It wasn't that he regretted staying, He didn't. He loved his family and just didn't want to go too far away from them, but there were times when his parents... Especially his mother, could be a bit meddlesome. Just like she was doing right now. This was like the hundredth time this evening, that she had mentioned how close he and Chloe used to be, and she wouldn't stop going on and on about it. Not that he was still upset with Chloe, he wasn't, but that didn't mean that he wanted to be reminded that once upon a time, he had loved her.The fact that it had happened a long time ago didn't change the fact that he had been terribly Hurt after their relationship had ended. Back then he had been naive, open, inexperienced and soft. Realizing that his high school sweetheart and best friend hadn't cared as much as he did about their relationship had been almost too much to take, and he sincerely wished his mother would stop talking about how cute they were together. Of course they were cute.

Evan Reese was tall and leanly built, though not scrawny. Rangy, that was the word. He had the look of a man who spent his life outdoors. A well-to-do man, though not born to money. He had met his wife, Christina when she used to own a food truck, and after two failed attempts, had finally found the guts to ask her out on a date.Christina had accepted to go out with him because she liked him. She liked his sense of humor and the way he looked too. A strong-featured face, the deep-set gray-blue eyes crinkled at the corners, framed by dark lashes. His hair was black, cut far too short to be fashionable. A practical style. What on earth did a man like him see in a woman like her? Christina had wondered. If any other stranger had tried to strike up a conversation with her and ask her out on any other day, she’d have spurned him. Maybe the fates had indeed intervened to bring two kindred spirits together, in which case it would be unwise of her not to follow their lead, so she had accepte

Her phone vibrated across the surface of her nightstand, and a groan slipped out of Chloe's mouth. She ran her hand over her head, mussing her long dark hair.The phone continued to vibrate, drawing her attention back to it and another groan from her throat. She knew that he would want to talk about their previous discussion and she wasn't ready for it. She liked him all right, and he didn't live too far away from her, so she wouldn't even have to worry about distance being a problem in their relationship. She wasn't dating or involved with anyone, so why the hell was she hesitating? She groaned again into the phone as she finally picked it up and swiped her hand across the screen.“Are you okay?” Matthew asked her, his voice gruff with concern.Chloe instantly felt guilty. “Yeah, I'm fine,” she said.“But you’re groaning,” he said. “And you don't sound fine. Is something bothering you?”Chloe almost said 'the only thing bothering me is someone interrupting my sleep', but that would b

No one seemed surprised by that announcement. Edward was a ladies man and almost always had a date to go too... Sometimes with different women."Of course you do," Bryce murmured and everyone laughed. "Hey, this isn't just any date okay?" Edward retorted. "I like this girl…" "You say that about all of them" said Bryce. “I’ll walk you guys out. I need to run, too since I have work stuff to prepare for.” said Chloe.Darrell grimaced, and she steeled herself for another gruff lecture about how she worked too hard. An interesting statement since Peter worked harder than all of them, and no one ever lectured him.To her surprise, he remained silent. She regarded him with a raised eyebrow and wondered if he’d burst at the seams, but his lips remained in a firm line. He rose from the couch to hug her and then gruffly reminded her to be sure and get enough rest.They all walked out together, and Darrell reminded them all of lunch next Sunday, and told Chloe that he wanted her to come too.

Timothy almost groaned out loud, but instead he returned her gaze, "Hi," he replied. A little courtesy wouldn't hurt anyone right?"I'm Mirabel" said the redhead, batting her ridiculously long lashes at him. "Nice to meet you""Timothy" he said simply and she flashed him another smile. Timothy gripped his glass harder, and hoped that the Lady would just get the message that he would rather be alone tonight. But luck was not on his side today, because she made no effort to leave."So what are you doing sitting here all by yourself?" asked Mirabel. "You didn't get stood up by your date now, did you? Of course you didn't. Who would do that to a cutie like you"Timothy shook his head. "No, I didn't get....stood up" he replied, "I mean, kinda. I was supposed to hang out here with a friend but he had to cancel. I figured I'd just have a coupled of drinks before I head home"Mirabel smiled at him again. "I thought so, because who wouldn't want to go out on a date with a man like you. Well I