Page 54 of Ride with Zane

“Hmm, let me guess. It's about Rock.” I look up at him in silence. “I may be old, cupcake, but I figured out the night of your competition.”

What? How?“For real?” I manage to say.

“The look he gave you that night when he was hugging you said it all.” He bites into the pancakes as if we were having a small talk.

“Are you mad at me?”

“For what, cupcake?”

“For being with him.” I admit it and my heart seems lighter.

Dad burst out laughing. “I want you to be happy. If he's the one, I'll just wear the pissed mask in front of him because hedoesn't need to know I like them no matter how many illegal things they may do.”

“I… I moved in with him yesterday.”One, two, three…

“You did what?” he snaps and my heart stops beating. “At the neighborhood?” I nod. “Holy moly, cupcake. I didn't know your relationship was that serious.”

“It is, Dad.” My heart has chosen him and I’m that insane to think about our forever.

“That means you left your house?”

“For now,” I reply, feeling guilty because that was mom and dad's gift for me. “I moved in with him temporarily.”

He cocks a brow. “Is that a new thing you guys call it?”

“I have something more to share with you. One of the biggest news ever.”

“Go ahead,” he stares at me.

“Next year, I'm going to…”

“Wait.” He cuts me off.

“What, Dad?”

“For God’s sake, Ashley. We never properly talked about sex, and I know I was supposed to, but I'm not ready to see you as a mom already.” My mouth drops open before starting to laugh. Oh my goodness, that should have been caught on a camera because I'll never forget this moment.

“Dad, I'm not pregnant.” I try to stop laughing but can’t.

“You're not?”

“No Dad, I was trying to say that next year I'll be at the Olympics in St. Moritz.”

“Oh, cupcake, I'm so proud of you.” He squeezes me in a tight hug. “My baby girl at the Olympics. I knew one day you'd get there. Jill would have been so proud of you.”

“I know, Dad.”

“But wait, hold on, what does the move have to do with this; I missed that part?”

“For the next nine months I'll be focused on my training and that way we can spend some time together, even if it's only a few hours.”

“Now I get it. And why is he not here? Too scared to face me, huh?” He smirks while leaning against his backseat.

“I think he is.”

“That's good then,” he puffs his chest.

“I wanted to be just us to talk about it.”

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