Page 24

He sighed. “Because Goldie is my friend and you hurt her. Unintentional or not, I don’t like that. Make it right, Lex. It’s the least you can do.”

Lexington

Istood at Goldie’s doorstep, hammering on the wood of her front door. I had to apologize, but more than that, I had to see if the rumor was true. Had I actually kissed her and forgotten about it? My head had been spinning ever since I found out. Oliver had stepped in, taking River for the night so I could figure this out with Goldie face-to-face.

“Goldie!” I yelled through the closed door. “Open up! It’s Lex… ington,” I added. She was the only person on earth who actually used my first name. Well, unless I'd screwed up and my family was giving me an earful.

I heard movement on the opposite side of the door and then her muffled voice: “Don’t break down the door, idiot. I’m coming.”

I stuffed my hands in my pockets as I waited, rocking back on my heels, the anxiety coursing through me. I hadn’t ever been to her home, and I was shocked to see it was a literal fire station. It didn’t look like the new ones with the shiny glass and brand-new features. Her home was classic brick, with the fire station sign still mounted on the facade.

The door was thrown open, an exasperated Goldie on the other side. Her long black hair was pulled into a bun on top of her head, strands breaking free and falling around her face. She was dressed in a T-shirt and shorts, but it was obvious I had interrupted her shower. Her tanned skin glistened from the water in the evening light, her cheeks pink from what I assumed was the heat.

“Um… hi, boss,” I mumbled, realizing in my rush to get here and get some answers, I hadn’t planned what I would say.

Sorry I kissed you and forgot about it? That just sounded douchey.

Goldie’s wide eyes turned to a glare. “What the fuck, Lexington? It’s almost ten at night.”

I sighed. “Can I come in?”

She stared at me for a beat. “Why?”

This woman was never going to make my life easier.

“I need to talk to you,” I insisted.

“And a phone call wouldn’t suffice?” She kept her body in the crack of the door, physically blocking me from coming in.

I threw my head back with a groan. “Can you just let me in, Goldie?”

She rolled her eyes, but finally acquiesced and moved to the side. I squeezed past her and into the living room. Looking around, I realized it was also her kitchen, bedroom, and office. The studio was huge—two stories tall—with an honest-to-God fireman’s pole going from her lofted room to the living room.

Everything about this space was so… her. She had a collection of records, a guitar hanging on the wall, her own wall of books, and band posters. Goldie wasn’t the type of woman who went out of her way to impress those around her. She knew who she was and had no plans on changing that… not for anyone.

Goldie closed her door with more force than necessary and turned to me, her arms crossed in front of her. “Why are you here?”

I motioned to the couch, and she rolled her eyes… again—but nodded. I took a seat on the supple leather. She perched on an armchair—the literal farthest seat from me in her home.

“I need to ask you something, and I really need you to be honest with me.”

She stared at me like I had lost my mind, maybe I had. “And this couldn’t wait until work… why?”

“It’s not about work,” I offered as a quick explanation, dragging a hand down my face. God, I really should have rehearsed what I was going to say before pounding on her door like a madman. I’d never been a patient person, and my reckless arrival tonight was making that painfully clear.

“I was talking to Oliver about you and me.” I glanced up at her to see if she was going to give me anything—any indication she knew what I was talking about, or knew about this supposed kiss. But she remained stoic. Her expression was impassive, not giving me a single hint of what she was thinking or if she had any idea what I was talking about. “Anyway, I asked him if he knew why you didn’t like me.”

I paused, hoping she would confess. Maybe it wasn’t even this supposed kiss, and we could leave it all behind us. That would have been the best-case scenario. Maybe I hadn’t even kissed her, and Oliver and Theo had messed up the timeline and a different douchebag screwed her over.

She groaned and sank into her chair. “Can you just spit it out already? I’m not in the mood for these circles you’re talking in. Why are you here, Lexington?”

I took a steadying breath and met her eyes directly. “Oliver and Theo seem to think that we kissed right before River was dropped at the office—like the day before—and I forgot about it, and that’s why you hate me. Well… that and you apparently had a big crush on me, and from what he says, it’s like I led you on or something like that…”

I let the sentence die in my throat. Her expression froze, the anger slipping from her face to reveal raw astonishment. Her dark eyes searched mine, her body completely still, as if breathing might shatter the moment.

“Goldie,” I muttered and leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees. “Is it true?”

Silence swallowed us whole, leaving only the wind rattling through the branches outside. It surged against the house with enough force to make me wonder if she'd left a window open somewhere.