Never Stop

29. Ander

Chapter twenty-nine

Ander

W hy does the fact that Via has no idea what to expect tonight make me feel almost giddy? When I planned this night, I knew she'd fight me every step of the way, but keeping this secret from her has been much more difficult than I expected.

Planning the perfect proposal isn't easy. Via would be happy with me getting down on one knee in the field where our story began, but she deserves so much more. She deserves it all. She deserves the world. I'm going to do anything and everything that I can to make sure she gets it.

Some may think I'm nuts or that this is too soon, but those who know us know this is long overdue. She's been mine since we were eight, and now that I have her back, I don't want to wait. We agreed we would take this thing between us slowly, but we've done the exact opposite.

We quite literally picked up exactly where we left off as if no time had passed between us. Proposing to Via doesn't feel rushed or forced; it just feels right .

Is it cliche and corny that I'm doing it on Valentine's Day? Absolutely, but the best part is that she's anti-Valentine's Day, so she isn't expecting it at all.

I bought the ring a week after we made it official, and the damn thing is burning a hole in my mind, and I've been dying for the perfect opportunity to ask her.

I planned every detail out precisely, down to our outfits, and damn, does she look stunning in hers. Seeing her like that damn near took the breath from my lungs.

The drive to her home in Sugarland was filled with her cute little grunt-filled sighs, eye rolls, and insistent questions trying to pry for information— that she didn't get.

She'd rather die than make this easy on me. I find it cute that she's so relentless and determined.

Pulling into the driveway of her and Izzy's home, I can feel her deflate next to me as she stares out the window at Izzy's car; something is bothering her.

"What is it, babe? What's wrong?"

She shakes her head and ponders her thoughts a beat before speaking.

"I just. . . I'm really worried about Izzy. She was so happy a few months ago, and now, it's like she and I have reversed roles, and I know how that feels. I know how it feels not just to be physically alone but to feel lonely. I'm just not sure what's going on with her, and I'm worried. Mav officially asked her to move in with him today, and she told him she needed space. I just. . ."

I nod, knowing what she's trying to ask.

"We're early, babe; how about I give you guys about an hour?" Tears fill her eyes, and her slight smile widens as she leans over the console and wraps her arms around me.

"Thank you, Ander." Her words come out soft, barely audible.

I squeeze her as tight as I can in the awkward position we are in, with the console separating us, pressing a kiss on her neck right below her ear.

"You better go before I change my mind and keep you all to myself."

She leans back, letting out that deep laugh that drives my heartbeat. Before I know it, she's out the door of my truck, high heels in hand, walking barefoot in a damn ball gown down her gravel driveway towards her house.

I can't help but think, ' damn, that's my girl .'

I hate this for Izzy and Mav. Mav is a good guy who truly cares about Izzy. He can be annoying as hell sometimes, but he has the purest heart of any man I've ever met. Although I wish they weren't going through this challenging time, I'm glad Izzy's text offered some form of distraction for Via.

I have everything planned, but I need to call my buddy Silas to ensure everything is in motion.

Silas was a chef on our oilfield rig, and we've always stayed in contact. The man is the best damn cook I've ever met. He opened a high-end fine-dining restaurant in New Orleans last year and has been asking me to come try it out. I've just never had a reason to dine so classy until now. Silas is in on the proposal and is helping me pull this off. I rented out his entire rooftop balcony dining area, and his crew is working on bringing my vision to life.

I may not be popping the question at the beach or in the spot that's been our place since we met, as she might expect, but I plan on bringing all the memories to life for her. Not that she needs the reminder, but I want to bring to life our journey of getting to where we are. I want her to see exactly why I never lost hope and why she's so damn special to me. She needs to know why I'll never stop loving her.

The phone rings a few times, and just before I hang up, Silas' deep, gravel voice cuts through the line.

"Bear, I swear this woman of yours better be worth all of this, man."

"She is worth all of this and so much fucking more. How's it coming along?"

