Ryland’s cellphone rings loudly, breaking through the haze.
He tenses.
“Ignore it,” I whisper, kissing down his neck, but he pulls away and leans across the porch to grab his phone. He checks the caller ID. “Brit,” he says, and for a moment, I think I see him exhale in relief.
Then he frowns. “It’s two a.m.” He hits the button to answer. “Brit? What’s going on?”
He pauses, then looks over. “No, she’s here with me. We’re at the house… Yeah… OK, we’re on our way.”
“What is it?” I feel a shiver of unease. I tug my shirt back down and hug my arms around myself. “Why was she asking about me?”
“Your friend Zoey called.” Ryland’s gaze searches mine. “She says you left your cell at the house, just disappeared. She’s been calling everyone in your history, trying to track you down all night.”
Zoey.
My stomach lurches. “Oh God!” I scramble to my feet, imagining her panic. “I didn’t leave a note. I didn’t want to wake her, I just needed some space on my own.”
“It’s OK,” Ryland soothes me. “Brit will call and let her know you’re here. I’ll take you straight home.”
“No, you don’t understand,” I gulp. “It’s Connor’s birthday, and Zoey was worried enough about me as it is. She would have thought…” I trail off, horrified by the possibilities I know must have been running through my friend’s mind. I never thought of them for myself, but Zoey wouldn’t know that. She still hasn’t forgiven herself for being away the last time, when she said I needed her most.
Ryland’s face changes as realization dawns. “Shit.” He straightens up his clothes and grabs his keys. “Come on, I’ll get you back. Maybe it’s not so bad,” he adds hopefully. “Brit would have been right up there in your phone. Maybe she only just realized you were gone.”
I hold on to that hope until Ryland’s car pulls around the bend to the beach house. The house is lit up, every light on inside, and there are two police cruisers parked in the drive.
I open the door and hit the ground running before he’s even come to a stop.
“Tegan!”
His voice echoes after me as I race past the yard and into the house. “Zoey?” I call, looking around. She’s pacing in the living room, talking on the phone. Her face lights up with pure relief to see me.
“Oh my god, you’re OK!”
I wrap my arms tight around her in a frantic hug. “I’m so, so sorry,” I gulp, already on the verge of tears. “I didn’t even think. I would never want to worry you.”
“I just didn’t know where you were.” Zoey blinks, crying too now. “And the back door was open, I thought maybe you’d gone to take a walk on the beach. But it’s so dark, and you didn’t take your cell…”
“I’m fine,” I promise her. “I’m OK.”
At last, we release each other. Ryland is talking to the police officers by the door, looking apologetic. He seems to know one of them, and after a moment of conversation, they nod and exit. Ryland closes the door behind them.
“See?” he says, with a reassuring smile. “Everything worked out OK.”
“Except…” Zoey bites her lip. “I called your brothers.”
My heart lurches. “Which one?”
“All of them?” She winces. “I was just so worried, I’m sorry—”
“No, it’s not your fault,” I cut her off quickly. “You did the right thing.”
Except now I have three over-protective brothers freaking the hell out, wherever they are.
“You call Blake, I’ll do Ash,” I tell her, reaching for my phone. “Maybe we can get them before the catch a flight out here.” I imagine the combined wrath of my brothers and feel sick to my stomach. How could I have been so stupid? I swore, I’d never put them through this again. Every bit of the trust I’ve earned has just shattered into dust, and I hate myself for causing them even a moment of concern.
“I’ll head out.”
Ryland’s voice snaps me back. I’d forgotten he was even there.
“I’m sorry,” I gulp, quickly crossing the room to him. “I can’t believe this happened. After everything…”
He gives me a reassuring smile. “Hey, I get it. Family drama is my thing, remember? Good to meet you,” he says across to Zoey.
“You too.” Zoey shoots me a curious look, like we’re so going to be discussing this.
I show him out, pausing on the doorstep. “Thank you,” I whisper, tilting up to look at him. “Tonight…” I search for what to say, but I don’t have the words. How could I even express what’s happened between us, the bond we’ve forged? I feel like we’ve lived a hundred years in just a few short hours.
Ryland gives me a quiet smile, like he understands exactly what I mean. “I’ll call you in the morning,” he says, leaning to kiss me lightly on the lips. Then he’s gone, striding back to his car, while I gaze after him in the dark.
My phone rings in my hand. Ash. I brace myself, and then I answer. This is going to be a long night.
*
When my brothers are finally convinced that I’m OK, Zoey and I crash out upstairs. I sleep like a rock and wake to find the sun already high in the cloudless sky.