What is he doing here? Maybe he’s golfing with Chase or his roommate?
The idea that I might run into Ryan makes me weirdly excited and also nervous. But I don’t have time to dwell on it. Zach comes around to my side of the truck and leads me into the club.
I’m not sure where we’re headed, and I don’t love that feeling. Surprises aren’t my favorite—case in point, the proposal. But I’m trying to be excited that Zach planned something special for us. We walk past the sports bar, the casual restaurant, and then arrive at a set of double doors.
“Ready?” Zach asks.
I want to say,No, of course I’m not ready, because I have no idea what I’m walking into, but I nod anyway. He opens the door, and we’re met with a crowd of fifty people shouting, “SURPRISE!”
I turn and look over my shoulder, wondering who they’re surprising, until I realize there’s no one behind us. This is for me. I look around at the crowd… My parents, Zach’s parents, my aunt and uncle, Zach’s cousins, and…my workmates.
Janet, Christopher David, Liam Patel (blech), and Ryan.
I meet Ryan’s eyes, confusion clouding my thoughts. What is he doing here?
“Isn’t this awesome, babe?” Zach’s voice to my left draws my attention away from Ryan. “Our parents threw us a surprise engagement party! Well, you’re the only one getting surprised.”
Yay for me.
“Are you surprised?” Mom cries out, her hands clasped in front of her chest.
And then I realize how many people are watching ME, waiting for MY reaction. I flash a huge smile. “I had no idea!”
Everyone laughs, so that was apparently the right response. The crowd rushes over, hugging and congratulating us on our engagement, and I’m too busy greeting everyone in turn to get lost in my feelings.
At the end of the procession line are my coworkers. Janet gives me a professional hug, Christopher nearly tackles me, Liam waves politely, and Ryan is the last to say hi.
“Congrats, Claire,” he says, pulling me into a side-hug. It’s the first time we’ve touched since I hugged him in the conference room on Monday afternoon. I quickly lean my head on his shoulder, feeling the warmth of his body next to mine. Of everyone here, he’s the person I’m most comfortable with. Even if I’m not going to hold him like I did in the office, it’s a relief to sink into him. I don’t even know the last time I felt that safe being held by Zach.
Ryan pulls away quickly and smiles at Zach, who’s right at my side. Ryan holds out his hand. “Congrats to you, too.”
“Thanks.” Zach ignores Ryan’s outstretched hand and roughly slings an arm around my shoulders. He squeezes me tight, jostling me a little. “I snagged a good one.”
Ryan awkwardly brings his hand back to his side and watches us for a moment, the smile disappearing from his lips. “You sure did.” His expression morphs into a grin, and he points over at the food table. “I’m gonna go grab some appetizers. Talk to you later.” He heads across the room, and my brow furrows as I watch him leave.
“That was weird,” Zach comments. “You’d think he was into you or something.”
“Ryan? No way.” I laugh, my throat a little tight. “He’s the cool surfer guy. There’s no way he’s interested in me.”
Zach nods. “Yeah, you’re right.”
A voice from behind us draws his attention away from me, and he calls out, “Tyson! Yo!” Then he rushes over to his best buddy with his arms outstretched for a bro hug.
I blink a few times, watching them and wondering why Zach thinks someone cool like Ryan would never be interested in someone like me.
And then I realize a more dangerous question: Why do I wish he was wrong?
CHAPTER 16
Ryan
This party is makingme sick.
I can’t believe Claire’s parents invited us here. I mean…I guess I can. Claire doesn’t have many friends outside of work, so they sent the invitation to Janet and Christopher, who passed it along to the whole department. I bet Shawna would have come if she weren’t so close to having her baby. Liam… I’m not sure why Liam is here.
And me? Well, I’m here because she’d wonder why Iwasn’there if I didn’t come. And I didn’t have a good reason. Besides, once I knew it was a surprise party, I felt obligated to come and be an anchor for her.
The question I want answered is why her parents felt the need to throw her a surprise engagement party at all. Don’t we all know that Claire doesn’t like surprises? That she likes to be prepared for everything, and she plans out her evenings ahead of time? Apparently that’s not common knowledge, considering how Zach proposed, and now this giant party. When she first walked into the room, the look in her eyes made my chest tight. She was so confused and tried her best to look happy, but I could tell she wasn’t.
