“You can’t be serious! You’re not going back there!” Hannah says, pacing the floor of our apartment. Moonlight is shining in from the floor-to-ceiling windows, and even in this state, I have to admit that the view is the thing I like most about the place. Hannah is wearing Barney pajamas, of all things, and has put her hair into pigtails. I swear she looks like a big-eyed Angelica from the kids’ cartoon Rugrats.

Our grumpy looking cat, Mr. Felix, an orange and white Persian who adopted us when we were seniors in college, lazily watches her pace the room from his perch on the couch. I’m sure to him, his only concern about all of this is whether he’s going to have to get strict when it comes time for his humans to put out his food in the morning.

“Why not?” I demand. “I have his wallet. He’s gonna think I stole it.”

Hannah stops to scowl at me. “Honey, by now, he already thinks you stole it! Because, well, you did.”

“I did not!” I protest. “I just didn’t realize I’d stuffed it in my purse in my panic to leave.”

Her words sink in, and I feel a feeling of despair creep through me. “There must be something I can do. I can’t keep his wallet. The longer I have it, the guiltier I’ll look.”

Hannah nods. “There is. Just go by Monday and turn it in to the club. Or better yet, mail it to the guy. You have his address, assuming his driver’s license is up to date.”

“Wait,” I say. “Let me look him up.” I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. Taking out his wallet, I pull out his license and see that it’s out of state, which makes me worry. But I have his full name, and I type it into Google on my phone.

The first headline makes my eyes go wide, and I jump so hard I nearly drop the phone. Corporate Executive And Stock Wizard Opens Club Jasmine. I click the link and see that most of it is a PR piece that was published just yesterday. My heart hammers in my chest as I read about how the two friends came together to open up Club Jasmine and how they wanted to make a new type of nightclub for the city. But the photo catches my attention more. It’s the same face, the same piercing eyes that captured me earlier tonight. He’s standing in the picture with the same guy who accosted me in the hallway.

“Oh, my God, he owns the club with his friend. That’s the same guy I saw in the hallway.”

“Let me see.” Hannah grabs the phone. “Shit, you weren’t lying. Mr. Jake Stone is sexy as hell. He’s got those looks and money. Life ain’t fair.”

“Yeah, not fair that he passed out before I could ride him to heaven and back,” I complain.

Hannah stares at the article for a little more, then hands my phone back to me. “That pretty much seals it. You’re not going back there. There’s no way they’d believe your story. You’ll just be some gold digger in their eyes.”

“Hey!” I protest, hurt. “I’m not a gold digging skank!” She’s right, though, and I feel horrible. I wish there were something I could do. But now I’m too afraid.

Not to mention my body is all sorts of mixed up with my hormones going in so many different directions that I can’t focus at all. I’m horny, scared, angry, and even a little bit hungry. “I can’t believe I was about to sleep with the owner of the club,” I say to myself. “Why did he pretend like he wasn’t some big shot?”

“Who knows? Don’t worry, chica,” Hannah says, coming over to wrap an arm around me in a sweet embrace. “Everything’s going to be all right.”

Right then, my phone buzzes and I glance down. Tears come to my eyes as I feel a tug in my heart. “It’s Mindy,” I say. “Not sure why she’s calling this late.”

“My cue to go to bed then,” Hannah says, delivering a kiss to my forehead before getting up. “Answer it and tell her all about the night. Considering how crazy you both are, I bet she has a story to one-up you. Just save some of the Cherry Garcia for me. I know how you get when you start talking with your sister.”

Hannah goes to leave, but before she can totally leave, I call out. “Hannah?”

She turns around, her hand on the door jamb to her bedroom. “Yeah?”

“Thank you for being here for me. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Probably actually end up killing guys to get your needs met,” Hannah says. “And you’d probably have the freezer stocked with those dick-shaped popsicles that have sweet cream filling.”

I scowl, my lip curling. “That’s disgusting.”

“Just joking!” Hannah says, trying to smirk before sticking out her tongue. When that doesn’t work, she sighs melodramatically. “Enjoy your talk with Mindy. Goodnight.”

Hannah disappears into her bedroom area, and for a split second I debate on answering the phone. But when I think about how long it’s been since I last talked to her, I press the button.

“Hi, Mindy!” I answer as I would any other time.

“Hey, Roxy! How's it going?” My sister's voice comes through the phone cheery and upbeat.

I don’t want to rain on her parade, and I don’t want to get her worried. “Great. How’s things for you and the fam?”

“Really? That’s good. I didn’t know if you’d still be up. I know you're wondering why I’m calling this late, but I finally got some downtime from handling Leah and thought I'd call you and leave you a voicemail.”

I smile, thinking about Leah. The spitting image of Mindy if you shrank her down and made her chubbier and cute, she’s the darling of everyone in the family. And with a new generation of women in the family, Grandma finally feels like she’s accomplished nearly everything that a woman could ask for. She’s cute as a button, and if she’s anything like her mother or her aunt, Mindy’s going to have her hands full.

“How's my favorite little niece doing?” I ask. “Still wrapping every man she meets around her little finger?”

