"What did I miss?" Rosie asked flicking her wavy ombre dyed hair over her shoulder as her sea blue eyes darted between Alana and Bobby. The somewhat sinister smile that slowly made its way onto Bobby's lips caused Alana to frown. She was not sure whether something had happened that she was not aware of.
"Well, while you were away, Alana and Cain got it on." Bobby lied.
"I had only been gone for a month! Why didn't you tell me when we spoke on the phone?" Rosie complained while Alana rolled her eyes.
"Do you really think that's what happened?" Alana questioned, raising an eye brown as she sat forward on the leather sofa. Bobby had invited Rosie around their apartment the moment that he had heard that she was back from her long trip to California, for work at Perfect Events. It so happened that when Alana was fired, Veronica pitched one of her ideas to the managers, about expanding the business to different states and they loved it, whereas Veronica had told Alana that it was a stupid idea.
"Well I don't know. Did you two get it on?" Rosie grinned, anticipating her friend's answer.
"No. Now can I go to the kitchen to get started on the pizza?" Alana wondered, standing up.
"I'll speak to you later. Now it's your turn Bob." Rosie stated, falling backwards into the place which Alana had earlier occupied. Bobby had decided that the two of them should host a dinner night with snacks and a movie. Alana had agreed to help out with some of the food, which included her making pizza and buying the rest of the food while the dough was resting. Following the instructions that she had found when she googled 'easy pizza recipe,' Alana brought out all of the ingredients and began working.
Hearing both Cain and Ben's voices spill into the kitchen, Alana tried hard to ignore the racing of her heart. It had started only a week after their double date, the day before Rosie went away. Cain had began calling her a couple of times during the week and she had gotten quite attached to the sometimes irritating man. The next two weeks had consisted of them meeting up for drinks in the cafe that he had taken to her to when they went out on what he considered was their first date, whereby she paid. She was sure to keep her feelings unknown though. She was not one who spilled out her feelings when she was not sure whether the other person felt the same way. Either way, she was not going to tell Cain anything.
"Well look who's cooking." Cain mocked behind her. Turning her head as she began to knead the dough, Alana caught sight of him as he leaned against the door frame.
"Very funny." Alana retorted, trying to ignore how handsome he looked in a simple navy shirt and black jeans as she turned back to the dough in her hands. His hair was an array of unkempt curls as usual but his smouldering, striking hazel eyes always threw her off.
"The only thing is that you're doing it wrong." Cain informed her, his voice extremely close to her ear as his hands suddenly appeared on top of hers, guiding them to knead the dough in the way that he wanted. She was frozen for a second, surprised by him, as always, before she simply went along with it.
"You're too stiff, just like my grand mother when she was dancing." Cain noted as his fingers moved between hers, continuing to move the dough over the dusted surface. The only reason why Alana was so stiff was because she was definitely not used to him being so close, especially since she had began to like him, she was over thinking everything.
"Well thanks for that Cain." Alana replied, nudging him slightly which caused him to chuckle, his husky laugh filling her ears as his breath fanned her ear.
"You're welcome granny."
"I swear Alana, you need to relax. I'm not about to suck your blood out. That film sucks by the way." Cain commented, referring to Twilight.
"I actually have the entire saga." Alana mumbled, a bit embarrassed after his comment.
"That's really sad, Lana." Cain stated.
"Hey! That's not very nice." Alana complained, turning her head in order to scowl at him. The only problem with that move was that she had forgotten how close he was. If she were to move forward in the slightest, she was sure that her lips would brush past his, even as his deep hazel eyes penetrated hers. Her trance only lasted for a second however, before Cain spoke up again after giving her a saucy wink.
"Well I've been told that I'm not a very nice person on many occasions. Now put that in a bowl and cover it for an hour baby." Cain instructed after a second, making his way towards the kitchen door, greeting Rosie as he left.
"You guys didn't get it on but he's calling you baby..." Rosie said, her eyes trained on Alana.
"We didn't get it on." Alana stated, covering the dough in a bowl with cling foil, just as Cain had commanded. During the past month as Cain's shoulder had been healing, Cain had been showing off his excellent culinary skills. Making the pizza would be a showcase of Alana's cooking skills which was why she was making sure to follow the instructions.
"But Bobby saw him kissing your forehead when he came round the other day as you guys hugged tightly." Rosie informed Alana. Cain had been doing it more often and sometimes Alana wondered whether he liked her too but always seemed to throw the idea to the back of her mind.
