I wince at the shrill voice of Sabrina as she badgers me for the millionth time. I'd made the mistake of confiding my Thanksgiving plans with Miles to her, and since doing so, she hasn't been able to stop berating me about it.

I nod again, wiping a wet cloth over a table that has just been deserted by an elderly couple. It's the end of another hectic shift at The Coffee Haus, which was again only Sabrina and I working, which is something I don't usually mind, until now.

"When was the last time you talked to him?" she asks, briefly looking away to tend to a customer. I frown.

"Not since I left his house to go back home." I haven't realized it has been that long until I say it out loud. It has been almost a week and a half since our kiss. We've exchanged brief texts here and there, but I haven't been able to hear his voice or have an actual conversation. After the initial first kiss, we'd stayed up for almost the whole night, talking and exchanging even more kisses.

"And that doesn't strike you as weird or anything?" Sabrina asks, snapping me out of my memories. I shoot her an incredulous look to which she shrugs.

"No, I mean, we're both busy and he's graduating from college in a few weeks. Plus, it's not like we're dating or anything, I shouldn't expect to see him every second of the day."

Sabrina scrunches up her nose, pocketing some of the tip money left by the table she's just served. "I'm just saying, he's obviously into you, so why is he suddenly going all Danny Phantom on you?"

"Danny Phantom?" I repeat, my lips twitching at her irritated expression.

"Not the point, Eve," she says begrudgingly. I fight down my urge to laugh at her exasperated look, knowing if I do, she'll probably whack me with the nearest salt shaker. "Your track record for recovering over shitty guys isn't too great."

"Ouch, harsh much." Sabrina gives me a knowing look and I sigh. She's right, even if she could've sugarcoated her delivery a bit more. But that's Sabrina. All tough and a sprinkle of love if she's feeling generous.

"Speak of the Devil," she mumbles, her eyes looking at the door where the bell above it just sounds, announcing a new customer. Turning around, I see Miles walking in, his hands stuffed in the pocket of his coat. I smile, waving at him as he takes a seat at the front counter.

"I thought you were all about him?" I remind Sabrina. She shrugs, leaning her hip against the side of the booth I'm wiping down.

"I also drink milk even though I'm severely lactose intolerant."

I spare her a glance. "That's not a good analogy. I mean, you're saying I should still talk to Miles even if he is metaphorically bad for me." Sabrina huffs, rolling her eyes at me before diverting her attention over to Miles' sitting form.

"You know, you might be my employee but I care about you," Sabrina says softly. "If you go off and get your heart broken again, who's going to refill the water stations?"

"Wow, glad to see how much you care about me," I say dryly, throwing the dirty rags into the laundry basket.

"I'm serious, Eve," she cries out. "You're the only one who can carry the water jugs."

"It's all in the legs, Sab."

Miles looks up from the menu at the sound of my voice, a certain twinkle of mirth in his emerald gaze. "What's all in the legs?"

I smile coyly at him, already beginning the order for his black coffee. "Wouldn't you love to know." Sabrina scoffs from beside me but I simply ignore her, pouring Miles' coffee into a styrofoam cup. I slide it across the counter to him and he smiles gratefully, his glove-clad fingers curling around the warm drink. From the minute Thanksgiving ended, the temperature in New York has dropped significantly. According to weather reports, it's even supposed to snow about two feet or so within the next couple of days.

"I was going to call you soon," I say, leaning my elbow onto the counter. He cocks a brow in my direction, too busy sipping his coffee to respond. "I was wondering if you wanted to come to a birthday party with me this Friday?"

"A birthday party?" he reiterates in bemusement.

I nod. "Helena's party. I'm sure you remember her, considering she's rather hard to forget." I mutter the last part to myself in slight irritation.

"I assumed you weren't going to that."

"I wasn't," I defend. "But, she sent me a letter in the mail and I made the mistake of telling Talia. Long story short, she thinks it would be rather badass," I lift my fingers to put an emphasis on the word badass, and Miles snorts in amusement, "for us to go. Something about party crashers are always the life of a party."

