Effortless (Thoughtless, #2)(169)

loved and comforted…and satisfied. Besides, it was one more thing I could cross off my bucket list.

My, how I’d grown since meeting Kellan.

Kellan’s eyes softened as he understood just what I was offering him.

Gently kissing me, he murmured, “I love you, Kiera. Happy Birthday.” I nodded, eagerly finding his lips again.

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26





Chapter


New Beginnings


Kellan and the guys had to take off Monday morning for Los Angeles.

We all met at Pete’s for a proper send off. Lana, the record rep from the label, showed up in a sleek stretch limo to take them to the airport.

Griffin was over the moon as he opened the door and peeked inside.

Smiling back at Kellan, he exclaimed, “They got champagne in here, Kell!”

Kellan shook his head at Griffin and twisted to look at me. “I still can’t believe he’s gonna be a dad,” he whispered, rolling his eyes.

“You and me both,” I sighed.

Anna was still at my parents. I’d called her and tried to convince her to come home early, to see Griffin off before he left again, but she’d refused. Then Dad had gotten on the line and scolded me for not calling them the minute I’d found out Anna was pregnant. I’d tried to tell him that I’d been bound to secrecy, but he didn’t much care about sibling pacts when the health and well being of his child was at stake. Once he’d gotten the stern lecture out of his system, Mom had gotten on the line and they’d both spent over an hour cautioning me on not following in my big sister’s footsteps.

I’d repeatedly told them that I was being careful, but that only made them push the virtues of waiting to be intimate until I was married.

They’d even grudgingly accepted the idea of Kellan as my potential spouse. Since I’d been in bed with Kellan at the time, the whole conversation had been kind of funny to me. And I probably shouldn’t have, but I’d chosen that moment to break the news that I’d moved back in with Kellan. I swear I could still hear the disappointed groans.

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As Griffin hopped out of the limo, Matt and Evan took a casual peek inside. On cloud nine, Griffin sauntered up to Kellan, tossing an arm over his shoulder. “This is gonna rock, man. Can you believe it? Chicks, money, mansions…there’s nothing we won’t be able to get.” Frowning, Kellan raised an eyebrow at his bassist. “Making a record doesn’t mean you’re automatically going to hit it big, Griffin. We’ll probably still be nobodies…just nobodies with a label hounding us to pay back the recording costs.”

Griffin snorted and ran his hand back through his pale hair. “Nah, won’t happen. We got something none of those other guys got.” Morbidly curious, I asked, “And what’s that?” Giving me a sly grin, Griffin thumped Kellan on the chest. “Him.” Kellan shook his head and looked down as Griffin strolled off to smack his cousin on the back of the head. Leaning into Kellan’s side, the warm, spring air clean and refreshing, I smiled up at him. “He’s right.” Closing my eyes, I muttered, “And I can’t believe I just agreed with Griffin.”

Kellan chuckled and I opened my eyes to find him gazing at me.

“You’re both ridiculous,” he whispered, leaning in to kiss my cheek.

Holding Kellan tight, I watched Evan scoop Jenny into a huge hug.

Matt wrapped his arms around Rachel in a more reserved way, but I clearly saw the love being exchanged in the smaller gesture. Griffin looked around for someone to hug, but the only people here, besides Lana, who had already slipped back into the car as she waited for her talent to wrap things up, were paired up. Griffin glumly looked around for a moment, then got into the car by himself. Again, I wished Anna was here for him. Odd or not, they kind of worked together.

After the couples broke apart, I gave Matt a brief hug. He smiled and hugged me back, then I was grappled from behind. Evan lifted me up, nearly plopping me over his shoulder. Kellan laughed at his friend as I screamed in surprise. Kellan put his arm around Jenny as Evan set me down. The two longtime friends said a couple of words that I couldn’t 480



hear, then hugged briefly. After that, Kellan gave Rachel a one-armed hug while Jenny patted Matt’s back.

Then the boys were waving and climbing into their limousine to go chase their rising star. And, like Griffin, I was sure that they’d catch it.

Kellan was too talented, too attractive. His fame was fated, and all I could do was hold his hand and tell him that he was worthy of it.

I had tears in my eyes as the black beauty pulled away. But they weren’t tears of worry or sadness this time. No, I was proud of him, immensely proud of him. How many people get an opportunity like this and actually go for it? I had to believe it was a small amount that chose to reach for their dreams, even if they seemed impossible.

And once Kellan was safely tucked away in a recording studio, laying down the tracks that would soon be searing the souls of fans across the globe, I turned my attentions back to my dreams, my goals. I was graduating in a few weeks from college, and I finally knew what I wanted to do with my life.

I wanted to write. I wanted to be an author, with my name on the cover of a story that I’d created. I wanted it more than anything.

I found that all the time I’d spent writing my required papers, had opened up something in me. I enjoyed the quiet times I had, when I could let my thoughts pour out onto the page, instead of keeping them bottled inside. After Kellan and I had had an honest discussion about how badly we’d messed up our relationship by starting it with a betrayal…I’d started writing about it. At first, I was just jotting down notes as I had coffee with Cheyenne or Jenny, but after a while, I got immersed in it.