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I rub the back of my neck. “Uh… not exactly.”

“It’s easy. We want you to skate as fast as you can, then stop where the X is.”

“That’s it?”

“Well, that’s your solo portion of the video. Then we’ll shoot from a wider angle with you and Leigh skating toward each other.”

I furrow my brows. “Who?”

“Leigh Matthews.”

Fuck a duck. “I didn’t know she was in this commercial.”

“Yes, she is. We got lucky. She’s a terrific actress, and so nice. You’ll love her.”

Sure, if adoring the devil’s spawn is your thing.

“We’ve already recorded her solo portion of the video,” he continues.

I haven’t seen my bratty ex-neighbor since high school graduation. This should be interesting.

My lips curl upward. “Does she know she has to work with me?”

“Yes, unfortunately,” Leigh replies from behind us.

I turn, and my smile broadens. Her arms are crossed, and she’s sporting the biggest frown. Her dark, silky hair is longer, and she looks more… what’s the word? Ah—expensive. But the glare she aims at me is still the same.

“Hello, neighbor. It’s been a while.”

The last time we saw each other, she was covered in mud, thanks to me.

She narrows her eyes, then lifts her chin. “Not long enough.”

2 LEIGH

I’m the friendliest person on Earth. You can ask anybody. Except Keanu. He won’t have anything nice to say about me. The feeling is mutual, though. I know hate is a strong word, but I hate him with every fiber of my being. The four years since we last saw each other hasn’t made the feeling go away. The smug grin he’s sporting now isn’t helping either. He’s loving this situation, and that shows he hasn’t changed a bit. Once an asshole, always an asshole.

I’ve learned to mask my emotions and be nice to people who don’t really deserve it, but I’m having a hard time faking it with Keanu. What is it about this guy that unravels me? He’s been able to push my buttons since we were kids.

“You know each other?” the director asks.

Keanu nods. “Oh yeah. Leigh and I go way back. We were next-door neighbors growing up.”

“That’s amazing. I won’t have to worry about chemistry, then.”

I give him an annoyed look. “You wouldn’t have to worry about that regardless, at least not on my part.”

His eyes are wide when he glances at me. “Oh, I know. You’re Leigh Matthews. But now that I know you’re familiar with each other, would you be open to a little change to the script?”

“It depends on the change,” I say.

“It isn’t so much of a change but a reset to the concept we pitched the agency. You see, in the original script, you and Keanu were supposed to kiss, but that was scrapped in the end for fear it wouldn’t look believable.” He glances briefly at Keanu.

So they changed the script because they didn’t think Keanu could deliver a romantic performance. That would have amused me before, but not now. My jaw drops, and words fail me.

Keanu raises his hand. “Let me get this straight. You want me to kiss Leigh?”

“Yeah.”