A/N: So this is the end of Nowhere to Go, and I have to say a giganimous "thanks" to everyone who read it and reviewed. I promised a fluffy ending, and I don't think I write anymore fluffier than this. Hope you enjoy!
Ryan sipped his morning coffee, his tie loosed around his neck as he read his paper. Jada was eating cereal on the couch and watching cartoons when Marissa breezed into the kitchen, decked out in a tailored business suit. She was wrestling with an earring and barely managed to drop a kiss on Ryan's coffee-flavored lips on her way to the refrigerator. "So, you know how we were supposed to have lunch today?" she asked, turning her best puppy dog eyes toward him.
Grinning, he sat his cup down on the table and folded the paper. "Yeah?"
"I just got a call from the office and I'm gonna have to be in a meeting at one with some advertisers. I don't think I'm gonna have time," she trailed off and leaned against the counter, sipping from a yogurt smoothie. "I'm really sorry, Sweetie."
He was proud of her for securing a position at Newport Living. And he was more than glad that her "bad days" were growing fewer and further between. He just wished that their schedules allowed for a little more time together. "Maybe we can do it when I get back from Boston?" He stood and dumped the remainder of his beverage down the drain, stopping beside her to wrap his arms around her waist.
Marissa buried her hands in his hair. "Definitely," she grinned, welcoming his kiss. "What time does your flight leave tomorrow?"
Moaning as she kissed him again, Ryan finally pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. "Eleven fifteen," he said. She cringed. "Seth said he could take me to the airport if you can't get away," he assured.
But Marissa shook her head. "I just have the sonogram at nine thirty."
Ryan bolted upright in bed, sweat drops running down his face and chest. He gasped and looked to his side, to Marissa squinting up at him through sleepy eyes. "What's wrong?" she asked.
He looked around, fighting against the surreal feeling in his mind. It had felt so real. "Are you pregnant?"
She laughed and struggled against the covers, leaning against the headboard of Ryan's bed. "What?"
This time, it was Ryan who laughed and shook his head. "Nothing. I'm sorry. Weird dream, I guess," he smiled and kissed her before looking to the clock. "Do I have time to go back to sleep?" he asked, laying down and pulling her against his chest.
She shook her head and rested on his shoulder. "The alarm's goin' off in ten minutes," she groaned in response.
They had been out far too long the night before, celebrating after the rehearsal dinner with Seth and Summer until the wee hours of the morning. And now that it was time to face the day, Ryan was far from ready. "I think we should skip it," he whispered, letting his eyes drift shut again.
"Right," Marissa agreed. She wiggled away from him and sat up fully. "Because I'm sure that Summer wouldn't have a coronary when her maid of honor didn't show up," she laughed, wrapping the sheet around her as she searched the floor for something else to cover her form.
Ryan ran a finger down her bare arm and tried to push out the thoughts that were creeping in. He couldn't keep them from tumbling past his lips, though. "There's gonna be an open bar," he said.
She found his tee shirt and threw it over her head, tossing a pair of shorts at him. "Then I think you have to be there to make sure I don't give in to the temptation," she winked, moving toward the door. "Get up and get a shower. I'll get Jada and start breakfast." And she was gone.
By the time Ryan got out of the shower, Jada was eating at the table and Marissa was standing by the counter, nibbling on toast and looking at the latest issue of Newport Living, her first as Fashion Editor. She was proud of herself for getting it all together, for finding herself again. Her life was good. Really good – and she wasn't about to give it up for anything.
"Hey, Munchkin," Ryan greeted, kissing his daughter who giggled over the pancakes in her mouth.
"Morning, Daddy," she mumbled and then laughed at the sound of her own voice.
"Jada," Marissa slammed her magazine shut, "why don't you go get dressed, Sweetie? We gotta be at the spa in a little bit." Jada jumped up from the table and ran toward her bedroom.
Ryan sank to the table and his girlfriend put a full plate of bacon and eggs, waffles and sausage links before him. "So, I thought that maybe," he started, watching her back as she washed Jada's dishes, "after the wedding, we could drive up to that house I was telling you about? If you're still in the market for something permanent?"
She moved to the table and sat opposite him. "That sounds great," she smiled, reaching out to wind her fingers through his free hand. They sat in silence, just staring at each other for a while. It was nice, the comfortable silences in the early morning hours when she decided to stay over. "I just wanna find something that feels like home, something we can all be happy with," she grinned slyly. "Until you build me my dream house, of course."
Ryan shrugged. "Well, Jada would be happy with a hole in the ground as long as you were around to put make-up on her and let her dress up in your clothes." She gave him another one of her smiles. "And me?" She turned her head in rapt interest. "I'm just glad you're around, Marissa. I don't care where you live, as long as it's close by."
"But I don't wanna buy a house and then live in it alone," she stated, as though it were the silliest thing she had ever heard. Ryan's face twisted, as though he didn't know if it was such a great idea. "Ryan, I love you. And Jada. I want us to be a family." She tightened her grip on his hand. "Besides, if we do get married in October, it's really stupid for you to sign a new lease next month."
He grinned. "You really thought this out, huh?" She nodded. "So we really gonna do this?" She brought his hand to her lips and looked at him through heavily lidded eyes. "Because if we buy a house together, it's the same thing as a ring to that little girl in there," he nodded toward Jada's room.
"I know," she bit her lip and turned for the bedroom, but turned before leaving. "Kinda feels that way to this girl, too."
He finished his breakfast, but barely tasted it. It might have been Seth and Summer's wedding day, but he really felt like it was the first day of the rest of his life.