"He does that as a friendly thing." Alana attempted to justify.
"Do you like him?" Rosie wondered, continuing to watch her closely.
"I may like him a tiny bit, just a little bit." Alana whispered after a second. She paused to make sure that the men in the other room were talking so would not hear her declaration.
"Fair enough. We'll talk about this later." Rosie winked, smiling as she left.
"Don't you dare tell Ben," Alana quickly whispered in her ear before releasing her friend's wrist.
"No way!"Rosie stated, nodding at the same time before rushing out of the kitchen.
"Rosie!" Alana yelled but it was too late. As she ran after her, Alana caught sight of Will and instantly ran into the arms that he held open when his chocolate brown eyes caught sight of her too.
"You might want to loosen up on that bottle Cain. It didn't do anything to you." Ben commented beside Cain as he watched Will and Alana embrace each other tightly. For not having feelings for him, Alana looked extremely happy in Will's arms which angered Cain. If she still liked him then all she had to do was tell him the truth, not string him along. Continuing to frown Cain turned to his friend.
"What are you talking about?"
"If I didn't know you any better, I'd say that you were jealous of Will and imagined yourself in his place." Ben stated, not helping Cain in the slightest as he watched them talk animately in front of him.
"I'm not jealous. I just don't like that guy." Cain corrected, taking a sip of beer from the bottle in his hand.
"I like him." Ben shrugged.
"You don't know him." Cain bit back.
"Neither do you." Ben reminded him. Cain struggled not to strangle his friend as he smirked annoyingly ahead, no longer keeping eye contact.
"Anyway, we should probably get going now Alana, while the pizza rests." Rosie suggested as everyone turned towards her. Their plan was in action it seemed and Cain could not be any happier to be apart of. Once Rosie had towed Alana out of the house unknowingly, all of the men in the room sat down and began planning. Considering that Bobby was closest to Alana, out of the four men, he was in charge.
"I need someone to meet up with her and take her out to dinner so that we can get everything into the house and start setting up for the party." Ben commanded as he looked down at the clip board which Rosie had equipted him with.
"I might as well take her to dinner." Will stated with a shrug.
"I don't think that will be necessary. I could take her." Cain spoke up, ignoring the grunt that Ben made beside her.
"No. I know her better, I'll take her." Will insisted.
"Well I'm not her ex-boyfriend so it won't be awkward. I'll take her." Cain urged beginning to get irritated. He wanted to do something special for Alana and so wanted to take her. She did not need to go with him when he had a girlfriend that he apparently liked, Cain thought.
"It's not awkward between us. If anything I think that she still likes me." Will added, causing Bobby to frown at him. Cain was not sure whether Will actually knew what he was talking about.
"I highly doubt it from what I've been told." Cain scoffed, remembering when Alana had slipped out the fact that she had not liked Will even when they were dating.
"What exactly have you been told?" Will quizzed, moving forward in the arm chair so that he was somewhat closer to Cain.
"It's confidential." Cain shrugged. The tension was thick in the air as the two men glared at each other but Cain was in no mood to back down.
"Cain, could I quickly speak to you, privately please?" Bobby asked, although by his tone, it was definitely not a question. Staring into his bright green eyes, Cain wondered what on earth he wanted to say and so slowly stood from the couch and followed him into the kitchen.
"Do you like Alana?" Bobby immediately questioned, closing his bedroom door.
"I just thought that she might not want a date with her ex-boyfriend on her birthday." Cain replied, after pausing. With his arms folded over chest, Bobby watched Cain intently for a second and Cain watched him as well, refusing to loose eye contact.
"I think that Will should take her. I mean he has known her for longer." Bobby stated, causing Cain to frown. He was not about to deny his 'undying love' for Alana so Cain decided to leave it as it was.
"Well since that's settled, let's get back. We have a few other things to finalise, like the DJ and drinks." Bobby chirped, leaving Cain alone in the kitchen. He tried his hardest to ignore the anger that he felt and walked out of the room, trying not to notice the annoying smirk that stayed planted on Will's face.
"You're finally twenty four! Happy birthday!" Bobby screamed, waking Alana up in a fright. Squinting, Alana adjusted her eyes to the sudden brightness which illuminated her bedroom and quickly glanced at the clock.
