I stare at his text for what feels like ten minutes–but is probably only ten seconds–before replying:
I had a blast 2. College parties r way crazier than I thought!
Ty for tonight…<3 u too.
Brooklyn xoxo
Each time I say ‘I love you’ back to him, I feel like an even bigger pile of shit. I hate that he had to go and ruin a good thing by telling me those three freaking words.
I spent the remainder of the night staring at my ceiling. After thinking all night, I finally came to this conclusion: I need to end my relationship with Jaden.
When we first got together, he was known as the player of our school–and then BAM! He gets with me and now wants to be Mr. One-Woman-Man.
We’re young. Now is the time to have fun, be wild, explore the world, and make all of the crazy mistakes so when the time comes, and we settle down, we’ll have no regrets.
That’s exactly what I plan on doing.
Chapter One
December 4th, 2012 - Present Time
Standing out on my patio beside the pool, I stare up at the Hollywood sign that’s only a few hundred yards away from my home. It’s sad saying goodbye to this house. Since we moved in two years ago, Savannah and I have made so many amazing memories here. As soon as we graduated from college, we rented this house in the Hollywood Hills.
I decide I need one more picture before I walk out the door of this house forever. Grabbing my phone, I take a quick selfie with the Hollywood sign behind me, then pull up Twitter. Tagging Savannah, I upload the pic and type:
@Savannah_Livingston Saying Goodbye 2 our bachelorette pad.
Gonna miss this house & all the memories we made here.
Stuffing my phone back into my purse, I take one more look around before walking out the front door and locking it. Climbing into my Jeep, I drive down the driveway and head to the closest Starbucks for a much-needed caffeine boost. After spending the entire day with movers getting the house packed up, I am in desperate need of a pick-me-up.
I never thought in a million years I’d be moving out of Los Angeles. I’ve traveled all over the country for work but still always thought of L.A. as my home, so now saying goodbye feels surreal. I was thinking about keeping the house, but without Savannah paying half the rent, it’s way too expensive. I won’t be able to live in Galveston full-time because of my filming in Vancouver and the work I have here in the city. I’ll be flying back and forth quite a bit, so I plan on staying at my parents’ house in Beverly Hills whenever I’m in town.
But I’m excited for a change of scenery. I have lived in Los Angeles my entire life, and I’m over the whole dating actors and models thing. They are so pretentious.
I told Savannah that since we've only had a few days together to visit lately, we’re going out as soon as I get back down there. We need to do some cowboy hunting for me; she has herself a sexy ass cowboy, her new boyfriend Kayden Knox, so now it’s my turn to get me one.
L.A. traffic is horrific right now. After sitting in traffic for thirty minutes, I’m finally able to park my Jeep alongside the curb. I fix my hair and makeup in the visor mirror before grabbing my purse and jumping out. The streets are buzzing, with people everywhere. Starbucks is packed as I make my way inside.
Getting in line, I pull out my phone and scroll through Facebook to pass the time before I’m finally called up to place my order. After ordering my coffee-flavored Frappuccino, I step off to the side and wait for it to be made. Of course, being my usual clumsy self, I foolishly try to text and walk–and end up crashing against a tall, hard body. Looking up, I mentally cringe.
Of all the males in the Los Angeles area, I have to run into Logan Sanders.
Kill me now, please.
“Whoa…Brooklyn,” he says, reaching out and grabbing my arms.
Letting out a loud sigh, I give him a fake smile. “Oh, so sorry about that.” Holding my phone up, I tell him, “Texting and walking, seriously the most dangerous thing on the planet.”
Nodding, he lets out a nervous laugh. “Sure is. So, how have you been?”
The last thing I want to do is have small talk with this douchebag.
Dropping my phone back into my purse, I grab my coffee that was just set on the counter. Turning back to Logan, I decide he’ll learn sooner or later, so maybe my telling him will finally get him to leave Savannah alone for good.
“I’ve been great. Super busy with filming and packing up our house. I actually just finished up about thirty minutes ago, so I stopped here for a coffee on the way to my parents’ house.”
Raising an eyebrow, he gives me a questionable look. “Packing? Where are you moving to? Savannah’s moving, too?”