“Angelina’s in town,” I tell him.
“TheAngelina? The one that got away?”
I balk at the description, but he’s not completely off base. “That’s the one.”
“You talk toher?”
I nod. “Her car broke down on the side of the road. I dropped her off with the Davises. Haven’t talked to her since.”
“She stayin’?”
I stare straight ahead, gaze unfocused. “Yup. Wilder said he heard from Caroline that Angie’s staying in their rental while the contractors are working on her new place. She’s taking over for Doctor Briggs.”
“No way. So, she’s essentially working for you now?”
“Mhm.”
He pats me on the back. “This is your chance, man. You can have your do-over.”
“You forget she gave me the wrong number? She’s not interested.”
He laughs into his beer before taking a long pull. “You ever met a woman before, Griff? They change their minds like they change their underwear.”
Feminine laughter drifts in with the cool bite of winter air. Even after two years, I’d recognize that sound anywhere.
Angelina Rossi.
I catch a whiff of rose and amber as she breezes past, oblivious to my attentions. She takes a seat at one of the high-top tables across from Sarah, a friend of my sister’s from high school.
I gulp down another mouthful of bourbon as Sarah drapes her jacket across the back of the chair and makes her way to the bar. Angie plants her elbow on the table, resting her pert chin against her palm. So much has changed since I last saw her, but time hasn’t affected the innate pull I feel whenever she’s around.
I’ll never forget the weekend we spent together. I fucked her on every surface of that apartment in ways I’d never even dreamed of, but it was the intervening moments that affected me the most—when she showed me who she was underneath all the surface-level shit.
Sometime around dawn on the second day, she walked into the kitchen in nothing but my shirt. She hummed along to a song only she could hear while she made us breakfast, her long dark hair cascading down her back. We talked about our lives, the future, her passion for her job, and my desire to own a rescue. We connected on a deeper level than I ever expected, and then it was over.
Tyler’s hand enters my field of vision. “Earth to Griffin.”
I blink myself back to the present. “Sorry. What were you saying?”
He jerks his head toward her table. “That her?”
I nod.
His eyes linger a little too long for my liking. “Dark hair, round ass. Mmm.”
“Shut the fuck up, man.”
His shoulders shake with silent laughter. “I’m just saying. I get it.”
I freeze with my drink halfway to my mouth and my heart in my throat when her gaze lands on me. It’s impossible to miss the subtle flash of grief in her eyes. I probably remind her of Jess. That’s how we met, after all. She practically shoved Angie and me together back then. Not that I was complaining.
My sister-in-law was an incredible, kind, selfless woman. Three months after that trip, we lost her, and a part of my brother died, too. Jess’s passing changed a lot of lives, including Angelina’s. None of us will ever be the same again.
“You gonna go over there?” Tyler asks.
Angie’s attention shifts as Sarah returns with their drinks. She looks at me, then at Angie. I can’t hear what she’s saying, but Angie shakes her head, and the room goes cold.
I frown. “Nope. Ancient history.”
