Unexpected (23 page)

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Face it. You were both upset and on the
rebound. Falling into bed with Ryan meant a roof over your head,
and him being able to
get
head.”

Her accusations piss me off to the point
where I've reached the end of my rope. “I think you should go.”

“You're just upset because you know I'm
right.”

“It doesn't have anything to do with what you
said—I just don't want to deal with you anymore. You made your
peace with me. You're done. And so am I.”

I close the door on her and lock it. She
grumbles behind the door, fumbling for her keys. When silence
returns in the hallway, I slump against the door and cover my face.
Alina's Law. Just when I thought I was out, it pulls me back
in.

I try to get my mind off what just played out
by getting out the makings for brownies. Once I have all the
ingredients and the pans out, I stand still and stare at them. My
focus is gone after hearing what Victoria said. Even though I
didn't want it to happen, her words start eating away at me.
You
were both upset and on the rebound.
I can deny it all I want,
but it doesn't mean it's not true. It may have technically been
weeks before we became a couple, but it didn't stop us from dancing
around it in our own not-so-subtle way.

Were we going too fast? I mean, it was merely
days ago there was a possibility I was pregnant. If we hadn't been
in such close quarters, it would have taken us longer to get
together. We went from zero to sixty without even batting an eye.
Jumped way ahead of the game by going from friends to living
together. And what if I was pregnant? What would that have meant
for us?

I know I'm overthinking, but I'm only seeing
one solution. I get out my phone and make a call. “Mom? Is my old
bedroom still available?”

Chapter Thirty-two

–
Ryan –

My phone keeps buzzing in my pocket, but I'm
on a roof. At least something that's going to look like a roof
within the next few days. It must be important if this person keeps
calling, so I climb down to take a quick break. It's almost time
for me to go home anyway.

The missed phone calls are all from the same
number: Alina's mom. Why would she be calling me ten times in a
row?

When I call back, she answers, “Thank God I
finally got you.”

“Yeah, I'm at work. I couldn't really get to
the phone right away.”

“I figured as much...I debated calling you,
but I'm positive that it's the right decision.”

“The right decision? Lorraine, what's going
on?”

“Alina called and asked me to get her old
room ready.”

I make a face. Get her old room ready
for...

Oh no.

“She's moving back in with you?” I can barely
get the words out.

“That's what she told me.”

“Wait...but...why are you calling me?”

“Because she's obviously not in the right
frame of mind. Aside from her quitting her job last month, she
usually thinks decisions like this over for a little while. She
hasn't thought this through. Has something happened recently that
could have upset her? Even unintentionally?”

Damn it.
The almost pregnancy. I
groan. “There might have been something...and we haven't talked
about it since it happened.”

“Well, you need to talk to her right
away.”

“Where is she? Is she at your house yet?” I
jog through the site to find my boss.

“No. She told me she would call me back when
she's on her way, but she hasn't yet. You might still be able to
catch her.”

Thank fuck.
“Thank you, Lorraine.
Really.”

~*~

I speed down the back roads to get home
faster. It probably only cuts five minutes off my driving time, but
it's better than nothing. I need to get home. I need to find Alina.
I need to beg her to stay.

When I pull into the parking lot, I can see
her sitting on the trunk of her car. Relief rushes through my body
at the sight of her. I quickly turn into a parking spot and jump
out of the car, running toward her. She lifts her head up when she
hears my footsteps. I stop in front of her, cupping her cheeks.
“Alina. Why are you leaving?”

A pained expression comes over her face as
she stares into my eyes. “Oh, Ryan.” Her hand touches my face, a
gentle stroke along my jaw. “I'm not leaving.”

Time stops. “What...you're not?”

She shakes her head, letting out a breath.
“I'm not.”

“But your mom told me you were.”

“I was...considering it...but it was only
because I was letting Victoria get to me.”

“Victoria?”

“She stopped by to talk to you. When she saw
me, things sort of snowballed from there. She said you knew she was
with Drew before we caught them. She showed me a text message you
sent her.”

I remember it well. She and I got into an
argument over it and I gave her the benefit of the doubt. “Yeah, I
suspected she was cheating, but she denied it and I believed
her.”

“I know. You have more integrity than to stay
with someone who's cheating on you.” She smiles, then her face
turns somber. “Then she said we were rebounding with each other,
alleging that I only wanted you for a place to stay and you only
wanted me in your bed.”

“That's not true.”

“It's not.” She looks down. “But I let it
bother me. I thought about how quickly everything happened between
us, how we've barely even been able to catch our breath, how
serious things got last week...and I panicked. I thought maybe we
got involved too fast, like we shouldn't have allowed it to go that
far in such a short period of time. I mean, we were living together
before we were living together.” She chuckles, shaking her head.
“It all became too real, and the more I thought about it, the
scarier it became. So, yes, I called my mom. I thought it would be
a good idea to take a step back. But then...”

“But then what?”

“I realized something else. While the rebound
thing is true, it doesn't mean this isn't real. I spent months with
Drew and didn't feel anything near what I feel for you.” Her thumb
brushes over my cheek. “Ryan Wilcox, I'm in love with you.”

Her words practically knock the wind out of
me.

“I've spent years terrified of being let
down,” she says. “Then I accepted it as part of life. Until you.
Until you showed me that love
is
possible. I may have had to
try again and again and again, but I fell into your arms. And I
never want to let go. I thought...I thought that us moving fast was
a bad thing, but it doesn't matter how long we've known each
other—”

“Seventy-four days,” I interrupt before I can
stop the words.

“What?”

“It's been seventy-four days since I first
met you.”

She stares at me incredulously. “You were
keeping track?”

