From Lies to Promises (15 page)

  “And.”

  “Maybe I wanted to enjoy the view, too?” He questions.

  “Then you should have woke up sooner.” I say before giving him a peck on the lips.
“Besides, it’s Sunday and I need to go get Jamie.”

  “For shame. You planned on leaving me?” He pokes that pouty bottom lip out at me.

  “I can’t just leave, dork. I didn’t drive, remember?” I say laughing at him.

 
“True.” He says with more spunk. I can almost see the light bulb form over his head before he speaks again, “That means I can keep you here as long as I like.”

  “You could, but you wouldn’t do that to po
or Jamie would you?” I turn the pout face back on him.

  He huffs and gets out of the bed, throwing on his boxer briefs, “Oh, I could, but I won’t.” Then vanishes into the bathroom.
Lying on the bed as he gets dressed, I watch his muscles play over his back and shoulders, until he pulls a shirt over his head covering up the work of art. He walks over to me, gives me a kiss, and then coerces me downstairs. I hate it when people try to pry in my business, but I have to know about Lyla and Ryder’s relationship. Why he acted so brash when Jake was telling me about them.

  “Are you going to tell me why we left last night like that?” I ask, taking a seat on the stool closest to him in the kit
chen.

 
I may not be able to see his face, but I can tell he didn’t expect me to bring it up because his whole body goes stiff. Slowly he turns to me, his eyes downcast. “If I do, you won’t be able to look at me the same. I am not sure I am strong enough to cope with the look of disgust that you will aim at me.”

  “That is just an assumption. You will not know how I will take it until you tell me, Ryder.”  As the words come from my mouth I regret them. I
am a hypocrite to tell him that, and not believe it myself.
I hate hypocritical people.

  “You’re right. Ok.” His chest expands with a large breath and he starts, “
I have been in a few relationships and every one I ended when things started getting too deep. Lyla has been in mine and the guys lives since we were little. Her and Jake are close, but only in the side kick kind of way. All her romantic interest has been pinned on me.” He sits down on the vacant stool beside me and places his elbows on the table, head bowed. “Never have we been an official couple. She isn’t what I see myself with, she is too vindictive. Jake wasn’t lying to you. Every time I run back to her, but that was until this last time with Lyla.

  “She took it a step too far. Her normal pattern is to wait until I break it off and
then crawl in my bed. She didn’t wait this time. I had been dating this girl for a couple of weeks and she had a heart of gold. I don’t know how she did it, but somehow she drugged us during one of our dates. It didn’t hit either of us till we walked in the door here. After a few minutes of trying to collect ourselves, Lyla walked right in the house like she owned it. The girl I was dating didn’t realize what was happening or what she was doing. Lyla took pictures of all three of us together, naked and used them to ruin the poor girl. I promised myself after that I was done with Lyla and her obsession.”

  He rubs his hand over his face a few times before looking at me to gauge my reaction. It’s not what I was expecting but me being me I was definitely thinking the worst.
“You think that I would judge you for the actions of her? Lyla was the person that hurt and ruined that girl, not you.”

  “
Oh wise one, you really are a Yoda.” He winks at me before bending down and taking all the air from my lungs with a heart stopping kiss. “You are pretty amazing, you know that?”

 
“Thanks, I try.” Ryder grabs our phones off the counter where they have been all night and hands mine over. “I am in so much trouble.” I tell him while I scroll through my phone on the ride home.

  “Why?”

  “Lexi and Skeigh texted and called me all night wondering where I was.”
Shit.

  Pulling into the driveway he makes no attempt to get out of the car with me. “Oh no mister
, you’re the reason I have a firing squad waiting on me in there. You’re coming in.”

  “No, ma’am. You deal with your friends, I have mine to deal with.” He answers.
“I have to go talk to Jake.”

             
I got a proper scolding from the girls for not letting them know I was staying the night with Ryder. Over the next month things continue in a pattern. My feelings for Ryder continue to grow. We have had sex a few more times and each time, little by little Ryder has knocked down a different wall of mine.

  I’ve been to the hospital with Ryder to visit Bethany.
She actually convinced me to call her Ol’ Beth like everyone else. That woman is what you would call a force of nature. I can see why Ryder cares so much about her.

  I
’ve been meeting up with Victoria about twice a week telling her my story. Our first session I wasn’t able to give her much, but it has gotten easier each time. She already started typing up the story and told me at the rate we are going we might not have to do this but for another week or so. I haven’t gotten the nerve to read my mother’s interview with Victoria yet, and I may never.

 
Sitting on my bed looking over what she has written so far on the article, I have papers from all her interviews scattered everywhere. I finally pry myself up to get ready when I look at the time. Tonight I am meeting Ryder’s dad. I am nervous because I don’t know what to expect or what his father will think of me.

  “Would you quit running around the house like a chicken with its hea
d cut off and sit the fuck down?” Lexi says. “He is going to love you.”

  “You are just saying that because that’s what you are supposed to say. There is no way you could know that for sure.” I fire back at her and run down the hall to get my shirt out of the dryer.

  “Of course it is what I am supposed to say,” She pauses following me into the bathroom so I can get re
ady, “but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.”

 
I turn around and give her a hug. “Thanks.”

  Skeigh comes in my room, moments ahead of Ryder, to tell me to chill out and it will be ok
. Dave took her to their dad’s house last week and she said he was real nice.

  On the ride to his dad’s, his hand comes to rest high on my thigh, bringing thoughts of Thursday
back to me. I had just got through with classes when Ryder called me to come by the shop to see him for a little while. He didn’t answer me when I walked in calling his name, instead he hid in a dark corner to jump out and scare the ever loving crap out of me.