"Thank you so much Bobby, for waking me up at seven in the morning." Alana stated sarcastically as she sat up.
"If you're not nice to me, I'll just take your present back to the shop..." Bobby threatened, slowly turning around to leave the way that he came in with the hot pink gift bag in his hand.
"Wait!"
"Alright, I'll put you out of your misery." Bobby said, placing the bag onto her lap. Grinning up at him, Alana pulled out a baby blue envelope and opened it, surprised when she saw an unattractive image of herself brushing her teeth on the front of the card inside.
"You put a lot of thought into this didn't you? Just know that I'm not putting this on display in our living room." Alana smiled as she shook her head. Bobby chuckled and sat on the foot of her bed, dressed neatly in a blue and white stripped shirt, tucked neatly into his work trousers as he continued to watch her.
"You didn't have to." Alana grinned as she pulled out a gift set for the perfume Angel. Alana had loved that particular perfume since college but had forgotten all about it.
"Thank you so much!" Alana gushed, pulling Bobby into a tight hug.
"You're the best."
"Well since I'm the best, I should probably tell you that you need to brush your teeth before opening that little mouth of yours." Bobby stated, pushing her away by her shoulders.
"Thanks." Alana mumbled, covering her mouth as she moved away from him.
"I have to go to work now. Enjoy your present and remember that Will's coming for you at six, so be ready." Bobby reminded after checking his watch.
The rest of the morning was filled with phone calls from Alana's mother, Rosie, Will, Ben and more. By mid-afternoon, Alana couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed. She was not sure whether or not Cain had forgotten about her or was simply busy because he was yet to call her. Before she knew it, Alana was getting ready for her birthday dinner with Will. At first she had been a bit hesitant, however after Rosie and Bobby had insisted that it would simply be as friends and would be a delicious free meal on her half, she decided to go with him.
"You look stunning!" Rosie grinned as she placed the final pin in Alana's hair. Glancing at the mirror Alana could hardly contain the smile that lit up her face. After arguing for five minutes, Rosie agreed on styling Alana's hair in an up do of curls, some which framed her oval face. The makeup which Rosie also did for her left her looking flawless and easily covered some of the spots that had randomly appeared.
"Thank you so much!" Alana sang playfully as she spun around to hug her friend.
"You're welcome. Now, could you please put on your dress. Will is on his way and I'm sure that you don't want to keep him waiting." Rosie rushed, confusing Alana.
"I'm sure that it's fine." Alana frowned as she lifted up the midnight blue long sleeve midi dress that she had brought only a week ago. The sides of the dress hugged her body and shimmered gently, making the dress different from many others that she had seen.
"You ready?" Bobby asked, knocking and entering before he received a reply.
"I could have been naked." Alana complained as she sent him an irritated look.
"Well it wouldn't have been anything that I hadn't seen." Bobby shrugged as he made himself comfortable on her bed.
"You're sick Bob." Rosie stated.
"I love you too Rosebud. You're date is waiting by the way." Bobby informed them.
"Why did you tell us? How long has he been here?" Rosie glowered.
"Like ten minutes." Bobby replied easily as he played around with his floppy brown hair in the mirror.
"Well thanks for that information. I guess I better leave now. Thanks for helping me get ready Rosie." Alana thanked once more.
"You're welcome, now run along." Bobby insisted, pushing her out of her bedroom door just as she grabbed her purse.
"What is with you two?" Alana muttered. She definitely knew that something was wrong. Either they wanted to throw a party without her whilst she was away, or they were going to do something else. Either way, Alana was not happy that she was unaware of exactly what was happening. Entering the living room, Alana caught sight of Will's foot tapping the floor boards impatiently as he glanced at his watch.
"You look great." Will smiled when his soft brown eyes caught hers and he stood up to give her a friendly embrace.
"Is something happening that I'm not aware of?" Alana wondered, glancing in the direction of her room as she heard faint whispers.
"No way. I just think that it's time for us to go." Will smiled shakily whilst scratching his head briefly. Alana knew that there was definitely something going on and she wanted to find out, soon.
"How have you been enjoying your twenty fourth birthday?" Will quizzed as he placed the champagne into her empty glass. He had taken her to an extremely fancy restaurant and Alana was glad that she had dressed up and wore her sleek black heels to finish her outfit.