I nod. “It's not a girl thing, Alina. It's a
love thing. I love you, too, Alina Lyons.”

Her eyes water and she tries to blink back
the tears. “Damn it,” she mutters. “Stop making me cry.”

I grin, shaking my head. “Never.”

She laughs, letting go of me to wipe her
eyes. “Can you at least kiss me to make up for it?”

“Do you even have to ask?”

“Obviously I do, otherwise you'd be—”

I cut her off, pressing my lips to hers
tenderly. She smiles against my lips as she kisses me back, her
fingers diving into my hair to pull me closer. I feel all the
tension release, a wave of joy taking me over. Touching her, and
feeling her touch me, makes me feel complete again.

I wrap my arms around her to bring her body
in line with my own when she suddenly flinches and says, “Ow.”

I let go of her quickly. “What's wrong? Did I
hurt you?”

“No, I...” She slips her shirt down, exposing
her shoulder. That's when I notice the bandage.

“What's this?”

“Instead of driving to my mom's, I went
somewhere else.”

Realization hits me, my eyes widening. “No
way. May I?” She nods, turning her body so I can peel the gauze
down. There, on her skin in a beautiful lowercase script font, are
the words
love fearlessly
.

“After I threw things in my car and got on
the road, my mind finally caught up with what was really going on.
I was letting my fears take over, as usual, believing that
everything would fall apart. I couldn't keep allowing that to
happen. I had to be honest with myself...I had to stop worrying
about someday, expecting the worst. I opened myself up to love with
you and I'm not looking back.”

I gently cover it up, lifting her shirt back
over her shoulder. I kiss her forehead and she sighs. “I'm not
looking back either, beautiful.”

“Good, because I've got plans for you,
handsome.”

Epilogue

–
Alina –

It's been two months since we said “I love
you” to each other, and life couldn't be any more amazing. Every
day it feels like it just gets better, and I know it's because I
have Ryan by my side. There are those days where it feels like
Alina's Law is trying to return, but I don't let it get to me like
I used to. Shit happens, it does, but reacting to it like your
world is crumbling around you when it's not is just a waste of
time.

One Sunday out of nowhere, Ryan asks me over
breakfast if I want to marry him. It catches me off guard, causing
me to sit there dumbfounded with my forkful of pancakes hanging in
midair in front of my mouth. It appears to amuse him because he has
to cover his mouth with his hand.

I drop my fork on the plate. “That is
so
not funny.”

“It's a little funny. Wait, are you talking
about my proposal or your reaction?”

“Both.”

“Hey!” He reaches over and tries to pinch me,
but I bat his hand away. “I was being serious.”

“A proposal isn't a proposal unless it's down
on one knee...and not happening while I'm eating. Dork.”

He raises an eyebrow. “One knee, huh?” He
stands up, taking my hand to lead me over to the living room. “I
thought the two of us weren't conventional, especially when it came
to these sorts of things, but I'll humor you.” He reaches into his
pocket and lowers himself down on one knee. Opening a black velvet
box to reveal an elegant solitaire diamond, he says, “Alina Lyons,
will you marry me despite the fact that I'm proposing the
old-fashioned way?”

I smile down at him. “Is this the part where
I'm supposed to say 'Oh my God, yes, of course I'll marry you!' in
a shrill, high-pitched voice?”

“A simple 'yes' will suffice.”

I hold out my left hand. “In that case,
yes.”

When Ryan grins, his whole face lights up. He
slips the ring on my finger and stands up to kiss me on the lips.
“You've made me the happiest man in the whole wide world.”

“Oh my God, we need to stop the clichés.” I
look at my hand, then back up into his eyes. “Dude, we're getting
married.”

“When do you want to do it?”

“Right now. Oh wait, you mean get
married.”

Desire flashes across his eyes. “No, I like
where you're going with this,” he says, throwing me over his
shoulder.

“Wait, I wanna finish my breakfast,” I whine,
smacking his ass.

“Ooh, do that again.” He lays me down on the
bed, climbing over me. He frames my face with both hands and kisses
me deeply, his tongue diving in for a taste.

I moan, gripping his shoulders to bring him
closer. “Breakfast can wait,” I murmur against his lips.

He nods. “We have all the time in the world.”
His lips touch mine softly, so loving and tender that it astounds
me. “Until eternity.”

“For always.”

There's no doubt in my mind that Ryan is the
one for me. It may have taken some time to believe it to be true,
but I haven’t questioned it since. Love makes you vulnerable and
invincible at the same time; true love makes you soar. How do I
know this is true love?

Because I'm soaring.

~The End~

Acknowledgments

My lovelies,

Oh, there are so
many people to thank...

First and foremost,
thank you Marie for your unending support and all the advice you
give—writing related and otherwise. You're a pillar for me and I
don't know what I'd do without you. Thank you Stephanie for editing
my books and always making them the best they can be. Thank you to
R.W. for putting up with me and giving me high fives when I need
them. Thank you Steph for supporting me all the way and reading
everything I write. Thank you to my three beta readers Marie,
Molli, and Karen for the great notes on how to improve the quality
of my story.

Thank you to
everyone who read and reviewed the ARC from my reader group Lilly's
Lovelies and all the lovely bloggers who volunteered. Thank you to
everyone else who shared this book on your blogs, Facebook and
Twitter pages, and everywhere else. I don't know what I'd do
without wonderful people like you!

All the hugs and
kisses to my friends and family. Thank you in advance to everyone
who reads this book.

I cannot thank
everyone enough for all that they do to assist me in making my
dreams come true. Without your help, I wouldn't be where I am
today. For that I'm truly grateful and blessed. I love you all for
everything that you do!

XOXO,

Lilly Avalon