“Of course. She’s starting to talk more, and I’m trying to take her out so she can make friends with other kids her age,” Mindy says. “It's crazy keeping up with them.”

“That's wonderful. I wish I could see her.” That's one of the things I regret about living far away from family. I have missed out on the important moments.

“I wish so too,” Mindy says wistfully. “You know, Oliver asks about you all the time. I think he thinks of you as our good luck charm, or maybe the sister he never had.”

I hold my tongue because she’s right. I feel like I somehow, in a weird, fucked up way, had a hand in getting them together. And some of my favorite memories of the past few years have been with Mindy and Oli. “How's work?” Mindy asks.

“Stressful,” I admit. “I work an insane number of hours, but I’m still learning and it’s getting easier. I’m getting a promotion, though.”

“You are? That's wonderful!” Mindy says earnestly. “I knew you could do it. Are you excited?”

“I am,” I say halfheartedly. “I start Monday.”

Mindy’s quiet for a moment, and when she speaks again, her voice is soft, worried. “Is everything all right, Roxy?”

“I’m fine,” I say. “Just tired.”

“Don't lie to me. I can hear it in your voice,” Mindy says. “Spill it.”

For a moment, I debate on telling her the truth. It’s not that I think she’d judge me, but maybe it’s just a little too soon.

“Come on, Roxy,” Mindy presses. “I'm not going to give up until you tell me. If I have to, I’ll fly Oliver out there to start poking around, and you know how he is!”

I let out a sigh. “Fine. As long as you promise not to laugh. I’m sure I’ll think it’s funny later on, but it scared me shitless.”

“Deal. I’d pinky swear, but this is the phone.”

Smiling at the old joke a little, I tell her everything about the creep and Mr. Heartstopper.

“Holy shit, that's crazy!” Mindy says when I’m done. “I bet that creeper tried to spike your drink!”

“He . . . holy shit, you’re right!” I say, impressed that Mindy thought of it. I should have thought of it too, honestly. “Still, I feel like hell. I shouldn’t have even gone, but gawd, babe, it’s been so hard. I haven’t had a lot of time for myself, and I just wanted this one night to relax, release, and have fun.” A lump forms in my throat as the words leave my lips. “I miss being the Roxy who sang her ass off for you.”

Sympathy flows in Mindy’s voice. “Oh, baby, don't be so hard on yourself. I know how you feel. I went through the same thing working at Beangal’s. God, I was so burned out, and that was a place that was literally bought just for me to run. So I totally understand. There was nothing wrong with your going out to relax.”

The tears threaten to flow from my eyes. “Mindy . . .”

“You know what? I think it's time for a visit,” Mindy adds. “You got a bestie, I know that, but nobody can get you back to normal like me.”

“I don't know . . .” I begin, but Mindy laughs.

“I mean for us to come visit you. We might have some sister time to remind you who the real baddest bitch in the family is, but this would be for the whole family. I want to see how you're living, you can have some baby time, and hell, I’ll even let your roomie drool all over Oliver for a few.”

It would be nice to see my family again. I need to see my new niece and nephew. “When would that be?”

“Not sure with the business and all,” Mindy says with a smirk in her voice. “And I think I’ll let it be a surprise anyway.”

“After tonight, I don’t think I can deal with too many surprises,” I admit, and Mindy chuckles. “I’m serious, Min.”

“I know, babe, I know. I was just yanking your leg. Listen, let me check the schedule and I’ll get back with you. We’ll probably be there within a month. How’s that sound?”

“Good,” I admit. “I can hang on until then.”

There’s a silence, and Mindy speaks again. “What about singing, Roxy? I mean, you always felt better when you had a mic in your hand and were belting out something.”

“I guess . . . it’s hard, Min. I mean, what’s the point? I wasted a lot of my time on that as it is.”

“I didn’t say make it a career,” Mindy says gently. “I said sing. Sing for you, sing for your heart. Hell, just go to some karaoke bar and sing for the crowd there.”

“Maybe,” I admit, thinking about it. She has a point. Maybe I just need to do it for fun. “We’ll see.”

“Yeah, well . . .” Mindy says, sighing. “You be safe, okay? And I’m calling you Monday. You can tell me about your new job. I love you, Roxy.”

“Love you too, Mindy. Bye.”

After Mindy hangs up, I let out a deep sigh. It was nice talking to my sister, but damn, I’ve got a lot on my plate. Having a new boss coming in is stressing me a little. I was finally getting used to things. But now, I’m going to have this Jake Stone nightmare in the back of my mind.

I pick up Jake’s driver’s license from the table and stare at it before I set it down on the table and sigh, getting up. “He’s handsome, isn't he, Mr. Felix?” I ask.

Mr. Felix does nothing, practically glaring at me. He probably wants the darkness, and I’m keeping him from his beauty sleep.

I chuckle, walking over to the light switch to get ready for bed. Tonight may have been a nightmare, but something tells me my dreams are gonna be anything but. Just as I flick the switch, I see his ID on the table again and blow it a little kiss. “Goodnight. See you in my dreams.”