Chapter 2
two
After leaning the last empty box against the wall in the corner so it can go in the recycling bin, I admire my new living room setup with pride and let out a thankful sigh. The house is already starting to look like a home, even if some of my stuff is still missing.
My new house is white, two-stories, with a large front porch facing the woods, and a back deck that looks out over the lake.
The lake itself is only about a five-minute walk, and I can’t wait to go down and do sunset yoga by the water. It’s one of my favorite times of the day. Only two other houses occupy this street besides mine and the one next door, but they are farther down the road.
A chorus of laughter erupts from the kitchen, and I can’t help but grin. Maybe Noia’s housewarming unpacking party wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
“Sash! Get your ass in here!” she calls out. “Claire’s about to deal and you’re missing all the good gossip!”
“Coming!” I grab my glass off the coffee table and head back into the kitchen, where my best friend and my two newest friends are sitting, gathered around my kitchen table.
“I’m already down fifteen kisses, and we haven’t even started yet,” Lizzy grumbles playfully. Her black, blue-tipped hair falls over her face as she stacks chocolate kisses into neat piles.
“That’s because you keep eating your currency,” Claire laughs as she shuffles the deck of cards.
I slide into the empty chair between Noia and Claire, directly across from Lizzy. “Sorry. I just wanted to make sure there weren’t any empty boxes still lying around the living room.”
“Neat freak,” Noia teases, sliding the bottle of Jameson my way.
“Hey, keeping things neat and organized has saved my ass more times than I can’t count,” I say, pouring two more fingers of amber liquid into my glass. “Organization is key when it comes to being in the midst of moving mayhem.”
“Speaking of which,” Claire says as she deals the cards. “How was the move? Did all your stuff make it here in one piece?”
I groan and pick up my cards. “Mostly? Somehow the moving company managed to misplace an entire pod.”
“They what?” Lizzy looks up, eyes wide as she rearranges the cards in her hand. “How the hell do you lose something that big?”
“That’s what I said!” I take a sip of my drink, savoring the burn. “Apparently, it got ‘mislabeled’ and sent to their Portland warehouse instead of being loaded onto the moving truck with everything else. They’re dropping it off tomorrow morning.”
Claire frowns. “Don’t tell me you have to unload it yourself.”
“Unfortunately, yeah. All their movers are booked solid.” I shrug. “But it’s mostly just lighter boxes—clothes, linens, some kitchen and bathroom stuff. Nothing I can’t handle on my own.”
“Maybe I can get Ryder to help,” Noia says, tossing a chocolate kiss into the pot. “I can ask if you want? If I didn’t have to be in Portland tomorrow to meet with my new publisher, I would.”
“Nope. You all have been enough help already.” I unwrap a chocolate and pop it into my mouth. “I can handle a few boxes on my own. How about we ditch this hand and watch a movie instead?”
Lizzy sets her cards face down on the table. “What movie?”
“I just bought the newest Rowan Cole rom-com. ‘Kiss Me At Midnight.’ It’s supposed to be his best one yet.” Already excited, I reach for the remote.
She rolls her eyes so hard I’m surprised they don’t get stuck in the back of her head. “Don’t you think his movies are a little over the top?”
The room goes silent. I freeze with my hand mid-air, and Noia pauses, chocolate kiss halfway to her mouth as Claire’s expertly arched eyebrows shoot up to her purple hairline.
“I thought you liked rom-coms,” Noia says with a gasp. “You even told me you were thinking about writing one yourself.”
“Nah. I’m going to stick with reading them instead. Besides, not only do I have my hands full with my job, I’ve decided to start painting again.”
Too shocked to let what she just said sink in, I start my line of questioning.
“What did Rowan Cole ever do to you?” I ask, genuinely confused.
Everyone loves Rowan Cole. His movies are the perfect balance of funny and romantic with just the right amount of steam. Not to mention, the guy is one of the sexiest actors I’ve ever seen.
She shifts uncomfortably in her seat and shrugs, suddenly very interested in rearranging her pile of kisses. “Nothing I care to talk about.”
“Oh, no you don’t. You can’t just drop a bomb like that and leave us hanging,” Noia presses as she folds her arms and rests them on the table, leaning in.
“Spill it,” Claire cuts in. “Did you meet him at a tattoo convention or something? Was he a jerk?”
I carefully suss out Lizzy’s body language. She’s definitely hiding something. But judging by the look on her face, it’s a story she’s hesitant to tell.
“Come on, Liz,” I coax. “You can’t hate on the king of rom-coms without giving us a little context.”
Her green eyes flash with what looks like annoyance, then maybe even a hint of pain before she shakes her head firmly.
As the opening credits start to roll, I catch Claire and Noia exchanging curious glances. Something tells me they’re just as determined as I am to figure out what Lizzy’s deal is with the famous actor.
“Okay. How about I grab some snacks and we take this to the living room and get comfy?”
Leaving everything but the chocolate and booze on the table we grab a couple of blankets and settle in.
Two hours later, the movie ends with your typical over-the-top declaration of love and make-out sesh in the rain. I’m not the only one wiping away a few tears.
“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” I grin at Lizzy from my place next to her on the couch.
“It was... tolerable,” she admits with a small smile.
“Come on. Just give us a little hint of your connection to Rowan Cole. Pleeaasse?”
Shifting in her seat to face me, Lizzy tilts her head and gives me an evil grin. “How about you tell me what went down between you and Jax a few months ago instead?”