A part of me hadn't put too much of a fight when Talia demanded we all go. Mostly because I'm extremely curious to learn why exactly Sebastian hadn't wanted me to be there in the first place. Besides, I know there will be a few of Sebastian's other friends there, and despite my undying loathing for Helena, not all of his friends are as arrogant and vain as she is. Or as heartless as Sebastian.

Miles is quiet, and I can tell he is weighing my invitation in his mind. I bite down on my lower lip. "You can invite Nick, Wesley, and Monica as well," I offer, hoping to sweeten up the deal.

"I'm assuming I have to wear a tux or some shit?" he asks. I nod and he lets out a heavy sigh, much to my amusement. He's playing me. I know that he isn't bothered about having to wear a more fancy look. I'm growing excited about seeing him all dressed up.

I lean in closer to him, smirking a little. "If it helps, I'll be wearing a sexy dress." Miles's eyes darken, his eyebrows shooting up. "It'll probably show a little leg if you're lucky of course." I dip my voice down an octave, finding this entire exchange comical. Miles is fidgeting on the stool, his fingers gripping the cup so tightly, that I'm surprised it doesn't burst from the pressure.

"You drive a hard bargain," he remarks huskily. I grin triumphantly, knowing that this is his way of agreeing to go with me.

Though, my grin falters when he hooks his finger underneath the collar of my work shirt, practically dragging my upper body over the length of the counter and closer to his face. I swallow as his lips brush over my ear, his breath tickling my skin and causing my knees to wobble.

"But I guess it'll be worth it when that sexy dress of yours is just a pile of fabric on my floor."

Miles smiles innocently as he gently pushes me back. I blink, trying to collect my bearings as he takes another sip of his coffee, reaching his hand into his coat pocket and slapping a ten-dollar bill down.

"You're such a tease," I grumble, snatching the money and stuffing it into the pocket of my apron. Miles laughs, the sound causing my cheeks to warm.

"Sounds like the pot calling the kettle black," he responds cheekily. The glare I'm wearing does nothing to hinder his enjoyment, shooting me a sly wink.

"See you on Friday, princess."

• • •

Contrary to what I'd told Miles at The Coffee Haus, I do not have any sort of sexy dress picked out to wear. This is why, less than a day before Helena's party, I find myself shopping around Macy's with Veronica and Talia. The two of them are only here for moral support and approval of whatever I decide to purchase, which for me, a clueless fashion cripple, is something I'm thankful for.

"What about this?" Veronica asks, pulling a mini red dress from the rack of Calvin Klein options. I wrinkle my nose at it. It's beautiful, but for the outrageously cold temperature outside, I know I'm going to freeze in it. The dress is a piece of fabric, held together by two, very thin, spaghetti straps.

Talia shakes her head, gesturing for Veronica to put the dress back. "We want elegant not prostitute-entering-motel 6."

We've been in Macy's for the last hour and a half trying to find the perfect dress for tonight but to no avail. Talia demanded that I try and look hotter than Helena on her birthday, which I'm highly doubtful can or will happen. Not only is Helena breathtaking but she also has the money to funnel into her choice of attire. I have a hundred dollars with a five percent off coupon to splurge with.

"This is pointless," I grumble, stepping away from the rack of clearance dresses I've given up on sifting through. "I should just tie together two garbage bags and call it a day."

Talia frowns in disgust. "Curb the attitude missy."

"I don't have–"

"At least if you wear the garbage bags, Miles will still drool all over you," Veronica interjects.

"I don't want Miles to drool, I want him to fall over at the sight of her," Talia says harshly. Veronica and I give her identical incredulous looks to which she simply rolls her eyes. "What?"

"Thank you for being so interested in my love life," I sarcastically praise.

"So it's love now?" Veronica asks with suggestive eyebrow raises.

"It's just a saying, Ronnie."

"But you have to admit, it's only a matter of time before he eventually falls in love with you," Talia exclaims. I refrain from groaning in annoyance. Since I'd told them about the kiss, they've been nonstop badgering me about the depths of our relationship or lack thereof. I can't escape their constant questions and squeals of glee whenever I even slightly mentioned his name. It had been Talia who'd all but screamed at me to invite Miles as my date to Helena's party, even though I was going to do it anyway since there is absolutely no way I will be able to survive that horror show without him.

