Beyond the Cherry Trees: The Cook Brothers Series Read Online Free Page A

order. Jess hated Mia for what she did to me, and she was taking the opportunity now to rub it in Mia’s face. “Here’s good,” she grinned as she refused to move.
    “Jess,” I sighed.
    “What?” She smirked at me as she stepped closer and placed one palm on my shoulder. “You know this is exactly where you want to be.” She leaned in closer, as if she was going to kiss my cheek, but whispered in my ear instead. “It’s working. Trust me.” When she pulled back, her head tipped in the direction of where Mia was. I glanced quickly to the side, and I must admit that when I saw her face, I chuckled a little to myself. It felt kinda good knowing that I was getting to her.
    I stopped counting after the third song, but Jess and I stayed on the dance floor most of the night. We didn’t stop until she started complaining about her feet hurting and needing to take a break. I let her go, and began striding to the bar. Without having her as a buffer, I knew I needed to get a few drinks in my system.
    “Hi,” came the voice I knew all too well.
    “Mia,” I mumbled around the lip of the tumbler I currently had wrapped in my hand. “Did you need something?” I was being a dick, and I knew it, but the hurt she’d inflicted was still fresh. The two-year-old wound was still festering, and the closer she got, the worse it ached.
    “Can we talk?” she murmured. I could tell she was hurt by my abrasiveness, but I couldn’t seem to stop the coldness in my responses.
    “Didn’t think there was anything left to say,” I shrugged. “You made it perfectly clear two years ago when you walked away that I meant nothing to you.” I turned my glare on her and straightened my stance. I was preparing for a fight, and the alcohol was fueling it. All the hurt and heartbreak that I’d shoved away and covered with meaningless flings was slowly rising to the surface. I’d loved Mia, and she’d told me back then that she loved me too. She didn’t though. She left the first chance she got. She walked out the door with nothing but an ‘I have to do this’, and she never came back.
     
    “Hey,” Mia mumbled as she walked into our tiny kitchen. This apartment was the size of a shoebox, but it was our shoebox.
    “Hey baby,” I grinned. I was excited. I’d just landed a position as Hughes, Langstaff, and Roe. I’d been hoping to get in there ever since I’d interned senior year. It was one of the most prestigious law firms in New York City.
    “That’s great.” Her words sounded happy, but her expression didn’t match them. “I need to tell you something,” she said as she crossed her arms over her chest.
    “Can we eat first?” I smiled. “Maybe celebrate a little?” I moved closer and tried to pull her into my arms and kiss her, but she wrapped herself tighter in her own embrace and moved away from me. “What’s wrong?” I bent my knees so I was eye level with her. Mia and I had been together since we were thirteen, and I’d never seen her react like this to me.
    “I need to tell you something, and I don’t think you’re going to like it.” She sucked her lip between her teeth and took another step back.
    “Why’s that?” I advanced and tried to touch her.
    “I’m leaving,” she murmured as she turned toward the door, and that’s when I saw it. She had a bag by the door. I don’t know how I missed it, but she’d managed to pack a bag.
    “For how long?” I swallowed. Something inside said this was bad, but my heart didn’t want to believe it. Mia and I loved each other. We’d come to the city together. We’d always told each other that we’d make it work. We’d made it through the tough times. We were adults now. The hard part was supposed to be when we were teenagers or college students.
    “For good.” She squeezed her eyes shut before leaning down to grab the handle of the suitcase. “I’m sorry. I was invited to dance for the Chicago ballet. I leave tonight.”
    “Wait! What?” I rushed