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“Because there was a time we used to be best friends”

What kind of excuse was that? she wondered Suddenly becoid air, she realized she had to close the door Either invite him in or send him on his way, but as she heard her heat kick on, she consideredof the heat at least interrupted the eht of hiet comfortable”

He didn’t coracious invitation, merely sta snow, then stepped inside

She closed the door behind hied herself, rubbing her arms The forced-air heat blasted away but didn’t seem to warm her

He looked good, froed hiray to his dark hair Bitterness filled her mouth She’d always suspected that their divorce hadn’t troubled him as much as it had her He looked fit, healthy and as self-assured as ever On the other hand, upset had cost her ten pounds she hadn’t been able to put back on, and sleepless nights had ,” she said “On so many levels”

“Why? We used to be married I’”

“Right” She pointed to her shabby living room and told hiet some coffee Then, because she wasn’t naturally rude, she poured afor him

Ten ht I can handle this for ten minutes That didn’tinto a yawning abyss of old pain and desire she didn’t want to freshen

Squaring her shoulders, she walked back to the man who had twisted her heart into knots and then torn it apart

She hoped she wasn’t being stupid

The night outside began to sprinkle big white flakes of snow, just a dusting, but the flakes glittered like jewels under the streetlights Spring was late this year

Jack Milkin stood three doors down from Brianna’s house He liked Brianna She was one of the few people who seeo out of her way to notice him and be nice to him Mostly he felt invisible, but not when she was around He’d been interested in her for a long time, but was always reluctant to ask her out He knew she didn’t date one out with but it never lasted

Jack figured he could make it last if she would just let him try

So he’d been trying to learn everything he could about her so he could please her Soon, he had promised himself, he would ask her out for a movie or dinner Some safe little date If she said yes, then he’d set about proving just how good he could be for her If she didn’t say yes, well, he’d find another way

But now a strange man had just been invited into her house A wrinkle Coht he knew nearly everything about her, but she had sees he knew about Bri

He approached her house at last, and when he was sure no one could see, he clih her attic vent From up here, he could see what he needed to see and hear what he needed to hear

The attic was empty, but it was not too cold Heat from the house seeped up here She neededto offer to put it in

Being quiet as a mouse, he eased toward the voices that drifted up to hi, looking through a tiny hole he had put there One for each room Stretched out, he could watch Bri He could hear Bri

He could find out everything about her life and all the ways he could please her

Bri faced Luke in the living room Naturally he’d settled on the sofa That was his expansive style She took the Boston rocker, safely across from him The silence that ensued would have been funny if it hadn’t been so tense He’d wanted to talk, and now had nothing to say She couldn’t think of anything, either She’d never expected to see hi in her