Page 3 of Twenty Years Later

"But I don't even have a dress," I realized, mentally rifling through my suitcase for the writers' conference I was mentoring at this weekend.

Kaileen pointed to an upscale outdoor shopping center nearby. "See that? I'll go there and get a head start shopping while you have your coffee with Mr. Hot and Popular. Then you can meet me there. Okay?"

Nodding, I released a pent-up breath.

"You can do this, Jayda. God knows, you really need this. After everything you've been through, you deserve to have a little fun. Just remember who you arenowand not that teenage girl you used to be. Okay?"

I nodded again as she shoved me forward in the direction of Alex, who was sitting at a small table near the back.

"Wait," she whispered, making me pause. "Should I make an appointment with a hair-ripper?"

"Excuse me? What?"

Her eyes traveled up and down my body. "You know, to get things taken care of, just in case."

I felt my face turning crimson at the thought of what she was not so subtly implying. "No! I just went a few days ago as a little splurge before this trip. Besides,thatis not going to happen."

"You never know," she said, wiggling her eyebrows at me.

I laughed, shaking my head at my crazy friend. "You are unbelievable."

She pushed me back toward Alex, saying, "You go get that fine specimen of a man."

Chapter Two

Jayda

"Hey," he said, smiling as I approached.

"Hey." Why was I so out of breath?

I sat down across from him, the morning sun blaring through the window, illuminating our faces. His nose looked like it had been broken at some point, and he had a small scar above his forehead, all just adding to his sexiness.

So not fair. Why did men have to age so well?

"You look the exact same as you did in high school," he said.

Was he serious? "Thank you?"

His eyes lit up as he chuckled. "That's supposed to be a compliment."

"Oh, well, thanks then." I paused. "I was pretty dorky in high school, so I wasn't sure."

Alex's laugh rang out again. "You werenotdorky. And you're certainly not dorky now."

That laugh was contagious, and I felt myself relax just a little. But the teenager in my mind still screamed, "I'm having coffee with Alex Hernandez!"

"So," he said, observing me over the rim of his coffee cup. "You'll go with me to the reunion?"

Inhaling a deep breath, I answered, "Sure."

His eyes narrowed. "And why don't you sound very enthusiastic about it?"

I hesitated a moment, thinking about how to articulate my fears.

"Is it because you don't want to go?" he asked. "Or is it because you don't want to go withme?"

Be still, my beating heart. Alex Hernandez thought I didn't want to go withhim? Oh, the irony. As he watched me, I tried to conjure up some kind of answer in my swirling head. "Well, first of all, it's notyou. I just..."

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