The Truth About Ever After

by Rachel Schurig

  “Did you, by chance, tell Andrew a rumor about me?”

  Sarah looked at me, a puzzled expression on her face. “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “I mean, my ex-boyfriend suddenly thinks I have an STD.” Beth slapped a hand over her mouth to cover her outburst of giggles. “Could that have possibly come from you?”

  “Sweetie!” Sarah said, reaching out to grab my hand. “That was just a joke. Oh, my God, I’d forgotten all about it! It was totally no big deal, and Andrew totally knew I was teasing.”

  “No, I don’t think he did.”

  Her eyes grew wide. “Is he mad at you? Oh, sweetie, you don’t think this is why he dumped you? What a horrible bastard. You would think if the two of you were as close as you thought, he would have just asked you about it, instead of dumping you.”

  I stared at her. How had she managed to turn this around to make it my fault?

  “Sarah, I don’t think telling people that I have an STD is much of a joke.”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’m so sorry if I offended you, Kiks,” she said, her voice growing sarcastic. “I had no idea you were so sensitive. If you want, I’ll go around and tell everyone here that you’re as clean as the white snow, okay?”

  She turned away from me, effectively dismissing me and making me feel like I was the one who was wrong. Feeling numb, I turned to leave the kitchen, but not before I heard Sarah mutter, “I better get a deposit. You know her daddy has paid good money for that kind of cover-up before.”

  As Beth dissolved into giggles, I hurried from the kitchen, feeling like I was going to faint, or throw up, or both. All I wanted was to get up to my bedroom so I could take off this stupid dress and cry myself to sleep.

  “Kiki!” I groaned as I heard Eric Thompson call my name. Maybe I could pretend I hadn’t heard him.

  No luck. “Kiki!” Eric called again, this time grabbing my arm. He spun me around so I was facing him. “Jesus, I heard that. Are you okay?”

  Before I could respond, I felt someone else tugging at my other hand. Oh, why couldn’t everyone just leave me alone?

  “Kiki, Tina locked herself in the bathroom!” It was my sorority sister Krissy, wiping away worried tears while very much enjoying the drama that Tina always seemed to provide. “She’s had so much to drink, and she won’t let me in. I don’t know what to do!”

  I sighed and turned back to Eric. “I have to deal with this,” I told him. He looked like he wanted to protest, but I had already moved away, following Krissy down the hallway. “She’s going to be fine,” I soothed. “You know she does this at every party. Let me guess, she was fighting with John again?”

  By the time I had finally gotten Tina to open the door (using a combination of threats and bribery), I was desperate to escape. Making my way back out to the party, I was determined not to talk to anyone. All I wanted to do was get upstairs to find my coat so I could go back to my dorm.

  But my way to the stairs was blocked. Andrew was standing there, a happily dazed look on his face, as Sarah clutched his arm and whispered something in his ear. Of course, I realized, feeling more weary than angry. She wanted him for herself. Makes perfect sense now.

  Deciding I could do without my coat, I turned in the opposite direction, pushing through the party guests until I was finally outside. The cold, clear air felt soothing. Suddenly, I knew I would never make it home. I sank down onto one of the stone benches circling our lawn, and let the tears come at last.

  “Hey,” a quiet voice behind me said. I didn’t even have to turn around; I knew it was Eric Thompson.

  “I’m kind of having a crappy night,” I said, trying to keep my voice from shaking. “Do you think we could talk later?”

  To my surprise, Eric did not go inside. Instead, he came and sat next to me. “I know you’re having a bad night; that’s why I came out. I was watching you in there.”

  “You saw all that?” I asked, feeling my embarrassment grow.

  “You mean did I see that girl be a complete bitch to you? Yeah, I saw that. Kiki, why didn’t you go off on her? She deserved to have her ass kicked!”

  I shrugged. “She’s an old friend,” I said, feeling tired.

  Eric snorted. “Nice friend.” He must have seen that I was shivering, because he took his suit coat off and covered my shoulders with it. “Better?” he asked.

  Something about the kindness, the basic decency of that gesture, sent me over the edge, and I was sobbing afresh.

  “Kiki,” he said softly, wrapping his arm around me.

  “Please don’t be so nice,” I gasped through my tears. “I know you don’t like me. I don’t want to cry in front of you.”

  “What makes you think I don’t like you?” he asked, sounding surprised.

  “I heard what you said to Matt that night we met,” I gulped. “You think I’m a spoiled rich girl. A stupid, silly ditz.”

  “No,” he said firmly. “I don’t think that at all. Not at all. If I ever thought that, it’s because I didn’t know you.”

  “Oh, and you know me now?”

