His mouth breaks into a softer version of his usual cocky smirk. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” I agree, suddenly feeling lighter. “I’d like to see this J & R Ranch and meet the infamous Hollis. And ride the horses, of course.”
“Awesome. You won’t regret it.”
His fingers brush against my skin as he helps me get dressed, and I have to suppress another shiver.
“Thanks for sharing,” I say, rolling up my yoga mat. “About your past and everything.”
“Thanks for listening,” he replies, and for a moment, he looks shy. “Other than close friends or family, most people don’t bother to ask about that part of my life.”
We walk back to my house in comfortable silence. When we reach my front porch, he stops, shoving his hands in his pockets.
Tilting his head, he rocks back on his heels. “I’ll text you the details?”
“Sounds good.”
When he leans in, I think he’s going to kiss me, but he brushes his lips against my cheek instead. “Sweet dreams, sweet cheeks.”
As I watch him walk away, I have a sinking feeling that I’m getting in way over my head. Friends-with-benefits? Who the fuck am I kidding? The way my heart flutters when he looks at me like that tells me I’m already in dangerous territory.
But honestly? I can’t bring myself to care anymore.
twenty
Chalk dust ticklesmy nose as I line up my shot. After sinking a solid in the corner pocket, I look up at Ryder. The twitch at the corner of his mouth is the same one he gets right before he’s about to give me shit.
He raises his glass, hiding a smirk behind the rim. “Friends-with-benefits, huh?”
Yup, there it is.
Straightening, I twirl my cue with a frown. “Please. Like your relationship with Noia started off normal.”
Ryder tilts his head, pretending to think. “Define normal.”
Fucks, sake.
“The only thing normal about how you two met is the classic: met on the side of the road, let me help you change your tire in the rain sitch.”
I lean my hip against the table, pointing at him with the cue. “What wasn’t normal? Was how you moved in with her while your apartment was being renovated when you could’ve just stayed with me.”
He shrugs, downright unapologetic. “I did stay with you.”
“Yeah,” I shoot back, “for one night. And only because youput yourself in a situation that got a little out of hand and you freaked out.”
Ryder lifts his brows and tips his glass again. “Truer words have not been spoken.”
The corner of my mouth lifts. “Damn straight.”
A gust of cool night air rolls across the room when some tourists walk in. I stand back from the table, rest my cue against the edge, and take a slow swallow of my drink. The burn in my throat is nothing compared to the heat that flares up every damn time I think about her.
“Look,” I say finally. “I like Sasha, and I’m going to make her mine. I’m just not sure howmineI’m going to make her yet.”
She took a small piece of me the moment I saw her walking toward me at The Brew. And she took another when I watched her come apart for me through her window. I grin to myself. Whatever it takes, I’m gonna make her mine.
Ryder just looks at me, and I wait patiently for the part where he tells me I’m full of shit.
But I beat him to it. “I don’t know what it is about her, Rye. I just feel this... pressure in my chest, you know? Anytime I see her, it takes everything in me not to throw her over my shoulder and take off into the woods like some goddamn caveman.”