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The sound of the front door opening and closing, followed by heavy booted steps has me holding my breath. I can’t help but be anxious, but thankfully I exhale when Dante, Knox's older brother, walks in. Disappointment filled me, but at the same time, relief.
He stops at the entrance of the room and gives a cursory nod to no one in particular and we all kind of nod back or mumble his name like Kylie does.
Dante was never part of our little group here, so I'm surprised to see him. And so is Kylie if her reaction is anything to go by. The girl practically clutches her pearls, so to speak.
He is Knox’s brother and where Knox is light Dante is dark. Dark hair, eyes, and personality if I remember well. He is older than us and graduated before our year, but I remember him being dark and brooding.
He is the only one of us rather smartly dressed in a black suit. And from what I hear from my mother’s grapevine has done very well for himself in the real estate business. I’m guessing he is here for his interest in the property.
I close my eyes and roll my neck trying to relieve some of the tension. A sixth sense puts my body on alert, and I open my eyes as Asher Stoll comes walking in from the kitchen.
Chapter Two
ASHER
Iknew she’d be here.
Arriving after the others and seeing Jaxson, Knox, Madison, and Kylie already here, I knew Samantha would be included in the people requested for the reading of Mrs. Kendall’s will.
As I walk back into the living room, however, I’m not prepared for my reaction to seeing her.
Damn, she looks good.
It’s like she has just woken up after a long rough ride in bed, with her eyes closed, mouth ajar, and head thrown back as she slowly rolls her neck. She still looks like an angel, even after all these years.
I force my eyes away from her and try to shift my focus to anything else in the room. Otherwise, I’m going to have to shift something else a little farther south if I don’t. Fuck, I feel like a nervous teenager all over again.
Many of us haven’t seen each other much, or at all, since high school, so this is a bit of a bittersweet reunion of sorts.
Knox claps me on the back as I take a seat beside him. I already greeted the others earlier, except for Dante, who only just arrived.
When I first saw Knox, we hugged like long-lost brothers. He always was a good buddy I could depend on back in the day, but we ended up not staying in contact enough.
“We might finally have something to keep you coming back here once in a while,” he says, nodding toward Samantha. He probably noticed my reaction just now.
“I doubt that, but it’s good to see you, Knox. I keep telling you to come visit me in Chicago, but you don’t call, you don’t write,” I joke as I turn to Jaxson, who walks up to us and takes the seat next to me.
Jaxson and I did the whole shoulder bump and hug thing when we greeted each other earlier. “How’s it going, Mr. Big Chef?” I asked, messing with him. “I tried dropping your name at your restaurant in New York, but they told me I still have to make a reservation months ahead of time to get in. I was hurt, man. I thought our relationship meant something.”
My mocking tone caused us both to burst out into a fit of laughter. “Yeah right, Mr. Super Bowl Championship Winner. You know they would let you right in if you actually had shown up at my restaurant. But remember to call me when you do,” he said and handed me his new number.
When I went to greet the girls, I gave Kylie a quick sister-like hug and a smile, but Madison grabbed and squeezed my arms before I could give her one. “God, Asher, you got huge! What kind of drugs are you pumping these days?” she asked brashly.
“Gee, nice to see you, too, loudmouth. I see some things never change,” I told her.
It was great to see them all. But secretly, I was looking out for Samantha the whole time. But now that I’m sitting right across the room from where she’s sharing a two-seater sofa with Madison, I have to make a conscious effort to not look at her.
It’s been years, but as I glance at her now, the anger I felt about how our relationship ended has come back with a vengeance.
To add salt to the wound, she looks so cute with her blonde hair up in a messy ponytail. It just amplifies the whole freshly-fucked languid look she has going on right now. I know it’s probably jet lag, but it’s a good look for her.
She’s wearing tight blue jeans and a light pink blouse. A very crumpled-up blouse. Like she didn’t pack her luggage properly to prevent that from happening.
Something about seeing her uncomfortably trying to smooth the material down every now and again, and being a bit out of sorts, gives me some satisfaction, no matter how petty it might be. It would royally piss me off if she showed up looking perfect after all these years.
Especially after what happened between us.
Our breakup left me with a poor impression of women for a while. The way she cut me out of her life, and accused me of cheating, showed me just how crazy emotional women could get. It’s thanks to her that I’ve known to avoid the drama of relationships ever since then.
