And they say that time flies. Actually, it rockets.

The four days between the rehearsal dinner that Annie was now attending, and that clubbing night, had passed in a blink of an eye. It was four days of scrambling to get the peach napkin and purple carnation orders right, ensuring the caterers were all still booked and ready. It was four days of avoiding Grayson every chance she had, even as he seemed intent on the complete opposite – intent on talking to her and seeing her as much as it was humanly possible, for some reason.

The other day, he’d actually shown up at her place with coffee, and a claim that he wasn’t a hundred percent sure that the final napkin design (horizontal lines of peaches instead of randomly spaced peaches) was up to snuff. It was a claim that a two-minute conversation sorted out (yep, horizontal peaches were a-ok).

Anyway, now here she was, stuck at this boring-ish rehearsal dinner.

Annie shovelled mashed potatoes into her mouth, frowning at her ungrateful thoughts. It wasn’t Kyla’s fault that the priest had been an hour late – making them have to wait, sprawled out in pews, actually driven to flip through the hymn books for entertainment. They were bored out of their minds , and it was her decision to sit beside Jermaine, of all people. He’d been texting her practically nonstop the past few days, and she still wasn’t sure what to make of it.

Although he had, at least, toned down on the over-the-top flirting.

“You a big reader, then?” he asked, as soon as he’d latched onto the fact that she was reading Anna Karenina.

“I guess,” Annie shrugged. It was a good way to pass time between shifts at work, and it made her feel a bit less guilty about watching Netflix.

“You want to be a writer, or something?”

There was something in his insistent, too-blue gaze that Annie didn’t like. But she smiled placidly, nonetheless. Smile and laugh when in doubt. “No, I like my job.”

“A nurse, right?”

She laughed. Smile and laugh when in doubt. “Right.”

Jermaine grinned like he’d just won the lottery. “So what do I get for remembering?” he asked.

Annie gazed evenly at him, her heart jumping. Was he actually suggesting...

“What do you propose?”

Another one of those hell-yeah grins. He swept a many-ringed hand out the door, “To the balcony.”

Annie accepted his proffered arm, “To the balcony.”

As they swept by, Grayson’s eyes followed her. He had a stunning blonde next to him, gabbing away, but seemed unaware of it, at least right now.

Annie grinned, mouthing ‘Thanks’, then giggled at whatever Jermaine said. Smile and laugh when in doubt.

Right now, she felt tingly, like she could take flight into the air. The wine didn’t hurt, nor did the sense that she was on the edge of something.

As soon as they stepped onto the balcony, Jermaine made an impressed sound.

Annie couldn’t blame him, either; its fully marble surface reflected the moonlight perfectly. Under the definition of ‘romantic’, there’d probably be a picture of this balcony with that starry night sky.

He led them to the railing. “Those stars sure are something,” he said.

Although he wasn’t looking at them; he was looking at her.

Annie remember Grayson stare back when she was leaving. It’d been like hands stroking up and down her body.

She smiled. Wearing her silky blue dress, the one that had been formerly relegated to the back of her closet since she’d never felt quite right wearing it, had definitely been a good choice. Sure, it had taken an internal battle of about twenty minutes or so as she paced in front of her full-length mirror at home, and finally asking Kyla’s opinion via Snapchat, but she’d done it.

“I made you something.”

As he held out a folded sheet of paper to her, Jermaine’s voice contained none of the hey-girl swagger it had that first night they’d met.

Her eyes met his, questioningly, but all she could see in their black orbs was the reflection of the moon.

Then, she unfolded the paper.

It was a drawing. Of her. Annie. But one she could never have even imagined of herself, let alone hoped for. Her eyes were luminous and excited, her mouth a whisper of a genuine smile. The depiction could have been drawn only by someone who...

Annie looked up and read it in his eyes. Truly liked her.

Gone was the macho up-jut chin and squinted eyes of a man in “game mode”. Jermaine, here, hadn’t given her this drawing just to get in her pants. On the contrary, he genuinely liked her. Just from that one club encounter and a few days of texting, too.

“You like it?” he asked.

And something about his question told her that it wasn’t all that he was asking. Behind him, the moon hung low, too bright.

There were a multitude of answers to his question, all but the truth, which was dawning on Annie more by the minute.

“I do,” she said slowly, smiling. “But I have to go.”

And then, she did. Never had she hurried to the bathroom faster. Her head was spinning, with no thought being able to land.

Inside, she stood in the stall with the picture in her hands. This sudden change was uncanny – from excitement to avoidance. There was a snap judgment brought on by a snap realization.

Jermaine actually liked her – and that was the last thing she wanted.

She smiled thinly. You know what they say about hindsight.

Now that she thought about it, in the beginning she’d been unwillingly drawn not to him, but the idea he represented – a no-strings fling. She had already been nearly broken by love gone wrong and she didn’t need another incident. Right now, as much as time had passed, another serious relationship was the last thing she needed.

She just needed to get out of this dating rut and have a fling instead. Then she could worry about trusting men and herself again.

When she left the salmon-colored stall, she stopped in front of the mirror. There, her carefully mauve-lipped reflection smiled weakly at her, knowing all too well what she had to do.

Sure enough, just outside the bathroom, he was waiting for her.

“Hey,” his attempt at a smile fell flat. “Was the picture that bad? I can do it again, if you want.”

“No, not at all.” Annie clasped the picture to her chest, daring to look him in the eye. “It’s beautiful.”

He nodded, his eyes holding the question that remained. What is it, then?

Annie took a breath, “I’m flattered, really. But I don’t think I’m in a good place to be with someone.”

She left before she could see her words land. She felt guilty enough without seeing how dejected or pissed he would be now.

Anyway, she had done the right thing. It was only kind to let him down like that now, not hurting him in the long run. Right?

If they’d have hooked up and then Annie would have pulled away when he would real feelings for her, it would’ve been much worse for him.

At least that was what she told himself as she went back to the room where some people were still eating. Annie wasn’t about to sit down, considering if Jermaine plopped down beside her, all mopey, it would be a recipe for disaster. Instead, she’d been drawn to this room for something else, or maybe someone else.

Back at the long table of diners, Grayson was finished his food, still half-heartedly into the conversation with the stunning blonde. His gaze was plastered on hers.

Do it, I dare you.

She strode towards him, not knowing what she’d do or say when she got there.

As it so happened, the music in the ballroom started up just as she arrived.

“Want to dance, wedding planner?” she asked, her gaze still on his.

He smiled, raised his brows. “It would be my pleasure, wedding planner.”

They were the first two on the dance floor, but Annie didn’t mind. Right now, she had one bold idea and three glasses of liquid courage in her belly to carry it out. Not to mention, butterflies of arousal were flurrying down every inch of her veins, like they were a busy highway. What was it about Grayson that got her all riled up in all the good and bad ways?

Do it, I dare you.

“You look like you have something to say,” Grayson commented, eyeing her as he conveyed her into a spin.

“Got me,” she swallowed. Was she actually going to do this?

His clasp on her arms was so... sturdy, so certain. His aftershave was gripping her as close as she wished he would.

“I was thinking,” she said, “We work well together.”

A smile trickled on his face, “Never thought I’d see the day.”

“Don’t let it go to your head,” she said, instinctively.

His brows rose, “Too late.”

But that wasn’t all.

“Just made me think,” she continued, “We’d work together well other places too...”

His grip tightened on her, edging her so close that she was pressed to him tightly. Now his gaze seemed very interested. “Such as?”

Do it, I dare you.

She lifted her gaze to look at him head-on.

“Such as your bed... or mine. Doesn’t really matter.”