31. Ally
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
ALLY
By the time I arrive at my bedroom, my face is a wet mess. I place the presents on my bed and lie back, sobbing uncontrollably. All my emotions flood out and it hurts to the core of my soul.
My entire life is a wreck. I think back to when I first returned from Paris and got stood up on my date, how I was at the lowest point of my life and knew changes needed to be made to find happiness.
I’ve made changes, and yet, this massive void still lays inside me.
I had this picture-perfect idea of what happiness would look like for me. I’d be in love with a perfect guy who treats me right and isn’t my stepbrother. Dan and I would be a thing of the past.
Since that night of being stood up, I’ve found the textbook perfect guy. Liam is everything I should want. He’s eager to commit to me. We have fun together. He’s caring and attentive.
And yet nothing feels right with him.
I said I’d give Liam a proper chance. But after receiving this locket, it’s pushed me to my breaking point and I’m done fighting the one thing in this world that makes sense to my heart.
The risk of being caught with Dan won’t ever go away. Tonight, right now, I’ve decided it’s a risk worth taking. My parents’ opinion of me, my public image and job, Forever Families… Everything is worth risking if it means being with Dan.
When my breathing calms and the tears stop flowing, I check the time on my bedside clock. It’s almost nine and I’ve been absent from the party for ten minutes. Far too long to not raise suspicion. I head to the bathroom with the heart locket in my hand, needing to see the damage this emotional outburst has done to my makeup. My eyes are red, but surprisingly nothing has been smudged or washed away. Thank goodness for waterproof makeup.
“Kind of the opposite reaction I was hoping for with my gift.”
I spin around in fright, finding Dan leaning a shoulder against the doorframe.
“Tears of joy, maybe.” His voice is deep and slow. Intimate. His gaze traces my body, down and back up to my eyes, heating every inch of me. “But I didn’t expect you to leave your own party upset.”
“I’m fine. I love the necklace. I’m just overwhelmed.”
“I knew you’d love the necklace,” he murmurs. “When you opened the present, you looked at me in a way I’ve never seen before. It was a look you shouldn’t have given me in public. Not in front of our family. Our parents. Especially not in front of Liam. Even now, you’re giving me the same look. I want to know what it means.”
His gaze bores into me, holding me in place. I lick my lips, my heart beating so incredibly fast as I speak my next words. “It means I’m back, just like you said I would be. But this time, I’m back for good. I don’t know how, but we’ll find a way to make this work. We’ll be together in secret. This necklace you gave me—” I hold it up in my hand. “I want you to be the one to clasp it around my neck, and then I’m never taking it off. I’m yours forever. Let everyone see your mark on me, even if they don’t realize the meaning behind it. We will.”
A flicker of disbelief crosses his face as my words register in his mind. Dan wastes no time closing the distance between us, and within a few swift strides, his lips are hot upon mine and his hands are tangled through my hair. I moan into his kisses, clinging to him. Nothing has ever felt this good, having his body against mine and knowing there’s no expiration date on what we have. I don’t care if we have to continue our relationship in secret. I’m taking what I want. He’s mine and every part of me belongs to him.
Dan lifts me up by the backs of my thighs and places me on the basin, pushing his hips between my legs, right where he belongs.
“I’m sorry it’s taken me this long to see the truth,” I say as Dan’s kisses move down my throat. He takes the necklace from my hand and secures it around my neck. “I’m sorry about every time I ran away from you.”
“I know, baby. I don’t care. You’re here with me now.”
I unbuckle Dan’s belt, working fast to get his thick, hard length free. We’re at a party with all our family nearby, but I don’t care. I need to feel Dan inside me. I need him to come in me.
He hoists my dress up and pulls my panties to the side, pushing the entire length of his dick into me in one quick thrust. I cry out at the sharp and sudden stretch. He covers my mouth with a kiss, muffling my sounds from the party downstairs. My legs wrap around Dan’s waist, locking him to me as my muscles adjust to his size. Our foreheads press together and all I can hear is our panting.
“We shouldn’t be doing this again without a condom.” He pulls out and thrusts back in, ignoring his own words. Dan repeats the pattern, fucking me slow but desperately, his muscles trembling.
“I went on the pill right after we had sex. I need you to come in me. Please .”
I barely get the words out before Dan groans, the sound filled with possession and urgency. He grips my hips tighter and pulls me onto his dick with each slow but harsh thrust. “Hearing those words… I can’t hold off, Ally.”
“I don’t want you to.” The act of reuniting with Dan and finally giving myself completely to him already has me close to an orgasm. “We don’t have much time before everyone wonders where we are.”
He growls through clenched teeth, pumping fast until losing control and spilling into me, repeating the word mine over and over in a deep and breathless groan. My orgasm hits, spasming around Dan’s cock, drawing his cum deep within me where I need it. I pant his name, trying my hardest to be quiet, but it’s a difficult task when he makes me feel this complete.
“Ally?” my mother calls. Her footsteps approach from the far end of the corridor outside the bathroom.
Panic flashes through me. Dan and I quickly pull apart from each other and straighten our clothes. He sits on the rim of the bathtub, pretending like we’re in the middle of a conversation. I fix my hair in the mirror, lightheaded and still tingling from my orgasm.
Mom enters the bathroom. “There you are, honey. I wanted to check up on you.” She joins me at the mirror and kisses my forehead, her attention catching on my new necklace. “Oh, Dan, you really are so incredible for finding this photo. Ally, how are you feeling? You look flushed.”
