Annalee's POV, One Week Later

I snuggled closer to Jaime as we watched the movie. He'd insisted on watching my favorite movie tonight, despite my attempts at convincing him to watch something else.

Normally I wouldn't need a reason to watch Pride and Prejudice, but it made my chest ache ever since Will left. This had been our movie. It reminded me of all the times we had together. And that made me think about how much him leaving hurt me, which was something I needed to hide.

I wasn't sure why I still hadn't talked to Jaime about what happened between us. At first it felt too painful to talk about, then every time I went to open my mouth about it I choked on the words.

I'd spent the night Will walked out sobbing into my pillow. The next morning when I came out with red-rimmed eyes, I saw the new agent assigned to me. He introduced himself as Agent Knightley. He'd been my shadow ever since. A couple days later Agent Knightley informed me that Brian Mills, the guy suspected of coordinating the attacks against me, was dead. They were pretty sure at this point that Lindsay Smith was his accomplice and had agreed because of my involvement in her sister's death. I had insisted she couldn't have known, but they said it was possible somebody overheard the Dean discussing it and told her. I was reeling over the news of Lindsay Smith being involved. She was so nice to me back when she invited me to the party, but according to Agent Knightley there was evidence of her involvement in Mills' apartment. I couldn't argue with that. Regardless of her missing status, they weren't nearly as worried for my safety any longer, so I was brought back home.

Jaime had been on my doorstep almost the second I got back, hugging and kissing me, saying he was so glad I would be safe now. We'd spent almost all our time together since then. And I'd spent all that time with my thoughts on Will. I felt guilty, but I missed him. Something was changing in me. Every time Jaime kissed me, I felt Will's last kiss on my lips. Every time Jaime hugged me, I felt Will's warm arms encircling me. I didn't know what was happening.

Once Mills was dead and I was home I had hoped Will might show up. I thought he would want to tell me in person. I waited for a couple days before I finally gave up hope he would show up. It seemed he truly was done with me. Since Mills was behind the letter that made me break Will's heart, I could have called him and begged him not to leave me. But, every time I reached for the phone, I knew I couldn't. I'd crushed him. He said himself he didn't want to be friends anymore.

My reverie was interrupted by Jaime kissing my head and sitting up to turn the now-ended movie off. I smiled at him halfheartedly. Every sweet thing he did made me feel guilty that my thoughts were always on Will, not him.

"That was surprisingly good.  Why didn't you make me watch it sooner?"  He asked me with a grin.

"I didn't think you'd like it."  The half-truth fell from my lips as a pang of guilt struck my chest.

He nodded.  "That's fair.  I wasn't expecting myself to like it either.  But it was very interesting.  We might have to do this more often."  

I tried to smile though every bit of my heart was yelling "no!"  His expression turned concerned.

"I thought you'd like that.  This is your favorite movie, right?"

I sighed.  Here comes another lie.  "I guess I'm starting to like it less."

"Oh, okay then.  We can always find something else to watch."

I smiled, leaving words out of it.  He stood, so I rose as well, following him to the door.  It was getting late, and I had class the next day.

He suddenly turned to me, grabbing me gently by the shoulders and bringing me in for a kiss.  I kissed back, shoving the inevitable memory of Will's kiss out of my mind.  When he pulled away I found him scrutinizing my face.  "What?"  I asked.

"I have something I've been meaning to ask you.  It's been a week since the guy behind the attacks was killed, so you and your father are safe, right?"  He paused, and I nodded in agreement. "I was thinking it might be time I met him.  We've been together over a month now, and I'm getting serious about you.  I want to meet your family."

Shock crossed my features and made my mind go blank.  What?  He wanted to meet my family?  That came out of nowhere.  He hadn't brought that up at all before.  Though my dad did say he wanted to "meet" (a.k.a. threaten)  James.

"...I guess I can take you to meet him.  He's in Pittsburgh, so maybe next weekend or something?"

"Why don't we go tomorrow after you're done with classes?  I'm really excited to get to know how you came to be you."  He grinned boyishly, and his excitement was infectious.  

"Alright.  The day after tomorrow I don't have any classes anyway, then the weekend hits.  I can do homework when we get there.  I'll be back from class around 1.  Can you be here by then?"

"Of course!  I'm so excited!  I'll see you tomorrow babe."  He kissed me again then swept from my apartment abruptly.

