The moment the sky exploded, Lexi Brennan was trying to remember how her companion looked naked. It had only been a week since their previous encounter, but the details felt hazy.

Lexi and the man were nestled into a corner booth at a bar near Santa Fe Regional Airport. They were both fully clothed with the mutual expectation of ending the night otherwise.

Was it big? Lexi wondered, equal parts intrigue and boredom. Probably average.

Nothing memorable, at any rate.

A clap of thunder shook the building. Self-generating diode lights flickered overhead. There was a brief pause before a second thunderous roar erupted in the distance.

Lexi dug her nails into her legs. She exhaled slowly. An indentation on her left thigh oozed one dot of blood. Staring at the red bubble, she shook her head. She’d pressed too hard this time. The hemoglobin fountain bursting from her skin was a rare mistake. Lexi rubbed the spot with the hem of her shorts. She pressed the fabric against her leg until the well ran dry.

Across the booth, deep brown eyes and a scruffy beard observed her curiously. The man’s t-shirt was one size too small, presumably to show off his hard-earned biceps. Lexi simultaneously loathed and loved his generic style. The guy was a walking cliché.

Lexi knew she was one, too.

“Everything okay?” the man asked.

Lexi nodded, swallowing her embarrassment. She hated her visceral response to loud noises. It had started at age sixteen, when the crack of a fallen chair ripped through her home. That sound signaled the end of Lexi’s adolescence and the beginning of her inescapable journey into hell.

“Let’s order some food,” her companion suggested. It seemed like a feeble attempt to carry on as normal.

Lexi found the gesture endearing.

While she pulled up the digital menu in the center of the table, a chorus of buzzes erupted from EarLinks throughout the bar. Lexi sighed, assuming it was another media stunt from the nation’s unhinged president. That crazy asshole had been on a tirade recently.

Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Lexi leaned forward. She angled her body just right, with the top of her camisole plunging down her neck.

“I can’t stop thinking about last time,” she lied. She swirled her vodka cranberry before taking a swig. “Amazing. Next-level shit.”

The man opened his mouth to speak, then promptly closed it. Frowning, he tapped a finger to his ear.

Lexi sighed, trying to squash her growing frustration. This is why the silence function exists. VirtuAlarms go off ten times a day. The President’s newest rant can wait. Ugh. Why didn’t I go see that woman from last week’s flight to New York?

Lexi bit her lip. Maybe she should be tangled up with that chick, Sierra something-or-other, instead of lying about this guy’s impressive bedroom skills, which were little more than a vodka-induced blur.

She’d had her reasons, though. New Mexico was an easier trip. One flight here, two flights back tomorrow. Nineteen hours to spend in the arms of this stranger. What was that, two rounds’ worth? Possibly three, Lexi had figured. Assuming the man didn’t get too drunk. Whiskey dick had ruined plenty of nights in her three years’ worth of flying. It was one of the many perks to being with women.

Lexi exhaled slowly as she skimmed the menu. Her gaze landed on the hatch green chile queso. Jorge had introduced her to the joys of spicy New Mexico cuisine a few years back. Since that magical moment, Lexi had never been disappointed. Not once.

In a flourish, she resolved to hang out with Jorge the following week. She’d drive to his apartment with a bottle of prosecco. The one with the translucent peachy-pink label. His favorite.

It was the least Lexi could do after hosing her best friend. She’d left him in the dust again. Jorge had tried to mask his disappointment, but it was obvious.

Lexi and Jorge had promised to buddy bid the whole summer. Their goal was to endure the busy season together, busting their asses on full flights with screaming babies and disheveled parents. They’d planned to suffer through the madness one trans-continental flight at a time. And then laugh about it on their overnights, presumably while drunk.

But Lexi couldn’t keep a promise to save her life.

She silently apologized to her best friend. He was jetting up the East Coast, somewhere between Charleston and Philly. On a work trip Lexi had agreed to cover with him. Until her cravings had gotten the best of her.

This was the fourth trip Lexi had backed out of, ditching her absolute favorite human at SkyLine Airways in pursuit of another cheap hookup. Four swapped trips over the course of two months. Lexi’s buddy-bidding track record was less than stellar.

Priorities. Lexi exhaled slowly, aware of how twisted hers were.

Her focus dropped below her companion’s waist as she contemplated whether this dude, this strapping nobody she’d met on a flight last week, was worth ditching her best friend. She sure hoped so.

Lexi placed a hand on the man’s arm.

“Um, Alexis,” he stammered, his expression inscrutable.

Lexi frowned. “Nobody calls me that.” Thoughts of delicious queso evaporated. She was no longer hungry, just eager to do the deed. Her patience was waning.

She slid her drink toward the center of the table, wishing she’d set up ThumbPay like Colin had urged on countless occasions. If she’d heeded her brother’s advice, she could press a finger to the scanner embedded in the table’s wooden surface and leave. She could avoid additional dialogue and get down to business.

But Lexi had boycotted the two-second ThumbPay setup. It quickly became a running joke in the Brennan family, and she decided to keep it that way, just to hear Colin laugh. Didn’t matter that it was at her expense.