Unexpected (14 page)

Alina sits up and leans over, her hand
feeling for my face. “Goodnight, Ryan,” she says softly, pressing a
quick kiss to my cheek.

I smile in the dark, reaching up to touch the
back of my fingers to her cheek, gently stroking down to her chin.
She shivers slightly under my fingertips. “Goodnight, Alina.”

As we lie there in the dark together on the
same bed, I can't help but wish it were under different
circumstances. Could we maybe someday reach that point? One where
we could be in line with each other and not afraid of what could
happen? I feel as though something is pulling me toward her, like
she's the light I've always needed from the start. Are we just
kidding ourselves with this friendship business?

It isn't until I hear her breathing slow and
I know she's asleep that I allow the sandman to take me, too.

Chapter Seventeen

–
Alina –

When I wake up the next morning, my first
thought is of how well I slept last night. My second thought is
wondering why I'm snuggled so closely to this warm body. My eyes
open slowly and I take in my surroundings. My hand is resting on
Ryan's toned stomach, my cheek on his chest. His breathing is
steady; he's still asleep. I start to detach our bodies before I
allow myself to do something I know I shouldn't, but then Ryan's
arm around me tightens, holding me closer. I lift my head to look
at him, see if I can wake him up.

That's when Ryan moves, rolling to the side,
his hand coming up to draw our faces closer. I suck in a breath as
his washes over me. His eyes barely open, then close as a dreamy
smile appears on his face. In a whisper, he says, “Alina, don't go
to work. Stay home. All day.”

Does he know he’s awake, or does he think
it’s a dream? I'm about to chuckle when he presses his lips to the
corner of my mouth, and I nearly stop breathing. He must be
dreaming. Has to be.

He lets out a sigh. “You're so beautiful. You
know that? You always were.”

I gasp at his words. Did he really say...he
couldn't have possibly said...

Then he kisses me.

It's soft. Honestly, barely a real kiss at
all. I mean, it
is
a kiss. Our lips are touching, but
there's hardly any movement. Only gentle lingering presses to my
lips, barely an attempt to part them. I'm well aware this shouldn't
be happening, and yet there's nothing I can do to stop it. Of
course I
could
stop it, quite easily in fact. All I need to
do is pull away.

But I don't.

I can't.

I'm desperate to grab onto something to
steady myself, but he's not wearing a shirt, and I know if I touch
his sculpted, inked chest I’ll be done for. I won't want to stop.
I'll want to kiss him longer, trace my fingers over his tattoos. It
would be a dream come true to cross that line, but I don’t need a
distraction like this on the first day of my new job.

Oh, crap! My new job!

I remove my lips from Ryan's and carefully
untangle myself from his grip. He willingly lets me go, falling
onto his back and breathing out a contented sigh before falling
back asleep.

My brows furrow, attempting to contemplate
what just took place. I glance at his alarm clock and shake my
head. No time to sit around and think about this; I have to get
ready and get out the door soon if I don't want to make myself late
for my first day at the bakery. I slip out of his bed and get
dressed, then leave before Ryan has a chance to wake up and catch
me first before I go.

~*~

Everything goes well at The Baker's Dozen.
Franklin shows me their procedures and what they bake when. I learn
how to make their signature chocolate chip cookies and how to use
their cash register to ring up customers. The only other person
working with us is Kathy, a sweet woman in her forties who reminds
me of my mother. I stay so busy taking it all in that I completely
forget about my morning wake up call.

That is, until I get home.

Ryan's sitting on the couch when our eyes
connect. The second they do, I know he realized what went down
earlier. His muscles tense and he mutters, “Shit.” He jumps up,
crossing the room quickly. “I'm sorry about this morning.”

I give him a smile. “It's fine.” With a flick
of my wrist, I brush it all off. “You were still sleeping, you
can't be held accountable for those actions.”

“But I remember them.”

“You were sleeping.”

“But I know it was real. It really happened.
It wasn't a dream. And I'm sorry.”

