Блейк Пирс: Waiting

In fact, he’d seemed delighted at the time. He’d gotten a bit more nervous about the idea of a baby in the days since graduation—but then, Riley felt plenty nervous about it herself.

The very thought of it boggled her mind. They were just getting started in their lives together, and they’d soon be sharing the greatest responsibility Riley could imagine—raising their own child.

We’d better be ready, Riley thought.

Meanwhile, she felt strange putting her old psychology textbooks onto the shelves. Ryan had tried to talk her into selling them, and she knew that she probably should …

God knows, we need every cent we can get.

Still, she had a feeling she’d be needing them in the future. She wasn’t sure just why or what for.

Anyway, the box also contained a lot of Ryan’s law books, and he hadn’t even considered selling any of them. Of course, he probably would be using them in his new job as an entry-level attorney in the DC law firm of Parsons and Rittenhouse.

When the box was empty and the books all on the shelves, Riley sat on the floor watching Ryan, who kept restlessly pushing and repositioning pieces of furniture as if trying to find the perfect place for everything.

Riley suppressed a sigh …

Poor Ryan.

She knew he really wasn’t happy with this basement apartment. He’d had a nicer apartment back in Lanton, with the same furniture they’d brought here—a pleasantly bohemian collection of secondhand items.

As far as she was concerned, Ryan’s stuff still looked quite nice here. And the little apartment didn’t bother her at all. She’d gotten used to a dorm room back at Lanton, so this place seemed positively luxurious, despite the covered pipes hanging over the bedroom and the kitchen.

True, the apartments on the floors upstairs were much nicer, but this one had been the only one available. When Ryan had first seen it, he’d almost refused to rent it. But the truth was, this was the best they could afford. They were already seriously overextended financially. Ryan had maxed out his credit card with moving expenses, the deposit on the apartment, and everything else they had needed for this momentous change in their lives.

Ryan finally looked over at Riley and said, “What do you say we take a break?”

“Sure,” Riley said.

Riley got up from the floor and sat down at the kitchen table. Ryan grabbed a couple of soft drinks from the refrigerator and sat down with her. The two of them fell silent, and Riley sensed right away that Ryan had something on his mind.

Finally Ryan drummed his fingers on the table and said …

“Uh, Riley, we’ve got to talk about something.”

This really does sound serious, she thought.

Ryan fell silent again, and he had a faraway look in his eyes.

“You’re not breaking up with me, are you?” she asked.

She was joking, of course.

But Ryan didn’t laugh. He seemed to have barely noticed the question.

“Huh? No, it’s nothing like that, it’s …”

His voice trailed away, and Riley felt really uneasy now.

What’s going on? she wondered. Had Ryan’s job fallen through or something?

Ryan looked into Riley’s eyes and said …

“Don’t laugh at me, OK?”

“Why would I laugh?” Riley asked.

A bit shakily, Ryan got up from his chair and kneeled beside her.

And then Riley realized …

Oh, my God! He’s going to propose!

And sure enough, she laughed. It was nervous laughter, of course.

Ryan blushed deeply.

“I told you not to laugh,” he said.

“I’m not laughing at you,” Riley said. “Go ahead, say what you want to say. I’m pretty sure … well, just go ahead.”

Ryan fumbled around in his pants pocket and took out a little black jewelry box. He opened it to reveal a modest but lovely diamond ring. Riley couldn’t help but gasp.

Ryan stammered …

“Uh, Riley Sweeney, would—will you marry me?”

Trying unsuccessfully to hold back her nervous giggles, Riley managed to say …

“Oh, yes. Absolutely.”

Ryan plucked the ring out of the box, and Riley held out her left hand and let him put it on her finger.

“It’s beautiful,” Riley said. “Now get up and sit down with me.”

Ryan smiled sheepishly as he sat down at the table next to her.

“Was the kneeling too much?” he asked.

“The kneeling was perfect,” Riley said. “Everything is just … perfect.”

She stared at the little diamond on her ring finger raptly for a moment. Her spell of nervous laughter had passed, and now she felt a knot of emotion form in her throat.

She really hadn’t seen this coming. She hadn’t even dared to hope for it—at least not this soon.

But here she and Ryan were, taking yet another enormous step in their lives.

As she watched the light play on the diamond, Ryan said …

“I’ll get you a nicer ring someday.”

Riley gasped a little.

“Don’t you dare!” she said. “This is always going to be my only engagement ring!”

But as she kept staring at the ring, she couldn’t help but worry …

How much did this cost?

As if reading her thoughts, Ryan said …

“Don’t worry about the ring.”

Ryan’s reassuring smile made her worry dissolve in an instant. She knew he was no fool when it came to money. He’d probably gotten a good bargain on this ring—although she’d never ask him about it.

Riley then noticed how Ryan’s expression saddened as he looked around the apartment.

“Is something wrong?” she asked.

Ryan let out a sigh and said, “I’ll make a better life for you. I promise.”

Riley felt strangely jolted.

She asked, “What’s wrong with the life we’ve got now? We’re young and we’re in love and we’re going to have a baby and—”

“You know what I mean,” Ryan said, interrupting her.

“No, I’m not sure I do,” Riley said.

A silence fell between them.

Ryan sighed again and said, “Look, I’m starting work tomorrow on an entry level salary. I’m not exactly feeling like a huge success in the world. But it’s a good firm, and if I stay with it, I’ll be moving up and I might even become a partner someday.”

Riley gazed at him steadily.

“Someday, sure,” she said. “But you’re off to a great start already. And I like what we’ve got right now.”

Ryan shrugged. “We don’t have much. For one thing, we’ve only got the one car, and I’ll be needing that to go to work, which means …”

Riley interrupted, “Which means I’ll be taking the metro to the training program every morning. What’s wrong with that?”

Ryan reached across the table and took her hand.

“It’s a two-block walk to and from the nearest metro stop,” he said. “And this isn’t the safest neighborhood in the world. The car got broken into once already. I don’t like it that you have to go out there on your own. I’m worried.”

A strange, unpleasant feeling was starting to come over Riley. She wasn’t yet sure just what that feeling was.

She said, “Hasn’t it occurred to you that I actually like this neighborhood? I’ve spent my whole life in rural Virginia. This is an exciting change, an adventure. Besides, you know I’m tough. My dad was a Marine captain. He taught me how to take care of myself.”

She almost added …

And I survived an attack by a serial killer a couple of months ago, remember?

Not only had she survived that attack, she’d helped the FBI track the killer down and bring him to justice. That was why she’d been offered the chance to join the training program.

But she knew that Ryan didn’t want to hear about any of that right now. His masculine pride was feeling delicate at the moment.