Page 134 of The Right Move

“Damn right I am,” she agrees.

“My house is much bigger than Shay’s. You’re more than welcome.”

Fucking shit-disturber.

“She’s not going anywhere.” I say the words to Dom, but keep my eyes on Indy as they come out.

She won’t look at me.

It’s too right, having her here. This is where she belongs, with me, in this apartment. And if she thinks for a second she’s moving out, she’s out of her goddamn mind.

28

INDY

Indy

Daily update—I need to get away from the apartment. Can I spend the night at your house?

Stevie

Is everything okay?

No.

See you soon.

I packed my bag while Ryan was at practice and had planned to be gone by the time he got home. But once Annie called to tell me Ryan canceled team dinner, I knew I couldn’t leave yet.

I probably should’ve gone further than Zanders and Stevie’s penthouse if I’m really trying to get away, but I don’t know that I am. I don’t know what I’m doing. All I know is that apartment is filled with him, and it’s suffocating.

How much I want him is suffocating.

How much I care about him is suffocating.

How much love I have for that man after only a few short months is suffocating.

Call me dramatic, but last night’s realizations messed me up. Ryan has lived through a pregnancy with a woman he thought he loved, anticipating their future and family. He spent nine months loving a child that wasn’t his. How do you come back from that? It’s no wonder he’s guarded and untrusting.

It was excruciating for me, as only a bystander, to hear how someone tried to use Ryan in the most hurtful of ways, how he thinks everyone around him has tried to take advantage.

I very clearly heard the way he didn’t exclude me from that statement, and I refuse to miss the blaring neon signs once again. I refuse to stay in a space that isn’t meant for me, just like I stayed in a relationship that was no longer my future.

The last thing I want is to be compared to the woman before me. I care about Ryan far too much to let him believe that, so I’ll prove it. I’ll move out. That way, he couldn’t possibly continue to believe I was using him.

As soon as Ryan was distracted and all but Ethan and Dom had left the apartment, I left too. But as I haul my duffel bag into the guest bedroom, and before I’ve even changed into my pajamas, I hear his voice from down the hall.

“Happen to see a mouthy blonde tonight? Mile-long legs and a banging brain?” Ryan asks his sister and Zanders.

I can hear the smile in Zanders’ tone as he talks to his fiancée. “I love this for us, Vee. Watching your brother squirm like a love-sick puppy. Mushy motherfucker.”

“Fuck you very much.”

Stevie laughs from where she sits on the couch with Zanders and their dog, Rosie. “She’s in the guest room. She’ll be out in a minute, I’m sure.”

I knew he’d come here or at the very least, call, but he was quicker than I expected.

I’ve only just pulled out my toothbrush to get ready for my night, so with it in hand, I sheepishly make my way down the hall.

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