Ryker (27 page)

The guys weren’t paying attention. Jake, Tim, Michael and Ryker were organizing things in the covered trailer. Tyf was already in the car, most likely to avoid hearing Max have a minor panic attack. I stood next to Ryker’s car, trying to stifle my laughter. I loved Max, but seeing Mister Calm, Cool, and Collected freaking out was rather humorous.

Our eyes caught, and he lowered his sunglasses. The way Max walked up to me almost made me think he was going to yell at me, which made me want to laugh harder.

“Something funny over here?” He tossed his arm around my neck and pulled my head down to his chest.

He gave me a noogie, which made me laugh harder. I tickled his sides, which made us spin around. I swatted at his hands, but I was laughing too hard to speak.

Max laughed. “Think it’s funny now? Call uncle!”

Between laughs, I said, “No way!”

We couldn’t stop laughing. I was sure some of my hair was going to be rubbed off my head. When we were younger, he’d always wanted me to call uncle, but I never did. I wasn’t about to start now. He knew that; he was just being Max.

His foot hit the curb, and we toppled into the lawn. I landed on him with an
oomph
, and he finally let go. We couldn’t stop laughing. I wiped my tears and smacked him on the chest. We sat up and saw a two pairs of legs. As my eyes moved up, I saw Ryker and Tyf looking at us as if we were nuts.

“Trying to kill my girlfriend?” Ryker reached down to help me up.

I brushed loose blades of freshly cut grass off my shorts and laughed again as I looked back at Max. Ryker held my hand while Tyf threw her arm around me.

“Are you okay?” she asked. “I can’t believe you guys fell like that!” She shook her head and laughed with me.

“Yo! Did you guys forget something?”

We all looked back.

Max was just sitting on the lawn. “What about me? No sympathy or help for me?”

Ryker and Tyf looked at each other and then at Max. “No.”

As the laughter dissipated, we got in our cars, and I finally caught my breath. We had a long drive. North Carolina was about ten hours away, and it was only seven a.m. We should be there by dinner time.

The show wasn’t until Friday, so they had all day tomorrow to practice and meet the guys from Blanco Diablo. Then on the following day, they’d go over to the venue for sound check and set-up. I didn’t understand the technical parts; I just liked listening. And watching Ryker, of course.

We pulled away caravan-style. Max led us to the highway, and we were off. My man was so cute. He was sporting a backward baseball hat, and he had sunglasses on.

He glanced at me and smiled. “What ya lookin’ at, Dude?”

“You.”

“Hmm… do you like what you see?”

“Meh. You’re okay, I guess.” I looked out the window to conceal my smile.

“Wow. Just okay? I thought you thought I was hot. Or, what was it you said the other day?” He paused and snapped his fingers as if he’d just remembered. “Downright doable. That was it.”

I shook my head. “You know what? I’m not going to tell you what I think anymore. Pretty soon, your head will be so big you’ll need a convertible just so you can get in your car.”

“Haha, very funny.”

I was so glad he seemed relaxed. To say I had been a tad uneasy all week would have been an understatement. The unknown scared me. Although Ryker had told me what had happened all those years ago, I still had questions. But it wasn’t the time to probe, so I turned on the tunes.

He pushed a button on the radio, and “How Far We’ve Come” by Matchbox Twenty came on. Ryker tapped the steering wheel in rhythm to the song. Then he started singing. I was stunned. His voice was incredible. I just stared at him.

His lip curled. “Come on, Dude, sing with me.”

I didn’t know the song, so I just listened. When the song ended, I lowered the volume. “You sing?”

He shrugged. “I can hold a tune.”

“Why don’t you sing with the guys? You can do more than hold a tune.” I felt like grabbing my cell and calling Max.

“Because it’s Max’s thing. They don’t know I can sing, and I don’t want them to.”

“Why?”

He blew out a breath. “My mom used to sing to Jimmy. I don’t remember her ever singing to me, but she sang to him. Her voice was beautiful.”

