His Second Chance

Part 2

An hand shaking me lightly has me opening my eyes to a familiar room. Ryan is leaning over me, a small smile on his face and I look down to see a plate full of breakfast items. "How's your head?" His voice is soft, soothing to my pounding head.

I close my eyes and try to remember what happened last night, little glimpses coming to me. "How'd I get here?" Was last night just a dream? How did I get in my own bed?

"You came home really drunk last night, Alexa and Riley bought you home in a cab. You could barely stand up." He says as he puts the tray onto my lap, kissing my forehead lightly. "I'm glad you had fun, I know we haven't really left the house these past few months since I got this job but I'm glad you're happy." Did Alex and Riley not tell Ryan what happened? Did they even know what happened?

Closing my eyes, I try to remember the stranger who helped me get away from the man who wanted to take me home. Guilt fills my chest as I remember how handsome the stranger was and the attraction I felt between of us. But one of my biggest problems is when he stared at me, it came with the same intense feeling when I didn't know who was watching me. He must've been keeping an eye on me, but why?

Smiling up at my boyfriend, I try to push the strangers from my thoughts. "I had a fun night." The words slip out before I can stop them, the lie rolling easily off my tongue. Why did I lie to him? I'm not too sure but there's something in me telling me not to tell him the truth.

"Alright well I'd better head off to work, I'll see you later, okay? I love you." He kisses my lips then, a smile gracing his handsome face.

"I love you too." My smile is fake as I watch him leave the room, the guilt eating at me. Not once in over the three years since we've been together have I ever felt attracted to someone else. I love Ryan, I moved for him.

My phone rings and I look down to see Riley is calling me, she must know something about last night. Pressing answer, I'm immediately greeted by a shriek of excitement. Pushing the phone away from my head slightly, I cringe as the sound begins to make my head hurt again.

The sound stops and I press the phone against my ear once again. "Calm down, what's going on?"

She shrieks slightly, the excitement clear in her voice. "The guy I met at the club last night gave his number. We're going on a date later, you and Ryan should come, Alexa and her date are coming too."

So she must not know anything about last night, I haven't known Riley for long but I know her enough so say she wouldn't just pretend like it didn't happen. I'll have to see if Alexa knows something but I doubt it.

"Yeah I'll ask Ryan if he wants to go." And just like that, I have plans for tonight.

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"Hurry, we're already late." I spent the day cleaning the house and getting ready for our triple date. Although I'm the female, Ryan has us running late because he couldn't find his tie and he wants to look good for the fancy restaurant we're going to.

"Sweetheart, we're only five minutes late." Entwining our fingers, he places a gentle kiss onto my knuckles. We walk into the restaurant together, my eyes scanning the place until they land on Riley and the guy she was dancing with yesterday.

We make our way towards the two, Ryan and I only hands until we make it to the table. He pulls out the chair for me, pushing me in after I sit down. I offer him a gentle smile as he takes his seat next to me, his hand reaching for mine under the table.

"This is Sam." Riley gestures to the guy next to us, a small smile on his face. "Sam, this is my friend Lucy and her boyfriend Ryan." Ryan reaches out, the two men shaking hands.

"Are Alexa and her date arriving soon?" I ask as the two men begin to talk about sports, instantly hitting it off. I turn away from their conversation, uninterested in their topic about baseball and who's the greatest player.

"Yeah." She checks her phone quickly, her gaze gliding over the screen. "They're just running a few minutes late, they should be here any minute." We hear the restaurant door open and Riley smiles, turning her head to look at who's coming in. "There they are now."

Turning my head, my breath gets caught in my throat as I watch Alexa stroll in with the guy who saved me last night. Now that I can actually see, I can't help but notice how attractive he is, the guilt seeping in as I remember Ryan is right next to me. But the guy doesn't seem to care about my boyfriend as his eyes rake my body, a hungry look floating in his brown eyes.

Alexa and the man take their seats, the two of them looking around at the four of us. "This is Theo, I met him at the club last night." Alexa says, introducing him to everyone.

Ryan and Sam both turn to look at Theo, ready to introduce themselves but Theo's eyes are only on me. His brown eyes hold my green one captive, it feels impossible to look away. He stares at me as if he can't believe I'm truly real, as if I might disappear any second.

Ryan clears his throat, clearly uncomfortable. It's enough to snap me out of my trance and I squeeze Ryan's hand in reassurance. "Do you guys know each other?" I can tell Ryan is trying to be polite but his words come out harsh.

"She looks like a close friend of mine that passed away a long time ago." Theo shares this information, his eyes still on me before he looks away and at Ryan, offering a smile. "Sorry, I'm Theo, it's a pleasure to meet you guys. The atmosphere is still tense but the mood lightens slightly as Sam begins to tell corny jokes, earning smiles from around the table.

The rest of the meal is spent with my eyes staring at anyone but Theo as I can feel his eyes on me constantly, looking away to answer someone's question only for them to return back to my face. Ryan is uncomfortable, noticing the way Theo is staring at me and I can tell he wants to say something but he doesn't want to ruin our dinner.

When we finally do leave the restaurant, Ryan is no longer holding my hand or talking.