Chapter 1

Her gaze swept Jessie took a deep breath, savoring the warmth of the Georgia sun. The humid air was a stark contrast to the crisp, cool breezes of New England that she was used to. She glanced around at the charming Southern town, with its quaint streets and old oak trees draped in Spanish moss. This was a new chapter, and she was determined to make it her own.  She was about to start her last year at Boston University, and now, here she was, in a brand-new place where no one knew her.

After a long string of failed relationships, this was her new beginning. Her parents hadn’t been thrilled when she announced her plans, but it was her own decision, and they knew trying to stop her once she made up her mind was pointless.

She leaned against the porch railing and crossed her ankles, taking a sip of the warm coffee from the mug between her hands. Despite the feeling of homesickness, she felt a bit of tension ease from her shoulders.over the aging apartment building as she set her coffee cup on the railing. The old duplex had certainly seen better days, she thought. The wood siding was cracked and peeling, with chips of paint flaking onto the warped porch floor, where several boards had come loose. Several pieces of window trim were also broken off. The duplex housed two apartments side by side, and the one on the left had become her new home—a place she now shared with Melissa Turner, her best friend since grade school. Turning around, she leaned on the railing and watched the quiet street, where two chipmunks darted playfully up a tree.