Aiden Dennison had always been good at everything he had ever tried. He excelled at school, excelled in sports and had no trouble with the ladies. Growing up in sunny California right next to the beach, he had never expected that he would end up in the desert of West Texas. When he had agreed to play basketball here at South Plains University, he hadn’t come searching for anything. Life had been simple, and his only interest was basketball. Then out of nowhere he had met Spencer. Easygoing and beautiful the girl was every man’s fantasy. She had an amazing sense of humor and she could be ready in five minutes. However, there was a problem and it always happened to him. There was something missing. No matter how beautiful, how easygoing or how funny any girl he dated was, they never ended up being able to compare to her. Ashley had been his soul mate. He had lived to please her and to make her smile in high school. Ashley Davies was the only girl who had ever been able to control Aiden with the snap of her fingers. They’d had an amazing 14 months together and then like a flash of lightning she was gone.

Thankfully, he had gotten a single room this semester. Aiden swung the door to his room open and he looked around the small and simple quarters. A few random basketball posters graced the walls and a picture of he and Spencer sat on his desk. He sauntered over to the desk and picked up the frame. He had seen her face tonight. She had looked devastated and not too long ago he had been the one who was devastated. It wasn’t that Aiden was an awful person. He didn’t want to ruin Spencer’s life but he didn’t want to see Ashley hurt her like she had hurt him. That wasn’t fair to Spencer. They could save each other from Ashley if they tried and that was what he was trying to work toward. He brushed his thumb over the outside of the frame and as he set the picture back onto his desk he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.