Neil Crimson is back home.



After three months on the moon, he's back in Houston, and after agreeing to be only friendly and platonic, being in the same room with him is torture. He's just as handsome as I remember, with those blue eyes that make me go weak. In the silence between our words, he stares at me just the way he used to—like this is torture for him too.



We agreed to be friends, but when I look at Neil Crimson I don't see a friend or Stacy's brother-in-law. I see the best I've ever had, the man that makes my toes curl with just a single look. I haven't been with anyone else since he's been gone, and now that he's home I definitely can't imagine someone else.



One night, he shows up on my doorstep, his eyes packed with heat. "I don't think I can be friends with you, Charlotte. I thought about you the whole time I was gone, and you're all I've thought about since I've been home. Tell me you feel the same way . . . "



My heart broke when he left, and if I say yes, it'll break even more the next time he leaves. But if I say no . . . that'll somehow hurt even more.



Contains mature themes.