Chapter One

This is going to hurt, I thought as I hurtled through space.

I wasn't quite sure what had caught the toe of my shoe, but somehow the floor was quickly coming up to greet me. It would be less than a second before my entire body slammed into the floor of the restaurant entryway, which was conveniently made of very hard-looking tile.

Just don't break anything, I prayed, holding my hands out, hoping that my arms would be strong enough to break my fall. It was going to be ugly and there was nothing I could do about it. I was inches away from colliding, when a pair of strong arms caught me around my waist and pulled me back up into a standing position.

“Careful,” a man's voice said. The voice was calm and his hands were strong.

I was still wincing in anticipated pain as the stranger held me. I had been expecting to hit the floor, so it took me a second to realize that I had just been saved. His hands were on the top of my waist, holding me steady with a firm and safe grip.

“You okay?” he asked, not yet releasing me.

“I think I'm fine,” I said, my voice shaking slightly. “You saved me.”

“I just happened to be standing here when I saw you taking a dive,” he said, making sure I was steady before letting me go. “It was all luck.”

“Thank you,” I muttered, feeling my face turn hot from embarrassment. I looked over at him to see he was gorgeous. He was tall with dark hair and an amazing smile. Even his glasses looked sexy. I looked down at the floor, suddenly shy.

Of course it would be a gorgeous guy who would catch me when I was about to face-plant. That was just how the world worked. I could feel the blush starting to burn I was turning so red. “That was a little awkward. It's these darn heels.”

The man chuckled and shrugged. “Glad I was here to help. You have a nice day.”

“Yeah, thanks,” I said, trying my best to smile and not make eye contact. Luckily, he turned and walked away before I had to say anything else. I rubbed my arms, suddenly missing being held. It was a strange sensation, especially since the guy was a stranger. The feeling faded quickly as I took a deep breath. I smoothed my shirt and hurried to catch up to the rest of my family who were already at the hostess stand getting checked in.

“How many today?” the young girl asked as I arrived.

“Five, please,” my mom answered after doing a quick head count.

“Follow me,” the hostess said, grabbing some menus and walking us across the restaurant.

“That was a close one,” my little brother Tommy said, coming up behind me. “You almost had a pretty nasty fall back there.”

“No joke, Tommy.” I gave his small shoulder a gentle push. At eleven years old he was still shorter than me, but I knew it wouldn't be for long. “How come a stranger had to save me? You were right behind me. You could have tried to help.”

“I don't think I could have helped you in time,” he said with a shrug. “I didn't even see you trip. Plus, that guy was there to save the day anyway, so it worked out. I can't believe how fast he grabbed you. Maybe he's a superhero in his spare time.”

“You think there's a super hero in our middle of nowhere town?” I asked. “What would he be doing? Rescuing stray cows?”

“Clark Kent grew up in a small town. Maybe he's just here to relax.” Tommy grinned at me. “And you know, cows are very grateful when you rescue them.”

“Are you calling me a cow?” I asked, raising my eyebrows and and crossing my arms. Even though we were eleven years apart, our sibling rivalry was still strong.

Tommy shot me a cheesy grin. “Not with Mom within earshot.”

I rolled my eyes and kept walking after the hostess toward our table.

The rest of our group, which included my parents and best friend Caroline, were already at a booth on the far end of the restaurant. It took us a moment to get our seats and get comfortable.

“So, you girls are all graduated and done with college,” my mom remarked, setting down her menu and gazing at Caroline and me fondly. “I'm so proud of you both. You two are real adults now, huh?”

“Ugh, I guess so.” Caroline sighed. “I'm not sure how I feel about that.”

“Yup, it’s only downhill from here,” my father said, adjusting his glasses. “You should start picking out your burial plots now. It's the only thing you have to look forward to.”

“Charles!” my mother scolded in a joking manner. The rest of us around the table laughed.

“Oh, they’ll find out sooner or later,” he continued. “The best years of your lives are behind you. Now you have to get a job and pay bills. You guys are picking up dinner, right? That's what being an adult's all about.”

