last chapter of this story and then comes the epilogue! thank you all for reading, it means a lot. i'm glad you all seemed to enjoy it!
I was pretty damn proud of myself the first few days of that following week. I didn't call or text Ally and kept occupied at home in Hermosa Beach, working on a new junk art project and taking care of some long neglected repairs around the house. Even though I was keeping busy, deep down, I was miserable.
It was hard not to contact her, but I'd been taking my Didi's advice, keeping my distance in the hopes that Ally would make the right decision on her own.
As the end of the week neared, I was starting to grow impatient. One night, while trying unsuccessfully to distract myself with an episode of Top Gear, I impulsively broke my vow and texted her.
Austin: You there?
Ally: I'm here.
Austin: Hi
Ally: Sorry I haven't been in touch.
Austin: It's fine. I've been intentionally staying away so you can sort your head out.
Ally: Are you back?
Austin: No. There's nothing for me there besides you, and I'm giving you space. My home is here. Although, now that you've been here, it doesn't seem whole anymore without you.
Ally: I'm sorry that you regret taking me home.
Austin: The only thing I regret is not bursting through that shower door, Princess.
She didn't immediately respond. A few minutes later, my phone vibrated.
Ally: Thank you for not doing that.
Austin: You would still be here if I had.
Ally: Is that right?
Austin: You might have trouble walking, but you'd still be here.
Ally: I see.
She never texted back, so I typed again.
Austin: Are you okay?
Ally: Yes. I can't text much more. I promise to call you this weekend.
Austin: Is he there with you?
Ally: Yes
Jealousy hit me like a ton of bricks. There was that voice again that sounded awfully like Mom. "Get off your hiney and get your woman!" Suddenly, it just clicked. What was keeping me here? Pride? Fuck pride. She was all that mattered. Getting her back was more important.
I was not okay. This was not okay. I knew in my heart that she loved me. I could see it in her eyes. She was just scared of getting hurt again. Sitting back like this was only giving him the upper hand. If I was going to let her go, it sure as hell wasn't going to be without a fight. I needed to be near her.
Change of plans.
Grabbing my keys, I got into my truck and hit the highway toward Temecula. The road was barren, so I was going about eighty-five miles per hour.
The plan was to spend the night at the motel and be ready bright and early for whatever the day held. I wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring. I just knew that I was going to be there with her till the end, regardless of how it turned out.
I'm in for the fucking long haul, Princess.
I turned the radio onto an instrumental channel for the entire ride. My nerves couldn't seem to handle anything else.
It was late by the time I finally got to the motel. By some miracle, I fell asleep. I wanted to be parked at Jefferson bright and early in the morning to get her breakfast. Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.
The next day started out normally. The hustle and bustle outside of Ally's office building was just like usual. When I walked into Starbucks to place her breakfast order, it became abundantly clear that this was no ordinary morning.
"G'day, Piper."
"Austin. I thought you left town."
"I'm back."
"I'm surprised."
"Why do you say that?"
"You don't know?"
"Know what?"
"Ally's last day was yesterday. She came in to say goodbye to us."
What?
"She's not here anymore?"
"No. I'm sorry. I thought you guys were friends now. So, I figured you knew she quit her job."
"Friends. Yeah. We are. She must have neglected to mention that little piece of information, though. Did she say where she was going?"
"She just said she quit and wouldn't be seeing us every morning anymore."
Scratching my chin, I stared into space trying to absorb that news.
Piper interrupted my thought process. "Can I get you anything?"
Without even paying attention, I said, "Sure. A nonfat three-pump vanilla latte, low foam and extra hot."
"You're getting Ally's drink?"
"Uh… yeah." I hadn't even realized that I'd ordered it. "Why not?" I shrugged. "For old time's sake."
As I sat at the corner table, swirling the foamy milk around in my cup, I tried to convince myself that her leaving the job and not telling me didn't necessarily mean that she'd chosen to move to Boston with Dick. I could have texted her, but a part of me wasn't ready for the answer. Maybe she only decided to quit, seeing as though the firm was shutting down anyway. Either way, this would likely be my last hurrah at the Starbucks that served as the backdrop for my time here with Ally. I wouldn't be spending any more mornings stalking her on Jefferson if she didn't work here anymore. I emptied my wallet of the cash inside and stuffed over a hundred dollars in the tip jar.
"Thank you, guys. Appreciate your help all these weeks."
Piper's eyes widened. "Wow, thank you. You won't be back?"
