Authors: Angela Verdenius
That muscular, tanned arm had been around her, held her, controlled her as he’d made love to her.
Sliding lower in the seat, she clenched her teeth. There went her relaxed feeling, shot to shit and blown right out the window.
Sitting at the desk, Ryder continued with the paperwork. Or he tried to. Finally flinging down his pen, he admitted defeat. Nothing was going to get done until he saw Dee.
Jesus, he was turning into a woman. There was a time, just days ago in fact, when he’d been able to bed a woman and walk away, shag a sheila and live to laugh another day. He didn’t feel like laughing now, hell no.
Shag, however, yeah, he sure felt like another shag. Troubled thoughts or not, his donger was always ready for action. Only now the action it wanted was with Dee.
Ryder looked down at his lap. “Maybe I do think with my dick.”
Sure as hell he’d been thinking with it last night. In fact, his whole demeanour had been out of character. Christ, he’d taken one look at Dee with that arsehole, Jason, and he’d lost the plot.
And shagged his childhood friend. Twice. Oh yeah, no forgetting how he’d woken up to find her all soft and warm in his arms, all those lush curves pressed against him. His donger had sat up in delight and the rest was history. Debauched, sure, but history nonetheless.
Shit, he’d done the deed with Dee.
Not only that, but he’d taken her virginity as well. Christ,
that
had been a shock. Holy heck, had it been a shock.
Leaning back in the chair, Ryder lifted his arms to clasp his hands behind his head as he stared up at the ceiling.
No wonder she’d been so tight, deliciously so. A virgin. Dee Miller a virgin. Cripes, he’d just presumed she’d lost that a long time ago. The woman was outspoken, pretty, va-va-voom figure, never backed down, headstrong, funny, loyal. Hell, what drongo had missed out on that? Him, obviously.
Pursing his lips, he reached down for the coffee mug. She’d dated, he knew that, they’d all dated in high school. He’d lost his own virginity at fifteen and shagged his way through the remainder of high school and beyond. He wasn’t a saint, not going to lie about that, but he’d never been serious about his conquests, either, and he made sure his dates knew it before they got ideas. He might be like a dog sniffing around the bitches on heat, as Dee so eloquently put it, but he’d never given a woman false hopes.
He’d also never fretted about them the next day as he was doing now. Not one, not ever. Until now. Until Dee.
Shit, she’d been a
virgin
. Hot, tight, clenching his shaft in a creamy fist, making him work. Cripes, had he worked, shoving in and out of her. It had just about blown his mind, made him able to be a little rougher, ride her harder, her soft body so giving, so clenching, and she’d wanted more, demanded more-
“Shit!” Ryder jerked upright, slamming the coffee mug down on the desk as he leaped from the chair, grabbing the crotch of his uniform pants and holding it away from his family jewels. Hot coffee and his dick did not mix well. He certainly wasn’t into pain.
“I’m hoping that’s coffee and not a wet dream.”
Ryder scowled at Donny standing in the doorway with a big ear-to-ear grin. “Of course it’s coffee, numb nuts.”
“’Cause, you know, you’ve been sitting there with a weird look in your eyes and drooling.”
Instinctively Ryder wiped his mouth, finding it dry. “You areshole.”
“If that’s what you were dreaming about when you spilt the coffee, sure, whatever gets you going.” Donny held up his hands, palms out. “No judging here, mate.”
Hauling out a handful of tissues from the box on the desk, Ryder wiped down his pants. Nope, still looked like he’d pissed himself. “Crap. Have to change.”
Going into the small room off the shower, he opened his locker and cursed. No clean uniform. What the hell…? Oh yeah, that was right. He’d already used his one spare uniform he kept here and had forgotten to bring in a clean one to replace it.
Snagging his motorbike keys and helmet from the locker, he yelled, “I’m going home to change!”
“No worries.” Donny stuck his head around the door. “Bring me back something to eat for lunch.”