“I… was crying over the photo of my dad. Happy tears,” I say, feeling Dan’s cum seeping out of me.
She smiles, convinced by the lie. “All right, you two. Come downstairs so we can cut the cake.”
Dan follows her out of the bathroom first. I catch up, hooking my pinkie finger with his. He side-eyes me, glancing down at the necklace then back at me, the two of us sharing a secret smile.
I press up on my toes and whisper in his ear, “I can think of a whole list of things you still have to teach me.”
As soon as Mom, Dan, and I return to the party, Liam stands from his seat and slips an arm around my waist. “Hey, beautiful. I wish I could stay for the cake, but I need to get on the road to make it to my gig in time.”
“Of course. I’ll walk you out to your car.”
Liam says a quick goodbye to everyone, we exit the dining room together, and I walk with him out to the side of the house where his truck and all the other cars are hidden for my surprise party. Each step of the way is awkward, knowing the conversation we’re about to have.
“Your family is really nice,” Liam says as we arrive at his truck. There’s a chill to the night air, but I barely feel it, prepping myself for the bad news I’m about to deliver. “I had a great time tonight. I hope you enjoyed your party.” He strokes my cheek. A look enters his eyes like he’s thinking about kissing me .
I duck my head, leaning away from his palm. “Liam, I need to say something.”
“Okay.” There’s a brightness to his voice which makes my stomach clench, knowing what I’m about to say will be harsh.
“I said I would give us a chance. I meant it at the time, but… I can’t be your girlfriend. I’m sorry. My heart isn’t in this.”
His brow creases. He’s utterly shocked. “I thought that was the whole point of giving us a chance. Not rushing into anything and giving us time to form a bond. We only just started?—”
“I know. I’m sorry.”
“I thought things were going well.” Liam rubs both hands over his face, groaning into his palms. “I stopped seeing other girls because I like you so much. I don’t do shit like that for just anyone, Ally.”
“I know. Again, I’m sorry. My mind has been a mess recently. I wanted this to work between us.”
He lowers his hands, the look in his eyes both hurt and anger. “What did I do wrong?”
“You didn’t do anything. You’re amazing. It’s… there’s…” My hands clasp behind my back and I bite my cheek, nervous and unable to speak a proper sentence.
“Stop dancing around the truth and be honest. I can handle it.”
“Really, Liam, it’s not you.”
“I don’t see what you could possibly have to hide unless there’s some other guy you’re seeing and are trying to protect my feelings.”
My shoulders tighten at his sharp tone and how perceptive he is. Liam has been nothing but genuine and honest with me throughout our entire time knowing each other, and I feel terrible that I can’t do the same in return. I want to offer him somewhat of the truth, but then he could piece everything together, and I can’t have anyone find out about me and Dan.
“There’s no explanation other than it doesn’t feel right. I’m sorry.”
“This is bullshit.” Liam enters his truck, slamming the door shut behind himself. The ignition roars to life, he reverses down the driveway, and I watch as he speeds off into the night.
Well, that went pretty bad.
I do feel awful for hurting Liam. At the same time, there’s a massive sense of relief in me. Liam was a great guy who I could have been with in another life, but we weren’t right for each other, even if it took me too long to learn so.
I head back through the house, to the party, walking in on a discussion about bedrooms and where everyone is sleeping.
“Oh, good, Ally, you’re back,” Mom says. “Will you please convince Dan he needs to sleep here tonight. It will be so nice to have the whole family under one roof. Like old times.”
“You offered Dax and Jordan the room I used to sleep in. All the other bedrooms are taken,” Dan says, leaning back at the table while mindlessly shuffling his neon cards. A soft smile tugs at my lips, seeing him with those cards and knowing I have the Queen of Hearts.
“We can set up the couch,” Mom tells him.
“The couch?” Dan laughs. “You’re not really selling the idea of me sleeping over, Amabella.”
I return to my chair beside Dan, not saying a word, my thoughts still with Liam and the tense scene that went down between us. How he drove off in anger .
“Honey, tell Dan he has to stay for your birthday. We’re going to play board games after the cake and need correct numbers for each group.”
I look at my mom and shrug, my mind distant, hoping Liam is safe on the road.
“Ally, darling, what’s wrong?”
“Liam and I got into an argument. I don’t think I’ll be seeing him again.”
“What?” she gasps. All eyes whip to me, and I’m met with a million questions. What was the argument about? Who started it? Am I upset?
“I’m fine.” Liam’s anger wasn’t nice to experience, but with each passing second, I’m feeling a greater sense of freedom and… I’m happy . I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy, knowing I can finally let myself be with Dan. “I’m actually better than fine. I told Liam we weren’t right for each other.”
“You only just started seeing him,” Josh states in confusion.
“We weren’t seeing each other. We were only… It doesn’t even matter.”
“How did he take it?” Violet asks with the biggest grin on her face.
I roll my eyes at her reaction, resisting the urge to laugh out of respect for Liam. “Not well. He’ll be fine, though.”
Felix tosses a balled-up napkin across the table at Dan. “Now you have to stay the night. Baby sis needs her family around for comfort.” There’s a teasing grin on his face, and he finishes with a wink at Dan, to which Dan scowls back. I have no clue what any of that is about. “Come on, bro. I’ll take the couch. You have my old bedroom.”
“Fine,” Dan says, grabbing my thigh beneath the table. “I’ll stay.”