"Afraid not."
When I pulled up to Ally's house, a white and blue sign on the front lawn was the first thing that caught my eye. My heart started to pound furiously.
What in the hell?
As I got out close enough to read it, I saw that it said, For Rent. My heart seemed to fall to my stomach. Taking my key out, I rushed to the front door and opened it. Mutton's water bowl was still in the kitchen, but it was empty. No sign of the goat anywhere. All of the furniture was still in place, but it seemed all of Ally's personal belongings were gone.
I was practically flying through the house. A sweep of her bedroom also confirmed the worst. Every last item of clothing in her closet was also gone. Sitting on her bed and looking around the room, reality was starting to sink in. Adrenaline pumped through me.
Calm down, Austin.
In a daze, I returned outside into the blinding sun. I opened the shed and started packing my lawn equipment into the back of the truck. That was when I heard a whistle.
Turning around, I realized it was Ally's nutty neighbor, Kira. She'd run outside to meet the UPS guy and was carrying a brown box.
She sauntered over to me, dragging her slippers on the pavement. She had rollers in her hair, and her lips were sloppily outlined with bright pink pencil but no lipstick. "Hey, hot stuff."
Trying to act friendly despite my rotten mood, I said, "Nice to see you again, Kira. What do you have there in the box?"
"Who knows? I order stuff in my sleep and don't even remember." She snorted.
"Ah, that's right. The four Magic Bullets. You gave Ally one."
"You want one? I'll trade you for a ride on your mower."
"That's alright. I'm retired from the lawn care business as of today."
"You mean now that she's gone?"
My eyes darted toward hers. "You know where she went?"
"I didn't have a chance to talk to her, saw her leaving with the boyfriend yesterday. She was inside packing. I asked him what was going on, and he said she was moving to Boston with him. Next thing I knew, there was a sign up out front this morning."
My ears felt like they were burning. "Really…"
"Yeah."
I couldn't remember what I said to Kira after that. I didn't even have a recollection of the ride back to the motel. I would have expected to feel angry or confused, but everything was just numb.
Holding my phone in my hands as I sat on the bed, I wanted to text her, but the more I thought about it, the less it seemed like a good idea. If she really were moving to Boston, she didn't even bother to tell me that she'd made her decision. Was she there already? Was she even going to call me this weekend like she'd promised? Suddenly, the numbness was wearing off, replaced by pure rage.
Grabbing my wallet, I walked across the way to the bar. I didn't want to feel the emotions of losing her. I didn't want to feel anything tonight.
The words rolled off my tongue bitterly. "Hit me up, Cassidy."
Cassidy looked absolutely shocked to see me sitting in my usual spot. "I didn't think I'd ever see you again, blondie."
"Well, I came to say goodbye. I'm leaving to head home tomorrow, and I'm not coming back."
She poured my drink faster than ever, sensing I needed it badly. "What happened?"
I took a swig and slammed the glass down on the bar. "It's over."
"That's it? Over? Ally stayed with Dick?"
It pleased me that she'd also adopted my nickname for him.
"Yes. I went to her house today, and everything was cleaned out. There was a sign out front advertising the place for rent. The dickhead told the neighbor Ally was going to Boston with him."
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
"End of story."
"So, she didn't even have the decency to tell you herself?"
"The decency or the guts, not sure which."
"How did you leave things with her?"
"I'd gone back to Hermosa Beach for a while. She thinks I'm still there. She was supposed to call me this weekend. I decided to come back anyway and check on things. Now, I know what she was planning to tell me when she called."
"I'm so sorry."
"Not your fault."
"I was really hoping things would work out for you. You deserved to have a happy ending."
"Can we not talk about this anymore? About her?" I swallowed as if it were painful.
"Okay. Whatever you want."
Cassidy quietly placed drink after drink in front of me. She knew that I was in no mood to talk, so she let me be. At one point, she cut me off, refusing to serve me anymore. I lay my head on the counter as she wiped down the tables. The bar was getting ready to close. I had no concept of what time it even was. The sound of the television and a few patrons talking was muffled.
She tapped me on the shoulder. "Come on, big guy. I'll drive you across the street."
I got into Cassidy's red Prius and rested my head back on the seat with my eyes closed. I was still a little drunk but starting to sober up. I would have probably had to drink myself to death to get to the level of inebriation necessary to forget this day. So, in a sense, I was pissed at Cassidy for refusing to serve me more alcohol but grateful to her for looking out for me.