Trying to understand, I asked, “So you don’t want to sing because your mom didn’t sing to you? Or because it reminds you of her?”

“It reminds me of the type of person she was. I knew she loved Jimmy. I saw it every day. The day he died, she didn’t really want to leave him, but she did because my stepdad wanted to go out. When it came to me, things were different. She was different.”

“Different how?”

“Until I was around five or so, she was really attentive. She was an aid in my class when they needed her, and she was in the PTA. It was as if she didn’t want me to be alone. Then she became pregnant with Jimmy, and it was all about him.”

“Did you tell her how you felt?” That was probably a stupid question.

“Um, no. I became invisible. Remember I told you that I joined the school band?

“Yes.”

“Well, I wanted to play the drums, but because I was new to the school, the teacher gave me the triangle to play. So I’d chime in here and there, no big deal. One day after practice, I sat at the drums and just played. I had taken a few lessons, but I was just a natural, I guess.” He took a breath and continued. “One of the older kids forgot something and came back into the auditorium. I never saw him, but he went to get our director. When I finished, I heard applause and whistles. I’d never noticed them come in, but they loved what I’d played.”

I smiled and took his hand. “I’m sure they did. Then what happened?”

“My director told me I was exceptional and he was sorry he hadn’t given me a chance to prove I could play. He offered me a solo in the holiday concert. I was so excited. He told me I needed to practice every day, and I promised I would.”

“Aww, that’s great!” I kissed his hand.

“You’d think that, right? I went home and told my mom that I got a solo and I needed to practice every day. I asked her if we could get a drum set, and she said, ‘We’ll see.’ That was code for no. I talked to my director, and he said I could practice at school.”

“Well, that’s good. How was the concert?” I cringed when I remembered him saying that she didn’t go to his concerts. “She didn’t go, did she?”

“Nope. But the concert was great. My mom never did get me drums. The director took pity on me and let me borrow an older set from the school. They weren’t great, but they were better than nothing. With my allowance, I bought my first set of sticks.” He looked at me and winked.

I wanted to cry. “The pair you gave me?”

“Yup, those are them. I told you, they were all I had as a kid. So back to your original question, I don’t sing because it reminds me of my mom.”

I nodded. I could totally understand where he was coming from. “So what song were you playing when you were ‘discovered’?”

He chuckled. “‘Moby Dick.’”

I straightened in my seat and smiled. “Great song.”

“The best.”

We arrived in North Carolina and found our hotel. The town was small, but at least we weren’t in a motel. We decided to call it a night. Everyone was exhausted, and since we’d stopped to eat dinner, no one was hungry. The guys had a two-hour practice session at ten a.m.

Just thinking about curling up next to Ryker made me happy. He stripped off his shorts and tank top and lay on the covers. I felt like a voyeur as I watched from the bathroom, but damn, he was really a spectacular specimen of man.

I brushed my teeth and put on cute pajamas. I shook Ryker’s shoulder to get him to move under the covers. He only stirred a bit, so I decided to leave him where he was. As soon as I put my head on his shoulder, his arm wrapped around me. I thought he was awake until I heard him talking.

“Just a breath. Please. Wake up. Please.”

My head shot up. I looked at him. He was talking in his sleep. I’d always heard not to wake someone while they were dreaming, so I left him alone and prayed he’d wake up on his own.

His voice was clear and soft. His words came out very staccato. “I’m sorry. I tried. Please, Jimmy. God, take me instead. Daddy, come and get me.” A tear escaped his eye, and then his hand stretched out. He grabbed my arm. “I got you, Jimmy. I got you!” His eyes flew open. He looked completely disoriented. “Faith?”

“I’m here. You were dreaming.” My heart broke for him. I wished I could help him. “Are you okay?”

He looked at his hand, which was still gripping my arm. “God, I’m so sorry! Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”

“No, I’m fine. Do you want to talk about it?”

“I don’t know what to say. Maybe it was because we were talking about my mom earlier, but I was dreaming about her and Jimmy.”