 
I jump and scream at him, “Holy shit, Ryder! What the fuck?” He pulls me into him and I bury my head in his neck. My body is shaking not only from adrenaline but because of the laughs coming from his chest as he holds me close. “Don’t do that again.” I tell him as my heart slows.

  “I’m sorry.” He says looking down at me and brushing the hair that has fallen in my face away.
A smirk jumps on his lips. “I got you good, huh?”

  “Yea, y
ou did.”

  His hand cradles my face as I stand on the tips of my toes and drag my lips over his once, then twice. Then his hand is on the nape of my neck pulling me in closer. Plunging past my lips, his tongue caresses mine as he backs me into a car.
In between breaths I ask him where his brother is at and he tells me he left early today.

 
Ryder makes quick work of my shirt and bra. Pushing me back onto the hood of the car, his mouth travels down my throat to my beast, his tongue circling my nipple.  After he undoes my pants his hand vanishes under my panties, finding me dripping wet with desire. Biting on my lip, my head rolls from one side to the other.

  Cupping me, I grind into his hand, his thumb grazing my clit. He drives one finger into me
, and when a soft moan comes from me, he stops long enough to take my pants all the way off. When he starts again, I am on the verge of melting on the hood of this car when he stops and stands up. I whimper and open my eyes to find him stripping, and he isn’t wasting any time.

  Ryder stands there completely naked and unashamed. My skin all over heats up as he takes me in, it’s hard but I don’t cover myself because I know
he hates it when I do. His hands run up my legs to my thighs, spreading me open before him. Lowering his mouth, it finds my nipple as his fingers start giving attention where it is needed the most. I am nothing more than a writhing, quivering mess in his gifted hands.

 
As Ryder drops kisses down my stomach, his fingers never missing a beat, then a kiss to the inside of each thigh. I know what he is about to do, I shoot up to my elbows, “Wait, no.”

  “
What? What’s the matter?” He asks taking his fingers out of me. I take a deep breath and tell myself this is Ryder, just Ryder. But can I recover this moment from my almost freak out? What will he think?

  “It’s n
othing.” I grab his face in my hands. “I just want you up here.” Then I kiss him. I kiss him with everything that I have, hoping he will forget what just happened. When he starts kissing me back I know it must have worked. Within seconds he enters me and I am shaking. I am shaking from the pleasure and fear he makes me feel. Fear of the pleasure he makes me endure, and the feelings I have for him.

 
Ryder continues to pump into me until we come apart together. Lying there holding Ryder against me, feeling his heart beat against mine, I realize how far I have fell for this man. It’s a new to me, but it feels right. Everything feels right with Ryder.

 
Pulling myself out of the memory, I realize that the car is immobile. As I open the car door to get out Ryder stops me by pulling me in for a quick hard kiss to the lips. He pulls back and says, “You ready, darlin’?”

  I manage
to nod my head once and swallow the lump in my throat. He doesn’t bother knocking when he gets to the door just walks on in and hollers that we were here.

  “Out here!” A deep voice rumbles
from afar.

  With my hand in his
, Ryder pulls me through a series of halls and doors till we are on a screened in porch. It is a rainy cold day but there are a few heaters in the corners making it cozy out here. There is a man sitting at a high top table playing solitaire. When he raises his head there is no doubt that this is Ryder’s father. An exact pair of green eyes that match the man I have fell for staring back at me.

  He sets the deck of cards down, stands and gives his son a big hug slapping
him on the back. “You need to come see your old man more often.”

  “I know dad I’m sorry
. The shop has been extremely busy the past couple of months and between it and checking up on Ol’ Beth it has been nuts.” Ryder explains.

  “Oh, and I am sure this lovely thing here has nothing to do with you being so busy either, huh.” He laughs and turns to me.

  “Dad, this is my girl, Katrina Brown.”

  I raise a trembling hand, “Nice to meet you Mr.
Hudson.”

  He takes my hand and gives it one solid shake. “
Drop the mister shit. It’s meant for men of position. Just call me Allen.” He says as he let’s go of my hand.

 
He walks over to a cooler picks up two beers and hands them to both of us. We take a seat at the table and I listen to them converse. Allen asks Ryder how Ol’ Bethany is doing and to tell her he said hi. Ryder changes the subject after a while, he is hurting and I want to take that away from him. I just wish I knew how.

  “
So what do you do, Katrina?”

  Yep, he did it, he said my name. Obviously Ryder is the only man that
I can tolerate saying my whole first name. I reign in my fear and anger by counting to five before I reply. This is his father and I don’t need him to see that side of me.

  “Allen, you asked me
to call you by your first name, could you please call me Kat?” I am hoping he will think I am being friendly and go with it.

 
“I think I can do that.” He tells me putting the beer to his smiling lips.

  With that I tell Ryder’s dad that I go to college as a history major. He didn’t understand my passion for history and most people don’t.
He picks up the deck of cards and shuffles it before dealing us all five cards a piece. “Five card stud.”

  Standing up and walking in the house Ryder yells back, “I’
ll get the can.”

 
The can? I don’t have to wait long to find out. When he comes out with an old coffee can full of pennies. They tell me to count myself out 100, so I do, but as I am counting they start to explain to me how to play poker. I let them. It’s been a while since I played, but I used to sneak out twice a week and drive over to the same town I got my car, to play. It was how I made most of my money until I turned 18. I could make more money in four hours than I ever could anywhere else as a teenager.