“Are you ready to go?” Lewis asked, bending down to tie his shoe. “Ready as I’ll ever be,” Kendall said, tightening the strap on her helmet. “Then, let’s head to the park,” he said, straightening and putting his skateboard on the pavement. Kendall followed suit, and they kicked off. She followed him as he led the way to the park. Skating down the sidewalk, they weaved in and out of pedestrians, excusing themselves as they did. Finally reaching the park, they made their way toward the skating area, where some guys were already using it. “Hey, Lewis!” one of them called out. “Who’s the babe?” Lewis skidded to a stop. Kendall pulled up next to him with a scowl on her face. “Hey, Tony, watch your mouth,” Lewis told him, scowling. “This is my friend, Kendall, and if you’re not careful, she’s going to skate rings around you.” Tony looked contrite and muttered an apology. “Sorry,” he said, looking down at the ground. “It’s just that we never see Lewis bring a girl he
When Addy arrived at work that day, everyone seemed to be in a hurry as they rushed around the building. “What’s going on?” she asked another intern, who shook her head and hurried away. “There you are! Where have you been?” Addy turned to see Lydia storming toward her with a thunderous look. “I just got here,” Addy said, confused. “I’m here at my normal time.” Lydia shook her head and said, “Never mind that. Just follow me. We have an emergency to handle.” Confused, Addy followed Lydia into an office where Barto and three other people waited. “It’s about time you showed up,” Barto said, scowling at Lydia. His scowl faded as he saw Addy. A slow smile crossed his face as he looked at her. “But I see you have brought me the new talent,” he said, staring at Addy. “Wonderful idea.” Sighing, Lydia rolled her eyes and said, “I would have been here sooner, but I had to wait for Allison to arrive.” “Addison,” Addy murmured. “Whatever,” Lydia said, rolling her eyes a
After playing soccer for a few hours, the game broke up. Going over to the side of the field, Shea rooted through her bag for a small towel to wipe the sweat from her face. “Good hustle out there,” Troy said as he came up beside her. “Thanks,” she said, smiling at him. “If only there were a way to run around and play without getting so sweaty.” “I didn’t think ladies like you sweated,” he said, teasing her. “I thought you glowed.” She laughed at him and shook her head. “Nope, this is one hundred percent genuine sweat,” she said, putting her towel down and taking out her water bottle. Opening it, she took a few swallows, then asked, “How often do you do this?” “I tend to come here every week,” he said, taking out his water bottle and opening it. “Impressive,” she said, nodding. “I may have to join you. I had fun today.” He smiled at her and said, “I’d like that.” She smiled back at him and said, “Me too.” After a moment, he cleared his throat and said, “Didn’t
“You will never believe what happened to me at work today,” Addy said when she walked in the door. Silence greeted her. She looked around at the empty apartment and sighed. “Hello?” she called out. “Anyone home?” The apartment remained silent. Shrugging, she kicked her shoes off and said, “I guess I’m talking to myself, then.” Picking up her shoes, she hobbled into her bedroom to change her clothes. She sat in the chair wearing her pajamas when Brooklyn came home from her shift at the coffee shop. Addy soaked her sore feet in a tub of warm, sudsy water, had cucumber slices over her eyes, and her earbuds in her ears. After taking her shoes and apron off, Brooklyn padded toward Addy and softly called out, “Can you hear me? Are you awake?” Addy didn’t stir at first, but when Brooklyn drew closer, she reached up and removed the cucumber slices from her eyes. Seeing her roommate, she tugged the earbuds from her ears and stepped out of the soaking tub onto the towel sh
Brooklyn and Addy stared at Shea after telling them she’d spent the day playing soccer in the park with Troy. Brooklyn spoke first, shaking her head and asking, “Troy? The new guy downstairs? That Troy?” Shea grinned and nodded her head. “That shameless guy who flirted with all of us at the welcome party?” Addy asked, her nose wrinkled. “That Troy?” Shea nodded once more and said, “He’s really not that bad once you spend time with him and get to know him.” Addy shook her head and said, “I don’t know. He seemed pretty douchy to me.” Shea shook her head and said, “He was a perfect gentleman with me today. In fact, we made plans to go out to dinner next weekend.” Brooklyn looked at her with her eyebrows raised. “So, do we have another building romance, then?” she asked. Shea grinned and glanced away before she shrugged and said, “I don’t know right now.” “Speaking of building romances, I wonder how Kendall and Lewis are doing?” Addy mused. “That’s right!” Shea sa
“May I speak to Lydia, please?” Addy asked into her phone nervously, bringing her finger to her mouth. Shaking her head, she put her hand down and frowned as she listened. “And who may I say is calling?” the receptionist asked. “Let her know it’s… Allison,” she said, closing her eyes. The receptionist placed her on hold to see if Lydia would take her call. Addy waited, pacing the floor of her bedroom. After what felt like forever, Addy finally heard, “This is Lydia. What do you want, Allison?” Clearing her throat, Addy took a deep breath before saying, “I want to talk to you about what you know about Barto attacking young women. I think you know a little something about that.” Addy heard silence on the other end for so long she thought Lydia had hung up. She was about to ask if Lydia was still on the line when she heard a sigh. “Meet me at the cafe around the corner from the studio at four,” Lydia told her. Then the line went dead. Addy pulled the phone away f
“This club is jumping!” Addy said over the music. Nodding, Brooklyn said, looking around at the inside of the club and said, “The review looks promising.” “I’ll drink to that!” Shea said, holding up her drink. “Same!” Kendall called out, raising her glass. The four women clinked their glasses together before taking a drink. “Also, let’s toast to how fine we all look in our new outfits,” Shea said, stepping back from the table to pose. “Here, here!” Addy called out, raising her glass. They all took another drink. “I’d also like to propose a toast to getting the word out there about Barto,” Brooklyn said, leaning toward her friends to be heard. “Here, here!” Addy called out, raising her glass. After they had taken another drink, Addy put down her glass and said, “I’m happy that Lydia could get more witnesses for the article as well.” Brooklyn nodded and said, “When news of the article broke, more women contacted Bonnie to tell their stories. I don’t think he’l
Brooklyn turned to Steve with wide eyes, and her mouth dropped open. “You have a girlfriend?” she asked. He shifted from side to side and reached up to rub the back of his head. “Well, we’re not really together right now,” he said. After a stunned pause, Brooklyn said, “Either you are, or you aren’t. There is no really not in this case.” When he didn’t respond, she shook her head. “You know what?” she asked. “I’m not playing that game tonight. I came here to have fun with my friends. Not get suckered by a guy who can’t keep it in his pants. Get lost, jerk.” “But Brooklyn, it’s not like that,” Steve said, trying to explain himself. Brooklyn shook her head and said, “No, I don’t want to hear anything more from you.” She turned around, putting her back to him. Picking up her drink, she drained the cup. Turning to him, she gave him the glass, saying, “Thanks for the drink.” He took the glass, then looked at her for a moment. She turned back to the table, staring