CHAPTER 1

Great. I knew this was a bad idea. I knew the night would end like this. It always did. And for some reason I kept putting myself in this position. Me, leaving the cozy little Italian restaurant, Il Sole, alone. Ditched by my supposedly two best friends, Amanda and Ethan.

Amanda is my college roommate. Amanda and I met in high school and we have been inseparable ever since. Well, that is until I introduced her to Ethan, who I had met in our Sociology class at UCLA. They hit it off immediately. I will willingly admit that I did become a tad jealous of their instant bond. For once, I thought that I could have a friendship with a guy who didn't fall head over heels for my cheery-always-happy-cheerleader of a best friend. But it was inevitable. It always was.

I was the queen of the third wheel.

Amanda and Ethan couldn't keep their hands off each other the entire dinner. They giggled and stared into each other's eyes and left me feeling completely nauseous at the opposite side of the booth. Finally, they courteously excused themselves, tossing three twenty-dollar bills on the mahogany dining table to cover their food and tip.

Last time I accept a pity invite from them on Valentine's Day. I politely declined their invitation at first, but Ethan insisted that the evening would be just three best friends hanging out, no lovey dovey romantic nonsense from them. I could tell Amanda was annoyed at my tagging along. I was not the only one that didn't want me to be there.

I anxiously waited for the waiter to bring the check so I could bolt out of here without anyone noticing that I was leaving solo. A few minutes seemed more like a few hours as I sat insecurely, pondering who was looking at me pathetically sitting by myself on Valentine's Day. So many times, I have been told not to care what other people think of me, but I just couldn't help it. It was natural to me.

Finally the waiter reached my table, shooting me a concerned glance. "Where did the rest of your party go, miss?"

I sighed, wishing he hadn't brought the unwanted attention to their obvious absence. "My friend got sick, so he took her home," I lied, biting my tongue.

He gasped. "Oh no. The food didn't sit well with her?" he asked worriedly.

I shook my head. "No, no. Just morning sickness." I laughed at my little joke.

His face went from concerned to shocked in a matter of seconds. He dropped the check on the table and skittishly walked back towards the kitchen with our empty dishes.

I placed the bills inside the black leather notebook and rushed towards the restroom, keeping my head down so I couldn't see if anyone was looking at me. I set my purse on the counter, careful to avoid any water spots and took a deep breath, focusing on my reflection in the mirror. After I calmed my nerves, I picked up my belongings and blindly pushed open the heavy granite door.

"Wow," a voice laughed out, holding open the door for me.

Without looking up, I started frantically apologizing for hitting the man with the door. "I'm so sorry, I didn't see…" I paused, speechless, as I looked up at the young man before me. His golden brown hair was going every which way, but it oddly framed his chiseled face perfectly.

He smiled, bearing all his teeth. "Don't be silly. I got in your way," he chuckled and slipped into the men's bathroom.

A small smile curved over my lips as I recovered myself and walked out onto a suspiciously quiet and cold Sunset Boulevard. I pulled out my phone, checking the time. It was already half past nine so there was no way I would get anyone to come pick me up. Not on Valentine's Day.

My phone vibrated once and then again, alerting me that I received a text message from Amanda. It read, "Hey Emma. Use the money leftover from dinner for a cab. Be safe. Love you!" I blew out a heap of frustration. I bet she never tried to catch a cab in L.A. on a Saturday night. It wasn't the easiest thing to do.

Behind me, I heard the door of the restaurant swing open. Instinctively, I turned my head to look, but regretted that decision as soon as I saw the man from the bathroom heading straight towards where I stood.

I quickly rotated my focus back towards the street and dialed the number of the cab service. Self-consciously holding the phone up to my ear, I tried to deter any conversation with the man that I could sense was nearly a few feet behind me.

"Waiting for a ride?" he asked me in his staggeringly enticing accent. He raised his eyebrows in my direction as he pushed both his hands inside his front jean pockets.

I stared at him for a few moments, mesmerized by his golden eyes that were accentuated by a thick layer of black lashes. The ringing of the phone held to my ear was background music to his beautiful voice.

"Hello? Hello? Is anyone there?" an irritated woman's voice ceased my momentary lapse of thought.

"Ugh," I moaned and hung up the phone. "Line was busy," I lied.

The man pursed his lips and nodded his head. "Whose line?"

"The um…cab service," I nervously spoke, trying to get my story straight.

Meanwhile the mysterious restroom man handed the valet service his ticket to get his car. "I see," he said as fixated himself so he was standing next to me facing the street. He started swaying back and forth in his black Nike tennis shoes, making me a little uncomfortable. My eyes wandered all around me, waiting for something to happen – for him to say something to make this situation any less awkward. Nothing.

I finally caved and peered up at him, trying to make it as discreet as possible, but his eyes locked on mine at the same time. I lost it. All the nerves inside of me were racing uncontrollably. Those eyes.

I heard a clashing noise in front of me and noticed that I dropped my phone in the process of losing my mind. "Ah."

"Let me get…" he began reaching for the shattered Blackberry on the cement. But I was already bent over in front of him grabbing all the pieces. When I put on the fitted black skirt tonight, I wasn't expecting to be in this position. But, I used it to my advantage, flaunting my curves on my way up with the "bend and snap" routine I always wanted to use from "Legally Blonde."

He mumbled something unintelligible. I stood before him smiling bashfully, waiting for him to try again. "Is it broken?" he asked me, looking at my hands that held three separate parts of a decapitated phone.

I shrugged. "Looks that way."

"Hmm," he muttered. "One moment."

I watched as he walked towards the edge of the sidewalk and handed a wad of cash into the valet's hands. Surprisingly, he waved me over to his car. A silver Audi convertible.

Without thinking, my feet moved me to him. He was now leaning against the side of the car. "So can I give you a ride home?" he asked gleaming.

I hesitated. "Um." As much as I wanted to take the ride, I knew it was a stupid and irrational idea. I didn't know him at all and this was Los Angeles. There are some wacko people out here. "If I could just borrow your phone, I could call a cab to get me," I reasoned with myself.

His smile radiated across his unshaven face. "I really can't afford to waste any of my minutes," he smirked.

"But you would waste your gas?" I asked sharply, playing up his charm.

He chuckled. "Do you want the ride or not?" he asked as he opened up the passenger's door.

I stepped closer and positioned myself in front of him, holding on to the opened door. "Before I say yes, I need to know a few things."

He acknowledged my request and perked up as to listen intently.

"First off, what is your name?"

"Rob. Twenty-two. No criminal record of any sort," he laughed. "Yet."

I shot him a disconcerting look.

"Kidding!" he said as he put up his hands as to surrender.

Somewhat reassured by his humor and magnetism, I convinced myself that he had good intentions. "I'm Emma," I stated as I held out my hand for him to shake, but he rejected it. Instead he led me into the car by gently pressing his hand against the small of my back.

The black leather seats were freezing cold, even chillier than the outside air. I hugged my body for warmth, bringing my legs up off the seat.

Rob pushed a button on the dashboard. "Seat warmers," he told me.

I slowly lowered my shaking legs back to the seat and put on my seatbelt.

"I have to warn you," he began. "I'm not the world's best driver."

"Great," I rolled my eyes. "Couldn't you have told me that before I got in the car with you?"

"Now where's the fun in that?" he giggled.

I sunk into my seat and peered out the window. "I live at the apartments at the Grove," I stated.

"Mmk. Here we go," he said as he rolled down his window, sticking his head out to look for cars coming. He slowly pulled out into the street and headed towards my apartment.