She walked me to my room and quietly followed me inside. Lying back on my bed, I crossed my arms and closed my eyes. When I opened them, Cassidy had disappeared. The water was running, and I realized she was in the bathroom.
I closed my eyes again. This time, when I opened them, Cassidy was standing by my bed. She'd taken down her hair, which was usually up in a retro style. She'd washed off the heavy red lipstick she wore. Most notable was the fact that she'd taken off all of her clothes except for her red lace bra and matching underwear. Her breasts were spilling out of the material, and the panties barely covered her curvy bottom.
My voice sounded sleepy. "What are you doing?"
"Remember what we talked about? The offer still stands. Let me make you forget everything. No strings, Austin. Just you and me and a really good fuck."
My dick twitched, my body unable to control the natural reaction to that proposition.
"Cass, you don't have to."
"I want to. God, Austin, I want to so badly. You have no idea what you do to me."
Shit.
Before I could form words, she began to straddle me over my jeans, grinding against my half-stiff cock. "I think you're ready for me," she muttered over my lips.
She kissed me, and I reluctantly returned it, unsure of whether to accept her offer or push her off of me.
"Do you have a condom?" she whispered.
"No."
"It's okay. You don't have to worry. I'm on the pill, and I'm clean."
Cassidy lifted my shirt over my head as I closed my eyes again. She was kissing down my chest as my intoxicated mind imagined it was Ally.
Ally.
Ally.
Ally.
Cassidy gently pushed me back further onto the bed. She started to open my belt buckle as I continued to lay down. When my cock sprung free into the cold air and she started to stroke me, I knew she was about to take me into her mouth. Something deep within me screamed, "Don't do it."
I slid my body back suddenly before pulling up my underwear. Standing up, I zipped my pants.
Moving my fingers through my hair, I looked down at the ground and shook my head. "I can't do this." Grabbing my shirt and slipping it back over my head, I said, "I'm so sorry."
With her hands on her hips, Cassidy bit her lower lip and nodded in understanding. "It's okay, blondie."
"It's not you…it's just—"
"Her. I know. It's her."
"I'm just not ready to—"
She spoke louder. "You don't have to explain, Austin."
Cassidy looked sad. I hated hurting her feelings, but being with her like that didn't feel right at all.
"I'll get dressed and go, okay?"
"You don't have to leave."
"I really should."
After she put her clothes on, Cassidy came over to where I was standing and kissed me gently on the cheek. "One day she's going to wake up and regret it. I hope by that time, you've found the one you're really meant to be with. Because it's not her."
"Thank you, Cass. Thank you for everything."
"Please come back someday when your head's on straight again, will you, blondie? I want to know that you're happy."
"I will. I promise."
Just like that, Cassidy drove away into the night.
Left with a minor case of blue balls, I retreated to the shower. Letting the warm water run down on me, I squirted some shampoo into my palm and fisted my cock into my hands, jerking it roughly.
Despite best efforts to block her from my mind, all I could think about was Ally as I stroked myself. Visions of her rubbing her clit while we masturbated together in my bathroom infiltrated my brain. I jerked myself harder and imagined coming inside of her instead of my hand. As I finished, my thoughts were spiraling out of control. I leaned against the tile wall, overcome with emotion as the orgasm shook me.
Fuck you, Ally.
Fuck you.
I hate you.
I love you.
I hate you.
I love you.
Shit.
I still love you so much.
Back in Hermosa Beach the following Sunday, I still hadn't heard from her. I refused to reach out first, especially knowing what I knew. If she didn't care enough to at least call me to let me know what was going on, then I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of contacting her.
A flock of seagulls followed me as I walked along the beach near my loft. Kicking the sand, I wondered where my life would go from here, how I would spend my days without the focus on getting Ally back. More than anything, I wondered how I could possibly make myself forget her long enough to move on.
Picking a spot, I sat down and gazed out into the ocean. The water was rough. A brisk wind blew some sand into my eyes. A few surfers rode the choppy waves in the distance. A group of people were playing volleyball a few feet away. One of the girls ran over to me.
"Hey, we need another player. Want to join?"
Why the hell not? A distraction certainly couldn't hurt. "Yeah. Alright." Lifting my sluggish body off the ground, I joined a guy and a girl on one side of the net. Repeatedly serving the ball under arm, I kept my team in the lead for several games.
At one point, we took a break, and the only other guy player went to fetch some waters for us from the beach concession stand. When he returned, he was cracking up.
"Dude, you're never gonna believe what I just saw."
