Unrequited (Chosen #3) (16 page)

TWENTY EIGHT
- SAM

I pulled my head up from the mirror and sucked the coke in so hard; the drip of it was almost immediate. I handed the straw over to Clay. He was a magazine model and I could watch him shirtless all year long. We had been hanging out a lot since we had that five some the night that Nick showed up. I guess the other guys wouldn’t let him participate as much as he wanted to so he came back later that day for more.

We were instant lovers. He is beautiful and he is sweet on me. He attempted to ask me personal questions but after evading them, he got the hint and stopped asking. So instead of introducing Clay to my failed past, he introduced me to the blissful white love. I buy if he flies, which worked well for both of us. I hated leaving the apartment and he loved my endless supply of cash.

“Do you think lemmings actually want to commit suicide or are they just stupid?” Clay asked me after I put the mirror back down on the crate. The mind numbing coke and sex we just had was fucking perfect. He could go forever on coke if I didn’t make him finish.

Lemmings
?

I had no idea what he was talking about but since there were only two answers, I decided to go with my instinct.

“Lemmings commit suicide,” I said flatly.

Clay nodded in agreement. “Yeah, there are actual television shows that recorded them as they walk off the ledge. It’s fucked up.” He cringed with disgust.

“Are there a lot of them?” I asked.

“Mass amount of small little rodents. They all just tumble to their death. It really sucks. I wish I knew a way to stop them,” he said wistfully.

“Yeah,” I agreed equally wistful.

We both snapped out of the emotional reverie of lemmings and I grabbed the mirror off the milk crate. I pulled on a line and handed it over to Clay who kissed me as he took it. If I didn’t have Clay, I would be lost. He was so good to me. He was excellent for my new addiction.

Cocaine does cost a bit more than a couple of bottles of vodka, but I loved the feeling of snorting something up my nose. It’s was a tremendous rush. With one big sniff, my mind was violated by thoughts of my next line. If I had to give Clay money and sex every day for the rest of my life to obtain
this
high for me then I would. I had found my purpose in life. The shit didn’t allow me to think of Conner or Nick or Lizzie or my parents or the baby I lost. This shit kept me right in the moment. I loved every moment Clay and I got high, had sex, and drank vodka. There was no place I would rather be.

TWENTY NINE
- NICK

Lizzie headed straight up to her mother’s room while her father got a glass of scotch for both of us. We sat down in the two chairs facing the couch in the sitting area.

“It’s nice to have her back,” Patrick said. He took a drink from his glass and exhaled. I turned in my chair and looked at his profile as he stared straight ahead. He was still going through a hard time with Claire. Did she ever come out of her room? Can a family survive after the death of one of their most important members? I cleared my throat, trying to think of something to say to something so obvious. Of course, it was nice that she was back. It was fucking stupendous.

“I wasn’t sure if she would come back to me. I wasn’t doing well for a while there. Did you know that Teagan came to Boston to see her,” I said.

He nodded his head, not looking at me. “He called the house and left a message. Lizzie told us the morning they came back to Boston that he was with her. If I had it in me, I would have punched that little shit when he got here.”

“Yeah, I beat you to it. I was pretty close to punching him myself. I basically threw him out of the country,” I chuckled and took a sip of the scotch. I hated scotch.

Patrick raised his eyebrows. “How did you do that, son?”

Son?
Did he already considered me his son or was he thinking about Conner right now? After a long stare down, I told him how I did it with my quirked lip and a bland expression.

He shook his head. “Waste of space, that guy is.”

“While I threatened to beat the shit out of him and paying him off, I thanked him for giving Niall to us,” I replied. “I would do anything to keep him far away from Lizzie and Niall. They don’t need any more hurt in their lives.”

“Thank you, Nicholas. I haven’t been there for my little girl very much lately but I know she is in good hands. You make her very happy. I couldn’t be more proud of her for choosing you as her husband,” he smiled. He actually smiled.

I saw Claire holding on to Lizzie’s arm as the descended the stairs. Claire was sniffling and Lizzie was beaming. Claire immediately walked over to me and I stood to hug her.

“Hey there, Daddy,” she sang. “It is wonderful news. We are so blessed to be getting another grandchild and your parents. Oh my, they must be so thrilled.”

I nodded and couldn’t keep the shit eating grin off my face.

“She looks beautiful, doesn’t she?” I asked Claire.

We both looked at Lizzie who was hugging her father. He was laughing while she whispered the news into his ear.

“I told you she missed you. I never doubted that she would come home to you,” Claire whispered, as she rubbed my back gently.

“Thank you, Mom. You gave me hope that day at Conner’s grave,” I smiled at her. Her eyes misted over and I kissed her on the forehead. I would never replace Conner but I was her new son in law. That had to make her feel something positive.

Lizzie grabbed my hand, interrupting our quiet conversation. She led me to the couch as Patrick and Claire took the chairs across from us.

“So, Mom, Dad. We have other news. Since we haven’t seen you in a few weeks, a lot has happened. First, we have been looking for a house in Cambridge. Second, we are going to open a recording studio and I joined the band part time. Third, we want you two to join us for a quick trip to Texas. We are getting married there...tomorrow.”

The whole room fell silent. Lizzie broke out in a wide smile and then slowly turned her eyes on me.

“Elizabeth, what are you talking about?” I asked.

“We are going to get married…tomorrow…in Texas,” she basically spelled it out because she wanted to be sure I understood her.

“Your mother and I have put a little something together next to a river and it is supposed to be a beautiful day. I got a dress and had it shipped down there and the plane will be ready for us in the morning. Nick, we are going to do this small and quietly. All we need is our parents and our son.”

I laughed and pulled her into a hug. Claire stood up and clapped her hands while she giggled. We all turned to look at her in shock. I hadn’t seen her jump for joy in…forever.