  “I know enough.” I looked up at him, confused. He went on. “I know that when my brother got his heart broken you drove two hours to be with him while he got drunk. And I know that you spend half your free time joining clubs and organizations, trying to make things better for people.” He smiled sheepishly. “I may or may not have spent some time watching you at the student center.” His face grew more serious. “I know that you’re strong enough to keep your shit together even when people treat you like garbage. And that even when you feel like breaking down, you’ll still stop what you’re doing to help a friend when they need you.”

  I just stared at him. Who on earth would have thought that Eric Thompson even noticed me, let alone spent this much time thinking about me?

  “I think you’re actually pretty special, Kiki Barker,” he said, his voice low. “You just… you blow me away, if you want to know the truth.”

  “Wow,” I finally whispered. “And here I was thinking you were a stuck-up jerk.”

  Eric threw his head back and laughed, a deep, rumbling laugh. I liked the sound of it.

  “How do you feel?” he asked, suddenly pulling himself together so he could peer down at me in the darkness. “Do you still feel sad?”

  “A little,” I said, shrugging. “To be honest, I’m a little used to it. People treat me like that a lot.” His face grew angry, and I shrugged in response to his unspoken question. “Because of who my dad is, I guess. They think I deserve it, because of the money thing.”

  “Well, they’re assholes then,” he said firmly. “You’re much better then that, you know. Much better.”

  I smiled at him in the darkness. I had tried to tell myself that before, my parents had told me, even Kara and I tried to convince each other that it was true. But somehow, coming from Eric Thompson, I actually believed it.

  Suddenly he stood. “Come on,” he said, holding out his hand. I took it without question; it felt like the most natural thing in the world. He pulled me to my feet, not letting go of my hand as he led me across the grass.

  “Where are we going?”

  “First we’re going to find some food, and then we’re going back to my house to hang out with some decent people.”

  “Won’t they think I look stupid in this dress?” I asked.

  Eric shook his head. “Nope. And even if they do, who cares?” Suddenly he stopped and turned to face me. “I think you look gorgeous in that dress,” he said, staring at my face. “I wanted to say so as soon as I saw you.”

  I felt my stomach flip at his words, at the look in his eyes. Suddenly, he broke out into a grin. “Come on. Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  I felt something in my heart shift, move slightly as if making room. I didn’t question it, didn’t overthink it, or wonder what it meant. I simply gripped Eric’s hand tighter in my own and followed him out into the night.

  Chapter Thirty-two

  “Babe
, you need a sunscreen refresher,” I said, gazing over at my husband.

  “I’m fine,” he murmured lazily. “I feel great.”

  “Fine. But don’t complain to me when you’re sunburned.”

  Eric sighed loudly and pulled himself up from his lounge chair. “You win, Mrs. Thompson.” I heard him rustling around in our beach bag, then a shadow was cast over my chair. I opened my eyes, squinting up to see him standing in front of my chair. “Will you help me?”

  “I’m far too busy doing nothing,” I said. “Sorry.”

  “Oh, it’s such a shame,” he murmured sadly.

  “What is?”

  “Well, now I’m going to have to pay you back for being mean to me.” Before I could respond he had picked me up and pulled me into his arms, cradling me against his chest as he ran for the water.

  “Eric, you put me down,” I yelled, hitting his shoulders. He merely laughed as he plunged into the cold waves, pulling me along with him. “It’s cold!” I squealed. “Oh, you suck!”

  Once he was waist deep in the water, he let me go, setting my feet down on the sandy bottom. “Sorry, babe, but you asked for it.”

  “Yeah, well, joke’s on you,” I said, splashing him. “’Cause you still don’t have sunscreen on, and now the water will be reflecting even more harmful sunlight onto your skin.”

  Eric wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close to his body in the water. “Will you put aloe on my burns?” he whispered in my ear.

  I laughed and pushed him away. “I’ve already told you once this week, aloe is not sexy, it’s sticky and gross. Stop trying to make aloe sound dirty.”

  Suddenly I felt something. Gasping a little, I reached over for Eric’s hand. “Look!” I pulled his hand down on my belly, spreading his fingers out. Sure enough, I felt another kick, and Eric’s face lit up.

  “Doesn’t matter how many times that happens,” he said. “It will always be the coolest thing ever.”

  “Agreed,” I said. Now that I was used to the cold of the water, I decided to swim out a bit. Baby had made it very clear that he or she loved when I went swimming in the ocean. Once I was deep enough, I kicked my feet up so I was floating on my back, looking up at the cloudless blue sky.

  “Not a bad view,” Eric said, coming up beside me. He was so much taller than me the water barely skimmed his shoulders.

  “Mmmhmm,” I said, loving the feel of the water lapping on my skin.