“What am I, your servant?”
“Feel free to call me ‘master’.”
“Up yours, dickhead.”
“You’re so sweet. Such a good boss.”
Ryder flipped him the bird.
Strapping on the helmet, he looked across the road at the newsagent. Dee was working. Was she watching him? Remembering? Wanting more? Sure as shit he did, but he didn’t know what the hell to do about it. Did one start dating a friend? It just seemed wrong. Right? Buggered if he knew what to feel or think.
Shaking his head, he pulled out onto the road and headed for home.
Jezebel was sitting in the middle of his bed when he walked into his bedroom.
“Hey, girl.” He rubbed her ears then frowned down at the doona. “What’s this?”
The doona was scruffed up, little mounds rising around Jezebel. Dropping her eyelids halfway, she peered coyly up at him as she daintily treaded the doona.
It struck him straight away. “Holy shit. You are
not
having those kittens on my bed.”
Demurely, she glanced away.
“No. No way.” He pointed at her. “Do not even think to start making a nest there.”
Sweetly innocent, she looked back up at him from out of the tops of her eyes.
“Don’t go giving me those big eyes, Jez.”
Standing, she bumped the side of her head against his still-pointing finger and purred.
Shaking his head, he tickled her under the chin. “I’ve been a lax dad. I’ll get you a box and put a blanket in there for you to make a nest, okay?”
Jezebel sat primly, tail around her front feet, all big eyes and bigger belly. A tiny movement showed at her side as one of the kittens inside her rolled. She looked at her side and back up at Ryder, blinking.
“Getting frisky, are they?” Laying his palm against her side, he couldn’t help but grin when he felt the movement. “Oh yeah, they’re frisky. You’ll have your paws full when those kits are out and loose.”
Straightening, he crossed to the wardrobe, pulling out a clean pair of uniform pants and jocks. Pulling on the clean clothes, he gathered up his dirty ones and turned around to find Jezebel watching him.
She looked quite small sitting in the middle of his big bed. The vet had informed him that she was young and probably a first-time mum. Did she have any idea what was going on inside her? Was she getting anxious?
Crossing to the bed, Ryder leaned over and rubbed behind her ears reassuringly. “It’s all right, Jez. We’ll get through this together. In case I get faint I’ll make sure Dee is here to take over.”
Shit. Dee
. He’d had every intention of phoning her if he and Jezebel ran into problems with the birthing, but now…
Crap
.
Ryder shoved a hand through his hair. Would she even be willing to help him? But then, why not? It wasn’t like he’d forced her into sex, right? And maybe it would be a little awkward - who was he kidding? He had no idea how she’d feel. The look she’d given him that morning had been decidedly cool and almost uninterested.
Okay, that had hurt, more than he’d ever thought. He’d had a few cold looks before from women with whom he’d indulged in sexual intimacy and then left, mainly because they’d chosen to disregard his warning of nothing serious, but it had never worried him. Even their tears hadn’t been enough to make him go back for more, because that would have given them false hope. He’d even, he’d admit, been callous enough to be on another date with another woman a few days later.
But Dee’d given him that cool look and it had hurt. He’d stood there, frowning, wondering how to approach her, what she’d felt, what to do, damn it, but then she’d just looked at him and almost - well, hell, dismissed him.
No woman had ever dismissed him. Ever.
He brightened. That was it! It was her cool disregard that attracted him so much.
Wait. What? Attracted him?
He almost fell over. What the hell? He wasn’t attracted - wait, yes he was. Okay, he was attracted to her, because, face it, she had a really lush body that apparently he’d never noticed before, but-
His head was starting to hurt.
He looked down at Jezebel to find her doing a fair impression of a big-bellied Sphinx, her front paws spread before her on the scruffed up doona, her ears straight up as she watched him, her belly spilling out each side of her.
