"So, what's it gonna be Sam. You know I love you staying here and all, but you're going to have to make a decision about Jason. I know this limbo is killing you. And I'm getting tired of Jason's unending texts and calls. He is freaking out," Anne said as she refilled my wine glass. I had been staying at her place for almost a week. I hadn't seen or spoken to Jason the entire time, and he had been doing as I had asked by leaving me alone. I had received one text from him three days after I had walked out. I had told him I was with Anne and not to call me. He hadn't, but he was blowing up her phone trying to get expert advice from my best friend.
"I don't know. I'm considering my options but can't decide. Do I forgive and forget? I don't think I can. I'm still too pissed. And he works with her, so it's not like I can ask him to never see or speak to her again, and how could I trust him? Another option would be to leave him. Just get a divorce and try to move on. But I still love him, Annie. As pissed as I am right now, I still want him. And then there's the whole question of why the hell I was so turned on by his affair? I'm still confused about that." I sipped my wine and leaned back into the sofa, sighing.
"I can't tell you what to do. But I can take you out tonight. You've been moping, we've done the whole ice cream and wine thing. Now it's time to remember what it's like to have fun. Girl, go take a shower and don't come out of that bedroom until you are the drop dead gorgeous chica I've known since I was thirteen!" Anne tried to grab my wine glass, but I pulled it away and laughed.
"You know what? You're right. But I'm going to finish this in the shower." I slipped off the sofa and padded into the guest room that had become mine. I would have fun tonight, and I wouldn't think about Jason at all. One night out with my best friend, and I could make the tough decisions tomorrow.
* * *
I glanced around the beer garden as we stepped onto the patio. Anne had chosen a bar with indoor and outdoor seating, and the outdoor area was packed. A band played on a small raised stage in one corner, and criss-crossed strands of string lights gave the large garden a soft glow. Tables interspersed with outdoor furniture gave many seating options, and a few people danced near the band. A long row of lilac bushes along the back fence filled the space with the intoxicating scent of the flowers. My favorite flower. This would be nice.
"Find us a nice spot, I'll grab some drinks," Anne said, and headed for the outdoor bar. I was about to head to a small table in the corner when my eye caught on a man standing near the bar. My heart fluttered and my breath caught. It was my high school crush. I hadn't seen him in fifteen years. My freshman year I had met Corey, a senior, in study hall. He had an on again off again girlfriend, but that never stopped our flirting. We'd had a canceled date near the end of my freshman year, and then hadn't seen each other until two years later when he came home to visit. We carried on a long distance relationship for three short months when he broke up with me without warning. Long distance was too hard, he had said.
At that moment he looked up and caught my gaze. I held his eyes and smiled. He turned to the group he had been chatting with and excused himself. I stared as he walked toward me, floating on a buzz of wine and memories. He looked better than he had 15 years ago if that was possible. He was easily six foot three, with chiseled features and dark blond hair.
"Samantha?" He whispered when he reached me. I nodded, unable to speak. He was the one that I still had dreams about. The one that got away. I felt seventeen again.
"Hey." I said, and leaned toward him as he opened his arms to give me a hug. His hand pressed into the small of my back as my head touched his chest. Butterflies filled my belly as we separated. I felt his eyes run down my body briefly before locking onto mine again. This, I thought, is just what I needed tonight.
Anne showed up at that moment carrying two glasses of wine. She glanced between Corey and me and her eyes widened. "Corey, is that you? Oh, my God, what are you doing here?" She handed me my wine and I took a long sip, letting them do the talking.
Corey was in town for the weekend visiting a couple of friends from college. After a couple of minutes of chit chat, Anne turned to me, "I'll let you two catch up. I ran into a couple of my coworkers at the bar and I'm going to hang with them for a bit. Yell if you need me." And with that she was walking away, leaving me alone with Corey. I took another sip of wine.
"Come on, let's find a spot to sit, I can't believe I'm seeing you after fifteen years!" He led me to a small table in the corner near the lilac bushes.
