Chapter 1

Austin's First-Person POV

"I'll come pick you up in a week," Mom said to me.

Once she left, I went out drinking with a buddy of mine, Dean Gould. However, out of the corner of my eye, I spotted two familiar figures at the bar.

Samuel Chapman had his arm around Roxanne Moore's waist. His other hand had slipped under her skirt, and I could see the light catching on something slick that coated his fingers.

I saw the looks of blissful ecstasy.

Rage surged within me. I couldn't stop myself from storming over to them.

The moment Roxanne met my blazing gaze, her eyes flashed with sheepish guilt. She quickly pulled Samuel's hand from under her skirt.

But at the very next moment, she began questioning me, "Why are you here? Are you hooking up with some slut off the street?"

I clenched my fists and fired back, "Didn't you say you were still on a business trip? Why are you here at a bar with Samuel?"

Before Roxanne could speak, Samuel piped up, "Austin, you can't blame Roxy. She only lied to you because she was afraid you'd get jealous."

"Shut the hell up!" It was the first time I'd ever shouted that loudly.

"Roxanne, you keep saying he's your best friend, but he's a guy! And you just let him feel you up like this? If someone didn't know better, they'd think you two were a couple, fooling around in a bar right in front of everyone! Did you ever think about how I'd feel?"

After my furious outburst, however, I met Roxanne's gaze, and my heart turned cold.

With a perfectly calm expression, she said coolly, "Are you done? If anything was going to happen between Sam and me, do you think you would've been able to become my boyfriend? If you're going to get jealous over nothing, get the hell out of here. Go home. I've never met a man as petty as you."

I stood there, stunned. For a moment, she felt alarmingly unfamiliar to me.

Roxanne's reaction was far too calm. It was as if she were just a bystander, watching indifferently as I lost my mind.

"Roxy, if it's really such a big deal, I'll just apologize to Austin. You should stop meeting me too. I wouldn't want Austin to misunderstand our relationship," Samuel chimed in again, his eyes red, as if he'd been hurt and wronged.

This was his usual trick.

Whenever Roxanne and I got into a fight because of him, he would act as if I were somehow targeting him on purpose.

"Why should you apologize? It's not your fault. He's the petty one," Roxanne declared. "Let's go, Sam. We'll hang out at an amusement park instead. I'm not going to stay here and let some fool piss me off."

As always, Roxanne took Samuel's side and walked off with him.

But after a few steps, she stopped. For a second, I thought she'd regretted her reaction.

"We're not even married yet, Austin. If you're this mean to my friend again, I'm breaking up with you!"

She threw a cocktail in my face.

I watched as Roxanne left, my nails digging into my palms. I couldn't tell which hurt the most, my hands or my heart.

Dean patted me on the shoulder to comfort me.

My lips curled into a rueful smile, my gaze bitter.

Nine years was a long time, Roxanne. I wasn't going to waste any more of my time.