I Love Him...And Him?

I Love Him...And Him? Chapter 4

Riley would be lying if she said that she didn't have fun on her night out with Miles. He took her to Connor's where they had a great meal together. They laughed and talked and joked around. It was easy going and she enjoyed spending time with him. Connor's was the kind of place that had a live orchestra and couples dancing. After they finished dinner, Riley got her purse to get ready to leave. Miles cleared his throat. "Riley, um. Would you like to dance?" He was looking at the table, clearly uncomfortable asking her.

Riley's face lit up. "Sure." Miles grabbed her hand and led her to where a few other couples were spinning in circles and holding eachother close. He held his arms out and she stepped into him. They started to slowly spin in small circles. Riley made sure to keep a safe distance between them. Not to long after they started to dance, Miles pulled her in to him, and Riley didn't object. She simply stepped in closer and rested her head on his shoulder.

After a while, they decided that they should leave. Miles paid the check and led Riley out to his car. The ride back to her apartment was quiet, but silence was very comfortable. When they pulled up to her apartment building, Miles offered to walk her up. Without much hesitation, Riley agreed. When they got to the door, she turned to him. "Thank you Miles, I had such a good time tonight. I needed it."

He smiled at her. "It was my pleasure, I'm glad you had such a good time." After a short pause, Miles started to lean in towards her. Riley put her hands up against his chest.

"Miles-" He stepped back and looked apologetic.

"Sorry. Again." They both laughed and Miles held his arms out. "Can I at least hug you good night?"

Riley smiled and held her arms out. When she stepped into his arms, she didn't want to let go. As if he sensed how she felt, Miles wrapped his arms around her tightly and held her. Riley breathed in his scent and could feel her knees begin to shake. For some reason at that moment, Mike popped into her head. She stepped back and looked down. "Goodnight Miles." she mumbled before unlocking the door. Miles said his goodbye and when Riley shut the door, she felt a little pang of sadness that her night with him was over.

She checked her phone to see 3 texts. All from Mike. The first one simply said 'Call me.' Then, the second one said 'Where are you?' The third one was 'Are you mad at me or something?' Riley sighed and looked at her phone. She decided she would just call him in the morning rather than start something now. After taking a shower and putting on her pajamas, Riley got into bed. All night she slept peacefully and for the first time in a very long time she had a peaceful dream, instead of one of the many nightmares that usually haunted her at night.

A loud noise woke Riley up the next morning. After a few seconds, she realized that it was her phone. The caller ID told her that the caller was Mike. She sat up in her bed. "Hello?" She answered sleepily.

"Riley? Why didn't you text me back last night?" She couldn't decide if Mike sounded panicked or angry.

"I went out with one of my friends from work. I tried to call you, but you didn't answer." Riley felt like she was hiding something from Mike with not telling him that she went out with Miles. She had said that she went out with a friend from work, and that's what Miles was. A friend. Right?

She heard Mike's voice again. "I went out with some of my friends last night. I'm sorry to cancel on you at such short notice." He sounded sincere in his apology, but there was some other emotion in his voice that she just couldn't place.

"That's alright. I don't work today. Maybe we could go out?" Riley decided that she was going to have to stop thinking about Miles and more about Mike. Mike was her boyfriend. She needed to remember that if she was going to have a friendship with Miles.

"Ok, babe. It's 10 right now, how about I pick you up at noon?" He sounded almost hopeful, like she would say no.

"Sound great honey, I'll see you then." They said their goodbyes and hung up. Riley knew that today she needed to focus on Mike and their relationship together. Since meeting Miles she had been extremely confused and she had no idea how she felt anymore. If only she had her mom around...Riley pushed the thought out of her mind before she got to upset and started to cry. She washed her face and did her makeup and put on a comfortable dress with some cute black flats.

The sound of the doorbell rang through the apartment. Riley pulled the door open and Mike stepped in and kissed her. When they pulled away, he smiled at her. "Hey babe, I missed you."

She smiled back at him. "I missed you too." Mike wrapped his arms around Riley and hugged her. When she hugged him back, the first thought that came to her mind was that the hug she had had with Miles was better. It was nice and she felt safer when Miles was hugging her. She stepped back, feeling extremely guilty for having those thoughts. Taking a deep breath, she grabbed Mike's hand and they walked down to his truck.

While Mike drove, Riley's mind wandered. She thought about Miles and how different he was from Mike. Miles drove a hot red sports car and Mike drove a Chevy truck. When they first got together, Mike was very shy and quiet and Miles wasn't afraid to make a move on her. Miles seemed caring and sweet and she knew that he liked her. Riley and Mike had settled into something more comfortable. They were used to eachother. She knew that was why everything with Miles seemed more exciting. It was new, but the novelty wears off and it is replaced with a comfortable feeling. That's what her and Mike were experiencing.

Before Riley knew it, they were stopped. She looked out the windshield to see that they were at the park. She turned and smiled at Mike. Riley loved the park and he knew it. She loved to go to the park and walk around on the trails or sit on the swings. She loved to be here with Mike because it was a place that brought out the fun little kids in both of them. Mike came around and helped Riley out of the truck. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her softly. Riley kissed him back and wrapped her arms around his neck.

Riley pulled back a minute later, flushed and out of breath. Mike smiled and grabbed her hand. They went on a walk along the bike trails and talked and laughed. When they were sitting on the swings Mike started to rub his hands on the knees of his jeans. "Riley?" He kept his face down, like he was afraid to tell her what he was about to say. "I think we should talk."

Riley looked up, afraid of what he was about to say. Her hands started to shake and her throat went dry. What if he was breaking up with her? Everyone else in her life had left her. That's why she didn't trust people or let people in her life. Now, Mike was going to leave her too. Riley looked over at him. "Ok. What do you want to talk about?" She was about to cry.

Mike got up off of the swing he was sitting on and walked over to Riley's. She stood up so she could look into his eyes. He grabbed her hands and looked at her. "Riley, I love you so much." He paused, as if trying to figure out a good way to say what was on his mind. Riley just stood there, waiting for the words that were going to break her heart. Mike went on. "I love you more than I can put into words. I hate being apart from you and I never want to be without you. I want to spend the rest of our lives together. I want to have babies and grow old together. I want to be there for you no matter what. Forever." Then, he pulled a small box out of his pocket and got down on one knee. "Riley, will you marry me?"

A wave of relief and joy hit Riley at the same time. She started to cry and with a huge smile on her face she jumped into Mike's arms. "Of course I will marry you!" She let him slide the beautiful diamond ring onto her shaking hand. "I love you," she whispered.

"I love you more." Mike kissed her softly and slowly. Riley was so excited. She was engaged! She was going to get married. That night, when she went to bed, Riley dreamed peacefully. In her dream, she was married and lived in a wonderful house. She had a beautiful daughter and was expecting another baby. In Riley's dream, she was sitting on the floor playing with her daughter when her husband walked through the door, home from work. Except, the man in her dream wasn't Mike, it was Miles.

************************************************************************************************************************

Ok, I'm kind of curious. What does everyone think? Team Mike or Team Miles? Thanks to everyone for reading and I can't wait to hear what you think!! ♥♥