JENNIE

"It wasn't your virginity that she stole, was it?"

I glance over at my roommate, Kim Jisoo, to find her smirking. She's still working her ass off on the elliptical machine she's been on for the past thirty minutes. You'd never know it by looking at her. Not one light brown hair on her head is out of place. I wish I could say the same for my length black hair. It's twisted up in a messy bun, but it's not helping to cool me off.

Not only did I just spend the better part of thirty minutes on a treadmill, but Lisa Manoban, asshole extraordinaire and all around man I love to hate arrived right when I hit my stride.

Seeing her here, in my favorite gym, was enough to break my pace. I almost fell off the treadmill mid-jog. I didn't though. I slowed to a walk, checked my pulse and resisted the urge to look in her direction.

Jisoo gave in and stared at the woman doing reps on the bench press. She wasn't the only one who interrupted their workout to gawk at her.

Lisa, in all her black haired, brown eyed, body glory, turns heads wherever she goes. A big part of that is the fact that she has one of the most recognizable faces in all of New York City. It's also one of the best looking. I'd never admit that to another soul, but Lisa is gorgeous. The problem is she knows it.

Since landing the job as the newest co-host of the most watched morning show in the country, Lisa's picture has popped up on every digital billboard in this city. She's quickly become the most sought after single woman in Manhattan.

"No one stole my virginity." I run my fingertips over the back of my neck as I step closer to the elliptical. "I gave it willingly to someone I thought I'd marry."

"Cue the violins and flying doves." Jisoo presses the palm of her left hand to the middle of her chest. "I think my heart is about to explode."

"Shut up," I joke before I crack open the lid of a bottle of chilled water.

"Obviously, the getting married to your first didn't work out." She nods at my left hand. "There's no ring and you haven't been laid in three months."

Her words hit harder than intended. She has no clue. She doesn't know any details about my life before she moved in with me six months ago. "Remind me again why we are friends, Chu. I confide my sexual secrets in you just to have you throw them back in my face."

"Is Lisa Manoban one of your sexual secrets?" She exhales deeply as the machine comes to a stop. "Do you hate her so much because she sucks in bed? Did she take and not give? Is that what this is about?"

"I've never slept with her," I answer easily, tugging at the bottom hem of the blue tank I'm wearing. I paired it with an old pair of black yoga pants. It's one of my go-to outfits when I hit the gym. I'm not here to impress anyone. My too-round ass is the reason I drag myself down here three times a week. "She's my brother's friend. Jackson and Lisa have known each other forever."

I take a long sip of water as I wait for the inevitable remark about what she wants to do with my brother. She's only met him once, but that was enough to fuel her dreams for the past four months.

Muting the comments that my friends have made about Jackson over the years has become easy. I don't see what they see when they look at him. I see a supportive, ambitious man who resembles a younger version of our father. We both have black hair and blue eyes, but Jackson's face is all hard lines etched to symmetrical perfection. My nose is softer, my chin rounder and my smile is just like my mom's, a little lopsided.

Jisoo judges Jackson by his polished presence. To her, and most of my single friends, he's my hot older brother. To me, he's the person who encourages me to follow my dreams, and now, he's my silent business partner.

When your surname is Kim and you live on this island, you can expect someone to ask you at least once a day if you know Jackson Kim, CEO of Kim Hotels or Fulton Kim, real estate wizard. My dad owns one of the premier real estate brokerage firms in the state. Kim and Associates sold more residential properties in New York City last year than any other company.

I'm learning how to master the art of flipping the conversation, so the focus is on me whenever anyone brings up my brother or my dad. It's a constant work in progress.

That's all going to change once my interior design business takes off.

"I haven't forgotten that you told me that Lisa stole something from you." Jisoo steps down from the machine. "You've never told me what it was. Spit it out. Tell me what she took from you."

I know she's expecting me to say it's my heart or the promise of a happy future, but that's not what this is about.

In my family, there's one tangible thing that you value more than almost anything else.

"It happened three years ago."

"When you were twenty-two?" She lowers her voice and leans in closer. "You've never struck me as the type to stay mad at someone for more than a day. Remind me never to piss you off."

I bite back a grin, squaring my shoulders. "I'm not that type. It's different with Lisa. She infuriates me."

"You don't have to tell me. I'm pretty sure I saw a voodoo doll in your bedroom with a picture of her face taped to it."

I look down at the floor with a huff of laughter. "You know that's not true."

"It's just a matter of time until you get one. If looks could kill, Lisa would be a goner." She reaches for my hand. "You know you can tell me anything. Give me the goods on Miss Manoban, so I have justification for going over there and kicking her ass."

Jisoo is six inches shorter than me, and I'm five foot eight. Lisa has a solid foot on her. I have no doubt she could knock Lisa on her ass just by looking at her. Jisoo's beautiful, and from what I can remember, she's exactly Lisa's type.

"It's simple." I glance over my shoulder to where Lisa is standing next to a woman with red hair. She's even better looking than I remember and she knows it, the bastard. She's playing the part of Prince Charming to a tee, right down to the grin and cock of her dark brow as the woman she's with laughs at something she says. Her eyes move over Lisa's sports bra and tight abs to the black shorts she's wearing.

"Jennie." Jisoo taps my hand. "Tell me."

I turn back to look at her. "Lisa stole the one thing from me that every single woman in Manhattan wants."

It takes a few seconds for her to sit on that and think it through. "A rent controlled apartment with a view of the park?"

I nod slowly, taking pleasure in the fact that all of my well-intentioned lectures have paid off. Jisoo is finally learning that owning a piece of the property pie in Manhattan is a better investment than a long term relationship with any man. A diamond engagement ring may seem like the brass ring to many of the women in this city, but an address in the right neighborhood isn't going to break your heart. "Close. Lisa Manoban stole a brownstone on the Upper East Side that I was desperate to buy. She took it right out of the palm of my hand."

"You're a Kim," she points out. "Your dad practically runs the New York real estate market. How the hell did Lisa manage to get her hands on a property you wanted?"

"She convinced the seller to take her offer even though it was lower than mine." I shake my head still regretting the fact that I didn't go straight to my dad to help me broker the deal. I used an agent who was a friend of a friend instead. That's what I get for trying to surprise my family. "My terms were better. My offer was the right choice."

"So what happened?" She raises an eyebrow. "What did she offer that you didn't?"

"Her dick." I turn and look at Lisa walking out of the gym with her arm around the redhead's waist. "She screwed her way into that brownstone and I'll never forgive her for stealing it away from me."