked out. When it came to her luck with men, Lexi preferred just to avoid the situation entirely.

  “Well, it’s kind of a strange story,” she began, realizing she had exactly mirrored Jack’s words. Chyna nodded enthusiastically, bouncing on her toes in anticipation. “So, you remember Jack?” she asked tentatively, forcing herself not to wince when she said his name.

  Chyna’s faced clouded over and a crease formed between her eyebrows. “Oh no, not him,” she said pleadingly. “Please tell me that this has nothing to do with him.”

  “What’s wrong with him?” Lexi asked, strangely enough, finding herself getting defensive.

  “Alexa, Alexa,” she scolded, “do you not remember yourself after that boy left?”

  Lexi did remember. She could still feel it every time she thought about him. When she stumbled across a picture of them together or passed a particularly cozy looking coffee shop, she remembered it all like it was yesterday. Only in the past six months had a numbness started to take over that feeling. Sometimes it still hit her fresh nearly two years later. He was capable of eliciting such emotional and physiological responses to this day, even though they had never officially been together. She was amazed she had turned him down over the phone after no contact for that long. If he had called for anything else, she was certain she would have crumbled.

  “Yeah, I remember,” Lexi said softly.

  “Well, then, why would you bring him up?” Chyna demanded.

  “He called me,” she said brushing her hair back several more times before meeting Chyna’s disapproving eyes.

  “And?” Chyna asked with a look of firm protectiveness taking over her features.

  Lexi sighed, and then quickly gave Chyna the run down on the mess Jack had gotten himself into, and what he had requested of her. She forced all the words out in quick procession, not allowing Chyna to get in one word edge wise. When she finished, she breathed out heavily and looked up to find Chyna staring at her curiously. Somewhere throughout her story, Chyna’s features had changed, softened. Lexi wasn’t quite sure what it meant. “So yeah, that was my morning. Sounds great, doesn’t it?”

  “You turned him down?” she asked clearly surprised. After everything she had been through with Jack, her feelings for him were unrivaled.

  “Yeah, I did. Aren’t you proud?”

  “I think you should do it,” she stated simply.

  “What?” Lexi asked, bursting from her comfortable lying position on the bed. “This morning is just nuts. Jack calls, and then you, of all people, tell me that I should go visit him and meet his fiancé?”

  “Fiancé-to-be,” Chyna quipped, letting a naughty smirk creep onto her face.

  “Whatever! Just explain this to me. Why should I go see him? Nothing good ever comes out of me being around him. I know this and you know this. The whole world should know this. Give me one good reason I should go see him.”

  Chyna couldn’t be serious! After all, Lexi had been so proud of herself for turning him down for once in her life.

  “Closure.”

  “I don’t need closure,” Lexi stated stubbornly.

  “Come on. Honestly, Alexa. I’m not sure you have ever gotten over this guy. I’ve tried to get you into a relationship, and you’ve dated a few of the people I’ve thrown your way, but it was never anything substantial. You need to move on, but how can you do that when you’re still hung up on a guy you haven’t heard from in two years? Oh wait, you can’t!” she exclaimed, cocking her head to the side to really examine Lexi. “Now you’ve been through some rough times, and honestly you’ve been a bit of a depressive. I get it. I’ve been there too, and I understand. Maybe not with a guy, but my parents and I have all those issues. You need to go to Atlanta, meet this girl, tell her exactly how much of a scumbag Jack truly is, and then get the hell out of there!”

  Lexi hesitated and then nodded, seeing her logic. “Maybe you’re right.”

  “No, I know I’m right,” Chyna said hopping off the bed and moseying into her walk-in closet as if that ended the discussion.

  Lexi stayed seated considering Chyna’s argument. The girl had a point. After everything she had gone through with Jack, maybe this was exactly what she needed, even if it wasn’t necessarily what she wanted. Still undecided, Lexi joined Chyna in her closet. As Chyna chose something to wear, Lexi remained lost in her thoughts. She knew that Chyna’s statements made sense, but how could she ever face Jack? Once Lexi had realized who was on the line, she had nearly hyperventilated. How would she react when she saw him in person? She really didn’t know, but she didn’t think she could turn down the opportunity to see him either.

  “Ok, I’ll do it.”

  “I knew you had it in you,” Chyna said, sliding on a pair of brown strappy sandals and exiting the closet. “Now go make that phone call while I fix my hair and makeup.”

  Lexi gulped as Chyna walked into her bathroom, likely not to surface for a while. She had agreed to do it; now she just had to calm herself down enough to make the call. Her palms felt slick with sweat as she sat down at the mahogany writing desk and pulled her phone out of her black handbag. She hesitantly flipped it open and scrolled through the address book. Lexi was thankful, at least, that she had added his number to her phone this morning instead of erasing it.

  She worked up the courage to press the button, then immediately hung up. Her hands were shaking so furiously she nearly dropped the phone. Taking a few breaths to try to calm down, she punched the send button again. Listening as the phone rang twice nearly unnerved her, but then the line clicked over.

  “Lex,” Jack said surprised. “I didn’t expect to hear from you.”

  “You implied,” she began, her voice cracking slightly with the effort of staying calm, “that I could call you.”

  “Sure. I said you could call me. I just never thought you actually would.”

  “Yeah, I’m full of surprises,” she said, trying to play off her apprehension. />
  “Always were,” he said quietly.

  Lexi sighed before venturing forward. “My internship ends in two weeks. I will probably be coming to Atlanta to see my parents after that. So, I guess, what I’m trying to say is…that I’ll do it. I’ll come see you,” she paused, before allowing the last part of her sentence to roll off her tongue, “and meet your girlfriend.”

  SEPTEMBER—SIX YEARS EARLIER

  When Lexi first arrived at her freshman dorm, her resident assistant called a hall meeting for all the freshman students. At the meeting her resident assistant distributed a directory listing local restaurants, clubs, bars, and an array of study nooks for the incoming freshman. Nearly every girl tossed the packet into the garbage as soon as they left the meeting, but Lexi held onto it hoping it would come to good use in locating a perfect locale to study. She investigated a handful of these locations, but found them not to her tastes.

  When she finally stumbled upon one particular coffee shop near the end of the list, she instantly fell in love. The coffee shop itself was nothing spectacular. To be honest, it was on the small side, especially for a college town. But the rich aroma of freshly ground coffee beans that enveloped her senses when she set foot in the dimly lit shop sold her. It was perfect! Twenty unmatched tables were tightly pressed together with barely enough room to squeeze between. Green filtered lamps of various shapes and sizes rested atop each table casting a pleasant emerald glow upon the customers. Counter space was nearly impossible to acquire.

  As the winter months gradually approached, a roaring fire crackled in a corner fireplace. Cushioned green lounge chairs and dilapidated couches were scattered haphazardly against the walls and surrounding the fireplace. On any given day, students and professors alike discussing anything from nuclear physics to Aristotelian philosophy to Freudian psychology occupied the tables.

  After Lexi spent a few late nights in this cozy nook, she laid claim to one of the tables facing the counter. She had chosen that particular table specifically for the instances when he was working. At first, she hadn’t even really noticed him. But the more time she spent there, the more often she crossed paths with him. And she couldn’t stop coming by hoping to catch a glimpse of him. Her friends, who preferred to study at the university learning center, kept trying to rouse her from the coffee shop. None of them could understand why she would want to work in such a loud, crowded, poorly lit space with a feeble Internet connection. When they asked her why she refused to leave, she gave them the excuse of enjoying the atmosphere, but they finally weaseled it out of her.