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Prologue
Bryce
I surveythe rest of the apartment, making sure I’m not missing anything. I’ve only lived here for a few months, so I don’t have many things. It’s a small studio apartment, which means I can see everything from the center of the room. I sigh at the thought of leaving the only city I know, Jacksonville, Florida. At least I don’t have a lot to move, and I didn’t need to rent a big truck. The reason I have to move makes it hard, though.
She broke me. Emma Lane broke me. The last five years had gone up in smoke. My ability to trust went right along with it. She was everything to me and she had burned it all to the ground.
Stepping into the bathroom, I check and make sure I packed everything in there. Once I finish, I move to the kitchen and do the same. When I’m absolutely sure that I have everything, I walk to the door and turn around one last time.
“Here goes nothing,” I say, talking to myself and taking a deep breath.
I close the door and lock it, then walk down to the rental office and drop off the keys and sign some papers. With a final look over my shoulder at the apartment, I hop into my truck. Like I said, I had very little in the apartment. Everything I own fits snug in my pickup truck.
Emma got everything.
Except the ring. But she didn’t even know that it existed. I never got the chance to ask her, and now I’m glad I didn’t.
I open my glove box and pull out the little black box before opening it up and staring inside. A beautiful princess cut diamond solitaire engagement ring stares back. The same one I was going to propose to her with a few months ago. When I get to Vegas, I’ll sell or pawn it. I have no use for it anymore. Fuck her.
I shove it back into the glove box and start my truck. This year should not have happened like this. I was going to ask her to marry me. We would have planned a wedding, planned our future. That was how this year should have gone. Instead, I got to plan a move and a job transfer.
On the bright side, it’s the beginning of October, so the drive to Las Vegas will be a nice one. Also, since it’s October, that means this year is almost over. I am so ready for this year to be over.
I pull out of the parking lot and start heading towards my new home and my new city. As I begin my drive across the country, I turn on the radio to a country station. Seems appropriate to listen to country right now. I shake my head in complete disgust at the thoughts.
My girlfriend and my best friend. I never saw it coming.
Chapter 1
Katrina
“Kat! Your drink is ready!”a barista calls from the pickup window. I walk up to the counter, passing the delicious treats that sit and tease me from their little display window. The theme here is very industrial with a bit of rustic and I love it. The walls are decorated with reclaimed wood and metal. The ceiling is exposed and painted black. The light fixtures are simple drop down lights with Edison bulbs.
“Thank you,” I collect my vanilla latte and saunter back over to my laptop. I sit down at my spot next to the door and resume my work, humming along to the low music they’re playing over the speakers.
I love coming to OneShot Coffee to get stuff done. It’s a small place, but the atmosphere is great.
This place is made for people to just hang out. The back wall has a long counter for people to plug in and work. There’s little table tops with plush seats for people to gather and hang out. There’s also some hightop tables with stools for people to sit.
Outside they have a patio where you can enjoy the Las Vegas weather. Though, I don’t recommend it in the summer time in the Las Vegas heat.
I need a comfortable environment to do my job, as I’m a freelance book editor. So, sitting and editing pages is more enjoyable because of my surroundings. My apartment is usually where I work, but sometimes I need a change of pace.
My go to option is OneShot Coffee. Plus, they have the best avocado toast. That’s always a bonus.
My latest project is keeping me busy, and I’m truly in the zone. It’s my favorite genre: romance. You know the deal; girl meets boy, they fall in love, something happens, they break up, and then they forgive each other and live a happily ever after. You know, not actual life. There’s a good side to all this, though. My work allows me to live in imaginary worlds.
Staying single in this town is also very easy to do.
It’s Las Vegas, after all. Tourists are everywhere. People can come and go so easily. Meet someone on the Las Vegas Strip one night, hit it off, then you find out he’s from New York. Maybe they’re here for a bachelor party for a weekend.
It’s always a variation of that. Same story, different day. Like I said, it’s extremely easy to stay single in this town.
My social anxiety also keeps me single.
I’ve had it for quite a while. Things happened to me when I was younger, and it really makes me fear being around people I don’t know.
That’s just one reason I like this place, OneShot Coffee. People mind their own business. I can sit in the corner and do my work, and no one will even give me a second glance. It’s one of the few public places I actually enjoy going to.