Curvy Girls Can't Date Bad Boys - Kelsie Stelting Page 0,81

I had a reply.

Jordan: Already here. See you soon. :)

What did they have up their sleeves? I got into my car and looked over the for-sale sign in the back glass. Downsizing meant more reasonably, and I was okay with that. If Kai Rush could drive a dented-up Honda, I could give up my Rolls-Royce.

The closer I got to the trails, the more my chest tightened. The last time I’d pulled into the parking lot, I’d been greeted with Ronan’s lean frame propped against his motorcycle. He’d taken my hand and showed me one of the most hidden parts of himself.

Today was supposed to be a day for celebration, but a crushing weight settled over me knowing Ronan wouldn’t be there to celebrate with me. That I may never talk to him again.

A small part of me had hoped that he would see the press conference, that he would know I had tried to protect him from the police, and that he would forgive me. With each day that passed, that hope was fading. I hardly had any left to hold on to. But maybe Ronan wasn’t meant to be in my future. If losing my mom had taught me anything, it was that we weren’t promised tomorrow, no matter the circumstances.

As I pulled up to the trailhead, I saw all of my friends’ cars parked around the small parking lot. There was hardly room for me there, but I wedged in between Ray's muddy pickup and Kai’s Honda and turned off my car.

They weren’t in their vehicles, and as I looked around, I didn't see or hear any of them. Where were they? I checked my phone and saw that Rory had texted me.

Rory: We're a little farther up the trail! Come check out your party.

Feeling one part sad and one part excited, I put my phone back in my purse. Maybe this was good. I would be making new memories here, and then it wouldn't always be haunted with what I had lost with Ronan. But then again, I didn't think he left the kind of memory you could erase.

I continued down the trail, keeping my eyes and ears perked for my friends. They must have walked a little farther in, and I was glad I'd worn my Birkenstocks, which were comfier for walking than a pair of flip-flops or dressier sandals.

I stopped at the spot where I first learned Ronan was a member of Dulce Periculum. Shuddered at the memory of peeling back his mask and kissing his perfect lips. I closed my eyes, savoring the memory of him being so close to me, and then other memories pushed their way in. Of him and me on a beach—of me giving everything I had to him.

I opened my eyes, blinking quickly, not wanting to ruin my makeup or break down in tears right before my party.

“Hey,” a soft voice said, and for a moment, I thought I might have imagined it. Feeling crazy to even hope, I turned, and my breath caught in my chest.

Ronan stood several feet away, dressed in dark jeans and a loose-fitting T-shirt. His hair was longer, curling around his ears. And his eyes... they captivated me just as much as they always had. He was every bit as perfect as I remembered him, and it literally made my chest ache.

“Happy birthday,” he said.

I still couldn’t breathe, much less talk. What was he doing here? Had this been an accident?

“I saw you on TV,” he said as if he were relating the weather.

I blinked, but it felt like my eyelids were slamming shut and I was forcing them open. I was scared to move, terrified I would spook him away.

“What you said about me...” He shook his head. “No one has ever said that about me.”

My breath was ragged. I wanted to apologize for overstepping my bounds, but I couldn’t find the words. Not the right ones anyway.

“I wasn't going to watch it, but Drex made me.” His jaw tightened, and I waited for the anger that was about to spill out from those perfect lips, to tell me to get out of his life, for good this time. But those words didn't come. Instead, his jaw quivered as he took me in, all of me. It was like he was seeing me all over again, but for the first time. “And you took the fall for all of us. You kept us safe.”

Moisture filled my eyes, and I spoke over the lump