Breaking the Friendzone

CHAPTER ONE

Lacey

"I'm surprised you agreed to come with."

We had just left the 95 and branched onto Montauk Highway. It was official—I was back in the Hamptons for the first time in seven years. The plan was to never come back—too many memories, both good and bad, and all that hurt. My dad's surprise was nothing compared to my own. It was a last-minute decision. I literally halted his car as he tried to leave and threw my bags into the backseat.

"It's just for a few weeks . . . for Rachel. She came to Michigan after Knox and I split. It's only fair."

"They were together a long time. Right?"

The small talk was awkward. Unfortunately, we still had another hour before we arrived, and he was being chattier than usual. Any sort of discussion about ourselves would make this even more uncomfortable; so why not just discuss my friend's breakup instead?

"Three years."

"Wow. Were they engaged?"

I finally turned to look at him to see if he was serious. When his gray eyebrows lifted, waiting for an answer, I cringed. If Rachel had been here to hear that, she would have ginger-snapped.

"What?" Dad asked, shifting his attention between me and the outstretched road.

"She's twenty-two!"

"So?"

"That's way too young, and three years is not that long."

"I married your mother at twenty-one after knowing her barely a year."

"That's different."

"How so?"

"Because yours was love at first sight."

Silence fell, Dad pinched his lower lip as he agreed, albeit unspoken. It was one of Mom's favorite stories—her chem lab romance. It was their first day of class. She was the first one in the room; he was the last. The only seat left open was beside her, and she looked up at my dashing dad, whose grin instantly "melted" her. They had been midway through a failed lab that shot a pink, sweet-smelling foam from their desk to the ceiling, sending my mom into a serious fit of giggles. The professor asked how my dad had turned a green liquid pink, and my dad answered he had successfully made a love potion and could prove it. He then turned to Mom to share their first, earth-shattering kiss. He only broke it to announce to the room he'd fallen in love. A year later, they married.

"Anyway,"—I attempted to change the subject away from Mom—"you can drop me off at Rachel's. We're going out tonight. Where will I be riding out my hangover tomorrow? Where are we staying?"

"With William Drake."

I choked on the hot Cheetos I had just shoved into my mouth. It took a few smacks to my chest before I could breathe normally, but I still couldn't speak. My esophagus was burning, and my mind was too busy rushing in a million different directions. The one place I wanted to avoid was our old house, and this would put us way too close. Then there was the panic at the thought of seeing Luke . . .

"It's just for the weekend. He wants to talk business, but I haven't agreed to return to run the lab yet. I'm in no rush to work for him again." Dad peered to his right to gauge my expression, surely finding just what he was expecting. "Lucas lives in Chapel Hill. He won't be there."

With my relief came an eye roll. "Of course he does."

North Carolina was only the home of the number one pharmacy program in the country. Ann Arbor was no small feat, either, but it wasn't the same. Chapel Hill was the dream—my mother's alma mater. The place where my parents met. Even with my savings, grants, and letters of recommendation, it wasn't enough to land me a spot in the program. Apparently, if Daddy makes hefty donations, a spot is obtainable.