Only A Moment

Where there's a Will...

CHAPTER ONE

Will POV

"Addison, I promise I'm gonna figure it out."  I groaned, shaking my head at how persistent my little sister can be.

She rolled her brown eyes and sighed, annoyance radiating from her being. "Will, you've been saying that since January. It's September now. You met a woman at a party on New Years Eve that is apparently perfection personified and don't think it's weird you can't find her?  Did you smoke more weed than you think?"

Now I had to laugh before taking our empty plates to my kitchen, dumping them in the sink to deal with later.  "Maybe?  I mean, the note is real and she exists.  I know she's in college out of state and got on a plane the next morning so maybe that means she'll return sometime."

"So she's from here?" Addison pursed her lips as she thought, "It's just so weird we can't figure out who she is."

I nodded and rejoined her on the couch, "Yeah, she mentioned staying with her parents over break so that's what I assumed."

Addy leaned back on the couch and studied me.  I have always been close to my sister, mostly due to how much pressure our parents place on us, so her presence as a sounding board means a lot to me. We don't exactly look alike, especially since she is barely over 5'3" while I got our Dad's height of 6'5", but there are so many similarities in our expressions and mannerisms along with our brown eyes.

She let out a long sigh and offered a resigned smile, "Well, I'm happy for you but you know I'm gonna need to see it to believe it.  You've mentioned mystery girl a ton and I hate seeing you pine away for someone that disappeared."

"It's not like she ghosted me, Addy.  She just... I mean, she left.  She had to.  I should have insisted on her number or something..."

My sister rolled her eyes again, "Or her name?"

I laughed sheepishly and nodded.  "Exactly."

"Will, you're a really smart guy. I know it was just one night but clearly something major shifted for you to still have such a strong impression of mystery girl." Addy softened her voice, "I just want you to be happy."

After she left my apartment I found myself staring at the ceiling while my mind played moments from that night over and over.  My body stretched with my feet up on the opposite arm of the couch, fighting to relax while a woman I will never forget haunted my thoughts.

It was part of my long term memory, consecrated thanks to strong feelings and a connection I never realized was possible.

The New Years Eve party had over 100 people attending so I barely had the chance to get a beer before feeling overwhelmed and slipping downstairs. There were only a couple people here that I knew but one is a buddy from the country club my family has used for years. While I had been to this house before, and loved their giant garden as well as the pool, being shoulder to shoulder with strangers was never something I enjoyed. It was a complete free for all, with alcohol flowing and joints being passed, so sneaking away kept me calm.

The basement was peaceful, and I debated returning to the main party before I heard footsteps on the stairs.

A gorgeous brunette wearing a red cropped sweater and jeans jogged down the steps then locked eyes with me, her eyes widening as though she had just gotten caught doing something wrong.  "Sorry!  Are we allowed down here?  I was trying to find a bathroom..."

All I could do was laugh and shrug, then point down the hallway.

She offered a relieved smile and I watched her walk away, intrigued by how her dark hair seemed to fall perfectly while she passed me. Mystery girl was wearing dark wash jeans that looked painted on and I noticed ink from a tattoo on the lower right side of her back.  Was it writing? My mind wandered as I tried to figure out who she was. This city is not small but those attending a party of this caliber are from the biggest families in the area.