Okay, he had a pregnant lady to look after. Jezebel needed him when the time came - sure as shit he wasn’t going to tell his mates that, they’d piss themselves laughing - he’d just have to get through it somehow, have the vet on speed dial and annoy the heck out of him if he had to. Besides, it couldn’t be that different from women having babies, right? He’d delivered quite a few who had chosen to come early and not wait for the arrival at hospital. He was sure he could manage the tiny things coming out of Jezebel if there was a problem.
Only kittens came out in sacs sometimes, whereas human kids didn’t. Oh shit, he was going to have to go to the vet and get some education on kitten birthing. He’d threaten the vet with death if that ever got out.
“The things I do for you,” he informed Jezebel. “You know once those kittens are old enough you’re getting fixed, right? No more kittens. You can’t trust those randy toms, they don’t use protection and they’ll tell you anything. They-” He stumbled to a halt as his words hit him.
Protection? Holy shit, he hadn’t used protection! Crap on a stick, not once had he rolled on a rubber when he’d made love to Dee, not once! And he’d been buried deep inside her when he’d come -
twice
.
For a second he thought frantically, “She’s on the pill. Most women are, right?” then remembered that Dee was a virgin, or had been until he’d
freakin’ come the first time inside her!
With a curse, he dropped his dirty clothes on the floor and bolted.
Within minutes he was on the motorbike roaring back into town, pulling up outside the newsagent, ripping off his helmet as he bounded into the shop. “Babe, we need to talk!
Now!
”
“Really?” Pete looked up from the open newspaper on the counter.
Ryder snapped his head right and left as he searched for any sign of the luscious blonde. “Dee! Damn it, woman, come here!”
“Oohh.” Intrigued, Pete leaned further forward on his bent elbows. “What’s she done now?”
“Where is she?” Ryder strode down the aisle towards the little kitchenette at the back.
“Not here, actually. Can I give her a message?” There was no doubting the hope in Pete’s voice.
“Where is she?” Ryder stuck his head through the doorway to find the kitchenette empty. “Up in her flat?” He started towards the other doorway leading to the back room and stairs.
“Not there either,” Pete called. “She’s gone out.”
“What?” Ryder swung back. “Where?”
“No idea.”
“For how long?”
“Didn’t say, but I don’t think she’s expecting to come back soon. Told me to leave the key with Del if I closed before she returned.”
Del. Right. Of course her cousin would know.
Ignoring Pete’s curious face, Ryder hurried out of the newsagent, narrowly missed knocking Farris over, and swung into the clothes shop to see Del standing near a table arranging a pile of t-shirts.
“Where is she?” he demanded.
Del looked up at him. “What’d she do now?”
“Never mind that. Where is she?”
“Buggered if I know. She left without telling me.” Del frowned. “She’s acting really odd lately.” She slid him a look. “Know anything about that?”
“Where would she have gone?”
“How about you answer my question first?”
Ryder glared at her.
“How about half my question?”
“Half your question? How can I - never mind! Where
is
she?”
Placing the t-shirt on the pile, Del turned to him, one hand braced on her slim hip. “I have no idea. I swear.”
“If I find out you’re lying-”
“Pfft. If I was, you’d never know.”
Wasn’t that the bloody truth. He took a deep breath. “Fine. I’ll phone her.” He yanked his mobile out of his jacket pocket.
“Good luck with that,” Del said. “She didn’t take it with her.”
“What?” He frowned, half irritated, half relieved. “Then she can’t have gone far.”
“She left an hour ago. Bill saw her car heading out of town.”
“Which direction?”
“No idea, he didn’t say.”
“I’ll ring him.” Ryder started dialling.
“Wait up.” Del stopped him.
He looked at her.
“Maybe Dee just needs a little time to think things through.”
Ryder went cold then hot. Cripes, how much did Del know of what had happened?
Her eyes widened. “Are you blushing?”
“What? No!” His face felt like it was on fire. Time to retreat. “I gotta go.”