Page 211 of Nobody's Girl

A smile covers her face and she looks directly into his eyes and says, “Oh, aren’t you smooth.”

He lets her hand go and looks over at me. “Is something wrong?” he asks.

“She thinks I’m crazy,” I answer.

With a low chuckle, he says, “Does she now?”

Laura crosses her arms over her chest. “I do, and I blame you for it. What have you done to my best friend? This whole family has gone berserk since you came to visit. I think it best if Ally got away from you and her parents for a few days. She needs to get her head back on straight, and the influence of all of you won’t help her accomplish that.”

Eden moves to me, putting his arm around my waist. “Her head is on straight for the first time in years. Isn’t that right, baby?”

I look up at him and smile. “I think so. I’ve never been so sure about anything in my life.”

Laura looks at me like I’m nuts. “Ally, just come away with me for a few days. I promise I’ll bring you back as soon as you want.”

Eden looks at me. “Is that something you want to do? Because you can, if you want. I’ll never hold you back from anything, princess.”

My eyes search his and I know in an instant that I don’t want to leave him and run away for even a minute. “It’s not what I want,” I say, and hear Laura huff.

She throws her arms up and says, “God! Go ruin your young lives. Get married way too young, end up divorced with three kids by the time you’re twenty-five, and then come crying to me that you wrecked your life over lust.”

Eden kisses the top of my head. “Is that all we have, Alyssa?”

I shake my head. “It’s love, Laura. Believe it or not, that’s what it is.”

Laura’s eyes are shiny with unshed tears and I find it disturbing. I go to her and hold out my arms to hug her. She comes into them and I feel her shaking.

“Why are you so afraid, Laura?” I ask.

“Because I’m losing you, Ally. You’re leaving us all behind for this guy. Since the day of your accident, I’ve felt your absence. No phone calls or texts. Nothing. You’ve been so wrapped up in him. There are other people who care about you. Kyle, me, and even Cody have been missing you. Now you’re getting married and I’m assuming you’ll move away. You’ll forget about us and go live some fantasy life.”

Crap! Now she has me crying.

“I won’t forget about you. I promise, Laura. We’ll be friends forever. Eden and I haven’t even talked about where we’ll live. No matter where it is, though, you can come visit me and I’ll come visit you. You’ll see, it won’t be as bad as you think.”

“What are your plans for today, Laura,” Eden asks.

I let her go and grab a couple of tissues from my nightstand. I hand her one while I dab at my tears with the other. She looks at me for a few seconds before she looks at Eden.

“Since I’m not taking Ally anywhere, my plans are nothing.”

“I wonder if you might like to join us for the weekend,” Eden says. “I’m taking Alyssa to New Orleans to meet my parents. Her family is coming, so you might want to come along too. I’d like to get to know you, and I’m sure seeing where I’ll be taking Alyssa to live will give you some comfort.”

“I wouldn’t want to impose,” Laura says as she looks at me.

“Would it be an imposition, Eden?” I ask.

He laughs. “There are thirty-three bedrooms, so I don’t think you’ll be any imposition.”

“Thirty-three!” Laura and I say in awe.

“I guess I never thought about you living in a mansion, but of course you do,” I say.

“What do you think, Ally?” she asks.

I hug her, and whisper in her ear, “Go get your things packed. You’re coming with me.”

She giggles and I let her go. On her way out of the bedroom, she stops in front of Eden. Her arms wrap around him in a hug. “Thank you, Eden. You can’t know how much this means to me,” she says, then leaves the room.