I guess I should be grateful. I'd rather their elation than the brassy responses I'd received from Sabrina.

"He hasn't even mentioned the kiss," I say, more in a way to hopefully pacify their enthusiasm.

Veronica parts her lips in shock. "You're serious?" When I nod, both girls scoff in displeasure. It's a bit disappointing. Over text, the conversations had been about school or Miles' impending graduation from Columbia. We've both skirted around our night in his bedroom. And when I'd seen him at the coffee shop earlier in the week, I'd been silently hoping he'd either clarify what we were doing or give me another one of his mind-blowing kisses.

Except not, one of my fantasies became a reality.

"What is he waiting for?" Veronica asks haughtily. "An invitation or something?"

"Maybe my foot up his ass will be invitation enough," Talia clips. "I mean, seriously, what does he think this is? A game?"

"In his defense, it is the twenty-first century, and I should be able to make the first move, not him." They both shoot me unimpressed looks to which I all but cower under.

"Then why haven't you?"

Simple. I'm afraid of rejection, obviously among other things. I'm afraid that I'm moving too fast. I'm afraid my feelings for Miles are simply here because I don't have Sebastian anymore. I'm afraid that I will not be enough for Miles. I'm afraid that he'll break my heart. I'm even afraid that I'll break his. I'm afraid Miles won't want to be in a relationship with me because of all of my irrational fears.

Jesus, I'm like a walking poster for unresolved issues.

Talia's eyes pierce mine as I remain silent. I can tell she is watching my inner turmoil, the corner of her lips dipping into a frown. "You know he's not like Sebastian, right?" She waits for me to nod before continuing. "And you're not the same girl you were when you dated Sebastian."

"Tal's right," Veronica adds. "All Sebastian did was hold you back, it's one of the reasons I disliked him so much. He never encouraged you to be Evie, it was always about you simply being his girlfriend. For fuck's sake, he waited four years to introduce you to his parents." I frown. I haven't ever thought about our relationship like that. Sure, we had our rough patches, but in my eyes, Sebastian had been perfect. But maybe that's the problem. I've been wearing my rose-colored glasses for so long when it comes to him. I think it's time to confront why we spent most of our time together bickering. Why I never felt comfortable showing him the other side of my personality. Why I never took him along to any of the photography projects I had, or that I never talked to him about photography in general.

"With Miles, you're the most authentic version of yourself. He's supported you with your internship application, with your family, with everything. The same certainly cannot be said about Sebastian." Talia nods in agreement, giving Veronica a small high-five.

"You guys are right."

Talia huffs. "Of course we are. Now, we need to find you a jaw-dropping dress so that you won't have any more doubts about finally asking him out."

I nod, determination setting in. I turn, walking to another rack of dresses when a gold ensemble catches my eye. I pull it from the others, my eyes scanning over the fabric. It's beautiful.

A simple gold satin slip dress with a cowl neck. The straps are adjustable and rather thin. It goes all the way down to the floor and when I run my fingers down it, I'm even more in awe of the long slit that runs up the thigh. It's perfect. The right amount of elegance with a hint of that sexiness I'd promised Miles.

"It's beautiful," Veronica gushes, looking at it from over my shoulder. "And it's Ralph Lauren too!"

I wince, already in terror and not wanting to check the dangling price tag.

"How much is it?" Talia asks, inspecting the dress with an impressed look.

My fingers shakily grab the tag, flipping it over and almost sighing in relief. "It's on sale for one-fifty." It's a little out of my price bracket even with the coupon, but I can't just put it back on the rack and walk away. I'm already attached.

I tuck the dress under my elbow, not even needing to think anymore about whether I'm buying it or not. I've already made up my mind. Veronica and Talia smirk at my intentness, walking behind me as I bulldoze towards the checkout lanes.

Miles, you're in for one hell of a sight, I excitedly think to myself, watching as the cashier rings me up, folding my new dress and stuffing it into the Macy's bag.