Love's Redemption (Chris and Maddie)
Hello 408

I trailed behind Tanya all the way to my building. She waltzed in through the front door like she owned the place and hopped on the elevator.

When the elevator dinged to her floor, I could only think of two words: soap opera.

She was living right above me.

Like, was this some weird coincidence? Or was the universe just playing a bad joke on me?

Either way, it was seriously annoying.

Luckily, my neighbors were pretty much ghosts, so fingers crossed I'd never run into Tanya. But with the way she waddled-super pregnant and looking like she was about to pop-I wasn't sure how long my luck would last.

Tanya, broke-as-a-joke Tanya, suddenly living in a fancy building like this? Yeah, I didn't even need to guess who was bankrolling her lifestyle. Jace. He was a pro at this. Pretending he still cared about me while being a complete jerk behind the

scenes.

Thinking about it, dumping him and walking away from his lies was probably the best decision I'd ever made.

That's why Hayden didn't ask why I moved here. He didn't need to-he knew exactly what I was trying to get away from.

The next day, Steve called, fresh off his competition win, and wanted to celebrate. I had missed his competition, so there was no way I could skip the celebration, right?

The only catch? Jace and his buddies would be there. Hey, Steve, what if we hang out just the two of us later?"

"Rea, I've only got one night before I head overseas again," Steve reminded me. "It's your only chance.” Ugh. As I hesitated, he laughed softly. "What? You're nervous about seeing everyone?"

"Yeah," I admitted. No point in lying.

"Then I guess you're not over Jace yet, Steve teased.

I wanted to argue, but he went on, "I mean, if you were, it'd be no big deal, right? He'd just be another dude

in the room."

Oof. His words hit harder than I expected. If Steve thought that, then Jace probably did too. And all his friends... ugh.

Maybe it was time to prove to everyone that Jace and were done. Like, for real done.

And most importantly, Jace needed to get it through his thick skull that there was no "us" anymore.

No more of those brooding stares he loved to throw my way.

Plus, I had stuff to talk to Steve about, so I didn't really have a choice. "Alright, fine. I'll come."

When I got to Steve's celebration, of course everyone was there. The whole squad. They greeted me like I'd been gone for years.

"Rea! Long time no see!" they called out, all smiles.

"Finally, Jace's fiancée shows up. Rea, you look amazing." Eric, the baby of the group, said with a grin.

I grabbed a soda and clinked it against his beer bottle. Eric, news flash: I'm not Jace's fiancée anymore."

He shot a quick look at Jace but shrugged. "Old habits, I guess.

Eric still seemed determined to play matchmaker, but, like, no thanks.

I mean, his heart was in the right place, but sometimes good intentions just make things worse. "Pretty sure Jace's new fiancée wouldn't love hearing that," I added, which shut him up real quick. Steve chimed in with a smirk, "Eric, don't make me explain the obvious, dude."

Everyone burst out laughing, and just like that, the awkwardness was gone.

Well, almost. Everyone was in a good mood-except Jace, who stayed quiet.

He'd always been like that-barely talking, all broody and distant. But now, it felt even more intense.

+25 BONU!