The Bet

Ch.1 A Fresh Start

Ana jolted awake gasping for air and drenched in sweat. She'd been in Boston for almost a year now but still suffered from nightmares. After moving from Texas to Massachusetts she'd hoped for a fresh start and to forget about the demons she left behind.

Looking at the clock on her nightstand she sees its only 5:00am. Realizing she won't be able to get anymore sleep she decides to start her day. Sighing, Ana removes her bed sheets to throw them in the washer since they were covered in her sweat. She pads into the kitchen to start the coffee maker and smiles when she hears the padding of paws on the hardwood floors. Looking down she smiles at her German pointer dog, Poppy.

Ana adopted Poppy over two years ago not knowing back then that Poppy would one day save her life.

Making sure the backyard lights are on Ana lets Poppy out so she can roam around and do her business. While waiting for the coffee to finish brewing Ana takes a seat at the kitchen island to make a list of what she needs to complete at home and work. The priority she needed to finish first was finding Scott a birthday present.

Ana met Scott while walking Poppy around the neighborhood when she first moved to Boston. Their dogs' leashes got tangled up which caused Ana to fall flat on her ass. After laughing for a minute Scott helped her up and apologized for laughing. Ana brushed it off and the two walked around the neighborhood together. They had a lot in common and by the time they made it to Ana's house they realized they were neighbors. From that point forward the pair were best friends.

Scott started to include her in all his outings from shopping to the occasional bar hopping. But most of the time Ana enjoyed staying in and watching reruns of Criminal Minds.

Ana made a note in her planner to go shopping for a present for Scott after work. She works at the Henry & Smith law firm as a paralegal. Looking at the time Ana sees it's only 5:30am. Groaning, she gets up to let Poppy inside and then jumps into the shower still feeling the sweat from her nightmare on her back.

After getting out of the shower refreshed, Ana starts getting ready for work. She pulls out a black pencil skirt with a small slit in the back and a burgundy blouse, along with a sensible 2-inch heel because she knows she can't walk properly in anything higher.

Ana barely stands at 5'0 but she uses her attitude to intimidate others. Growing up with four older brothers she had to learn to defend herself against Andres, Alex, Alonzo, and Abel. Unfortunately, those defense skills didn't come in handy when she needed them the most. Shaking those thoughts away she starts getting dresses for work, applying a thin layer of make-up and finishing it her hair up and out of her face.

Checking the time Ana notices its almost 7am now, she feeds Poppy then grabs a granola bar for herself and pours her coffee in a travel mug. She sets her alarm and locks the door as she leaves. While walking to her car she hears Scott and Steve from across the street yelling good morning to her. She chuckles as she waves and yells good morning back to them and blows them a kiss each. The drive to work was quiet and peaceful for her since there wasn't much traffic. Getting to work Ana notices she is the first one there, but she didn't mind, she loved the calm before the storm.

She didn't know her entire world was about to shift on its axis that weekend at Scott's party.  And maybe if she had known she would have done things differently.