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“Where are you going? I can at least give you a ride.”

I would rather get run over by her car than sit in it.

“Just leave me alone, James,” I called out. “Leave. Me. Alone.”

Her footsteps didn’t follow me and a few streets later I glanced over my shoulder to see that she wasn’t behind me anymore. Good.

Unfortunately, in my rush to avoid her, I’d gone in the opposite direction of my apartment, so I had to backtrack on my sore legs.

What a day. Pilates was supposed to be an escape, but it had done the opposite.

James St. Clair was here, and I was going to do whatever I could to avoid her for the rest of my life.

Chapter Two

James

I hadn’t noticedher at all when I’d walked in. I’d been concerned with finding a spot and not being late. Pilates had been my favorite workout lately and I’d been pleased that there were classes at the gym. At least one thing had gone right lately.

The class had absolutely kicked my ass, so I’d been completely focused until the end when I started packing up and heard someone curse nearby.

There she was. Delaney Budreau. What were the chances? I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t considered that I might run into her now that I was back, but I hadn’t expected that it would be so soon. I’d only moved into my new apartment two days ago and had decided to take a break from work and unpacking for a workout class.

The universe decided to throw Delaney in my path today.

It had taken me a second to recognize her. At first, I’d just seen a gorgeous woman, but then I’d gotten a look at her face and it was like the past and the present folded onto themselves. I was both here in this moment and in the past with a pretty girl from my seventh-grade class.

The second she realized it was me, however, she bolted. Just absolutely ran from me like her hair was on fire.

Could I blame her? Not really. But I was still going to chase after her and at least see if we could have a cup of coffee or a few minutes of civil conversation so I could explain myself. Apologize.

Over the years I’d thought so often about her. About the things I’d said when we were kids that made me nauseated to remember. About how she deserved better than Connor—I would know. I’d had to live with him for most of my life.

She wasn’t ready to hear from me yet. I let her go after I caught up, because I didn’t want to end up with a restraining order. Sighing at the absurdity of life, I went back to the gym where I’d abandoned all my stuff.

I drove back to my new apartment and shut the door, leaning against it and dropping my gym bag and mat on the floor. This place was nearly twice the size of my old place in Boston and only about two-thirds of the price. It was wild how much you could get in a smaller city.

The building was older, but the apartment itself was updated with shiny new everything and included a washer and dryer in my linen closet. I’d almost cried at how beautiful it was when I’d had my first tour. No more hauling my laundry down to the basement. No more quarters and dryers burning up my clothes.

I’d even had to buy more furniture to fill the space. I was still getting used to it. Maybe I’d get some plants or a pet or something. Not a dog or a cat, but some kind of creature to talk to.

I hoped Delaney had made it home okay. What was her place like? I pictured her having a big window with a chair in front of it. She’d loved reading when we’d been kids. She’d always have a book or two in her bag that wasn’t just for school. I’d probably made fun of her for that. So much of my youth was a blur, but I could remember a few things, and a lot of them involved Delaney. As if my brain had decided she was worth remembering.

Sighing, I headed to the shower, stripping off my Pilates outfit. The class had been intense, and my muscles were going to be sore for a while.

After my shower, I was ravenous, so I made a quick turkey sandwich with some avocado, Havarti, bacon, and arugula and ate it in the kitchen before gulping down some water and peeling an orange to eat while I wandered around and thought about Delaney.

She’d grown up really well.Reallywell. She still had that stunning blonde hair and eyes that were mostly brown but with those greenish flecks toward her pupil. I’d spent an awful lot of time trying to figure out the exact color of Delaney’s eyes in art class instead of drawing a still life or whatever we were supposed to be doing. No one had ever known.

I finished my orange and washed my hands, at a loss for what to do. I’d had a whole plan for today to be productive, but Delaney had derailed all of that. I couldn’t focus on much of anything.

Checking the time, I realized that the library was closed, so my hopes of visiting were dashed for today. Damn. I logged onto the app and browsed the ebook collection instead, which left much to be desired, so I switched to my old Boston card since it was still active. Jackpot.

Figuring the day was a bust, I decided reading was the best way to spend my time, so I opened the windows, put on some music, and grabbed one of the books I’d bought before I left Boston but hadn’t had a chance to read yet.

I’d just finally sunk into the story when my phone went off, shattering my concentration.

Hey, do you think I could stay with you?It was Connor. Shocking that now I was close enough to do things for him was the exact time he’d decided to be my brother again.