His incessant apologizing is annoying me.
“Ryan,” I say, walking past him to set my purse down next to my
things. I rummage through my clothes, pretending to look for
something. I doubt my distraction techniques are going to make a
difference, but I'm going to try to get him to drop it. “We're
cool. Just let it go.”

When I turn around, I catch him shaking his
head. “Not yet. I'm pretty sure I said something before I kissed
you.”

I press my lips together before responding.
“Yeah.”

“What did I say?”

“Nothing much,” I say as I look away from
him.

“Alina,” he warns. “Tell me what I said.”

I sigh. Of course he knows I'm lying. “You
wanted me to stay home. You said...you said I was beautiful.”
That I was always beautiful.
My heart skips a beat thinking
about the tenderness in his voice this morning.

He blinks at me, his expression blank.
“Alina...”

“Look, it's fine. Everything is...it's
fine.”

“Are you sure about that? The last thing I
want to do is make you uncomfortable.”

“I'm not uncomfortable. I'm fine.”

He holds up a hand. “Stop saying everything
is fine. That word is ridiculously overused when things
aren't
fine.”

I place my hands on my hips, giving him a
look. “Well, I'm not lying.”

“Neither was I. You really are beautiful.
It's not like I couldn't notice it the first time I saw you.” He
sighs, running a hand through his hair. “But it's also true that
we're just friends. I crossed a line.”

Are we just friends?
I brush the
thought aside as I tuck a strand of hair behind my ear. “You were
sleep-kissing me,” I say with a shrug. “It wasn't on purpose.”

“Maybe so, but I'm going to make a solemn
promise to you.”

I stifle a snort and clear my throat. “What
kind of promise?”

He raises up his right hand. “I, Ryan Wilcox,
solemnly vow to never kiss Alina Lyons...unless she asks me to.” He
smirks, giving me a wink.

I laugh, shaking my head. “You really are a
dork.” I step closer to him and run a hand over his cheek.
“Handsome, too, but still a dork.”

“So, I'm a handsome dork?”

“Absolutely.” I wrap my arms around his
waist. “We're cool, really we are.”

“Thank God for that. Now tell me about your
day.”

~*~

The rest of the
week is a blur. Ryan works every day and spends almost every night
over at his parents' house practicing. The Split Ends will be
playing The Green Room this Friday night and they need to test out
their set to ensure the song order is, well, in order. I work all
day Wednesday and Friday, then spend the rest of the time without
Ryan reading. I visit my mom on Tuesday and have lunch with Willa
on Thursday. I invite Willa to come out Friday night, but she isn't
sure whether she can get a sitter or not. I'm really hoping she can
come so I don't have to sit all by my lonesome as I watch the
band.

Even though I told
Ryan we were “cool” when it came to the incident on Monday, things
between us appear a little...off. It could be just because we
barely get to see each other like we usually do. Maybe it's because
of what happened and we're not sure how to act around each other. I
don't know what it is, but when I look in his eyes now, I'm seeing
something. It's almost as though he wants to kiss me again, but the
idea is preposterous.

Isn't it?

With the strange
vibe between us, I still haven't been able to decide if staying
here should be an option. I know I can't make it on my own. I'd
either have to get a roommate, or a sugar daddy. Neither one of
those are viable options, so it all keeps coming back to Ryan.

Friday night
finally arrives. Ryan dresses up with a snug-fitting dark blue
T-shirt with dark-wash jeans. I wear a beige tank top with brown-
and gold-beaded design and jeans. I quickly put my hair into a
simple
French
braid that
trails off to the side before we head out. We don't talk much on
the way there, but I get the feeling that performing can make him
anxious. I know if I was in a band and had to get on a stage, I'd
probably be a nervous wreck.

Once we're inside,
we find Phil and Brent near the stage with all the equipment set
up. Ryan turns to me. “Are you going to be okay by yourself?”

“
Don't worry
about me. I'll just be sitting over there,” I say, pointing to the
closest empty seat at the bar. “I promise to limit myself to only
two drinks in your absence.”

He lets out a
chuckle. “I'm glad that you're trying to be good for my sake.”