  “I mean you, silly,” he said, running his fingertips lightly over my belly. He leaned down and kissed me, the pressure causing me to dip under the water a bit before bouncing back up.

  “Let’s stay another week,” I murmured. “Please?”

  “No can do,” he said. “The boat’s due back in Miami. Bedsides, you’re not supposed to travel after the next few weeks.”

  I sighed, knowing he was right, but it was hard to imagine ending this amazing trip. It hadn’t happened exactly how we had planned it; Eric had insisted we use the motor much more often than the sails. He was adamant that I would not be doing the hard physical work of open-ocean sailing in my “condition.”

  I conceded, figuring a motor would get us out to the Bahamas that much sooner. And the islands were everything we had dreamed they would be. We spent time in bustling Nassau, revisiting the resort where Jen’s wedding had been. My favorite part, though, was exploring all the little uninhabited cays. Sleeping out under the stars on the boat with Eric, feeling our baby grow bigger by the day—nothing could be better than that.

  “Home won’t be that bad,” he whispered in my ear. “Jen will be there, and Lucy. We haven’t seen her in weeks.”

  “True,” I said, reaching up to put my arms around his neck. He slipped his hands under my legs and back, pulling me up against him again so we were face to face.

  “Kara is coming to visit next month.”

  I smiled, but felt a little prickle of concern at the thought of my old friend. She and Trevor were working on things, and she actually sounded pretty positive these days, but I still worried about her.

  “There’s your job,” Eric continued, “which I know you’ve been missing.”

  “Also true.”

  “And,” he said, kissing me lightly on the lips, “I’m not sure if you’ve heard the news, but you’re actually having a baby in three months.”

  “I am?”

  He laughed, kissing me again. “You are. Eric Junior.”

  I scoffed. “No way. I told you we’re naming this baby Blue Ivy, just like Beyoncé.”

  “Woman, don’t push me. I know you don’t want me to dunk you under this water.”

  “Fine,” I said, affecting a dramatic sigh. “We can name it Apple.”

  Eric laughed and kissed me again. “Kiki, have I ever told you that you make me really happy?”

  Leaning my forehead against his, I smiled, almost overwhelmed by the magnitude of my own joy. The sun was shining down on us and our boat was bobbing only feet away. Our family and friends were waiting for us at home. Best of all, soon we would be joined by the new life I could even now feel kicking inside me.

  But for right now, in this moment, I had Eric. And that was enough for me.

  THE END

  About the Author

  Rachel Schurig is the best selling author of the Three Girls series. When not writing, Rachel enjoys reading, decorating cakes, watching bad reality TV, and spending as much time outdoors with her dog, Lucy, as possible.

  You can find out more about Rachel and her books by visiting http://rachelschurig.com

  Interested in reading more from this author?

  Check out the rest of the best-selling Three Girls series, available now from Amazon.com

  Come along for the crazy ride as Ginny McKensie and her best friends deal with an unexpected pregnancy in Three Girls and a Baby, available now!

  Three Girls and a Baby

  Follow Jen Campbell as she struggles to plan the perfect wedding—and find her very own happily ever after. Three Girls and a Wedding is available now!

  Three Girls and a Wedding

  Join Annie Duncan as she continues her search for the perfect leading role—and the perfect man to go along with it. The third book of the series, Three Girls and a Leading Man, is available now!

  Three Girls and a Leading Man

  Don’t miss the newest book from Rachel Schurig,

  IN SEARCH OF A LOVE STORY

  Emily Donovan doesn’t have a romantic bone in her body.

  At least, that’s what her friends Ryan and Ashley keep telling her. They’re convinced her bad luck with men is directly related to her life-long lack of interest in all things romantic. When Emily’s latest relationship crashes and burns, she decides to go along with her friends’ plans for a romance research project. Sure, the idea that she’ll have better luck if she learns about the great romances of literature and film seems a little silly, but Emily figures it can’t hurt.

  In no time at all, Emily finds herself buried under a mountain of romance novels, chick flicks, and sappy love songs, hopeful that her hard work will pay off with true love. When she meets Greg, Ashley and Ryan are convinced she’s found prince charming—after all, he’s rich, handsome, and totally into Emily. What more could she want? And why does it seem that her friend Elliot isn’t exactly happy for her?

  Faced with misunderstandings, miscommunications, and a seemingly endless string of missteps, she is nevertheless determined to give true love a try. In doing so, Emily will eventually find that true romance, the kind that lasts, has little to do with stereotypes or clichés, and everything to do with finding out what’s in her own heart.

  Available now from amazon.com!

  In Search of a Love Story

  Learn more about these books at http://rachelschurig.com

 

 

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