"She damn sure better be," He says through a laugh. "Just think, what if you go through all this, and she tells you no? She may just get one look at me and push your sorry ass to the side."

Silas and I have always gotten along well because his dark sense of humor matches mine.

I laugh darkly, "Well, you sure as hell know how to boost a man's confidence. Also, don't even think about it."

Silas returns my laugh.

"Ah- I'm just fucking with you, Bear. In all seriousness, it's perfect. My hostess, Erika, is working on finishing everything up. She says she should be done in about an hour and a half."

"That's perfect; we should be there in a little less than two hours."

Silence cuts through the line for a beat before Silas speaks up.

"Bear. . ."

"Yeah?"

"Is this the girl? The girl you've always been hung up on? The one your songs have been about?"

"Yeah, man, it's her." I can't contain the pride filling my voice.

"I hoped so. I always hoped you'd find your way back to her—a love like that, man. You can't let that shit go. . . Anyways, these pictures are sappy as fuck, but all the girls over here are oohing and ahhing and gushing over this shit, so your lady should be impressed. Although, I do have one question?"

"What's the question?" I ask through a deep chuckle.

"You gonna clean up all this random fucking sand off my roof?" He asks, belting out laughter through his words. Laughter that I can't help but to return.

I bought giant light-up marquee letters that say " Marry Me ." I also got pictures from my mom of Via and me growing up through the years. I printed all our old texts, which I've held onto for all of these years—the texts about our feelings for one another and even some of our messages that were just stupid jokes back and forth. I had them all placed in the marquee letters.

Around the letters, I wanted mounds of sand to represent where we met and our journey together. On the table, I wanted a vase of flowers—not just any flowers, but specifically dandelions. I hope every wish she makes on them involves me, and I'll do anything to make sure it comes true.

"I'll shoot you a text when we're close."

I hang up with Silas as I pull up into Maverick's driveway, and instantly, a wave of nerves rushes over me. You'd think I'd be nervous about proposing, but I'm not.

I've wanted this for years. I've wanted her for far too long to be nervous about that. No, this feeling is different; it is like something terrible is happening. I can feel it in my gut but can't place it.

I don't fucking like it. Not one bit.

I push the feeling down, get out of the truck, and reach Maverick's front door. As I close in, I can hear laughter and talking from inside. I look around, just seeing Mav's truck in the drive, so I'm a little confused. I hope I'm not intruding. I want to check in on him. I know this shit with Izzy must be getting to him.

I knock on the door, and before my hand falls, the door swings open. I come face to face with someone so unexpected that my knees buckle.

"Oh hey, Ander, what are you doing here?"

"What the. . ."

Izzy arches her eyebrows, plants a hand on her hip, and the question spreads on her face. The door pushes open further as Mav walks up behind her and places a hand on her shoulder, throwing me a look of confusion that matches Izzy's.

"Damn, Bear, don't you look spiffy," Maverick says, breaking the awkward silence.

"Ander, what's wrong?" Izzy's voice is low, and concern is evident in her tone.

"Why are you here?" I deadpan, not sure what the fuck is going on, and the confusion is manifesting itself into anger. The extreme feeling that something isn't right grows like wildfire that cannot be tamed.

Maverick opens the door wider and motions for me to come in. They're both looking at me like I'm a lost dog who's been abandoned on the side of the road by the only owner he's ever known.

"What do you mean, 'why am I here,'" Izzy scoffs, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You come over here, alone, dressed like you're going to a damn ball, looking confused as all hell and demanding to know why I'm here . What the fuck is going on, Ander?"

"You texted Via. . . She's there checking on you. . . Your car was there." I run a hand over my face, instantly feeling nauseous.

Izzy shakes her head and steps toward me.

"Via hasn't been texting or calling me back, Ander. I haven't spoken to her in five days. I lost my phone for half a day, and after finding it, I haven't heard back from her. Also, my car broke down yesterday. Mav picked me up. What the hell?"

