Unexpected (4 page)

Today's definitely been a strange day.

I wrap an arm around Alina, walking her over
to the couch. When she sits down, her hand comes up to her head. I
touch her cheek. “Are you dizzy?” She nods, so I help her lie down.
“Gimme a minute. I've got an extra blanket and pillow that you can
use.”

She smiles, looking up at me. “You're a great
guy, Ryan.”

I smile back, her semi-drunk sweetness
warming my heart. “Thank you.”

As I stand up, she reaches out and holds onto
my arm. “My car. I'm gonna need my car.”

Her touch causes me to shiver involuntarily.
“I'll take care of it.” She nods and I leave the room to get the
blanket and pillow and come back to find her already practically
asleep. I gently place the blanket over her, and tuck the pillow
under her head. She stirs a little, rolling over to the side,
facing me. Sitting on the floor next to her, I watch her breathing
change until I know she's sleeping.

I'd be lying if I said I hadn't noticed Alina
when I was introduced to her. Victoria brought both Alina and Drew
along to the bar one night so I could meet them. It was impossible
to deny Alina's beauty. It's still impossible. Those stunning blue
eyes, her sweet smile. Her light brown hair was pulled up in a
ponytail that night, showing off her piercings—three in each ear, a
different colored stud in every hole. She was unique, quirky, and
made me laugh.

I may have noticed Alina, but I'm not an
asshole. I was with Victoria and trying to make the relationship
work. At first it was easy because it was new, but then it the way
it was progressing became unsettling. It felt like she was keeping
me at arm's length—holding onto me just enough to keep me there,
then being noncommittal. Honestly, I was close to ending it and
probably would have by the end of the week had the truth not come
to light today.

Tucking a strand of Alina's hair behind her
ear, I notice she's not wearing a single earring today. Probably
another reason I didn't know it was her in the shower. I should
have known, though. I never felt that rush with Victoria. She never
electrified me. Alina electrifies me. I shouldn't be attracted to
Alina. I'm not allowed. I'm too wrapped up in this moment to
separate myself from it.

That's why I had to stop the kiss. If I let
it go that far without stepping back to think about this, I would
regret it. Alina and I are just friends—well, barely friends. You
can only learn so much about a person after knowing them for less
than a month and interacting with them only a handful of times.
While that is the case, I have to admit that from what I do know
about her, I would like to know more. I can sense something below
the surface—something that's fighting to emerge, but she's holding
it back. I don't want to ruin a chance to get to know her by
sleeping with her first. That's a dick move.

My train of thought is broken by a knock at
my door. At first it startles me, then I remember my brother Phil
and his boyfriend Brent are coming over tonight. I quickly get up
to open the door before they knock again.

“Yo, Ryan!” He raises a hand for a high
five.

“Dude, keep it down,” I say, pointing to the
couch.

Their eyes land on Alina. Phil raises an
eyebrow and says, “What's Victoria—wait, that's not Victoria.”

“It's not. Let's go in the other room and
I'll tell you what's going on.” I usher them over to the kitchen.
“Victoria's been cheating on me.”

“You've got to be shitting me,” Brent says.
“Do you know who it is?”

“Yeah...she's been cheating on me with her
roommate's boyfriend. The girl on the couch is Alina, her
roommate.”

“Damn,” Phil says, shaking his head. “Why is
she sleeping on your couch?”

I explain everything that happened from
beginning to end. When I finish, I groan and rub my forehead with
my hand. “I'm not exactly sure what's next.”

“I'd say
her
,” Brent says with a
smirk.

Phil punches him hard on the shoulder. “What
the fuck, dude?”

Brent steps away from Phil, rubbing his
shoulder. “I was just joking around, asshole.” Brent turns to me.
“You know I'm joking, right?”

I nod. “Yeah, I know.”

Phil's eyes narrow at me. “Hold on here a
second...you like her, don't you?”

I turn away to grab the empty shot glasses. I
place them in the sink next to my already sky-high pile of dirty
dishes. “I don't know anything right now except that I've been used
by Victoria, and Alina needs my help temporarily.”

Phil holds up his hands. “Hey, I'm not
judging. You already know neither one of us will try to steal her
away from you.”