"It's been going really well so far. I've gotten a few presents so I'm happy." Alana shrugged as she looked over the menu. The shrill of Will's phone caused Alana to look over at him and with an apologetic glance in her direction, he quickly answered it. Alana could not help but notice the confused expression on his face after a minute of listening to the person on the other end of the phone and was sure that her new observation skills had something to do with Cain.
"Sorry Alana, but I have to go to work. There's...a problem. I'm really sorry." Will apologised, standing up from the table with the same unsure expression. He had moved work branches from California to one near where they lived in the last month so Alana easily accepted his excuse, although she was not happy about the situation.
"Does that mean we're leaving? I don't understand." Alana stated, standing up with him. She had wanted to enjoy a lovely meal with a close friend on her birthday but it seemed as though she had dressed up for nothing.
"No. No, you stay here and apparently - - I mean, enjoy your meal. I'll see you...when I see you." Will shook his head, leaving her at the table alone. Alana had no idea what to do. Confused as anything, Alana called Bobby and Rosie to ask what to do. There was no way that she would stay there alone.
Cain was surprised when he received the phone call from Alana, telling him that she had been abandoned by 'someone.' He was more than surprised, somewhat astonished when both Bobby and Rosie pushed him out of the house as they prepared for the party and told him to meet her at the restaurant, claiming that there was a change of plan.
"Alana?" Cain frowned, not sure whether he had seen the right person. When she placed the wine glass down and her deep brown eyes gazed at him as she breathed what looked like a sigh of relief, Cain was sure that it was her and that she looked breathtaking. He had only seen her dress up a couple of times, but this time he was sure that she had outdone herself. Cain could hardly take his eyes off her and felt considerably under-dressed as he glanced at his plain white t-shirt and jeans. Alana sighed and gestured for him to take the seat in front of her as she stood up. Cain pulled his eyes away from the curves that the dress accentuated, curves that he was not sure he had ever seen and focused on the table.
"What happened to your date with Wilbert?" Once the words had slipped out of his lips, Cain instantly regretted it. Not only had it sounded bitter but Alana had not directly told him about the date, therefore he was not supposed to know.
"Well, he came with me but then bailed on me. He said that he had a problem to deal with at work." Alana informed him with a raised eye brow.
"Rosie told me. I don't know about you but I'm starving." Cain urged, picking up the menu to hide his face. He was sure that he was going to blow his cover and the surprise party would be uncovered if he did not think before he spoke which was definitely a problem that he had around Alana.
"Cain, I'm so glad you came. I didn't know who else to call." Alana said gently in front of him, her small hand over his as he held the menu. Moving it away from his face, Cain saw the thankful smile on her lips and helplessly smiled back.
"That's fine. Remember Lana, I'll always be here." Cain replied with a wink.
"Happy Birthday." Cain stated as he placed Alana's present on the empty table. They had just finished dessert and Cain had almost forgotten the small box that had been sitting in his pocket.
"Is this your discreet way of asking me to marry you?" Alana joked as her eyes fell on the shiny purple wrapped box.
"Not unless you want it to be." Cain smiled as she looked away shyly.
"Well thank you very much, Cain." She thanked him, unwrapping it. Cain waited patiently as she opened the black velvet box that was revealed and smiled when he saw her dark brown eyes light up while lifting up the necklace. The plain silver necklace would have looked ordinary if it was not for the beautiful small, Egyptian blue crystal pendent, with a border of silver crystals. It was a simply yet elegant present and after running around the mall for a two hours with his sisters, Cain hoped that she liked it.
"It's beautiful Cain. I love it." Alana appreciated, her eyes glued to the piece of jewellery.
"Can I put it on now?" Alana wondered as she looked up at him, her face hardly containing her smile.
"Sure." Cain nodded as he leaned back and watched her. A waiter came and placed the receipt on the table and Cain easily caught the lingering look that the young man gave Alana as she struggled with the necklace.
"Would you like me to help you?" Cain questioned, smiling at her attempts while noticing her irritation.
"Yes please." Alana blushed under the dim lighting. Taking the thin necklace out of her slim hands, Cain placed it around her neck, fastening it securely before placing his card on top of the receipt without looking at it.
"It's my treat." Cain stated when her caught sight of Alana's surprised expression. Feeling his phone vibrate, Cain read the message and glanced across the table at the woman who continued to fiddle with the necklace that he had just placed around her neck.
