It was still dark when Blake's car pulled over in my old flat's driveway. The temperature had dropped significantly, and it was the reason I wore Blake's sweater underneath my coat. We were later than planned, of course, and now I would need to prepare a very good reason if someone noticed I wasn't sleeping on the couch. But since the girls were quite tipsy during the pajama party, they were probably in deep sleep right now. I could only hope.

"Can I see you again later today?" Blake asked when I was about to open his passenger door. "We still have time before the wedding."

I frown and turn to look at him. "I don't know. People might see us."

"It's a rest day," he said, "we can sneak out and have some rest together...somewhere."

I chuckled at his line. "Yeah, right. Rest together. "

"So...yeah?"

My stomach fluttered at his eagerness to get together again. It reminded me of the feeling when we started dating; we never had enough of each other. "I have something to do after lunch." When his face fell, I quickly added, "I just need to make a phone call to work. My chief has an urgent thing to discuss. I'll text you when it's done." I bit my lip, inwardly smacking myself for being easily caved in, but it was just for today. Right?

His face lit up again. "Okay."

Five years ago, this was the moment I leaned in to kiss him before jumping out of the car, but we were not the same as Jen and Blake anymore. Opening up myself to him again was a bad idea. He still had the same effect on me, including his ability to crush me with his bare hand, and I'd learned my lesson.

When I entered the flat unit, the room was still as dark as when I left. My blanket was crumpled on the sofa, partly lying on the floor. The reading lamp was still on because apparently, I forgot to kill it before I dashed out. Quietly, I took off my coat and hung it on the rack before making my way to the kitchen. I needed to sit and drink to calm my jittery mind. The fear of getting caught was real.

"Enjoying your morning walk?" asked a voice from the kitchen, making my heart jump out of my chest.

"Sam," I squeaked. "What are you doing here?"

She smiled. "Umm...I'm also having a sleepover here?"

"I mean, shouldn't you be sleeping now?"

"So should you." She drank the rest of the water before putting the glass on the sink. "So, meeting Blake, huh?"

I dropped my jaw, surprised by how on-point she was. "How...did you know?"

She gave me the dead-pan look. "You guys almost kissed at the bar. And it doesn't take a genius to know where you went for hours in the middle of the night and got back with that after-sex hair and" —she glanced down at my torso— "an oversized male sweater."

I heaved a sigh before trudging to her, suddenly in need of something stronger to drink. My eyes scanned the liquor bottles on the kitchen counter, the leftovers from last night's party. Would Sam call me an alcoholic if I had a few sips of cognac this early?

"Go ahead. It looks like you need one. No judgment," she said, as if she could read my mind.

I picked up the bottle and took a sip, winching at the taste before leaning back at the counter. "Can we keep it just for the two of us? About Blake and me."

"Sure." She nodded while eyeing me. "But help me understand here. You and my cousin are getting back together?"

I shook my head. "No. Gosh, no." I took another sip and winced again, then I put it back with the rest of the bottles. "We're just fooling around."

"Oh?"

"We're kinda carried away with the situation, you know. Like, we're here again, surrounded by familiar people, and visiting old places," I said, shrugging. "It's like lighting up the old sparks."

"It's not uncommon to rekindle our feelings for our exes. Maybe you guys want to look into it?"

"No. We don't." I crossed my arms over my chest, and Blake's scent on the sweater hit my nostrils. The butterflies in my stomach rioted.

"Oh, okay." She turned sideways to face me, her hip leaning on the counter. "I'm just trying to figure out what's going on, not that it's my business, but I think you two are still not fully done with each other. I can be wrong, though. I never got a chance to know you better since...you know, Daphne..." she said, wincing slightly.

"Ah, yeah. You guys were good friends, and it would have been so weird if we made friends."

She nodded as she chuckled. "It was hard for her to accept that Blake was completely done with her, and that he was so smitten by a young chick out of nowhere. But that was Blake for the women he dated. When he was done, he was done, but not with–"

"And he was done with me, Sam. He's dating someone now, and she's coming tomorrow, or maybe tonight to surprise him. Who knows," I replied, swallowing the bitter taste on my tongue. "And so is my date. This is just a little bump. No big deal."

