Ryker (The Ride #4) (23 page)

Ryker reached over, cocooning us both in his arms. We lay like that for a while, somewhere between sleep and wakefulness.

“Sleep okay, J?” I asked sleepily when I felt his small body stir with the telltale signs that he was getting restless.

“Yeah. I dreamed about Transformers,” he replied with a yawn.

“Sounds pretty awesome.” I gave him a squeeze.

At four Jaden was a sensitive, soulful ball of love. Much like he had been from the very moment he was born.

As it turned out, Ry and I hadn’t needed to practice trying at all. J had been more than willing to come into the world. I’d been a few months pregnant when we got married. Not exactly planned, but perfect nonetheless.

A quiet babble sounded over the baby monitor.

“She’s up,” Ry noted, his voice warm as he listened to the chattering of our two-year-old daughter, May.

“I’ll get her, Daddy,” Jaden replied helpfully.

Ry chuckled. “We can go together, bud, give Mama a few more minutes in bed.”

I shot him a grateful smile. Ryker took such great care of me, always.

Jaden scrambled out of bed and out the door. I turned to watch as Ryker’s lithe powerful frame swung out of bed. I swore he got more delicious with every passing day.

I licked my lips, my eyes greedily taking in his form.

“Later,” his deep voice promised. “Your dad’s takin' the kids. We’ll have all morning before we need to get to the club.”

My cheeks flushed, as my skin tingled in response. “Later,” I agreed.

After a few years in San Diego, my dad had moved back to Hawthorne when Jaden was a toddler and May was still in my belly. Being away from his grandchildren was harder, it seemed, than facing the past. Even when that past became present, with May being named after my mother.

Instead of making him sad, it seemed to give him great joy to see parts of my mother emerge in both kids. He always said they were the best medicine. I couldn’t agree more.

He’d bought a small place outside of town and was doing well. Most days he seemed downright happy.

I took my time in bed, staring up at the ceiling smiling at the chatter I could hear downstairs. I could hear the dogs jumping around in excitement and Jaden talking animatedly while May squealed.

It was always something slightly beyond controlled chaos when Ry was in charge of breakfast.

When I heard the third crash of the morning, I threw on a robe and made my way downstairs.

“Mama!” May squealed from her highchair when I walked into the room.

“Hi, sweet girl.” I smiled, walking over to kiss her dark head of curls.

Our girl was a stunner. The boys were going to come calling someday and even though she was barely two Ryker was already losing sleep over it.

Ry handed me a cup of coffee, delivering a quick kiss on my head.

“Grandpa’s taking us to the zoo!” Jaden announced, practically bouncing out of his seat.

“So I heard.” I grinned over the brim of my coffee cup at my gorgeous husband.

Ry’s green eyes caught mine and he raised a brow suggestively. “I’d forgotten all about it,” he added dryly.

I swatted at him before reaching over to hand May another piece of banana.

“Grandpa!” the kids chorused loudly when my dad walked in an hour later. They had a special kind of love for my dad, and I loved seeing it.

He bent low, wrapping them both in a hug before raising his head to smile at me. “Hi, bunny.”

“Hi, Dad, thanks for giving us some time today.”

“It’s my pleasure,” he replied, and I knew he meant it. “I’ll have them back after dinner. You two have fun,” he told me, as I handed him a bag packed with changes of clothes and snacks. It was amazing how dirty and hungry they could get in a short period of time.

Both kids delivered kisses and hugs to Ry and me, before following their grandpa enthusiastically to his car.

“Lose the robe.” The growled order came almost right after we heard them drive off.

I spun to face him, my eyes wide and knees weak. After all these years, his power over me was no less potent.

He prowled toward me as my foot hit the bottom stair. “Lose. The. Robe.”

My hands moved to the knot, shaking slightly in anticipation as I loosened it and slid the fabric from my shoulders, leaving me in the barely there nightie I’d slipped on before coming downstairs. I’d had a plan for the morning, something to tell him, but I was happy to let him derail it for the time being.

Even after two kids, his gaze still held the same hungry look whenever he looked at me. Any time I worried about my stretch marks or about how my belly had never quite gotten as flat as it used to be, he’d quiet me by telling me that my body gave him the greatest gift, our children. Then he’d tell me that I was the sexiest thing he’d ever laid eyes on. That would usually shut me up, if his mouth didn’t do it first.

My phone shrilled loudly from the bedroom, making Ry groan in frustration.

“Sorry, babe, your mom’s opening this morning. I should make sure she doesn’t need me,” I apologized.

He nodded, gesturing for me to answer. I headed up the stairs, picking up just before it went to voice mail.

It was Eve as I’d expected, but all she’d wanted to know was if I was swinging by later. Some new shipments had come in for me to look over.

The store had become a huge success in the five years I’d been open. Dixie’s was a town staple and attracted a fair amount of tourist traffic as well. But it was the online sales I’d expanded into that’d really pushed us into a new realm.

Eve had been a part of every step. Sober for over five years, she’d become a completely new woman. She’d thrived working in the store and co-managed it with me. She helped with the kids regularly too, when she wasn’t with Sophie and Axel’s little ones.

I couldn’t imagine life without her.

I headed back down to the kitchen where Ry was putting dishes in the sink. “That Ma?” he asked, as I wrapped my arms around him from behind, giving him a gentle squeeze.

“Yeah, just wondering about some new shipments we got in. No biggie.”

My heart was suddenly hammering as the moment I’d been planning loomed.

“I put a special treat in the oven for you,” I murmured, kissing the back of his neck and taking a step back.

“Oh yeah?” he asked with a cocked brow.

I nodded, biting my lip.

He chuckled, eyeing me speculatively. “Why do you look nervous?”

I shrugged, my mouth dry. “Just open it.”

He reached over and opened the oven. I watched as he eyed the sweet bun I’d placed there just before my dad had arrived. I knew the minute he connected the dots. His back went ramrod straight and he spun to face me with wide eyes.

“You’re pregnant?”

I grinned as he let out a loud whoop, bending to sweep me into his arms.

We’d decided to go for a third just a month ago. It seemed as though this little was one was eager to join our family.

He held me in his arms, carrying us out of the kitchen and up the stairs. “We might be skipping that barbeque at the club later, so we can stay in bed all day,” he murmured in my ear, making my pulse spike. He deposited me on the bed and crawled up over me.

“You can be in charge of fighting the girls off, if that actually happens.” I laughed, knowing my friends were looking forward to some girl time.

“I’ve fought worse battles.” He chuckled. “Maybe.”

I laughed as he dipped his head to my neck. “Thank you, baby.” His voice was deep with reverence.

“Thank you back,” I whispered, my vision blurry with tears. “I’ll never forget you telling me you were going to build your own family and you were going to do it right,” I continued, remembering his young face so full of determination despite the bruises marring his skin.

His hand moved to my belly as though he could feel the life that grew inside me, the same way he had throughout my pregnancies with Jaden and May.

He pulled back to look down at me. “Better than I could have ever dreamed it, baby, because I got to build it with you.” He smiled, his eyes warm on mine. “We’ll stop just short of a soccer team.”

I groaned. “We’ll stop at three,” I countered firmly.

“We’ll see.” He grinned as his hand went low and his lips found mine.

He thought he could convince me and hell, maybe he could. With every year that passed, with each child, I felt my heart grow that much fuller. It was amazing and empowering to discover how much love I had to give.

Ry had given me that.

And I’d given it right back.

If the next five years were going to be half as exciting as the first, it was sure to be a wild ride, but one I’d be blessed every day to be a part of.

The End

The story continues with Jill and Cal.

Sam and Sid will also have their own story as I start a brand new series!

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