Keeley's research was on target; she hadn't been bothered by Aaron at all; the bachelorette party was mostly planned; and she was bored out of her mind.

She got home just before 6:00 PM every day and didn't go to bed until around 11:30 PM, giving her five and a half hours to kill, plus all day Saturday and Sunday. Weekends weren't so bad because she usually hung out with her dad (or Valentina, during her few free hours), but it was still strange having so much free time.

She deep-cleaned the apartment, went through her entire wardrobe to find things to get rid of, and took Molly to the vet for her annual checkup. She read five mystery novels and experimented with new dinner recipes every night.

Still, she had too much time alone.

If Keeley didn't hang out with another person soon, she was going to go completely insane. She texted Ryan, half-serious, half-joking: "Please save your pitiful friend from boredom before she does something crazy, like go to her ex's place just to have something to do."

He responded five minutes later: "That's never a good idea. I'll be over in twenty minutes, and we can play cards, okay?"

"You're the best!"

She set her phone down and smiled. She really had considered going to Aaron's because he had a DVR, and if he had recorded Dancing with the Stars for her, there were probably other things she'd like saved, too.

Keeley was out of her mind—showing up at his place uninvited just because she was bored was a terrible idea. That would make him think she forgave him or, heaven forbid, that she liked him. It had been a fleeting thought, anyway. She wasn't that desperate yet.

Ryan arrived right on time, and she greeted him enthusiastically. "So, do you want to play Speed, Spit, War, Slap Jack, or Egyptian Rat Screw?"

She circled him like a puppy at its master's heels. She had been dying for some company for days; she had only seen Valentina twice that week, as she hurried out the door in the mornings.

"Wow, you weren't kidding about dying of boredom. How about Spit first?"

"Okay!"

Keeley cheerfully hummed to herself as she pulled the deck of cards out of the kitchen junk drawer. She was lucky that Ryan always seemed to be free.

She dealt the cards quickly, and they got into game mode, concentrating too fiercely on slapping down cards to hold a conversation. The nice thing about Spit was that it was a longer game—it was sort of like the tournament version of Speed, so it had many rounds.

They played two games of Spit, which Ryan won, before switching to War. Keeley dominated that one and shot him a triumphant look. He shook his head and laughed.

"Don't get cocky now; I still have one more win than you."

She stuck her tongue out at him. "Killjoy. Let me have my moment of glory."

He held up his hands in defense. "Alright, alright." He paused. "You wouldn't have really gone to your ex's place, would you?"

That was out of the blue.

"I was only half-serious about that," Keeley said with a shrug. "I know it's a bad idea. I was only tempted because of recorded television and good snacks."

"it sounds like you've been over there recently."

Why did she feel guilty? It wasn't a crime to hang out with someone she used to have a relationship with. This was starting to feel like an interrogation.

"Yeah, he lent me his TV to watch Dancing with the Stars in the fall since I was always at work when it was on and couldn't record things here," she said as nonchalantly as possible.

Ryan's brow furrowed, and he debated internally for a moment before speaking.

"Keeleydo you still have feelings for this guy? Last summer you said you just wanted to be left alone, and at Jennica's engagement party you looked like you had seen a ghost, but you still hung out with him in between those times. Your actions are kind of contradictory."

It was rude of him to point it out, but she couldn't deny it was true. To an onlooker, her actions would appear inconsistent. She couldn't tell him it was because new information had been presented that changed everything.

She couldn't be mad at him because she knew he was just looking out for her. Anyone would be concerned if their friend was wavering about an ex who they said had cheated on them in the past.

"I know," Keeley sighed. "How to explain this?"

"There were some misunderstandings, and he felt guilty toward me, so he's been trying to be extra nice. I let him get away with it for a little while, but I've put my foot down now. As soon as Jennica's wedding is over, I'm out."

He wasn't convinced. "The guy seems awfully persistentdo you really think he'll stop bothering you just because you ask him to?"

"No," she said truthfully. "Which is why I'm considering leaving New York once I graduate. I want to be a professor so I can continue my research, and I don't know if NYU will keep me on, anywayI might have to branch out."

"You'd really leave here? But you love New York!"

She did love New York, but it wasn't like she was going to Mars. She needed to stay within driving distance for her dad's sake.

She hardly saw any of her friends, anyway. Jennica would have a family of her own, and Valentina's schedule would only get more hectic when her residency began. She could still visit occasionally.

The biggest reason she wanted to leave was to stop relying on Aaron when things went wrong. If he was always hovering over her like a fly on a picnic, how was she supposed to refuse his help?

"Yeah, but it's not like I would go super far away. I'm thinking New Jersey or Pennsylvania, no more than a couple of hours away by car. It expands my university options."

Ryan scowled. "You shouldn't let a guy drive you away from your home."

"I was considering branching out for my job applications even before he came back. New York City doesn't have that many genetics programs, you know," she admitted.

Granted, back then it had been a worst-case scenario, but it had still crossed her mind. Aaron wasn't the only factor here. She was being practical. The final sentence, a promotional message for a website, has been removed.