Page 27 of Losing Ansley

"Yeah. One of the guys I work with knows one of the players and can get us tickets. We didn't even have to pay for them. After the game, we'll go to a dueling piano bar." I make a sandwich instead of cooking something, so I grab the lunch meats and bread.

"Sounds like a fun day. Will it be just us three, or will Ansley's friends be there too?" I ask him as I spread mayonnaise on the bread.

"Yeah. Liv and Caroline will come up to stay with Ansley, and I figured you could stay with me. Unless you only want to come up for one day, I thought you could stay the weekend. Bass, Caroline's boyfriend, is coming too." I begin layering the lunch meat on the bread.

"That sounds great. I'll come straight there when I leave work that Friday." I put everything away, wash my knife, and then sit at the island to eat.

"Awesome! The next week will be a crazy filming schedule, so I wanted to make sure and call you just in case I didn't get a chance later." He tells me. It makes me miss the old days when we were roommates and we didn't have busy lives. We could hang out whenever we wanted, and the only time we were stressed was during exams.

"Thanks for letting me know! I'm looking forward to it." I take a bite of my sandwich and hold in a sigh. I miss Ansley.

"I'll call you later. I need to go to sleep. We have an early start tomorrow." Brushing off the crumbs on my fingers, I grab a glass of water. I begin to think of what I can do to make Ansley feel special for her birthday.

"Alright. Talk to you later." We say our goodbyes, and I hang up. A plan begins to form in my mind on how to make Ansley's birthday memorable. She'll be twenty-six. I remember when she was ten, and I was sixteen, she told me she would marry me when she was twenty-six.

Ansley: Ten

Lincoln: Sixteen

"I'm going to marry you when I'm twenty-six." I glance down at Ansley and chuckle. We're making chocolate chip cookies because her school has some bake sale, and of course, her mom can't be bothered to help her, so I'm helping her. Dylan went to the store to buy more chocolate chips, so it’s just Ansley and me.

"Oh yeah? Why twenty-six?" She shrugs and pops a chocolate chip in her mouth which is why we need more chocolate chips. The kid won't stop eating them.

"I dunno. Seems like a good age to get married." I snort and pour the chocolate chips we have into the batter before she eats them all. She scowls at me and grabs a few that are on top. I shake my head and start mixing.

"If I'm still not married by the time you turn twenty-six, I'll marry you. Deal?" She beams up at me like I just solved world hunger.

"Deal!" When Dylan walks into the kitchen, she turns to him. "I'm marrying Lincoln when I turn twenty-six!" She exclaims, and Dylan stops in his tracks and glances at me. I shrug and bark out a laugh.

"Sounds like fun, Ans! I'll be your ring bearer." I roll my eyes as he starts to mix another batch of cookies, and we spoon clumps onto a cookie sheet.

MAYBE I SHOULDask her to marry me. I did tell her I'd marry her when she turned twenty-six. A promise is a promise.

I STARE ATthe back of the guy's head Ansley brought with her to the baseball game. I'm trying to figure out a way I can commit murder without being convicted. Temporary insanity? That could work because this woman drives me insane. By the time we get to our seats, I have envisioned multiple ways of killing Zack.

Ansley glances over her shoulder at me for the hundredth time since we got to the ballpark. I had no warning. Dylan didn't tell me, and Ansley has continued to ignore every call and text I've sent her over the past few weeks. I've had enough of being ignored. I've given her space, but I'm done.

I had every intention of declaring how I felt to Dylan this weekend so she'd see how much of a mistake she isn't and how much she is wanted. She asked me to prove it, so this is me proving it. Zack will know, too, if he manages to make it to the end of the night without me killing him.

He places his hand on the small of her back, leading her to our row, and I growl. Liv turns to me and smirks. I glower at her, and she breaks into a smile. My eyes narrow at her. She knows. I had my suspicions after the pub but never approached her or Caroline, so I wasn't sure. I put my hand on her elbow to stop her. Everyone walks ahead as she turns to me and gives me a questioning look.

"Did Ansley tell you about us?" She looks over her shoulder toward everyone else, then back to me, and nods.

"She didn't tell us everything. But she needed someone to talk to." I lean back and think this through and decide to confide in her.

"I'm going to tell Dyan how I feel about Ansley this weekend. One way or another, I'm making this thing between us permanent." Liv's eyes widen, and she looks over her shoulder again. Everyone has made it to the seats and is looking back at us. Ansley's eyes narrow at Liv and me, but I ignore it. Dylan waves at me, and I motion for him to give us a minute.

"You're doing all of that this weekend?" She questions with uncertainty.

"She asked me to prove how I feel. This is me doing just that." I explain to her. Liv begins playing with her ponytail.

"Okay. Go for it. But please don't hurt her. I know you're my boss, but she is like a sister to me. Make this better." She pleads. I stare at her for a long time before nodding.

"I want to. Trust me." I reply. She pats me on the arm as I look back at Ansley and Zack. He has his arm wrapped around her shoulder, and she's laughing at something he's saying. After a few seconds, she looks up, and our eyes connect. I refuse to look away.

Instead, I show her everything I feel for her. I want her to see it in my eyes. How she affects me, how much I want her, and how I can't live without her. She shifts away from Zack and leans forward, her hand coming to her neck, and I smirk. She's not over me. I arch an eyebrow at her in a challenge. She scowls and looks away. I look back at Liv.

"I'm going to try my best to show her how much I want her." She pats my arm again and turns toward our seats.

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