Spinning around, I rush toward my truck, pull out my phone, and call Via, but it rings multiple times before going to voicemail.

My face drops, and there's a brick in the pit of my stomach. I can feel the bile making its way up. I knew something was off, and I ignored it.

"Let me try to call her," Izzy says.

"Don't bother, I'm going back over there." Wasting no time, I'm in the truck and about to throw it in reverse when two doors swing open.

"We're coming," Izzy says, "I'll keep calling her on the way."

I nod and take off.

"It's still going to voicemail." Izzy shakes her head.

"What the fuck is happening, Ander? I swear, I never talked to Via. I've been wondering why she's been ignoring me. When I lost my phone a few days ago, I found it weird I had no missed calls or texts from her after finding it. I've been trying to call and text her, but I just figured she was busy trying to get her photography business in line. I should have known something was off."

Mav leans over the back of the passenger seat and consoles Izzy, who is now panicking and losing it in the front of my truck.

"Calm down, Iz. We don't know what's going on yet." I try to keep my voice calm, but it's shaky.

"FUCK!" I scream as I slam the break, sending us all jolting forward. I'm driving way too fast, swerving in and out of traffic, and misjudging the distance between me and the car in front of me. I was a little too close to his ass, and the asshole decided it would be the perfect time to break-check me, but I'm not in the mood for this shit.

"Are y'all okay?" I look over at Izzy and Mav.

"Yeah, man, just… slow down a little. I'm sure she's fine." Mav chimes in from the back seat, and I shoot him a warning glare. There's absolutely nothing right about this.

"Wait. . ." Izzy says, leaning over and picking something up off the floor, her voice low and barely audible.

"Ander! Isn't this hers?" Izzy says as she pulls out Via's phone. She must have forgotten it when she got out.

I nod, swallowing with an audible gulp. I am pushing down every fear that's rising to the surface.

"Should I—" I know she's debating going through it. Typically, I would say no. I don't believe in invading someone's privacy. Something isn't right about this. Not at all.

"Just do it," I say, turning my head, trying to keep my thoughts and emotions at bay as best I can.

Izzy wastes no time; I can see her fingers swiping a mile a minute in my peripheral vision.

"Ander, these texts between her and I. . . these aren't from me. Not for the past five days, at least!" Her voice is shaky, but she's screaming through the tears.

The panic is setting in for all of us.

"What the fuck? How is that possible?" Maverick asked firmly, his tone fierce.

"I don't know!" Izzy shouts back at him.

"What about her emails? Look and see if there's anything there," Maverick suggests.

Five minutes away, and still, it feels so far.

"Okay," Izzy's fingers shuffle around on the screen, swiping, clicking and pressing away.

"Geeze, does she ever check this shit? She's always been so bad with emails."

Via is terrible at handling emails. She often jokes about how many emails she can "Collect."

The truck is silent for a few minutes as Izzy searches through all of Via's emails. Part of me feels bad that we're digging through her personal stuff, but the other part is dying inside, clueless about what's happening. My heart is shattering.

What was supposed to be the perfect night for my girl and me is quickly turning into a living nightmare.

Suddenly, a loud bang sound cracks through the silence, and I notice Izzy throwing the phone down. Before I knew it, she was hyperventilating and shouting at me.

"Go faster, Ander, GO FASTER!" She's screaming at me frantically. The tears are falling down her cheeks, and the knot in my stomach tightens.

"Izzy, what? What did you find?" Maverick shouts over her screams while I sit there, dumbfounded, not even able to get a single sound out.

Two minutes away.

" Izzy, you need to calm down, breathe, and tell me exactly what you found that freaked you out," I demand, placing a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down and keep my anger under control.

Izzy takes a few breaths, pulling her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them as she screams.

"He's out! There's an email that Via never read, mixed in with the hundreds of other unopened ones. . . Liam was released in September!"