Alone.

*   *   *   *   *

“I CAN NOT believe he just said that!” Raina was curled up on the opposite end of the couch giggling. No, not Raina, he reminded himself. Ridley.

Apparently Raina Winters was more than just a stage name. It was also a persona she used to hide her real personality. No one would believe the perfectly coiffed, man-eating Raina Winters was really a shy, sweet girl who giggled at slapstick comedy. Jackson picked up another piece of popcorn from the big bowl on the table next to him and threw it at her.

“I can’t believe you’ve never seen a Will Ferrell movie before.” Jackson shook his head in mock dismay and turned back to the TV.

While outwardly he was paying attention to the onscreen antics, in truth he only knew what was happening because he’d seen this particular comedy several times before. He’d spent most of the last hour staring at Ridley. Entranced by her smile. Captivated by her laugh.

And hard as a rock by her smooth bare legs brushing up against his.

Ridley turned and caught him looking. She grinned and kicked him playfully, her foot landing square in the middle of his stomach.

“Oooof. What was that for?” Jackson captured her foot, partially to keep her from knocking the wind out of him, and partially to keep it from drifting any lower and giving her proof of just how much he wasn’t paying attention to the movie.

“I don’t know. I just wanted to say thanks. For suggesting this.” She motioned toward the television where Will Ferrell’s character read the news while wearing a ridiculously large fake mustache. “This has been, hands down, one of the crappiest weeks of my life. But somehow, I don’t know, it doesn’t seem as overwhelming anymore. A movie and some laughs with a friend are exactly what I needed.”

A wicked part of him couldn’t resist asking, “So, we’re friends, huh?”

Her eyes widened slightly before a shy smile spread across her face. “I thought so…” she trailed off.

“I’m just kidding. Of course we’re friends. As long as you aren’t a Dallas fan.”

“I never said I wasn’t,” she teased.

“La, La, La.” He covered his ears and pretended he couldn’t hear her.

Something inside him warmed as he watched her turn back to the movie and let out another giggle. Gone was the wary, distrustful girl he’d originally met. He doubted many people got to see the real Ridley, with her bulletproof, mental armor stripped off. Which was one more reason that his dick had to take a backseat.

She wasn’t the kind of woman you slept with for a night.

She was the kind you watched stupid comedies with and told jokes to make her smile. The kind you held in your arms until she fell asleep. The kind who deserved a man who could love her with his whole heart, not the tattered remnants that currently took up space in his chest.

Since he knew he wasn’t fit for any of the above, he was honored just to be her friend.

“You know what?”

She turned at the sound of his voice and raised her eyebrows. As she settled back on the pillows of the couch, her wild hair spilled over the edge, a riotous cascade of curls. She was so stunningly beautiful in that moment that he couldn’t speak. When he finally found his voice again, he couldn’t remember what he was going to say before, what excuse he was going to use to escape from the temptation of her laughter and her smile. So he just went with the truth.

“This is exactly what I needed, too.”

*   *   *   *   *

RIDLEY SNUGGLED DEEPER into the cushions of the couch, watching as the flickering lights from the television played over Jackson’s face. His mood had shifted toward the end of the movie and she wasn’t sure what to make of it. They’d started off laughing like hyenas and throwing popcorn at each other before they’d gotten comfortable enough to put their legs up.

She should have kept her mouth closed. All her talk about how crappy her week had been had probably made him uncomfortable. But she’d wanted to express her gratitude for everything he’d done for her today. Not just letting her stay, but listening to her talk about David, and hanging out with her so she didn’t have to be alone.

She closed her eyes, helpless to resist the lure of rest after the hectic pace of traveling for the last few days. Returning to Virginia wasn't something she'd planned on doing yet. College was supposed to be her chance to escape her past, to branch out into a world where no one knew her. A chance to redefine herself as more than just “Raina's sister” or the girl with the bitter, chain-smoking mother who worked double shifts at the diner to keep them all fed. She’d had so many plans to make her mark on the world and be successful before she returned.

How telling that, for all her hope of being independent, the place she’d run to at the first sign of trouble was right back to her sister.

The final credits rolled and the screen went blank for a few seconds before the opening menu screen flashed. Ridley yawned so widely it felt like the sides of her face might crack. The clock on the wall to her left told her it was almost two in the morning. She thought of the soft, decadent bed upstairs in the guestroom she was using and almost whimpered. It was way past time for her to go upstairs and get some sleep.

Instead she turned her head and looked at Jackson again.

He was such a puzzle. Men who looked like Jackson weren't nice for no reason yet he hadn't asked her for anything. He'd just been there when she had no one else. Why, she couldn't even begin to guess.