I Blame Wattpad for My High Expectations of Men

Chapter 76 - Thank you for saving me

~Present Day – Summer of 2024~

~Lola Dino's Point of View~

"It wasn't over. It's still not over!" He blurts out before I can even open my mouth. Hell, my shell-shocked stance doesn't help with my sudden inability to speak all that much either.

        Instead, my mind starts going into overdrive.

        And out of all the things that are currently zooming inside it, ballistically enough, the sudden thought that stands out to me the most is that of something that dates back to as early as my freshman year of college: the Wattpad characters that Kelsey once challenged me to read about.

        Why, you may ask?

        Well, it just so happens that right in this moment, I realize that I had always seen a little bit of each and every one of those unrealistic male leads in the guy that's currently standing before me.

        He had an eye for detail like Sam Cahill, but only made it obvious when he really wanted to.

        He was a fighter like Ryder Daniels, who'd still screech when I'd nurple him.

        He was as dangerous as Drake O'Connell but had a hidden soft side.

        He could be as closed off as Keegan Meth, but knew when to trust the right people.

        He had a rough past like Hardin Scott but never let that haunt him.

        To me, he was all these things and more, but what he could never be was predictable.

        Hence my dropped jaw when I finally acknowledge the fact that he's wearing the same clothes that I had last seen him in, all while holding just about the largest gift basket of Sour Patch Kids goodies I've ever seen in his hands.

"Seriously?" I finally deadpan, realizing that it's been at least a minute since he's spoken. "You did not just quote Noah Calhoun from The Notebook."

"Can you blame me?" He sheepishly grimaces. "You have the thing turned up so loud, I could practically hear it from the elevator." Out of all the things I could possibly do, I find myself pinching the brink of my nose.

"Ace," I groan, "what the hell are you doing here?"

        All jokes are thrown aside when Ace places the gift basket on the ground and looks at me with that signature look of his that has me melting in seconds.

"Doing what you asked," he says, advancing towards me, "fulfilling my promise of making the actual right girl happy."

        His hand instantly meets the back of my head, his lips finding mine just like our first kiss all those years ago. And I? Well, I nearly die right there and then.

        Even after three years of wrongfully hating the guy I was still madly in love with, the touch of his lips still do wonders down south. Only this time, the sparks are even stronger than before...which only makes me feel all that more guilty. I want to kiss him back so badly, but I can't help but think about Addison and his wedding. How is he here all of a sudden if he's supposed to be married to her as of earlier today? As much as I love him, I could never be a cheater like Lazzaro.

        Ace senses my reluctance and loosens his lips, soon resting his forehead on mine while cupping my cheeks.

"Stop resisting, Lo," he pleads, searching my eyes for some sign of hope, relief, anything. "Please, stop resisting any longer."