I smile and touch
my fingers to his chin. “Break a leg,” I tell him, then turn around
and head to the bar.

Chapter Eighteen

–
Ryan –

All it takes is Alina saying those three
cliché words and my nerves melt away. I guess that's what happens
when you find someone who's willing to boost you up when you’re not
feeling up to par.

Phil rolls his eyes at me. “You have it
bad.”

I punch him in the arm. “Jackass,” I mutter.
“Come on. Time to focus.”

“I'm not the one staring at the girl I want
but am convinced I can't have.”

I pick up my guitar and sling the strap over
my shoulder, then let out a sigh. It's not that I don't believe I
can have her. I know I could; the mutual attraction is there. And
while that kiss on Monday was instigated by a half-drowsy me, she
didn't push me away. She didn't kiss me back, but she didn't put a
stop to it either.

That has to mean something.

I step up to the microphone under the
spotlight and nod at Phil and Brent to get into position. I glance
over at the owner and he gives me the thumbs up to get started.
“Hello, everyone.” The crowd shouts and claps. “My name is Ryan,
and this is Phil and Brent. We're the Split Ends and we're very
excited to be back again playing for you. What do you say we get
this started with a bang?” Everyone cheers as Brent counts us into
our first song.

I glance in Alina's direction and find her at
the bar where she said she'd be. I start playing “Slide” by The Goo
Goo Dolls. Even from here, I can see her lips part and her eyes
soften. Just like how she remembered how much I love
snickerdoodles, I remember her saying how much she loves this song.
I sing to her, my heart flying with the smiles she sends me. I want
to hold this moment, with her hair braided and her blue eyes
entranced. I want to tuck it into my pocket and pull it out
whenever I need a fix.

Maybe Phil's right. I have it bad.

~*~

An hour and a half later, our set is over.
Even though I love performing, the anxiety from being onstage can
really drain me. I always breathe a sigh of relief the second I get
back on level ground. Once I get a beer in me, I'll feel even more
relaxed.

I head over to the bar expecting to see Alina
sitting in the same spot she's occupied the whole night, but she's
not there. I frown, but signal a bartender and ask him to bring me
a beer. I scan the room, hoping she's nearby.

As soon as I have my hands on the beer, I'm
about to stand to go back to Phil and Brent when a couple of girls
block me. “Hi there,” I say with a smile.

The girl on the right says, “You were amazing
up there.”

“Yeah, you guys have a wonderful sound,” the
other one chimes in.

“Well, thank you.”

“Can we buy you a drink?” the first girl
asks, giving me the hopeful head tilt.

Before I can respond, Alina shows up at my
side holding a drink. “Hey sweetness,” she says, leaning in to
press a kiss to my lips. I don't even miss a beat. Parting my lips
just enough to make it look like a real kiss, I cup her cheek with
my free hand. She pulls back with a contented smile. “You wanna
grab a booth?”

“Of course,” I respond as I stand up. “Excuse
me, ladies. My girl and I have something to celebrate tonight.”

The girls glance at each other, then watch
with blank expressions as I lead Alina with a hand on the small of
her back over to the last empty booth. I whisper into her ear,
“Nice save. It's a burden to be the only straight man in the
band.”

She lets out a snort as she slides into the
booth. “Oh please. It's such a burden when girls are falling at
your feet.”

“It is when you're not interested in any of
them.” And the one you want is only pretending to be your
girlfriend.

“Well, luckily for you, I'm here.” I raise an
eyebrow and she gives me a look. “Here to rescue you, not throw
myself at your feet.”

“If rescuing me involves spontaneous kissing,
all I ask is that you do it every chance you get.” I throw her a
wink.

She shakes her head. “That was a one-time
deal. Next time you find yourself in that situation you better
either have a girlfriend or be prepared to carry that burden on
your own.”

I look back at the bar. “Those girls are
looking over at us. I think they're getting suspicious.”

“What?” She peeks over at them. Their eyes
are on us and they keep whispering to each other.

I lean in closer. “You should mark your
territory before they uncover the scam.”