Excerpt: 'One Night' by A.J. Pine

A.J. Pine joins HEA to share a favorite scene from her new New Adult release, One Night, out today.

First, here's the blurb about the book (courtesy of InterMix):

When she lost it all, Jess decided to cope by living a lie.

But you can't keep on pretending forever…

Twenty-one-year-old Jess used to have everything—a loyal best friend, a boyfriend she loved, and a future that was right on track. But in a single night, her whole world changed.

Now, Jess lives for the impersonal connection of drunken hook-ups and to-go coffee cups in the morning. All she needs is one night to pretend everything is fine…until she meets Adam.

Thanks to a sports injury, gorgeous, charming basketball star Adam Carson is stuck in physical therapy at the hospital where Jess interns—giving her the perfect opportunity to see his sweet, considerate nature and making her realize that maybe she does want something more.

But while Adam might be the best thing that's happened to Jess in a long time, letting him past her carefully constructed walls means letting him know what happened...and why he'd never want her for more than one night.

A.J. sets the scene for us …

A.J.: My heroine, Jess, has just found herself in an elevator with the guy she's falling for, Adam, an injured basketball player she met doing a physical therapy internship at the hospital. She has sent him mixed signals and hurt him once already, and while she doesn't want to tell him the truth about her past — something she's sure will make him run as far away from her as possible — Jess tries to use this chance meeting as an opportunity to apologize for messing up their friendship. But once again Adam surprises her — making her want what she doesn't believe she deserves.

EXCERPT

The elevator light indicates floor three, floor two, and before the last light flashes, the one that will free him from my presence, I do something either really brilliant or really freaking stupid. I push the emergency stop. We jerk to a halt, and Adam finally looks at me.

"Jesus, Jess. What the hell are you doing?"

Panic takes over, answering my own question with really freaking stupid.

"I don't know!" I yell back at him. "I don't want you leaving again, not like this."

His eyes darken, and I'm sure it's too late for him to forgive me, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try.

He reaches for the button, and I throw my body in front of the entire panel. Now I can add dramatic and immature to stupid, a perfect trio of behavior I display only when in the presence of Adam Carson.

"It's a hospital, Jess. They're not going to take two people stuck in an elevator lightly. Someone's going to get us out in minutes. Maybe less."

"I know," I say. "That's why I'm going to be quick." I slide away from the buttons but position myself against the door.

"I'm sorry." It's the only thing I can think of, which is probably not Emergency Stop material, but it's all I've got. "I shouldn't have flaked and left you alone with Jake that night at the bar without telling you the truth. I shouldn't have let what happened between us happen, and I sure as hell shouldn't have let you leave like I did."

He shakes his head, letting out a harsh laugh, and I brace myself for him to tell me off, to push the button and walk the hell out of here and get as far away from messed-up me as possible.

"Do you want to know why I'm so pissed? Why I had to make sure I wasn't sending you mixed signals last night after that damned interview?"

No. Nope. Don't wanna know. But I nod.

"Because it's my fault, Jess. I crossed a line, and though you said you were ready for it, I knew deep down you weren't. You made it clear all you could give me was friendship, and I said I was okay with it because I would have taken that over nothing at all. I wanted to prove to you that you were worth more than whatever it is you got from a guy like Jake. And I blew it. I blew it with a freaking kiss. But all I've wanted, Jess, since the first time we sat in the cafeteria and drank crappy coffee, was to kiss you until you knew how much I wanted you. And I don't mean how someone like Jake wants a girl. I mean like this."

He places a palm above my heart, and I try to still the hammering in my chest. His head dips down, his slow breaths warming my skin. Just like I felt knowing he was there while I slept, a sense of safety ebbs through me. And I want more.

"And like this," he continues, sliding his hand up to my neck and reaching for the hair, always in my face. He tucks it softly behind my ear, and everything in me comes alive at his touch.

"All the wacky stuff that goes on in here," he says as his fingers skim my brow, "like actually liking crappy coffee, loving sexy vampires, being clueless enough not to know your roommate has a twin brother, and brave enough to tell me the truth in front of Jake. Jess. That's what I want."

His hand still cups my head behind my ear, and instinct takes over. I lean into it.

My hand stretches out behind me, and I release the emergency button.

We jolt to a start, which lasts only seconds before the elevator hits the bottom floor, and the door falls back into its pocket.

I back out, doing what I do best, leaving him standing there.

"You're right," I say. "I'm not ready for this." I breathe through the ache in my chest, to the flood of emotion threatening to pull me under.

I disappear through the cafeteria doors, but I still wait, foolishly, hoping he'll ignore my wishes, that he'll come here and tell me no matter what, he wants to be with me.

But no matter what only exists in fairy tales where a huntsman doesn't cut out the princess's heart but puts her life ahead of his. I'm putting him first. There's no way for him to see that, but at least I understand that walking away is the option that hurts him the least.

He doesn't come. He shouldn't come. But that doesn't stop the irrational part of me from wishing he would.

Find out more about A.J. and her books at ajpine.com.