"What's that?"
"There was a chick in line with a goat on a leash."
I dropped the ball. "What?"
"A goddamn goat on a leash! This smoking hot chick, too. She wa—"
"Where?"
He pointed in the direction from which he came.
When I immediately took off, one of the girls yelled from behind me. "Hey, don't leave! We're starting another game."
"Play without me," I shouted without looking back.
My heart felt like it was beating unnaturally fast.
When I got to the concession stand, no one was in line. Looking around frantically, I wondered if it were possible that this were just a coincidence. A goat on a leash? No way. She was here.
Then, I saw her.
Ally.
My God.
She and Mutton were sitting alone on the sand. She was feeding him an ice cream cone as she looked out towards the water. The wind was blowing her hair around. She looked heart-stoppingly beautiful. Staring at her in disbelief, I stood there for the longest time without saying anything.
Somehow, he noticed me first. The "blind" goat suddenly bolted toward me, nearly knocking me down in the process.
Not knowing why the animal took off, Ally jumped up in a panic before she realized he was in my arms.
She stood up and brushed sand off of her pale yellow sundress. "Austin."
"Princess. What are you doing here?"
"I'm parked at your house. You didn't get my text?"
I took my phone out of my pocket and realized I had missed a text from her. It must have come in during the volleyball game. "No, but I see it now."
Trying not to get overly excited, I reminded myself that she could very well have come here just to deliver the bad news in person. Despite my wanting to reach out and touch her, my body stiffened instead as a self-protective mechanism.
"Can we walk to your house? I don't want to have this talk here." She wasn't smiling. Her expression was only confirming my worst fears.
A feeling of dread developed at the pit of my stomach. "Sure."
The short walk to my place was quiet. When we arrived, Ally's car was parked out front. We sat outside on the front steps to the loft. Mutton chewed on the grass next to us. She rubbed her palms together nervously.
"Go on, Ally. Just get it over with."
She looked like she was about to cry, and her question caught me off guard. "Are you seeing someone?"
My tone was abrupt. "Am I seeing someone?"
"Just answer me."
"No, Ally. I've done nothing but eat, sleep and breathe you for weeks." My tone bordered on angry. "Why would you ask me that?"
"The other night, I returned to my house to get some things I forgot during the move. Kira saw my car and came out to tell me that you had been there earlier in the day. So, I went to your motel that night. There was a car parked outside. When I peeked in the window, a girl was with you, and she was putting a shirt over her head. I think it was that bartender."
Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
Are you kidding me?
Fuck.
"Princess, listen to me." I placed my hand under her chin, directing her to look at me. "I promise you, I will never lie to you. Do you believe me?"
"Just tell me the truth."
"That was Cassidy. She's a friend. You're right. She's the bartender at the bar I frequented. She followed me back to my room because I drank too much that night. She took off her clothes and came on to me, but I stopped it. Nothing happened."
"Really?"
"I swear on my Mom's grave. Cassidy kissed me and started to undress me, but I told her I couldn't do anything, nor did I want to."
She let out a huge breath. "Oh my God. I've been losing sleep. I know I don't even have a right to be upset after the way I've treated you."
"My judgment was off that night. I was devastated after I found out you decided to go to Boston. It felt like my life was over."
"Boston? I never decided to go to Boston."
"What? But all of your stuff was gone."
"Yes. I moved out… but not to go to Boston."
"Kira talked to Dick while you were packing. He told her you'd made up your mind to go with him."
"No. That's not true."
"Fuck, Princess. That's why I got so sloshed that night. I thought I'd lost you."
"Gavin was hopeful. Maybe that's why he told Kira I was moving with him. He kept thinking he could convince me, dangling the promise of a job and all. I hadn't told him about you until the next day. I wanted to pack my stuff before things got ugly."
"Wait. Are you telling me…"
"I never intended to go to Boston, Austin. My mind was basically made up a long time before that, but I was still scared to give in to you completely. The fear is always going to be there. I will always be afraid to lose you because of how much I love you. Spending that one day with you here, though, it felt so right. I'd never been more certain of anything in my life. I knew I had to go back and tie up my loose ends. I knew I had to end it with him."
"You broke up with Dick?"
"Yes. It was a mess. I told him everything. He accused me of fucking you and your twin brother, Harry the landscaper."
We both burst out into laughter, startling the goat who miraculously stayed conscious for once.
"If only I were two people and could double team you. Did you tell him I don't really have a twin?"