I nodded. “You asked your dad to come and get you.”

“Yeah, I really needed his help. I thought he could help me get Jimmy back. Then after… I thought being dead would be better than that hell on Earth. I never tried anything. I’m sorry. I hope I didn’t scare you.”

He stroked my hair and kissed the top of my head. “Let’s get under the covers. I just want to hold you.”

I pulled the bedspread back, and we slid in. I rested my head on his chest and ran my fingers over his rippled abs. “Ryker?”

“Yeah.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

My eyes closed, and I was out like a light.

The alarm on my phone chimed. I stretched, and Ryker grabbed me around the small of my back. He pulled me on top of him and kissed me.

“Good morning, beautiful.”

“Morning, handsome.”

He kissed me again. “Did you sleep well?”

“Mmmhmm. I always do when I’m in your arms.”

“Did I say anything?”

“Nope.”

“Good. Let’s get moving. Today is the day we take life by the balls,” he said.

“By the balls, huh?”

“That’s right. You’ve made me realize that I need to live my life, and I’m trying. I’m trying to get past what happened all those years ago. I’ll always blame myself, but I want to be the best I can for you.”

“You are the best for me, but if you want to prove it…” I snickered.

“Yeah. I’ll prove it. Let’s go.”

“Go where?” I really just wanted to stay in bed and make love all morning, but I knew we had to meet everyone for breakfast soon.

“Shower with me. We’ll conserve water.” He stood, bringing me with him.

My legs were around his waist as he walked us into the bathroom. I felt his morning excitement, and I shifted so his tip rubbed against me. Before I knew it, he spun. I was pressed against the wall next to the shower.

Reaching in, he turned on the shower. “We don’t have a lot of time, so get naked and get in.” He set me down and moved the white shower curtain.

As quickly as I could, I stripped down and got in. Ryker was right behind me. Literally. With his hand between my shoulder blades, he gently pushed me forward. I was bent at the waist and felt completely exposed.

“Ryker?” What was he doing? Then I felt his lips on my spine. He trailed kisses down toward where I needed him, and between him and the warm water, I felt as if I would combust.

“Relax. I’ve got you. You’re mine in here.”

First one finger then two entered me. I pushed back, trying to get him to go deeper. I loved his hands, but I wanted
him
. A moan escaped me as he removed his fingers and replaced them with his hardness.

“This will be fast, baby. I hope that’s okay.”

I clenched around him. He put his index finger on my most sensitive spot and moved in a way that made me lose myself in him. His touch was almost rhythmic, but with Ryker, I wouldn’t expect less.

“Ah… my snare. I love my snare.” Ryker’s voice reverberated in the water.

He picked up his pace as my hand went to the wall to steady myself. He groaned and stilled as he firmly gripped my hips. I saw stars and my legs became weak as we both exploded around each other. Thankfully, Ryker had a good grasp on me as he held me close.

With ragged breath, he said, “You’re incredible.”

I turned. His hair was wet and full of waves. My fingers couldn’t help playing with his hair. I grabbed the small bottle of hotel shampoo and washed it. He did the same for me.

Our shower took longer than expected. I tried to quickly dry my hair and get dressed. The shark tooth necklace was the last thing I put on. Ryker was tying his shoes when he saw me put it on. His expression made me realize how much the necklace meant to him. As he sauntered over to me, my body reacted as it always did—with anticipation. He kissed the tooth resting on my chest.

He grabbed my hand. “Ready?”

“Yeah, I’m ready.”

Max and Tyf were standing outside of our room.

“Great, you guys are ready,” Tyf said. “Max here is starving, and he’s driving me crazy.”

With a roll of my eyes, I said, “We can’t have that now, can we?”

We all laughed—well, except for Max. He was grumpy and complaining about needing coffee, and he shot Tyf a look

She snickered, “Look babe, I can’t help that you take longer getting ready than I do. If you didn’t have to make yourself so pretty, you could have had some of the coffee I made.”