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For now, I hold steady, letting Bri set the pace.
“Ready to head out?” Zeke’s at the door, waiting to go see what information we can glean from Dustin Tursk’s sister.
“Ready.”
* * *
Sabrina
With Alex gone,I decide to reestablish the goodness of my apartment. This place is super cute. It has a breakfast nook with a window. I like that you can look out at the scenery while you eat, and it’s got a cozy living space with natural light. Even though it’s tiny, it’s homey. The bedroom is painted a cool light blue, calming and serene, which is just what I need. I’ve made it my own by putting out photos of me and my family. They’re old pictures, but it makes me feel like they’re close. I have another frame with a picture of Chloe and me, and one of the whole gang, taken by Damian’s mom at a dinner we were all at. I love this picture. I’m laughing along with Chloe. Damian’s arm is around her, the rest of us looking at one another, all smiling, but Alex is looking down at me with a sexy grin.
I’m already petite, and my barely five-foot-two height looks even tinier in comparison to his six feet of awesome goodness. He makes me, for lack of a better word, swoon. It’s an old-fashioned word, but completely suits what Alex does to me. My knees become jelly. When he looks at me, I want to fall into his arms and feel his hard body against mine. His muscled abs, which I caught sight of last night, are so perfect, I want to run my hands over them.
To get my mind off the fact that Alex is gone and is probably heading back to his own place tonight, I clean. It’s crazy, I know, but whenever I feel restless, I grab a rag and start to dust. Dusting leads to mopping and then moves into scrubbing the kitchen spotless.
A knock on the door with the newly installed lock that Alex insisted needed to be in place before he left makes me drop the scouring pad and take off my rubber gloves. I’m about to look out the peephole, but Chloe’s voice comes through loud and clear.
“It’s your most favorite person on earth,” she announces, followed by her cute laugh.
I open the door to find her standing there with two cups from Lava Lattes, our favorite coffeehouse. Along with what I’m sure is a white chocolate mochaccino latte with dash of caramel drizzle is a white paper bag with two scones. Under her arm is a stack of magazines.
“We need to pick bridesmaid dresses, and you need a special dress, seeing as you’re the maid of honor,” she announces. Chloe and I have talked about her upcoming wedding, and I knew she wanted me to be part of her special day, but I never thought I’d be her maid of honor. I assumed she would choose her sister to stand with her.
“But, your sister—”
“She’s already family. This way, I have her and I get to have my best friend too. And before you start to fret about it, Sara’s cool with it. She practically begged me to call you right after I talked to her, but I wanted to tell you in person. So, can we get out of the doorway, set these down”—she lifts the paper cups—“and we can seal the deal with hugs and girlie squeals?”
That’s just what we did! Not so much the squealing, but definitely the hugging.
The day flies by when we’re in wedding-planning mode. We were able to get Sara on FaceTime to present the dress options we thought would suit us. Chloe only wants her sister and me as bridesmaids, but Damian is having all three of his buds stand with him.
I’m having the best time with Chloe. Not that this is surprising. We’ve always been in sync. When she started at the clinic, we clicked, and it was as if we’d known each other for a lifetime.
Her phone rings, and the second I see her smile, I know it’s Damian. He’s the only one who gives her that glow.
“Hey, honey.” She pauses and listens, then says, “Sure, that sounds great.” There’s another pause before she says, “Chinese?” Chloe looks over at me to get my approval.
“I’m in.”
“Sabrina’s in.” She begins rattling off her favorite dishes and ends with “How long do you think you and Alex will be?”
I swallow hard. I thought things were going back to the way they were. We’d occasionally meet at Chloe and Damian’s for dinners and that was all. I’m a mess. I’ve been cleaning and look a fright. I totally need a shower.
“Go,” Chloe tells me and points to the bathroom.
“You know?”
“Since the first moment you two saw each other, everybody in the room could feel the electricity between you,” she says, and I gasp, covering my mouth with my hands.
“Oh no.” My palms are sweating, my mouth goes dry, and my heart is beating insanely fast. I’m afraid to ask, but I do it anyway. “Do you think Alex knows?”
Chloe gives me a sly quirk of her lips and says, “Alex is into you.”
“He isn’t,” I gasp.
“He is.”
There’s no way. Not possible. With so many beautiful women out there, why would he even contemplate being with me? “He’s just being nice.”
