Chapter 1
Addison
I never imagined the silence of a new town could be this deafening.
The boxes in my tiny apartment sat unopened, mocking me as I stared out the window onto the quiet street below. Fresh start, they said. Clean slate. But no one warns you that fresh starts come with old ghosts.
It had been six months since Alex and I ended things—six months since I walked away from a relationship that had nearly broken me. I left the city, my job, and every memory tied to him. I didn't expect to see anyone familiar here. That was the point.
Until I saw Luke.
It happened on a rainy Thursday. I had just come back from the corner store, arms full of groceries and heart full of dread. I wasn't in the mood for anything—let alone someone who reminded me of everything I was trying to forget.
He stood across the street, sleeves pushed up, lifting a heavy box from the back of a pickup truck. His dark hair was damp, pushed messily back, and his jaw tightened as he moved. I stopped dead in my tracks.
Luke.
Alex's older brother.
My breath caught in my throat. He hadn't seen me yet. My mind raced—was he visiting someone? Moving here?
And then… he looked up.
Those piercing, unreadable eyes met mine, and for a moment the world fell still. I expected anger. Disgust. Maybe even indifference.
But what I saw was worse: curiosity.
"Addison?" he called across the street, his voice low, husky, almost surprised.
I didn't answer. Couldn't. My lips parted, but nothing came out. Instead, I clutched the grocery bag tighter and turned, disappearing into the doorway of my apartment like a coward.
Because Luke wasn't just a reminder of Alex.
He was the one person I could never fall for.
And yet... I already felt myself slipping.