Page 20 of When Forever Falls Apart

“So, how many of these do I need to drink to get a ride?” she teases boldly.

I smirk, leaning closer to whisper, “Depends. You talking about my bike or me?”

She bites her lip seductively. Her mouth has been taunting me all night, and it hasn’t helped the raging hard-on beneath my jeans. Fuck, I can’t remember the last time I met someone this hot, even though my vision is slightly blurred from all the shots.

Then, Nicole’s words echo in my head…

Maybe we both need space. Time apart. You go do your thing, and I’ll do mine. I love you, Elliot, and the moment you’ve figured out if forever is for you, then you know where to find me.

Stassi places her arms around my waist, eager to leave the bar. “My place is right around the corner. Let’s get outof here.” She pulls my hand, and as Matteo shakes his head with a knowing grin, I eagerly follow Stassi out the door.

Outside the bar, against the brown brick wall, I press into her and slam my mouth onto hers. The taste of aniseed from the potent Sambuca lingers, but it doesn’t stop the urge to get her on top of me and forget my life in Paris exists.

And for tonight, Stassi is the Band-Aid to all my problems.

A sexy one at that.

CHAPTER 6Madelina

Driving in Manhattan is a death sentence.

Back when I was a kid, my father would always use a car service to take us places. So I never truly comprehended how fortunate we were until I first drove in the city and realized it was a whole other beast.

Patience doesn’t exist, nor does respect for the rules. Drivers blast their horns at any given moment, which makes zero sense when you’re stuck in traffic with nowhere to go. It isn’t just a polite honk either; more like aget the hell out of my way or I’m going to run into your asshonk.

Before ending things with Myles, and in the midst of all the wedding planning, his parents gifted me a BMW. It’s so not my style. Sporty, with a hefty price tag, which didn’t impress me. I miss my little red Volkswagen, which I fondly named Sabrina.

I accepted the present to lessen the worries in my life. Myles’s mother was tiresome, and between her helicopter parenting of her grown son and her obsessive need to plan our entire wedding to her standards, I’m grateful to be rid of her as my mother-in-law.

The car was only the beginning. If we’d had kids, it wouldhave been ten times worse. She already had me picking out nursery patterns for all the grandchildren I was to bear.

It didn’t feel right to keep such an extravagant gift after everything that happened, so I left the BMW at Myles’s parents’ place along with the keys.

I take a cab to JFK to hire a car, then head onto the interstate toward Cinnamon Springs. The open road gives me too much time to think, so I call every single person I know to keep me company, only for no one to pick up.

Eva’s number goes to voicemail, along with Aston’s. Not even my own mother picks up. Granted, she told me yesterday she was traveling with minimal to no coverage.

Billie is the only one to answer her phone. “You’d better be calling me because you’re on your way.”

I smile, relieved to hear a familiar voice. “Yes, I’m driving now. Is it weird that I feel all sick inside like I’m going on a bad date or something?”

“A bad date with Cinnamon Springs?” Billie questions in a relaxed tone. “Not possible. Cinnamon Springs is the perfect date. The gentleman who opens the door at the restaurant.”

“And pulls your chair out at the table,” I add with a grin.

“Then orders you an expensive bottle of wine before leaning over and telling you how breathtaking you look.”

I sigh, followed by, “To casually run his thumb on your bottom lip.”

We both laugh in unison as Billie says, “Did we just write a romance novel?”

“Maybe.” We both love to read, and quite often we send each other book recs or buddy-read. “So, dinner tonight?”

“Yes, a full catch-up, please. I need a whole breakdown of Europe and all the tea. Let me live vicariously through you.”

If only Billie knew just how uneventful my trip was. Tonight I will tell her everything, which is basically a whole lot of nothing. During my time away, I didn’t want to overloadher with my travel stories since I knew she was grieving the loss of her mother. I considered her a close friend, and losing her mom the night before my supposed wedding to Myles was a hard time. It wasn’t just the passing itself, but years of Billie being the carer for her sick mom.

“I’m warning you, you’ll be incredibly disappointed.”