"No. Once he accused me of being a slut, I didn't care to clarify."
"Dumbass."
"He really was a good guy, but from the moment you came back, Austin, you need to know there was never really any contest."
I let out a huge sigh of relief as my mind started to piece together what was happening. "You quit your job… not to go to Boston but to…"
"I wasn't happy there anyway. Plus, if I were going to move to Hermosa Beach, I—"
"Move here?" A huge smile spread across my face. At that moment, I squinted my eyes to take a closer look at Ally's Audi and noticed for the first time that it was packed to the rim with all of her crap just like the first week we met. Holy shit. We'd come full circle.
"All of your shit is in there?"
"Yes." She placed her hand on my heart. "But I don't need anything but this."
Leaning in, I kissed her with everything in me and lifted her up into the air. People were driving by and honking.
When I put her down, she had tears in her eyes as she wrapped her arms around my neck. "I hope this complex allows goats."
"If anyone gives us shit, we'll just move. I'm thinking we need a house anyway where I can grow you another garden."
My breathing quickened as the magnitude of everything started to hit me. I became overwhelmed with an animalistic urge to claim what I finally knew with absolute certainty was mine. I couldn't wait a second longer to be inside of her. "Princess, hope you don't have any plans for a while."
She lifted her brow. "Why is that?"
"Because we have two years' worth of fucking to do."
I took Ally by the hand, and she followed me into the apartment as we practically stumbled through the door. Anticipating what was about to happen, my dick was excruciatingly hard.
I grabbed the biggest bowl I could find and filled it with water so that Pixy wouldn't dehydrate in case we didn't come out of our room for hours.
"Go to town, Bugger," I said, placing the bowl in front of him. "That's exactly what I intend to do on your mother."
As she stood in front of me, it felt like a huge weight had lifted. It was the first time that I could truly be with Ally without apprehension and uncertainty.
I pulled at my hair as I stared down at her and shook my head. "I don't even know where to start. There's so much I want to do to you."
"I'm ready for anything."
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"I think I need to fuck you hard then. Are you okay with that?"
She answered by pulling her sundress over her head. As she kicked her panties to the ground, I stripped out of my own clothes. The way she was staring at my body excited me even more. All of the restraint I exhibited over the past several weeks was completely non-existent now.
"Good God," I breathed out as I got a look at her stark naked body in pure daylight. She'd shaved a thin line of hair down the middle of her beautiful mound. I so wanted to savor her, but not this time. That would be later. Right now, I needed her desperately.
I gripped the side of her waist and pulled her toward me. Within seconds, her legs were wrapped around me as I lifted her onto my starving cock.
"Aaagh," I yelled out at how incredible it felt as I sunk deep inside of her. It felt better than anything I could remember before it.
We hadn't even bothered to move from the same spot. Her back was against my bedroom door as I pounded into her relentlessly, breaking her in while she begged for it harder.
I wasn't sure if it was because I was with the woman I loved or because it had been so long, but never had a pussy wrapped around my cock ever felt tighter, hotter, wetter… more perfect or made for me in my entire life.
Gripping her ass tightly, within minutes, I felt her muscles spasm around me.
"Come, Ally. Come all over my dick, Princess. Let go."
"Say my name when you come. I love when you say my name," she whispered over my mouth.
As I came inside of her, I muttered her name repeatedly with each thrust of my hips. "Ally… Fuck… Ally… God… Ally… Ally… Ally."
We stayed connected, leaning our foreheads together.
"I love you, Ally."
"It was a long road to get here, but it was worth it," she said.
"Worth every second."
We stayed holding each other for a long time before I finally put her down. "You hungry?"
"A little."
"Let's get something in you… besides me. You're gonna need the energy for round two."
I threw my underwear on and placed my t-shirt over her head. I loved looking at her nipples peeking through my clothing. As she followed me into the kitchen, she placed her hand over her mouth in disbelief as reality set in. "Holy shit. I don't have a job. I've never been unemployed before."
"You're in luck, Mrs. Moon. I have an opening for a sex slave."
"After what you just did to me in there, I would gladly volunteer for that position, Mr. Moon."
"We'll find you a job here doing something you're passionate about," I said seriously.
"I'm passionate about you, and I'd like to do you over and over again."
"Then, it's settled. Sex slave it is."
"But seriously, though, I don't want to be dependent. I would literally be mooching off of your ass money."
"Seeing as though I'll be claiming your ass later, sounds like that's only fair. An ass for an ass."