As the sun hits my face, I pat the sheets, searching for my pillow. "Ouch." My skin hurts. My bones hurt. My whole body hurts.

I sit up. My eyes squint from the sun-filled room. "What time is it?" The clock on the nightstand says 3:03 p.m. Holy crap.

I look down at myself, trying to figure out happened. I'm still in my dress. One shoe on, blood stained knees.

What the hell?

My phone beeps, alerting me to a new text. I crawl to the edge of the bed and pick it up off the floor.

Twenty-six texts. Eighteen missed calls and twelve voicemails.

This cannot be good.

Before I can open the texts, my phone starts to ring. My voice is raspy as I answer. "Hello, Alice."

"Thank God you're okay! Do you know how worried I've been? I've been calling since last night. Where are you?"

I rub my forehead; her screeching causes my head to pound.

"I'm at home. In bed." I look around my room. It's a freakin' mess. "What's the problem?"

She lets out a wail. "What's the problem? WHAT'S – THE - PROBLEM? Are you joking? You got shit-faced, made a scene and disappeared. I had NO idea where you were. I was about to call the police, Bella. That's the fucking problem."

"Okay, um...sorry. I'm just waking up, don't really remember much."

Alice laughs out loud in the phone. "You don't have to remember it. You can see it. You've gone viral...on YouTube."

Um...what?

.

.

.

.

After days of nursing my embarrassment I decide it's time to venture out in public and go back to work. So I'm on YouTube. Nobody cares. Well, except for the few hundred people who commented. Yeah. That's not embarrassing.

Kate, my one and only employee, was nice enough to work for me the past three days. Since it's slow, she and I are busy doing inventory. Only a couple of teenage girls came in to try on homecoming dresses. I'm really hoping my 'incident' last week didn't cause me to lose business.

The jingling of the door alerts me to a customer so I pop my head out from the back.

"Hey, Bells! Glad to see you back amongst the living." It's Alice. I flip her off and head back into the stock room.

"Can we agree to move on and never talk about last Friday night again?" I call out to her, hoping she just drops it.

"Only if you agree to give me this shirt." I see her holding the Eliah Flower top against her, swaying in the mirror. Maybe years of fashion advice is rubbing off.

"Deal. It was gonna be your Christmas present, anyway," I reply back.

"You're annoying." She huffs, her tiny frame barely taller than the clothes rack. "Want to go grab a coffee?"

I look over at Kate, who smiles as she shrugs, "Fine by me. I can hold down the fort." She needs a raise.

"We won't be long. Call me if you need me." I grab my purse and head out the door toward our favorite café.

.

.

.

.

The waiter winks at me as he hands us our coffee. Move along, buddy. Not interested.

Alice shoos him away and turns to me "So, I was thinking, maybe you can come over or something tonight?"

I smile and shake my head. "Nah, I'm just going to chill out, maybe draw a few sketches. Thanks for the invite though."

"Are you sure?" she says, sounding desperate.

I let out a deep sigh when I realize what's going on.

"Alice. I'm fine, okay?" I grasp her hands. "I promise. It's not like before. I'm not depressed. I'm not sad. I really just want to draw the sketches that have been swirling around in my head for weeks. My collection is almost done. Just a few more outfits to go."

She smiles softly and squeezes my hands before letting go.

"Alright. But I'm here for you. Don't forget that. Ever."

Shit. I feel like the worst friend in the world right now. A few years ago I was broken. I thought there was no light left in my world of darkness. After my dad was killed, I didn't leave my room for almost a month and shut myself off from everyone. I didn't realize what my few days of seclusion would do to her. How much she would worry.

I know just how to fix this. "Let's do something Saturday night. What about a slumber party?"

Alice lights up like a Christmas tree.

"Yes!" She claps excitedly. "I'll rent 'Pretty in Pink,' 'Teen Witch,' and 'Sixteen Candles' and you can bring the snacks! It'll be like we're fifteen again!"

Exactly the reaction I was hoping for.

I raise my coffee cup in the air. "To the good ole' days!"

"And to Jake Ryan." Alice giggles, bumping her cup against mine. "Oh, before I forget, my parents wanted me to remind you about Thanksgiving. We're staying in town this year."

I'd totally forgotten about Thanksgiving. Holidays just aren't the same without my dad.

"You know I'll be there. You guys are my only family." I reply softly.

"Ooo!" Alice taps on the table and leans forward, her voice at a whisper. "Speaking of family, I forgot to tell you! You know my cousin, Edward?" My heart stops at the mention of his name.

I clear my throat, trying to appear unfazed. "Yeah, what about him?"

"He's missing."

WHAT? WHAT? WHAT?

"He's missing? Like, kidnapped missing?" I feel sick.

She sips her coffee and shrugs her shoulders. "No, not like that. I guess when he and Tanya got back to Chicago, he told her he needed some space and no one has seen or heard from him since. It's been like four days."

"Wow. I don't know what to say. Do you think everything's okay?" I try to remain calm, not wanting her to see how affected I am.

"I heard my mom and dad talking this morning. I guess Tanya is telling everyone he's traveling for business but the truth slipped out in a voicemail she left on their machine. She told them that if they heard from him to give him a message. She said, and I quote, "Just because you're pathetic and I feel sorry for you, I'll give you two weeks."

Ugh. I hate that cunt.

Alice looks at her watch. "Crap! Sorry, I gotta go. I'm late for my acting class. I'll call you later."

I wave her off and walk out behind her, my mind reeling.

Is he okay? Where did he go?

I head into the boutique and stop suddenly when I see a beautiful white box sitting on the counter.

"What is that?"

I pick it up, no note or name on top. I untie the silk navy ribbon, lift the lid and gasp.

A bottle of Remy Martin Cognac.

My heart races as I tear open the card and read the words:

Dear 007,

I'd love to take you up on that drink. I'll be at Rosie's Irish Pub tonight at 8:00 p.m.

Hope to see you,

Edward

A/N: Eeek! Are you excited? I am!

Thank y'all for the reviews, faves and follows! I love knowing that people are actually enjoying the story. Makes me fuzzy inside. :)

Have a great Tuesday! ~ Mazzy