Samantha stared at me for a couple of seconds. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. One hundred percent. No, two hundred percent." I said in a cheerful tone, while deep down, I wasn't sure who I was trying to convince.

We went back to the resort before lunchtime, but everyone was too tired to sit at the table and have a proper meal. Firstly, we looked like shit. Secondly, some guests, especially those who were family, arrived today. It was an easy call to just hide inside our rooms and use the room service for lunch. I could use some me-time after the back-to-back blast for days.

Sitting on my room's window sill with an almost empty salad bowl on my lap, I opened my phone and scrolled down my contact list. The email arrived on Monday, and I was so adamant I wouldn't deal with it until I got back to work the next Monday, but I changed my mind. Maybe it was indeed something urgent, otherwise, they wouldn't have bothered me.

My finger stopped at Patrick Voss, then I hit the 'dial' button.

"Jenny," a baritone voice greeted from the other side. "How is everything going?"

"Fantastic," I replied, glancing at my miserable look in the window's reflection. "How are you? And I apologize for not being able to call you sooner."

"I'm well, thank you," he said, and I could picture him grinning from ear to ear. That man was always happy. "And thank you for getting back to me. I know you're in the middle of vacation."

"No problem. So, what is it you want to discuss with me?"

"It's about the opportunity you applied for. Well, we have good news," he said, clearing his throat. "We have a spot for you, a managerial level, but it's for our sister company."

"Oh?"

"Solex Corp, yes."

"What happened to Reynold?"

I heard a sigh. "As you know, he's been battling with cancer, and it's getting worse lately. He decided to quit to focus on his therapy."

"Oh, my god. I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yes, it's sad news indeed. We're planning to let him go sooner than later, and therefore, we need his replacement asap. And from a few profiles we have accessed, the CEO is interested in meeting you..." he paused and cleared his throat again, "this Monday–"

"What?"

"If you're still interested in the opportunity, that is."

"This is too soon! I haven't even processed this information."

"I understand that, and my apologies for reaching out to you at the last minute." He sighed. "And do you know what I think, Jenny? You shouldn't miss this opportunity. It's a perfect stepping stone to getting promoted to a higher position in the HQ after several years of handling Solex. Just my two cents."

I blinked a few times, trying to process everything while my brain was totally bailing on me. "But it's like a thousand miles away."

"Yes, we're aware that it will require the candidate to move. However, the company will take care of the living arrangement and all expenses that are tied to it." When I was still speechless by this sudden offer, he continued. "Maybe just meet Mr. Hanz on Monday to learn more about the opportunity. You don't have to agree on anything yet because it's still an early process, but I need to know if I can confirm the appointment on Monday for you."

"I...yeah, sure," I said as my mind was still running a mile, but missing out on the opportunity that might be for me was also the last thing I wanted. "I would love to learn more about the opportunity."

"Excellent! Monday at four-thirty. HR meeting room."

"Do I need to bring anything with me?"

"Nope. Just bring yourself and be awesome. I'm positive that this is the best opportunity for you so far."

Still with my almost empty bowl on my lap, I stared blankly at my phone screen as Patrick killed the phone call. What the hell was that? Among all the people in my department, Mr. Hanz was interested in my profile. Not saying I didn't deserve this because I'd been working my ass off to get where I was now. Only taking this job could change a huge part of my life plan since I would need to move to a different state, again.

But what life plan? It was not like I had kids or a family as my reason to stick around. It was just me and Dora. And at this very moment, I should be celebrating my decision to stay single, because I didn't have to worry about anything else when a big opportunity that required flexibility arrived. And maybe this was how the universe provided a way out from the messiness I got myself into lately. To escape my complicated situation with Noah, and to escape Blake...

As the name entered my head, my mind traveled to the moment we shared last night. His touch, his kisses, his hold, and his assertive moves during our lovemaking gave me goosebumps, and my core tightened. I still could smell his scents all over my body, and I hated that I felt at peace, as if this was how it was supposed to be. This should stop completely once the wedding rush ended.

I turned on my phone again with a loud sigh and dialed the number in my history logs. "I'm free," I said once Blake picked up.

"Meet me in the parking lot in fifteen minutes. I will be waiting in my car."

I nodded even though I knew he couldn't see me. Just one last time. One more bliss before I was ready to open a new chapter of my life.