"Should we get you home?" Cain asked, standing up when his card was returned to him.
"Yes and thanks for coming." Alana smiled softly.
"Surprise!" Everyone shouted as Alana switched on her apartment light. The shock on her face was evident and Cain was sure that he could see tears in her eyes.
"You were part of this?" Alana queried, turning to face him as he shrugged with a smile.
"Thank you!" Alana cried, throwing her arms around his neck as she hugged him tightly. By the time Cain placed his arms around her, Alana had already withdrawn her body away from his and Cain tried to contain the frown that he wanted to make.
"We know that you've been through a lot and well, we wanted to celebrate a new year which will most definitely be better than the last." Bobby confessed, pulling Alana into a hug.
"Happy Birthday babe!" Rosie grinned, hugging her best friend as well.
"Thank you all for coming! I just want to say that I am blessed to have such lovely friends around me." Alana continued to cry.
"No more tears Alana. I just think that we should get this party started!" Will cheered and before Cain knew it, the party was in full swing.
"How was the date?" Ben quizzed as he leaned on the wall beside his friend.
"It was good...nice I guess." Cain stated, his eyes watching Alana as she conversed with everyone in the room, her face glowing as she laughed and smiled.
"Did she like your gift?"
"She loved it. It's around her neck right now actually."
"Did you tell her you liked her?"
"What is this? 21 questions?" Cain scowled.
"I'll take that as a no then."
"How many of those drinks has she had?" Cain questioned as she finished another cup of punch, ignoring what his friend had said.
"Leave her alone, she's just having fun." Ben yelled over the music.
"Which you're supposed to be having too. Let your hair down for once man!" Ben added and with a sigh, Cain decided that for one night, he would let himself have fun too considering that he had not been to a party in a while.
"Hey big boy!" Alana yelled over the music as she fell into his lap. In shock, Cain almost spilled his beer as he steadied her on his lap.
"It seems as though someone is drunk. It's the first time I've seen her like this." Ted laughed beside Cain. In an attempt to let his 'hair down,' Cain had began speaking to some of Bobby's friends who he learned also knew Alana quite closely.
"She's definitely drunk." Cain agreed after a minute of watching her sway and dance on his lap.
"Drunk and has the hots for you." Ted shook his head as Cain tried to take her off his lap. He was not in the mood to get hot and bothered, especially when she was in a state and had no idea what she was doing, although he was enjoying it.
"I need to dance, Cain!" Alana pouted, wrapped an arm around him as she threw her head back, her smooth neck exposed. Cain glanced around in order to stop himself from kissing it and groaned when he did not catch sight of Bobby or Rosie.
"No, you need water." Cain corrected as she giggled on his lap, her eyes zoned in on his.
"I want something sweet." Alana whispered, her lips brushing past his ear. Cain quickly cleared his throat, trying to calm his body down. Her lips had felt gentle on his ear and at that moment he was struggling to keep his mind straight.
"I'll get you a sweet then." Cain suggested and just as he was about to lift her off his lap, he felt her warm, full lips against his. Her lips felt just as soft as they looked and Cain could taste the sweet punch that she had drunk. Cain quickly pulled her away from him as he came to his senses and noticed that her eyes were almost closed.
"I'm tired." Alana mumbled, snuggling into the crook of his neck. Cain was still in a frozen state as the beautiful girl in his arm drifted to sleep and before he knew it, was snoring softly in his ear. He had wanted to kiss her for a while over the past month that they had spent together but had not been sure of her feelings. Plus, Cain knew how innocent and vulnerable Alana was and felt as though he would be outstretching the boundaries if he tried anything with her. However, kissing her in the state that she was in was not part of his plan. She was definitely something. Alana was incredibly unpredictable, Cain realised as he shook his head, wrapping his arms around her sleeping body. Unpredictable.
"I can't believe that Alana just kissed you and I got it on video. She's going to just die when she watches this." Ben laughed as he fell beside Cain. When he had needed Bobby, he had been nowhere in sight, yet had seen everything. Cain shook his head.
"She'll die?" Cain repeated.
"Fine, pass out. Plus she's going to have a hell of a migraine too. Happy Birthday Alana-May Judy." Bobby grinned before leaving Cain alone with the sleeping beauty in his arms. Wrapping his arms around her thin body, Cain lifted her up and carried her to her bedroom, hoping that their kiss meant something more than a drunken mistake to her.