That brings a smile to my face. After Phil
finished high school, he came out to the family. I had my
suspicions growing up, but I let him figure it out for himself. He,
Brent, and I formed a band two years ago called Split Ends. The two
of them had been friends for years before they finally started
dating. They're about to hit the one-year mark in a few weeks and
they're still going strong.

“Yeah, I do know that,” I say. “I just don't
know
her
yet. She just got out of a six-month relationship,
one she probably expected to lead to an engagement in the near
future. I don't want to be a rebound...or for her to be
my
rebound.” I don't even know if there's a chance of anything more
than a friendship with her. She may have responded to my touch and
my kiss earlier, but the first time she didn't know it was me, and
the second she was drunk. You can't trust responses when those two
factors are in play.

Brent pats me on the back. “In any case,
we're here for you to help out any way we can.”

“I appreciate it.” I hold up a finger. “You
know what? There's one thing you can do for me.”

They drive me to Alina's apartment so I can
bring her car back to my place as I promised I would. When we get
back, Brent and Phil ask if I want to go out like we originally
planned. I would hate for Alina to wake up here, dazed and
confused, not knowing where she is. “It's probably best that I stay
in the rest of tonight,” I tell them.

Phil shrugs. “Next time, then.”

“I'll let you know what's going on tomorrow
when I get home from work. I doubt she'll want to stick around my
place any longer than she has to.” I may have offered her a place
to crash, but after tonight I'm not expecting her to stay. I have
no idea what I'll be waking up to tomorrow.

~*~

The next morning, I'm up early for work.
After getting dressed, I peek into the living room. Alina is still
sleeping on the couch. The blanket is barely covering her now. She
must have been tossing and turning all night. I frown as I tiptoe
across the room to fix the blanket to cover her feet and arms.

She stirs with a groan, her eyes fluttering
open. Blinking a few times at me, she mutters, “What's going on?
Where am I?”

I kneel beside her. “You don't remember what
happened last night?”

She closes her eyes, rubbing them with her
fists. When she makes eye contact with me again, it dawns on her.
“Ugh. Yes, I remember now.” She sits up slowly, holding the blanket
to her body. She glances around. “How long have I been
sleeping?”

“At least twelve hours.”

Her jaw drops, her hand coming up to her
mouth. “Good Lord, really?”

“I was surprised you slept all the way
through the evening, but I shouldn't be, considering the day you
had yesterday.”

Alina sighs, her hand coming to her forehead.
“Yeah, I guess I needed it.”

“How about I make you some breakfast?” I go
to the kitchen and start making eggs and bacon. When I'm almost
finished, she leaves the couch and sits on one of the barstools. I
turn to her and say, “I got your car for you and put the keys back
in your purse.”

“You did
what
?” she says, clearly
irritated. “Who said you could drive my car?”

I stop stirring for a second, raising my
eyebrow at her. “You did.”

She cringes. “I did?” When I nod, she groans.
“God, I'm sorry.”

I turn off the burners. “Don't be. I'm
surprised you managed to lift yourself up on your own after how
much you drank last night. You really can't hold your liquor well,
can you?”

She shakes her head. “Not really, no.”

I get out two plates and fill them both.
Handing one to her, I say, “Here. This will cure what ails
you.”

She glances at it cautiously. She picks up
her fork and touches the eggs. “Are you sure?”

“Trust me. It's the breakfast of choice for
hangovers.”

She lets out a chuckle, shaking her head
again. “You know what? What the hell.”

I pour a glass of milk for each of us, then
come around to sit down next to her. We eat breakfast in silence
for a few minutes. Just as I'm about to speak, she asks, “Why are
you up this early anyway?”

“Work.” I take a sip of milk. “It's an
unfortunate expectation in construction. Early start when it's not
as hot outside.”

“That makes sense.” She presses her lips
together. “About last night...”

I hold up a hand. “No apologies. We both had
a few drinks and nearly had sex in the shower by accident. It
was...curiosity.” There's no need for her to feel bad about what
happened yesterday.

“If you say so.” She sets her fork down.
“I'll be out of your hair soon. I may even be gone by the time you
get home.”

