to Bryce, but she was even more embarrassed than ever. He would be disappointed when he heard. Maybe he'd change his mind about wanting to be with her.
From the stairs she caught sight of a brown and neon green plaid. The sandy blond hair on the guy matched Bryce. Who else would wear such a horrible shirt in public? He turned his face and she caught a good look at his profile. It was Bryce, and the sadness in his expression said it all. He knew about Marcus already. What was he doing there? She had to stop him from leaving, but there was no way she could get to the entrance in time. If I can at least catch him before he gets to his car…
****
As Bryce stepped out into the night, again the cameras started to go crazy. This time, he didn't smile or wave. He pulled the collar up on his shirt, kept his head down, and walked to where the valet would be bringing his car. Normally, he'd have waited inside and away from all the chaos, but he couldn't stand being in the club any longer. What if Arial left the room with Marcus and they looked happy? He wouldn't have been able to stand seeing that.
Arial. He shook his head. And I can't escape her out here either. It's like someone keeps saying her name in my ear. And that's when he realized the paparazzi were saying her name. Behind him, toward the front, he could hear the shouts, the cameras clicks going crazy all around. Arial stood in the doorway. Their gazes locked on one another, and the next thing he knew she was running down the sidewalk toward him. She flung her arms around his neck and pressed her lips tight against his.
****
Arial poured all of her love into the kiss, and she felt him open his mouth to her slightly. That was the moment she knew everything would be okay. She didn't care about the cameras capturing the whole thing. All she cared about was him. Let the world see how we feel about each other.
He stared down into her eyes. “We need to talk,” he said softly. She could barely hear him, but she understood what he was saying just by the soft look on his face alone.
“We do,” she said. His sports car pulled up in front of the sidewalk. Moving one of his hands to the small of her back, he guided her toward the passenger side, helped her in, and then went around to drive. Once they were both buckled in, he began to get them away from the crowd. It took a moment, since the photographers were still going nuts over their little show, but soon they were cruising through the city.
“It took me a moment to figure out what was wrong,” he said. “I mean, I thought you were just hung up on the fact that Katie and I dated. Yes, we were together for a long time, and we haven't been broken up for long. At the same time, I don't think it takes rocket science to know that you and I have a bond. This isn't a rebound because I wouldn't risk a rebound with you. You're too important to me. Everything I feel for you is real.”
“I know,” she whispered. “I —”
He put a hand on hers. “Let me finish, please.” He inhaled slowly. “I had an interesting conversation with my brother. He opened my eyes to a few things, and I need to apologize. I pushed you into singing with me at the fair. I guess I was so caught up in the atmosphere, I didn't stop to think about how you might be feeling. We should have talked about it more. Really talked about it. And we should have really talked about us, before I started spouting off all of my ideas. Don't get me wrong, I still feel the same way as I did when I first told you. I do want to grow old with you. I do want to have our own private piece of land to enjoy and have some quiet. But I should have talked to you about it all first instead of just spouting it off like it was going to happen. At the end of the day, I don't care where I am as long as I'm with you.”
Arial closed her eyes as she listened to him talk. She had to absorb the