He winked at us both. Dad and Mom had been the ones to invite Caroline and I out to celebrate being home and graduated from college. He had already said he was paying several times and for us to get anything we wanted.

“If only getting a job was easy as paying a bill,” Carolina muttered, and I coughed a sympathetic laugh in agreement.

“Yeah, I think Alicia would agree with you on that one,” my mother said and I looked up to meet her eyes. I had been home for a day and a half and the topic of employment had already been raised by my father. Several times.

My father was the first to pry about my post-college plans, and he didn’t need to wait for graduation as an invitation. He had been on me since last summer, just before the beginning of my senior year. I knew he was just trying to make sure I could take care of myself, but it was a bit much.

I told him what I always did, that my plan was to apply for an internship at ZephTech to work on developing computer apps. He wasn't much of a fan of that plan because it required a hyper-competitive application and intern process, and that was far too much uncertainty for a man who never allowed his gas tank to get less than half full.

“You'll both find your paths,” my mother assured us. “And in twenty years, you’ll look back and laugh at the process.”

“In twenty years, I’ll be a high school English teacher still paying off loans and actively plotting ways to burn the school down,” Caroline replied with a grin. “I can’t wait.”

“And I’ll be somewhere in a cubical waiting for your smoke signal so I can do the same thing,” I replied. We both laughed.

“Well, as long as you don't get caught.” My mother shrugged. “I will be too busy traveling the world on your inheritance money to bail either of you out.”

“It's up to you then, Tommy,” I said, turning to my little brother. “You'll have to come break Caroline and me out of jail. I hope you're up to the task.”

“I think I could plan a jailbreak,” Tommy said thoughtfully. “I could at least bake you file in a cake or something.”

“I've eaten the things you bake,” I replied. “I think I'd rather be in jail.”

“First of all, you wouldn't be eating it. You'd be getting the file out,” Tommy explained. “And secondly, I'll be able to bake better in twenty years. Duh.”

It was then that the waitress arrived with our drinks and took our food orders.

My father raised his glass of recently delivered tap beer. “To the start of new beginnings,” he said as cheers.

“To new beginnings,” everyone echoed. I sipped at my pale ale and tried not to worry about what exactly my new beginning was going to be.

“Hey, let me have a sip,” Tommy whispered as I lowered my glass. I handed him my beer and he sipped slyly before passing it back. It made me wonder when the time would come where we would actually share drinks. It wasn’t really that far away, I realized while subtly studying my brother. Time had a way of flying past without us realizing it.

“So Caroline, any idea on where you want to teach at?” Mom asked, restarting the conversation.

“Anywhere that needs a new English teacher,” she replied, tucking a strand of shiny black hair behind her ear. “Right now, I’ve got to find somewhere that’ll take on a first year teacher, which is trickier than it sounds.”

“How’s that going?” my father asked.

“Not so well,” she said with a shrug. “I've had to expand my searches and apply for non-preferred grades. I just haven't gotten anything yet.”

“I'm glad to hear you're working on it,” Dad told her. He adjusted his glasses and looked over at me with raised eyebrows. I thought about throwing my beer at him, since I really was trying to find a job, but instead just smiled and took a sip.

“I’m sure Tommy would take you over his English teacher,” my mother said, pulling my father's focus away from me. “We haven’t been very pleased with her.”

“I applied at the school, but I haven't heard anything back,” Caroline replied. “Maybe you'll get lucky Tommy and get me next year instead.”

I was glad that Caroline had joined us for our dinner. It was supposed to be a miniature celebration for our graduation, and it wouldn’t have felt right without her. She was an honorary member of the family and had joined us for dinners for as long as I could remember, back when dinners were usually followed by a sleepover.

Caroline’s company was also a great excuse to talk about someone else’s unemployment instead of my own. It was almost a toss-up as to which one of us would find work first. At least with her here, my dad wouldn't use the entire meal to find out how many resumes I had sent out.