Page 145 of She Wolf

Before I know it, the cab pulls to an abrupt stop, making me look up. There she stands—big, brown eyes, misty with unshed tears, trying to be brave for me. Knowing my only stipulation when coming here was that she wasn’t to treat me like I was made of glass, she’s honoring our agreement.

No longer the fragile, shell of a person I had been in the months before, a wide smile takes over my face at the sight of her.

As I open the door, she’s moving around to the driver’s side to pay the fare and asking him for help unloading my bags.

“Hey, don’t do that. I’ve got it!” I tell her, but she dismisses me, and the man quickly takes the money.

“Please, we’ll be here all day with you looking through all your secret compartments to get to the cash. Are you wearing your money belt today?”

My eyes widen and so does the smile on my face. “That was one time, and Dad brought it for me.”

She throws her arms around me in a bone-crushing hug. It’s so tight I can barely breathe, but still, I let myself sink into her arms because this is why I’m here: To be with Lex. To start living again.

“Hi, Pix. I missed you so much.” She squeezes even harder.

“Hi, Lexie. I missed you too,” I squeak out.

Realizing the death grip she has on me, she finally lets go on a giggle. “Right, come on. Let’s get off this street. It’s fucking boiling out here and you’ve got a lot to carry.”

She delicately takes my handbag off my shoulder and struts off. I watch her, glad she hasn’t changed a bit, while I fight with my cabin bag and suitcases. A very smartly dressed gentleman, who I assume is one of the doormen, comes to my aid and rolls the cases for me.

The wide glass doors are held open by a younger but no less neatly put together man, who welcomes me into a very elegant lobby, the air-conditioning doing a good job of cooling my hot skin. We catch up to Lex at the lifts and get in. Once at her floor—my floor now, too—I follow to apartment 8E. I haven’t been to this place yet, as she moved in here after my last visit.

She flings the door open, and I’m hit with the sweet scent of vanilla.

Yep, Alexa Woods lives here.

The apartment is bright due to the large windows that let in lots of light. They aren’t floor to ceiling as we’re a little too low down in the building, but they do a good job of flooding the space with sunshine.

Decorated in pale, calming greys with high ceilings and white paint work, expensive-looking throw pillows in an assortment of mint greens and pale blues clutter a grey sofa, and black and white prints of the skyline and various places in the area are hung on the walls. It’s very cool in here, meaning she must have the air cranked up high. I know this also means that it won’t last long because as soon as the sun starts to set, she’ll think it’s gotten too cold and turn it off.

“Right,” she huffs, placing my tiny cross-body bag down like she just carried all my luggage with one hand.

“I’m so glad you’re here.” She claps in excitement and then turns to the doorman.

“Frank, this is Pixie. She’s my best friend and she lives here now. Thank you for helping with the cases.”

“No problem, Miss Alexa.” He turns to me. “Welcome to the building, Miss… Pixie?”

“Oh no, you don’t have to call me that. My real name is Anna, and thanks for your help.”

“Oh, okay. Then you’re very welcome, Miss Anna. Anything you need, you can just come see me or Eric. Over the week you’ll get to meet Julia and Tom too. Have a good rest of your day.” Smiling, he nods toward Lex and leaves, closing the door behind him.

Within moments, she’s in the kitchen, rifling through the fridge and pouring two very large glasses of gin and tonic, loaded up with enough ice cubes to give you a brain freeze.

Wearing a red bandana wrapped around her head like a headband, a long white t-shirt, jean shorts, and silver flip flops adorning her feet, she shouts at the Alexa speaker to play the soundtrack to ‘Clueless’.

I motion to the speaker. “Doesn’t that get confusing, having the same name?”

“Nah. I think it’s funny.”

I’ve smiled more in the last twenty minutes than I have in a long time. I let go of another deep breath I didn’t realize I was holding. She walks over to me, passing me one of the drinks, ‘Kids of America’ playing in the background, and stares me straight in the eye.

“You did it, Pix. You got on that plane. You’ll never forget them, and you’ll always love them, but I’m positive this was the right thing for you. Mainly because you’re with me, and we all know how great I am…” She smiles at her own joke and sips her drink.

“You’ll get a new job, I’ll show you more of this amazing city that we dreamed of when we were teenagers, and we’ll laugh and cry and work through it all together, okay? This is where you will heal and find yourself again. I just know it.”

I nod, tears threatening both our eyes as she continues. “I loved them, so much. They were my second family. But I know they would want you to do this for yourself. Let’s find our Pixie again, or at least a new version of her.”

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