“Oh Patrick, isn’t this wonderful? A wedding? A baby? A nice little trip to Austin?” she asked her husband as she went to hug him.

He looked stunned as he pulled her into his arms. “Yes, sweetheart. Lizzie and Nick have given us many blessings today.”

“So, here is how it will go,” Lizzie started as she watched her mom and dad continue to hug. She was all business. “You two are staying down at the Ritz tonight. Mom, you have a late massage appointment today because we can’t do the whole mother-daughter day of fun. Dad, you can sleep or watch television, whatever,” she waved her hand at him dismissively.

“We will pick you up at your hotel around 10am. Our wedding should take place at sundown near Nick’s parent’s house. They have an enormous house and would love for you to stay with them. Of course, Niall will stay with them as well. Nick and I are heading to a nice hotel in Austin.” She looked over to me and rolled her eyes. “Your mom booked us the honeymoon suite. Do you think they will provide us with edible panties?”

“Lizzie!” Both her parents scolded her. Her mother turned a bright shade of pink while her father put his hands over his eyes. She giggled at them. I choked and smacked her on the side of her ass.

“Uh, sure, honey.” I was dumbstruck so I didn’t know what I should say. This little wench had pulled this whole thing off. She really wanted to be my wife.

Tomorrow
.

In
Texas
.

“So! Snap, snap. Go get packed. Nick and I will chill out while you guys get your stuff together.” Lizzie stated.

“But what will I wear?” Claire suddenly looked concerned. Lizzie got up to hug her mother again. In one moment, the mood changed and anyone could see that there was still so much love in this family.

“Nick’s mother has a number of dresses from different designers ready for you to choose from. She said you two would pick out your dresses together. Daddy, the Sawyers have a local store ready to take care of your tux. You just have to call in your measurements to Nick’s dad. He is expecting your call.” Claire’s face was a ray of light. She literally darted up the stairs like a little child. Patrick vibrated with laughter as he followed her up the stairs.

“Wow! You think we just told them they won the lottery,” she said, drumming her fingers on her chin.

“
I
just won the lottery. But are you serious, Lizzie?
Really
? Tomorrow you will be my wife? Just like that?”  I questioned her seriously.

“Yes, really. Like it or not, Nick Sawyer. You are stuck with us. It took us weeks to pull this off and your mother was busting at the seams to tell you.” She stroked her belly and smirked up at me. “I got you good, didn’t I?”

“Yes. Holy shit, yes. You got me good. I will never forget this.” I replied with astonishment.

“Good. I wanted to surprise you for once. Just so you know how it feels.” She walked over and snuggled up against me on the couch. We kissed softly and she put her hand under my tee shirt outlining my abs with her little fingers. It felt so damn good. Just as I was getting excited and thinking about carting her up to her old bedroom, I heard her start to breathe heavily. I had a tent in my jeans and she was passed out and drooling on my shoulder. I kissed her hair over and over and thought about how lucky and unlucky I was in that moment.

An hour later, her parents walked down the stairs with luggage in hand, talking about things they should have done. Their boisterous conversation made Lizzie stir awake. She gave me a small smile as she tried to rub the drool off of my shoulder. I leaned over and growled, “You better drool on something else later.” She smiled and nodded her head with excitement.

“Honey, how long will we be staying? We packed for a few days. Is that okay? ” Claire questioned as she looked between Lizzie and me.

“You can stay however long you want,” Lizzie replied with a slight question in her voice. She looked at me. I shrugged and she nudged me to answer the question.

I didn’t know. Were we going on a honeymoon? How long were
we
staying in Texas? Obviously, Lizzie just wanted us to go and get married and didn’t really care what happened afterwards. We weren’t needed anywhere anytime soon, so I actually didn’t care either.

“We can get you back to Boston whenever you want. The charter plane leaves when you get on it.” I added. Lizzie nodded and looked back to her parents hoping that answered their question. She pushed them out the door, telling them not to worry about anything. Lizzie and her parents talked excitedly as we locked up their house and drove back into the city.

After we dropped off Lizzie’s parents, we picked up Niall and headed home. I immediately wrapped my arms around my wife to be and smiled down to her with love and admiration.

“What?” She asked playfully.

“I can’t believe we are doing this tomorrow. I had moments when I thought it would never happen,” I softly said. Lizzie frowned and hugged me tight to remind me that she was ready. She smiled at me and I could see the wistful expression as she takes me in.

Her look told me that she has never been happier. She is contented and she is doing what is in her heart. She is going to marry her soul mate.

When we went to bed, she admired my chest while talking about all the details of the following day. Finally, I didn’t care anymore so I shut her up by kissing her all the way from her head down to her legs.

“Shouldn’t we wait until our wedding night?” She breathed heavily.

I looked at the clock to see that is was five minutes past midnight. I looked up from her stomach with her panties half way down her legs and smirked.

“Baby, it
is
our wedding night.”

THIRTY
- SAM

I yawned as I walked out of my bedroom to find Clay on the couch having sex with a red head that I had never seen before. I guess I slept through a party or something fun. I guess that being awake for three days straight made me pass out cold. I didn’t even know what time it was.

“Hello?” I asked annoyed. Although Clay and I weren’t serious, I thought we were at least exclusive enough to not play with other people in each other’s presence.

Clay looked up and smiled. “Hi, baby. I left you a little something on the counter. We will be done soon and then I am all
yours
.”

I watched the two of them bewildered. After I watched them go at it for a few minutes, I shrugged. What did I care?

I walked over to the coke left in lines on a mirror. I played with it a bit and started round two of a three all-nighter binge.

Life couldn’t get any better. I repeated that sentence in my mind over and over for hours.