Cancun, Mexico 27 Months Ago I'm already awake when the alarm goes off. I silence it immediately. Finn's still asleep, and I don't want to wake her. I need time alone before we leave for the airport.

I get out of bed and throw on a long sundress. Then I creep across the room to my suitcase. The sound of the zipper is louder than I'd antic.i.p.ated. I check on Finley to make sure she hasn't woken up. She hasn't, so I slide my hand down the wall of packed clothes until my fingers brush against the velvet box. I tighten my hold on it and slip out of the room, closing the door gingerly behind me.

Outside, the tropical breeze carries the scent of last night's rain, but the sand beneath my feet is already dry. It's fitting, really, for my last day here. A bright new morning after the storm.

When I came, I had no other expectations than to enjoy some downtime away from home. Finley, of course, had her list for me, and last night when she bombarded me with it, I reluctantly crossed off seven of the ten items. I didn't get s.h.i.+t-faced. I didn't make out with a local. And I didn't do tequila shots off anyone's stomach. Those were the last three, and I think Finley hoped they'd all be accomplished in the same night when she created the list. Me, I'm glad they remain undone.

Neither Finley nor I expected that I'd be leaving Cancun with a new sense of freedom and maybe even a new purpose in life.

I stand at the water's edge, warmth cascading over my toes before receding back into the ocean. The sun is just peeking up over the horizon. It amazes me to think the same sun rises here as it does in the mountains of Kentucky. I'm under the same sky at roughly the same time, yet I feel so different. This morning's colors are shades of pink, purple, red, and yellow. They s.h.i.+ne bright in my head. I can't stop a.n.a.lyzing how to blend them on paper, but I'm not out here to draw. I'm out here to enjoy and to say goodbye.

I rotate the box in my hands, turning it corner over corner. I've held onto this token for too long. It represents five years of my life, and I think that's part of the reason I kept it. Five years is a long time to waste on a man who only took from me.

Starting today, he doesn't get any more of my time.

I don't look down when I open the lid and pull the ring out. Seeing it now, the connection I once had doesn't seem as strong. A gust sweeps past me, and I smile because the pain blows away with it too.

"So long," I say.

I throw the ring as far as I can out into the water. Then I turn and walk back to the hotel.

Finley and I board our plane back to the States. She's been texting Jake non-stop since he and Maverick flew out last night. She even disappeared to the bathroom for an hour, taking her phone with her. Two pillows over my head weren't enough to drown out the noises coming through the wall.

I haven't had a chance to break the news that I won't be returning to WKU with her this fall. I haven't told my family either, but honestly I'm more worried about how Finn will respond. Undoubtedly, Mom will be overjoyed, even though my absence will mean a larger financial strain. My sister could go either way.

"You didn't say goodbye to Jake, huh?" I ask when she finally pockets her phone.

She flicks her wrist. "It's a fling is all."

"Oh really? Flings usually end when the vacation ends."

"Like you and Maverick?"

I blow out a breath. "Yeah... About that."

I tell her about Maverick's idea as if it's still optional. Like I told him "maybe" instead of "okay." I don't know why I do it. She'll see through me in an instant.

"You said 'yes,' didn't you?" she asks.

I slump in my seat. "I said 'yes.' G.o.d, Finn. Tell me I'm not stupid. That this isn't completely crazy."

"Oh, well, you're not stupid, Ali, but this is completely crazy."

"I can still back out. I can tell him I didn't get accepted or something."

"You will do no such thing, woman. Yes, it's crazy, and I totally approve. So when do we have to have applications in?"

"Maverick said by the end of next month ... wait. Did you say we?"

Finley smirks, her face lighting up in sa.s.sy shade of pecan. "You didn't think I'd let you move that far away without me, did you? If you and Maverick go down in flames, you'll need me. I won't let you go back to black-and-white. Besides, Jake's there. He's pretty fun in bed."

"Hmm. Full circle back to Jake? I think someone's smitten."

"Smitten? Who are you, my grandma?"

"In love?" I sing, teasing her.

"I don't do the 'L' word with anyone but you, and I'm not going to start now."

"Have it your way," I say, grinning.

Bowling Green, KY "Do I have to transfer my transcript from West K? Can't I just remain a junior, but start over with cla.s.ses and grades?" Finley bites down on her thumbnail, her mischievous gaze s.h.i.+fting to my screen. "What did you put?"

