“Dinner it is. Sleep tight.” He acknowledges with some excitement.

“Night, best friend.” I think nothing of it, this is how I always said good night to him, this is familiar.

He pauses longer than normal. “Ouch, the best friend comes out, not a good sign.”

“Hey, don’t interpret that the wrong way. You know I’ve always said that to you before when we would hang up. It slipped out, I’m sorry.” I did not mean to offend him. Boy, this will take time getting used to. I now realize I need to watch what I say to him so not to hurt his feelings.

“Just giving you a hard time, girl. Enough talking, I need to go to sleep. I got a big day at work and a date tomorrow night.” The excitement in his voice makes me happy.

“That’s the spirit, you buying?”

“Bet your cute ass, anywhere you want to go, girl. I need to show you off. One of the many perks of our new arrangement is I get to have my hands all over you without you smacking me.”

We ended the call on a good note and sleep finds me fast.

DRAGGING MY TIRED butt out of bed is difficult today. I’m cranky, and it’s Monday, to boot. Showering up quickly as I can, I apply the cream to my bad ass tattoo, covering it with some gauze I borrowed from the dental office. Having it rub against my pants all day, did not appeal to me. Not a great way to start off my day.

Liza and I drive together since she will be working late with a patient. I’m off around five, but she has Ace picking her up, so all is good. Making sure we left enough time, we stop off at our favorite Starbucks before work. Like usual, the minute Tristan see’s us, he’s making our usual orders before we hit the counter.

“Tristan is going to be jealous when he finds out you did the deed with Nick. God, I can’t wait to see his face.” Liza, the troublemaker, is showing me her evil grin.

“You can’t tell him, he will be devastated. Good Lord, Liza, you are too mean.” First of all, this all so new to me. I don’t want to advertise my love life all over town. And secondly, it might hurt his feelings. Tristan is way too sweet and for some silly reason, he thinks he has a shot with my new love interest. Weird.

“Don’t care, this is going to be funny as hell.”

Walking to the register, I’m just praying she keeps her mouth shut.

“Hello, my sweetest El and her always grumpy friend, Liza.” Tristan then winked with a shrug of his shoulder, rolling his eyes at the always grumpy Liza. A name he’s given her. I secretly love it.

I laugh out loud and dare sneak a peek at Liza. Her eyebrow lift tells me I’m in trouble. I cringe, holding my breath.

“Your sweetest girl jumped Nick’s bones this weekend. Now how is your day Tristan?”

Ouch. That stung.

His expression freezes.

“Shut the front door, what are you saying? Holy shit… Elsa, you and my Nick? No way.”

Using my hands, I’m shushing him to lower his voice. “Ssshhh. Come on, we are all adults here. Don’t listen to Liza, let’s just forget it.” I force a smile and hope he just lets it go.

He replies, cool and calm like. “Double Mocha Latte, extra drizzle order will be held up unless you spill the beans and fast.” He smirks with an evil grin that rivals Liza’s. He is blackmailing me with…coffee! My coffee.

“Really?” I say raising my eyebrow, hand on my hip.

Wiping the counter, he keeps whistling. “Yep, let's have it, sweets. Just tell me yes or no, is he as awesome as he looks?” Good Lord, shoot me now.

I concede, I need my coffee. “Yes, now can I have my much-needed coffee… Please?” Batting my eyelashes, I’m smiling, trying to win him over with my sweetness.

Sizing one another up, we both crack up before Liza clears her throat for round two.

“Oh, she got a wild hair up her butt and also got a tattoo this weekend. She was a busy girl, no wonder she’s in dire need of caffeine.”

“LIZA!” I’m mortified, turning to her before I slap her shoulder.

Leaving Starbucks, I want to murder my best friend. This day is just not starting out well, and it’s just beginning. Aargh, maybe the rest of the day will go without another hiccup.

We approach our office, Noelridge Dental. Dr. Davis, a good-looking dentist in his forties, and has an exceptional practice. I run the front office, Liza is his assistant, and we have two hygienists. We’re a small office, but we all get along great. The only thing about a small office is everyone knows each other’s business. Until this past weekend, it was fine. But now, it’s not so great because Liza can’t keep her mouth shut. By the end of the day, I know Cindy and Kathy, our hygienists, will also have a count by count rundown of my weekend.

Nick stops by frequently, each and every time he does, they both drool over him. Yeah, the ladies here are a sucker for a pretty face, and a sweet body. Nick fits that profile just fine. My only horror will be if my boss catches wind of it all, that would be beyond embarrassing. He likes to joke with us girls and always tries to stay current with what’s going on in our busy lives. I, however, draw the line at my love life.

Sitting at my desk, I’m trying to catch up on some insurance checks when the office phone rings.

“Noelridge Dental, may I help you?” As I answer the phone, I can see someone from the corner of my eye standing at my desk, ready to check in. Looking up to acknowledge whoever it may be, my eyes about drop out of their sockets. A face that’s all too familiar, and it takes me back… a few years at least.

The lady on the end of the phones has asked to schedule an appointment, but I’m finding it difficult to concentrate on her at all. My attention is all too focused on the guy staring back at me with his mouth open wide in astonishment.

In a complete fog, I somehow find a date for my patient. “Mrs. Eckley, we can see you at noon on Thursday. Wonderful, see you then.” I’m struggling to finish my conversation, my eyes never leaving the gentleman standing at my desk.

I find it hard to breathe. Scanning the appointment book, I try to locate his name. How is it possible I missed his name?

His sudden throat clearing tells me he’s just as shocked.

“I can’t believe it’s you, Elsa. Wow, you look amazing, by the way.” He says rapidly speaking. I think we are both in shock.

The first thing I notice is how deep his voice has gotten. He has grown into his own man. Matt was a looker before, but now he is stunning. His resemblance to Micah is remarkable, and I can’t help staring…speechless.

With his raised eyebrow, it’s easy to read his curious expression. “Elsa, are you okay?”

Staring. Pausing. Shocked.

Finally able to speak, my voice is shaky at best. “Wow, I can’t believe you’re here. It’s been years, how are you, Matt?” When I get to his name, it comes out barely a whisper, like he’s unfamiliar somehow.

Of all the things to happen today, this is not one I would have believed. Matt Taylor is standing right in front of me. Standing taller than ever, he looks even better today than he did five years ago. I’m still stunned… and shocked.

Glancing at the schedule, I mumble. “Do you have an appointment?” I correct myself almost instantly. “Of course you do,” I’m embarrassed with my lack of professionalism.

“Hey,” he looks at me with his head tilted, and eyes furrowed tightly. “Have you seen Micah since he’s been back?”

My heart plummets when he speaks his brother’s name. I’m sure my eyes are a dead giveaway, they are wide as saucers before I shut them so tight it’s painful. For the love of all that is holy, what the hell? I’m not prepared for this moment. I’ve always been bothered with what could happen if I ever ran into Matt or his parents. Luckily, until today I had not. This is just not my day!