I stared after him for a while, still shocked over what just happened.  It was very odd how he was pushing to see my dad so soon.  But I guess he was right, if we were going to continue dating we should get to know each other's families.  Though he didn't mention anything about me meeting his family.  Maybe he would say something about it tomorrow or after he met my dad.

I went to my bedroom and through some clothes and toiletries into a duffle bag so I'd be ready to go tomorrow.  As I turned off the lights and slipped into bed my thoughts were on Will yet again, and I slept restlessly.

--------The next day------

I awoke early and got ready for class.  I hurried to my car to avoid the freezing weather and made it just in time to my first class of the day, anatomy.  I sat through the class, trying and sometimes failing to keep my mind on what I was hearing instead of Will.  After the class was over, I headed to the library to spend my next half hour until the next class started.  On my way there I was suddenly tackled into a hug.

Looking down, I realized it was Becca.  She was wearing a short skirt and long sleeve top with wedges.  I rolled my eyes at her fashion choice, considering how cold it was outside.  She broke apart from the hug and grinned at me.

"Annalee!  How are you?  I heard the guy who was behind the attacks was killed.  I'm so glad you're safe!"

I smiled at her exuberance.  I might have missed her.  Just a bit.

"I'm good.  I've been hanging out with Jaime mostly since everything was resolved.  How are you doing?"

She smiled and walked with me into the library, chatting my ear off about her new love conquest and how classes were boring as ever.  By the time I found a semi-secluded table and sat down across from her, she was just wrapping up her description of her new man.

"I'm glad you've found someone new."  I smiled, hoping she would leave it at that.  Of course, she didn't.

"Oh, that thing with Will wasn't a big deal.  I didn't really want him anyway.  Speaking of, where is he?  I thought he'd come with you."

I spluttered in surprise.  "Will is...well, I don't know where he is or what he's doing."  I muttered uncomfortably.

Her eyes grew wide.  "Wow.  What happened?  You two were inseparable."

I sighed, not really wanting to go into it.  But I knew Becca wouldn't rest until she knew the whole story.  So I started from Will forcing himself onto my protection detail all the way through to him telling me he loved me and how I broke his heart.

"I get why you would have to push him away after you got that letter, but why haven't you called him since it all ended?"

"I've thought about it, but he told me he didn't want to be friends anymore now that I knew he loved me and I didn't feel the same."

Becca scrunched her nose up in confusion.  "But you do feel the same.  You don't just want to be friends."

"What are you talking about?  I don't feel the same.  I'm with Jaime."

She scrutinized me, raising her eyebrows.  "Really?  Didn't you just tell me how you've been missing him every second he's been gone?  Didn't you say your mind is always on William when you're with Jaime?  That sounds like love to me.  When I was living with you I knew there was something between you. That's why I pushed so hard to get him to stop showing you affection. I admit I was jealous."

My mouth flew open in surprise.  "You were jealous?  But you dated him, made out with him!"

Becca smiled sheepishly.  "I wanted him to like me, but deep down I think I knew how hopelessly in love with you he was.  He talked about you nonstop.  Even though he didn't actually like me, he treated me well.  When he broke up with me I thought he would tell you he wanted you, but I was wrong."

It was my turn to feel a little sheepish.  I'd never told her about what happened later that night.  "Actually..."  I trailed off as she paused.

"You're not telling me he did something, are you?!  What did he do?"

I sighed, but couldn't hold back a small smile from my lips.  "Later that night when I took him home because he was too drunk to drive...he kissed me."  I blushed.

"Oooh.  How was that?  I bet it was good from your blush."  She grinned mischievously, though I could see a little bit of discomfort in her eyes.  I glared at her and lightly swatted her arm, going along with her pretense that all was well.

"Whatever.  It doesn't matter.  He was drunk.  I didn't think it meant anything at the time."

Becca laughed.  "You keep saying you're not in love with him, but you clearly enjoyed him kissing you.  Has Jaime ever made you feel that way?"

"Of course he has!"  I blustered.  Though, come to think of it, Jaime's kisses were never as intense as Wills'.  'Stop it!' I thought to myself, pushing that thought out of my head.

Becca looked at me like she didn't believe me.  "Alright, if you say so.  Either way, I think you taking Jaime to meet your dad is a mistake.  You're not sure about him now.  You said yourself that you've been pulling away from him.  You don't want to get his hopes up if you'll just eventually break up with him."

I studied her carefully.  "Who is this wise person and what have you done with Becca?"