"Yes, Finn. You have to check yes."

We're lying on my bed, filling out our online applications to J. Vernon University in southern Illinois. Cla.s.ses at WKU start up again tomorrow, and I still have computer science homework to finish.

"Told your mom yet?" she asks.

"Nope. Nothing to tell if I don't get accepted, right?"

"You? Not get accepted to any school on the planet? Maybe when polar bears wear hats."

I stare at her. "That's the dumbest a.n.a.logy ever."

"When torpedoes tap dance. When blueberries make good pie. When your sister stops listening to Taylor Swift."

"I stand corrected."

Finn rubs her temples. "Ah! Can you tell her turn it down? I get it: they're never getting back together. Now move on."

"Maybe you should tell her, because she didn't listen to me the first thousand times."

"Fourteen is the worst age ever. They don't listen to anybody."

"No comment."

"I listen to you."

"No, you don't. Now get back to your application ... and don't roll your eyes at me."

She stops mid-eye roll. "Yes, Mom." She types for a moment. "See, I listen to you."

After a minute, Finley's eyes wander to my screen again. "That's not art. That's computer science."

"It's also not your computer. Eyes on your own screen."

She blows a bubble with her gum, then looks back at my computer. "What page are you on?"

"The last one. You?"

She curls her upper lip. "What's my address again?"

Twenty-six months ago It's been two weeks since I last spoke with Maverick. He sounded stressed and exhausted then. Law finals plus job interviews sound close to impossible.

But now his name is lighting up on my screen. I shove Roxy, my sister's cat, off my lap and run to my bedroom.

"Hey, stranger," I answer, locking the door behind me.

"I've missed the sound of your voice."

I press my back against the door. "Just my voice, huh?"

"Your voice for starters. I also miss how your hair falls over your bare shoulders. I miss your lips. I miss your eyes." He lowers his voice. "Your b.r.e.a.s.t.s, and do you know how badly I want to be between your legs right now?"

"If you give me a sec, I'm sure I could imagine." I close my eyes. "Yep. I've got a picture in my mind. You are one happy, happy man down there."

Maverick groans. "You're killing me."

I cross the room and fall back onto my bed. "Want me to describe it to you?"

"Oh. f.u.c.k. Yes." He breathes into the phone. "But now's not a good time."

"Why not?"

He lowers his voice again. "I'm at my parent's house. Dinner party."

"Oooh. Does that mean you're wearing a suit?"

"And a tie."

"Spiffy." I prop pillows behind my back. "So what's the occasion?"

"I'm graduating from law school next week."

c.r.a.p.

"Oh, yeah. Next week ... already?"

Maverick chuckles. "It's okay, Jellysnack. Just say you forgot."

"I'm sorry. Stuff. Finals-more stuff."

"J. Vernon application?"

I glance at the calendar. It's been two months since Finley and I applied. "No word yet."

"I'm sure it'll be there soon."

"I'm not worried," I lie.

"Good. So..." He drags out the word. "We're kind of celebrating something else tonight too. My folks are. My dad's ... elated."

"Do lawyers get elated? Seems awfully colorful for vampires."

"Cute."

I snicker. "Blood suckers? Leeches? Ambulance chasers?"

"Did Finley make a list for you?"

"She likes lists."

Maverick pauses. "He did what he does: pulled some strings, and Sawyer and Brooks, P.C. offered me a job."

"Ah." I nod sympathetically. "Your dad's old firm, right?"

"It's a great opportunity."

"Wow. Next time say it like you mean it."

He breathes out a laugh. "It is. Just, you know, not how I wanted to secure a position at a firm."

"So you accepted?" I ask, surprised.

"Like I said, great opportunity."

"That's awesome, Maverick. Congratulations."

"Yeah, well. It doesn't mean anything until I pa.s.s the bar."

"You will."

"They're paying me to study. Can't ask for better than that. Hopefully soon I'll be able to get my own place, because Jake and Finley's nighttime calls are getting creepy."

"Are you eavesdropping on private conversations?"

"It's not eavesdropping when you can hear everything through the thin wall separating Jake's room from mine. I have to wear earplugs to bed. Their phone s.e.x is bizarre."