Before Last Night (Last Night #2)

Prologue

ALEXANDRIA

“No.”

“Yes.”

“No!” Before my best friend can say yes again, I throw up a hand. “No. I get why you think I should, but—”

“I hate that you’re hiding from life.” The look on Olivia’s face tells me she really believes what she says. “You should get out there even if it is just so you’re not sitting at home every night on your own brooding about what Ju—”

“Don’t say his name. Or hers.” Sucking in a breath, I let it out slowly and smile at my best friend.

“I get why you think I’m hiding or wallowing or obsessing over what happened, and I have done that.

Before. I’m past those stages of the grieving process now.

I no longer have any feelings either way when it comes to my ex and the home wrecker. ”

“Okay. You’re not obsessing, and you’re over what happened.”

Her frown says she doesn’t quite believe me and the fact I refuse to think either of their names, never mind say them out loud proves she’s right to doubt my words.

“But from where I’m standing, Alexandria, you aren’t moving on.”

An indelicate snort of laughter bursts out of me. “I moved on the second I found out he’d been fucking his secretary and knocked her up.”

“Yes. Okay. You instantly filed for divorce and threw him out of your house and—”

“He wasn’t living in my house.”

“The apartment then.” Olivia waves her hand as though where we lived isn’t the point and eyes me with sudden curiosity. “By the way, what did you do with the apartment?”

“I’m leasing it to one of the partners at the firm.”

“At the firm? Where he and she who shall not be named work?”

“Yes.” I don’t hold back the smile that tugs at my lips. “Logan and his wife, Meredith, love it. They’ll probably buy it from me when the lease is up. He’s already suggested taking it off my hands several times.”

“I’m assuming Logan is not happy with…”

Another burst of amusement leaves me, except this one is full-bodied. It shakes my chest and cramps my sides and echoes in the room around us. “No one at the firm is happy with him. But for now, they’re stuck with him.”

“He only made partner because of you.”

“I’m aware.” Another smile curls my lips. “At least it’s not the step up he expected it to be. They might not be able to get rid of him, but they aren’t making it easy on him either. Or her.”

Olivia nods. “As it should be.”

“She’s gone to HR twice to complain about the way she’s been treated.”

“How have they treated her? I thought the firm had a no-fraternization policy and yet she still has her job.”

“They do. I’m not sure how they got around that.

Although she was assigned to a different lawyer when she returned from maternity, a young, less important one.

” I’m grinning now because I might be over what happened but I’m not magnanimous enough to wish either of them well.

“And according to Logan, his new secretary is a twenty-six-year-old bombshell.”

“Ooo…” Olivia’s smile is downright gleeful. “Is someone feeling threatened?”

I shrug. “Who knows. It might be why she’s pregnant again so soon after having the first baby though.” I don’t need to remind Olivia my ex’s first child is only a few months old, she’s well aware of how quickly the home wrecker got pregnant a second time.

“I still think you should take advantage of Exclusively Yours. Not because you’re looking for a replacement husband, but because getting out and enjoying life in spite of what Ju”—I throw up a hand and Olivia visibly swallows the rest of his name before continuing—“in spite of what he-who-shall-not-be-named did, it’ll show him, and her, what they did didn’t destroy you.

Living life like they don’t exist shows them how insignificant they are. ”

I understand what she’s saying, and maybe she’s right.

I might not be looking for a husband, but I do miss going out to eat, talking over a good meal, going to the movies, seeing a show.

And sex. I miss sex even if sex with my ex hadn’t been the flashing lights and stars some women talk about. It was still satisfying.

More satisfying than getting myself off, not that I’m against masturbating. I’m a regular participant, but I like the feel of a man’s skin, the scent of it, the grip of strong masculine hands on me, a cock inside me. I miss that.

What I don’t miss is my ex. He definitely cured me of wanting a husband, and even if I would like male company on occasion, I’m quite happy being single for the most part.

Except I will admit watching Olivia fall in love with Carter has, at times, left me with a twinge of jealousy. I don’t begrudge her happiness, quite the opposite in fact. I’m thrilled for her while I envy her.

I’m not sure I’m ready—or if I’ll ever be ready—to open myself up to love again, but what could it hurt to start dating? If I’m not doing it with an end goal in mind other than a night out with an interesting man, I can’t be disappointed, can I?

“Okay. Fine. When I get to the office in the morning, I’ll create a profile and see who pops up.”

“Yes!” The victory dance Olivia does is something I never would have witnessed before Carter came into her life. He’s loosened her up in ways I could never have predicted. It makes me realize how superficial our relationship had been until recently.

Carter pulled back the curtain my best friend hid behind her entire life, one I was unaware existed before she met him.

I’m ashamed of being so oblivious. It’s why I’ve made more effort to deepen our friendship, why I’ve opened up to her and our other best friend, Elizabeth, about my failed marriage and my fears that I drove my ex away.

Both of them vehemently rejected that suggestion. Those conversations have helped me see I was not at fault in the demise of my marriage. And watching Carter treat Olivia the way he does has shown me what a real partnership looks like.

What I envy most about their relationship is what Carter has given her that no one else in her life ever has.

Unconditional love.

Sadly, not everyone is as lucky as Olivia. We aren’t all destined to find the kind of love the two of them share.