I glance at Noia, looking for backup, but all she does is hide a smirk behind her glass. Which makes me seriously consider the need to be in the market for a new best friend.
“From what I understand, you two had a moment in the alley outside The Brew at our tenth anniversary party,” Lizzy finishes.
My gaze shifts back to my best friend, and I gasp, “Traitor! You told her about that?”
“What? They already suspected. And Jax isn’t very subtle about how he reacts when someone brings you up. Ryder tells me he talks about you. A lot.”
Confusion riots in my chest. I thought Jax and I were on the same page.
We both agreed—neither of us was interested in anything more than just one night of fun, and that would be it.
So how is it that he’s still dwelling on the past?
I mean, yeah, it was one of the hottest fucks I’ve ever had, but I figured he’d be over it. One and done, just like we discussed.
“You know he lives next door, right?”
My head whips around. Lizzy’s eyes are dancing with mischief, and somewhere in the background Noia starts choking on her drink.
“You’re fucking kidding me.”
“Nope.” Her grin widens. “All that broody sexiness, right there waiting for you just fifty feet away.”
Shoving the blanket off of her lap, Claire scoots forward on the couch to set her glass down on the coffee table. “I figured you knew already, so I didn’t bring it up.”
“No. I didn’t. I’ve managed to avoid him just fine for this long. There’s no way in hell I would’ve moved next door to him on purpose!” I glare at Noia. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t know either. I’ve never been to his house. The only times I see him are when Ryder and I go hang out with him at The Brew, or if I stop by the shop. He’s been over to our house for dinner a few times, but that’s it.”
Lizzy tosses back the rest of her drink and sets it down next to Claire’s. “How ‘bout you confirm what went down with you and Jax, and I’ll tell you something about my connection to Ro.”
I shift my gaze over to Noia, and she nods, giving me a small, sympathetic smile.
Normally I like to keep my private life private, telling all of my secrets only to Noia. So, when I actually feel the urge to spill my guts to my two newest friends, it stuns me. But with my best friend’s encouragement, I find my lady balls in record time and the words just tumble out.
“Okay. Fine. We fucked once. But we both agreed that it was a one-time thing. I was leaving the next day anyway, so…”
“Yeah, but now you live here. And he’s your next-door neighbor.” She shimmies her shoulders. “I’m sure I can speak for everyone else in this room when I say how fucking excited I am to see how this scenario is gonna play out.”
Not wanting to add more fuel to that fire, I shift the conversation again. “Smart ass. Now tell us about… what was it you called him? Ro? How is it you have a nickname for one of the hottest actors in the known universe?”
Lizzy nervously tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, hand stained with what looks like tattoo ink or paint. “We kind of grew up together. He’s my twin brother Logan’s best friend.”
My jaw drops, but Claire and Noia’s reactions are even more dramatic. Claire nearly chokes on her last sip of whiskey, and Noia lets out a muffled squeal.
“What?” I sputter, tossing my hands in the air with unbridled delight. “Wait. So you’re telling me that Rowan Cole—the Rowan Cole—is your brother’s best friend? Like, the same Rowan Cole who’s been People’s Sexiest Man Alive twice? That Rowan Cole?”
Her expression darkens as she twists a strand of hair around her finger. “Yup. And trust me, he’s not nearly as charming in real life as he is on screen.”
“Holy shit,” Claire whispers, leaning forward to rub her hand in circles over Lizzy’s back. “So that’s why you hate his movies. How didn’t I already know about this?”
“It’s not something I like to talk about,” she shrugs, tension more than evident in her tone.
“Look, it’s getting late, and I have an early appointment tomorrow.
Some of us still have to work, and I need to feed Slash.
” She stands up, gathering her things. “Thanks for having me over, Sasha. Your place is coming together real nice.”
I want to press for more details, but something in her expression warns me not to push. Whatever history she has with Rowan Cole, it’s obvious it’s way more than just complicated.
“Yeah, of course. Thanks for coming to help and hanging out. It was fun.”
After a round of hugs and promises to get together again soon, Claire and Lizzy head out, leaving Noia and me alone in my living room.
The second the door closes, she whirls on me and sputters, “Okay, what the actual fuck? Lizzy knows Rowan Cole? And you’re living next door to Jax? There’s some serious book inspo going on in my head right now.”
I collapse back onto the couch with a groan. “Let’s focus on one bombshell at a time. Jax Riley, the man I’ve been avoiding for the past few months, is my next door neighbor. My fucking neighbor, Noia.”
“I swear I didn’t know,” she says, raising her hands in defense. “But come on, is it really that bad? He’s hot, and from what you’ve told me—”
“What I told you is that it was a one-time thing,” I interrupt, sitting up to palm my head in my hands. “And it’s best to keep it that way. I’m here to focus on getting the new Summit up and running, not to rehash a one-night stand that happened months ago.”
Noia rolls her eyes. “So what if you run into him? It’s not like you have to sleep with him again.”
“But that’s just it!” Throwing my hands in the air, I let them fall with a slap in my lap.
“What if I want to? What if I see him and can’t help myself?
He’s... He’s like chocolate cake laced with crack!
You know you shouldn’t eat it again because it’s hella bad for you, but fuck it, might as well take another bite. Damn the consequences.”
A slow, triumphant smile spreads across her face. “So you have thought about screwing him again?”
I flop back against the couch, pressing the heels of my hands into my eyes. “All. The. Fucking. Time.”