Page 91 of Falling Stars

BAYLEE

As we headfor the elevator, there’s a petite blonde coming toward us from the other entrance. I don’t recognize her right away because her sleek hair is in her face, but I’m immediately impressed with whatever conditioner she’s using. When she finally looks up, my heart drops.

I’ve always thought Nicole was beautiful, but tonight I’m worn out and slumming it in jeans, a t-shirt, and an old jacket while she’s decked out in an elegant peacoat over a slinky cocktail dress. She does a double-take when she sees us, and her eyes widen in delight.

“Oh my God. Mav!” She launches herself at him, nearly bumping into the stroller.

He winces as he stumbles backwards. “Hey, Nic. How’s it going?”

Nic? He calls her Nic?

“I heard you were back in town,” she says as she grabs his arm. “Are you visiting Chet too?”

“He lives in this building?”

“On the seventh floor.”

“That’s crazy.” Mav chuckles. “I’m one flight above him.”

“It’s such a small world.” She beams up at him. “How do you like living here? Isn’t this building amazing?”

“Yeah, we love it,” he says as he looks at me.

I blink back at him, expressionless.

“We?” she asks as she finally glances at me.

“Hi, Nicole.” I try to lift my lips into a semblance of a smile as I commandeer the stroller and push the button for the elevator.

“Oh, hey, Baylee,” she says as though she didn’t realize I was standing two feet away. “Are you staying with Mav now? That’s so sweet of him.”

The way she looks at me like I’m an orphan from a Dickens novel makes me want to throat-punch her.

Maverick coughs. “So… Nic. What have you been up to? Haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Not since that time you beat Clemson.” She lowers her voice into a sultry purr. “We had so much fun that night, didn’t we?”

So not only were they a thing in high school, they also fucked in college. Awesome. I hit the button again with more force than necessary.

“Uh… Yeah, I mean… It was a great game.” He stammers, and I can feel his eyes on me, which I studiously avoid.

She takes a step closer to him. “I’m teaching French at the high school now. I’ll be chaperoning students to Paris this summer.” Then she rattles off something in French, and I roll my eyes.

“That’s great,” he says.

Out of my peripheral vision, I watch her squeeze his biceps. “You know what? We’re going to be neighbors. I’m just about to close on a unit on the fifth floor.”

Sometimes, I really hate small towns.

“That’s cool,” he says.

Yes. So fucking cool.

I hit the button again and the elevator finally arrives. As soon as the doors open, I push Leo’s stroller in and turn around. Mav stands next to me, and Nicole moves to his other side. As I stare at the image of the three of us in the reflective doors, I feel like I’m looking at a crossroads. On one hand, Maverick could be with a woman like Nicole, whose family is loaded.

Then there’s me. I’m broke as fuck and homeless.

“Mav, would you like to stop by Chet’s place? I’m sure he’d love to see you,” she chirps as she fiddles with a long strand of hair.

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