Hearing her say this causes a strange feeling
to overcome me. One that makes no sense because it's making me
think I don't want her to leave just yet. “I wouldn't mind if you
were still here. My offer stands on you spending the night one more
time if you need it. I can even bring something home for dinner.”
It feels like I'm rambling. Hopefully she doesn't notice.

She mulls it over for a moment, then picks up
her fork again. “You know, it probably wouldn't hurt to stay one
more night. I need time to think about...everything.” She makes a
face, clearly thinking about her current predicament.

“I understand.” I finish the last of my
breakfast. “Seriously, whatever you need, just let me know.” I take
my plate to the sink and start to clean up the kitchen.

“Why are you being so nice to me?”

My head snaps to her. Alina's looking at me
as though she's trying to find an underlying motive to my kindness.
I pause wiping down the counter. “I'm compelled to. I can't
not
do anything when someone is in need of my help.”

She bites her lip. “Well, I guess that's
true, even though it's unnecessary.”

Shrugging, I say, “Maybe, but I'm still going
to do it.”

She laughs. “Okay, fine then. Thank you.”

“You're welcome. So, I'm thinking tacos for
dinner. Does that sound good to you?”

“That
does
sound good to me.”

I pause before leaving the room. “Are you
going to be okay while I'm gone? If you need a friend to come over
to be with you, I'm cool with that.”

Alina sighs. “Ryan, I'll be fine. Seriously.
I'm a big girl. Just go to work. I'll be here, plotting my future
and waiting on my tacos.”

I smile, nodding. “All right. I left my spare
key on the counter in case you need to go out for anything. See you
tonight.”

As I walk out the door, I can't help but
worry a little bit. She may claim she's a big girl, but she just
found out her serious boyfriend cheated on her. How can she be so
collected? Most girls would be freaking the fuck out, yet she's
acting like everything is cool. Sure, she's not thrilled about it;
her anger from yesterday proves that. But clearly Alina isn't like
most girls. It's almost endearing the way she...

Wait. Did I really just think that? I brush
the word aside, shaking my head. In any case, I can't stay home
from work. If she needs me, she has my cell number. She'll be fine
until dinnertime, right? I sure hope so.

Chapter Five

–
Alina –

I wish Ryan didn't have to leave. Now I'm
alone with my thoughts for the first time since yesterday's chaos.
It's beginning to sink in how much of a disaster my life is at this
exact moment. I have no job, no apartment, no boyfriend, and no
best friend.

Son of a bitch.

It almost makes me want to have another
couple of shots...but after my inability to keep my shit together
last night, I doubt that would be a good decision. Besides, I need
to figure out what's next.

What
is
next? Probably one of the
first things I need to do is get a couple bags packed to bring over
here. I may only be staying one more night, but I need to get out
of these clothes. And
badly
based on how sweaty and gross I
feel right now.

First things first: I need a shower. I'm sure
Ryan wouldn't mind, especially since he interrupted the one I was
taking yesterday. I don't have any fresh clothes to change into,
but I need to get clean again at the very least.

When I go into the bathroom, I make sure to
lock it. Like it matters since Ryan isn't even home, but I'd rather
be safe than sorry. I strip down to nothing and slip into the
shower. The second I use his shampoo, my mind flashes back to
yesterday. His woodsy scent surrounding me. How did I not realize
it wasn't Drew? There are so many reasons I should have known
better. Why didn't I?

I shake my head. There's no use trying to
understand the psychological reasoning behind something that was an
innocent mistake. An innocent mistake that is awakening my senses.
Closing my eyes, I can feel Ryan's hands all over my body. A chill
spreads through me despite the hot water running over my naked
body. I press on and finish my shower quickly, attempting to keep
the memory of his touches from distracting me.

It's to no avail. I touch myself with one
finger, sighing over how it feels. Running my finger in circles
over my clit, I slowly increase the pressure and speed. My mind
focuses on Ryan, imagining it's his finger instead of mine. That's
all it takes to bring about my orgasm. I let out a cry that echoes
through the bathroom. I hold myself up with my hand on the shower
wall as I come down off that high.