Ally turned to go down the hall, but did a 180 when she saw Nick. They hadn’t spoken since he’d given her the newspaper earlier that morning, and, as much as she wanted to talk to him, she was embarrassed and angry at him.
Nick plopped down on the sofa and stared into space. Now she wouldn’t even talk to him. He felt terrible. Her dumb boyfriend just broke her heart, and besides Shannon, he knew there was no one she could talk to. Why couldn’t he just give it up? Because she had been such a bitch, he reminded himself.
“Hey, Nick,” Howie said, sitting down next to him. Noticing the glum look on his friend’s face, he added, “Ally problems again?”
Nick looked up and nodded. “Craig cheated on her with Mindi McAllen. It was in the Times.” He gave Howie the condensed version of what happened that morning.
“You gotta talk to her, man,” Howie said. He was the only other guy that liked Ally…or at least didn’t hate her.
“No way! I can’t do it!”
“Come with me,” Howie ordered as an idea formed in his mind. He didn’t care if the other guys would hate him for it. He couldn’t stand to see Nick this down anymore. He grabbed Nick’s arm and pulled him in the direction that Ally went.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see.”
When they reached Ally’s dressing room, she was just coming out. Howie shoved them both in, slammed the door, and locked it. That would take care of it. At first, there were a few screams of protest, but that turned into an uncomfortable silence for ten minutes. “You’re not coming out until you have this worked out!” he called. Then he walked away.
After a moment, Nick moved closer to her and opened his mouth to say something, but he couldn’t put his thoughts into words. Instead, he grabbed her face and pulled it to his for a powerful, passionate kiss. Eventually, their lips parted for air.
“I…” Ally started, but Nick put his finger to her lips.
“Shhhh, just let me talk,” he whispered. “I love you, Alexandra, and I want to be with you. I’m sorry for everything.”
“I’m sorry, too, Nick, and I love you, too,” she sighed.
Chapter 17
Ally shifted uncomfortably in the limo with Kevin, AJ, Brian, and Howie. Three of them were glaring at her, and Howie wasn’t paying the least bit of attention. Nick had gone to visit a friend after the show, and she, seeing a chance to make peace with her boyfriend’s best friends, had volunteered to go in their limo. Now she realized it wasn’t such a good idea.
Finally, she decided to break the ice. “I know you guys don’t like me, and I have a few guesses as to why, but it would make it easier for me to make peace if you would just tell me,” she spilled.
Obviously taken aback by her bluntness, the guys were speechless for a moment. Eventually, Brian was the first to answer. “You led Nick on when you were with Craig.”
“And you aren’t exactly all that friendly,” Kevin added. AJ nodded in agreement.
Ally pondered over what they said for a moment before trying to figure out how to put what she wanted to say into words. “You’re right, and I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have led Nick on, and I’m probably not the nicest person. Still, I think it would be best if we tried to get along - for Nick’s sake, if nothing else. I know how difficult it is to date someone without your friends’ approval. You may not believe me, but I love Nick with all my heart. I just want him to be happy.” She paused. “Do you think we can do that?
Howie nodded. “Sure, no problem.”
“I think so,” Kevin replied.
“Yeah, I guess,” AJ said.
After several moments of thought, Brian nodded. “Yeah, I think I can do that.”
They pulled up to the hotel a few moments later, and Ally was the last to get out. Brian waited for her and held her back for a second.
“Ally,” he said.
“Yeah?”
“I-I just want you to know, I really respect you for doing that. I’m sorry for being such an asshole. I can tell you really like Nick, and he loves you. I’m happy for both of you.”
“Thanks, Brian,” Ally replied. “You have no idea how much that means to me.”
Chapter 18
Hot water mixed with salty tears as Ally splashed her face. How was she going to break this to Nick? She leaned against the wall and slid to a sitting position as another wave of tears hit her. Burying her face in her hands, she again began to cry silently.
“Ally, are you okay?” Nick called from outside. “You’ve been in there for half an hour!”
“Yes, I’m fine,” Ally replied shakily.
“Why do you sound like you’re crying?” Nick asked suspiciously. “Can I come in?”
“Really, I’m okay! I’m just not feeling well!” Ally lied.
“Ally, please let me in!” Nick pleaded.
“No!”
“Fine, I’m going to get in there one way or another,” Nick warned. “Why don’t you make it easy and just unlock the door?”
Not out of defeat, but because she was too tired to argue, she reached up and turned the lock. “It’s open.”
The doorknob turned, and Nick stepped in. When he saw Ally, he immediately knelt down beside her and pulled her into his arms. “You don’t have to tell me what’s wrong, baby,” Nick whispered. “But it might be easier if you would.”
“Trust me, Nick. You’d be much happier not knowing,” Ally answered.
“Are you sure? Sometimes it helps to talk, and I’m more than willing to listen.”
“I would love to tell you. I’m going to have to tell you eventually, but I'm just too scared.”
“You don’t want to break up, do you?” Nick asked, alarmed.
“Of course not, but when you find out I’m pregnant, you might want-“ Ally stopped, realizing she had said too much.
Nick gasped. “But how? You and I-we never-I-”
“It was Craig. It was that night he flew in,” Ally sobbed. “Oh, God, I’m so sorry, Nick.”
“Craig? You’re pregnant with Craig’s child?”
“I’m sorry,” Ally whispered. “I understand if you want to break up.”
Nick lifted her chin. “I don’t want to break up. I love you, Alexandra, pregnant or not. You didn’t cheat on me to get pregnant. It was from before our relationship. You didn’t know. It’s not your fault.”
“Who are you trying to convince?” Ally mumbled.
Nick looked at her, surprised. “I’m trying to convince you, Alexandra. I’m not mad at you.”
She collapsed into a fresh fit of sobs. “I’m so damned stupid! Why didn’t I just listen to you in the first place?”
“It’s not your fault,” Nick repeated as he pulled her body closer to his.
“What am I going to do? I can’t have Craig’s child!” Ally cried.
Nick rubbed her back. What could she do? A baby would mess up both his and her careers. Neither of them had time to take care of it, nor did Craig, not that he’d want to have anything to do with it anyway. “Did you tell him?”
“No. I can’t call him, Nick!”
“Ally, you don’t have a choice. This is his child, too. He at least needs to know,” Nick insisted.
“But-“
“You have to tell him,” he interrupted. “I don’t blame you for not wanting to talk to him, but there’s no other way.”
“Are you sure you’re not mad, Nick?” Ally asked.
“Of course I’m not, babe,” Nick replied, pulling a wet strand of hair from her cheek. “I love you.”
She was crying too hard to reply. Instead, she just buried her face and wept into his shoulder.