She laughed.  "I guess I've learned some things lately.  The guy I told you about, Jason, has made me look at things differently.  I really like him."  She shrugged.

I smiled, glad for her.  I checked my phone and realized I had to hurry to my next class.  I bid her goodbye and rushed to the next building over.  During the whole lecture my mind kept returning to what Becca had said.  I didn't know if I was in love with Will, but despite my protests, something deep in me felt like it had clicked into place with the thought.  I needed to think about it more.  But before I could do that, I had to tell Jaime I couldn't take him to meet my dad.  Becca was right, it wasn't fair to him if I was having second thoughts about us.

By the time my last class of the day wrapped up, I knew what I had to do.  I hurried home.  I wanted to get all this over with as quickly as I could.  I knew it wouldn't be pleasant.

When I got to my apartment, James was just getting out of his car.  He spotted me and jogged up to me, smiling wide.  I took a deep breath, and finally let the bomb drop.

"We need to break up."

Jaime's smile fell immediately. "What?"

"We need to break up." I repeated.

His brows furrowed. "Why? Did I do something? I can fix whatever it is."

I shook my head. "It's not about you. I realized some things today. I'm not sure about us anymore. It's not fair to you to lead you on if I'm going to break up with you later. I can't take you to meet my dad when I'm not sure I want to be with you."

"Come on Annalee. We've been doing so well. You can't break up with me now. Just give it time. I'm sure you'll go back to feeling sure soon. You're just getting cold feet because you're afraid for me to meet your dad. But I promise everything will be alright. In fact, there's something I've been meaning to tell you. I was afraid it was too soon, but I have to tell you now. I love you. And I know you love me too. Come on, let's get into the car and go see your dad. It'll all be alright once we're on the road."

I shook my head. "Jaime...I'm sorry but I don't love you. I can't go with you."

I was prepared for crying, begging, heartbreak. But instead of reacting that way, he got angry.

"Is it because of Will?" He practically spit his name.

I sighed, not sure how to answer that. "It doesn't matter why. I need to figure things out but I can't do it with you. I'm so sorry."

His expression turned completely blank suddenly. His eyes bore into mine, and I felt the cold seep into my bones from his look. "You will be." He muttered softly before turning back to his car and leaving me standing in the parking lot, wondering what had just happened.

I walked into my apartment after that strange conversation. I felt bad, but at the same time relieved. It felt like the right decision. It was nothing like how I felt when I told Will I didn't love him. And Jaime's reaction was so bizarre. Of course, maybe I was reading too much into it. Everyone reacts to things differently, right?

I plopped down on my couch, deep in thought. It didn't hurt me like I thought it would to break up with James. So why did it hurt with Will? Was it just because we'd been friends forever? Or was there more to it? Becca was convinced I was in love with him. I'd always cared about him; when I'd first met him I did have a little crush on him, I would admit. I thought that went away. But maybe it just settled into something deeper which I mistook as friendly love.

Will's presence and kisses were more intense than Jaime's ever were for me. When he left, he told me I couldn't pretend there wasn't something between us, and he was right. There was something; it had always been there, but I was afraid of it. I didn't want to ruin us. He was too important to me to imagine giving up. But he was out of my life now, and I missed him so much it hurt. Maybe I'd been an idiot to let him go without admitting I felt something too. The more I thought about going on without him, the more pain I felt until I was sobbing uncontrollably.

My chest tightened, my vision blurred, and my sobs burned through my throat. I needed him! Life was miserable without him in it. He had to come back. This wasn't just friendship. I loved him.

The realization struck me over the head, hard. I started repeating the words to myself over and over, and the tears finally started drying. Even if he didn't want me anymore, I had to tell him. I had to call him.

I grabbed my phone and dialed his number. After a few rings, the messaging system answered. I took a breath, ready to leave a message.

"Hi Will, um, it's Annalee. Look, there's something I need to tell you. I don't want to leave it on your voicemail. I need to talk to you. Please call me back."

After hanging up, I decided I needed someone to talk to. Becca would be great right now. She'd probably squeal at my realization and then hug me and tell me he would call me back. I needed her right now. I texted her, and she invited me to stop at the apartment she'd started leasing. I jumped up, grabbed my car keys, and ran out to the car.

After hopping into the drivers seat and turning the car on, I put it into drive and started pulling out of my apartment complex's parking lot. I was so excited to see Becca and nervous to talk to Will that I didn't notice the truck speeding down the road until it was too late and my car went flying.