Ryske didn’t find it funny; his kiss was weak. Somewhere in the background, she heard Dover laugh, betraying that he’d overheard.
One of the great things about being in a relationship was having someone there to help counteract her mother’s disapproval. But, knowing what tonight was going to be about, Harlow was certain Ryske would have to utilize more than one of his many charming personalities to get them both through it.
“You nervous?” Ryske asked.
In the car on the way to her parents, Harlow was aware that they were just a couple of turns away from what could be a head fuck of a night.
“No,” she said, bending down to untwist the strap of the purse she had in the foot well. “Are you nervous?”
With his eyes on the road ahead, he frowned. “Why would I be nervous? I’ve met your parents.”
“Never as a potential son-in-law.”
“Potential?” he asked, flashing her a smirk and reaching over to give her thigh a squeeze. “Want to swing by the courthouse? We’ll make tonight a double whammy for them… I can get you pregnant right here too, if you don’t want to be left behind on that score.”
“You’re driving and it’s Sunday… The courthouse isn’t open.”
Her love wasn’t discouraged. “We’ll give Maze a call, he’ll slip us in there. Say we did it on Friday.”
“I was in hospital on Friday.”
Laughing, he slid his hand higher. “Shit, babe, where’s your sense of humor? Sure you’re not nervous?”
Breathing out her frustration in a half-sigh, half-groan, she slid his hand higher and sank back in her seat. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t apologize,” he said, pulling her leg closer to him, away from the other one. “Talk to me.”
“I think Lena and Rupert assume my parents will take this news better if I say I’m alright with it.”
“Yeah,” he said, taking his hand back to lick his fingertips. “I’d say so… Are you not alright with it?”
Returning his damp fingers in the direction of where they’d been before, he didn’t waste time with her thigh. Instead, his hand went up her skirt to zone in on her clit, which he began rubbing in slow circles.
“Mm,” she whimpered and slid down in the seat, parting her legs further, giving him more room to work. “I’m okay with it. I’m weirded out, but I’m okay with it… That feels so good, Crash.”
“Always feels good… Want me to pull over? My mouth is at your disposal.”
Though she could barely see him past her heavy eyelids, she smiled when he stole a look in her direction. “We’re in a residential neighborhood.”
“Yeah,” he said. “It’ll take the cops at least twenty minutes to get to a public indecency call… plenty of time to finish you off.”
She swatted his arm in the same minute his finger slid deep into her making her gasp. Her hips rose from the chair, pushing hard against his invading digit. Dropping and rising, she wasn’t ashamed to ride his hand while he kept his eyes flashing back and forth from the road to her.
The frequency of her pants grew until she was yelping and squealing. “Crash,” she begged, snatching for a handful of his shirt and yanking him to her.
He leaned over and drove his tongue deep into her mouth, kissing her with the same urgency of his finger that slipped out of her to speed over her clit. The strength of his hand on the side of her face grew. With a strong hold, he angled her back, arching her body and stealing his mouth away from hers to trail it down the front of her throat to her cleavage. Sucking on the swell of her breast, he tipped her into the screaming abyss of an orgasm that squeezed around her heart so hard she stopped breathing for half a minute.
Ryske kissed each of her breasts again, then sat up and ran his hands through his hair.
As she lay there boneless and panting for breath in the front seat of Noon’s car, she figured out they weren’t driving anymore. Given the attention he’d bestowed on her, it made sense. At the time, Harlow hadn’t really thought about how he’d managed to use both hands and his mouth on her.
She took in their surroundings. “Crash,” she said, her attention sliding left and right.
“Yeah?”
“We’re in my parents’ driveway.”
“Yeah. I parked five minutes ago,” he said and licked his fingertips. “Do I get mine now?”
She smacked his chest. “What if someone saw us?”
Scooping a hand under her jaw, he drew her mouth around to his. After their kiss, he brushed his nose over hers. “Let’s go meet the in-laws, Trink.”
“You better wash your hands before you shake anyone’s hand,” she said, reaching for her door handle.
“Hold on, stay there, don’t move,” he said and leaped out of the car to run around the hood.
The smirk on his face when he opened her door made her suspicious. He offered her a hand like he was some sort of professional doorman and helped her out of the car.
“Are we roleplaying?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “Want me to bend you over the hood and fuck you? You’re prepped.”
“I have never met a doorman who did that to me,” she said, turning around to bend over to reach into the car, sort of deliberately presenting her ass.
She’d just gotten hold of her purse in the foot-well when he smacked her ass.
Swinging her arm behind her to swat him away, she stood in a twist to face him. “You’ve done enough,” she hissed. “Already all I’m thinking about is your cock. Not really the right headspace for what we’re about to deal with, don’t you think?”
Dipping, he kissed her, guiding her away from the door so he could slam it. Harlow was next to be slammed, right up against the side of the car.
“Don’t think. Act,” he said and kissed her again. “Right here outside your parents’ house… You can do whatever you goddamn like to me, any time you want.”
Licking her lips, she was trying to decide if she was insane enough to take advantage of Ryske’s suggestion. Except, over his shoulder, she noticed the front door of her parents’ house open, putting paid to those ideas.
Her father stepped out onto the doorstep.
“Daddy,” she said.
Ryske smirked. “Daddy? That’s a new one.”
She smacked his shoulder and nodded behind him. “Daddy,” she said in a tone meant to explain she’d been talking to her actual father, not her boyfriend. She pushed away from Ryske, stealing his hand to pull him with her. Her mom and Lena came outside too. “What’s going on?”
“There was an issue in the kitchen,” Brysen said, descending to join them.
“There was not an issue,” Jean exclaimed. “I just decided I’d like to go out tonight… There’s a new restaurant in town. Everyone’s raving about it.”
“Oh,” Harlow said. “We’re going out to eat…” She peeked over her shoulder at Ryske to murmur, “Did you bring your credit card?”
“No,” he said, smiling at Jean and at Lena as they came down the stairs. “Don’t worry, I’ll pick one up there.” Harlow jabbed an elbow into his ribs. He laughed. “I’m kidding.” Her family moved past them; she turned her eyes up to his. “What? I was kidding.”
Harlow wasn’t all the way sure that he was. He’d told her about his and Noon’s pickpocketing days. He was a pro when it came to sleight of hand.
Her father opened the driver’s door and the women got in the back. “Would you like to ride with us? Rupert is meeting us there.”
“Sure,” she said, pulling Ryske toward the car to shove him in the direction of the front passenger seat. “We’d be thrilled.”
11
Harlow got in the back of her father’s vehicle with her sister and mother. The drive to the restaurant was mostly talk about the car. She didn’t really pay attention, but her father seemed to like talking about horsepower and mod-cons with Ryske. The man didn’t even realize he was being seduced.
It was sort of funny to watch Ryske work from a dis
tance. The subtlety was impressive. He didn’t make a big deal about flattering her father. By complimenting the car, he was actually complimenting Brysen’s taste and means.
They got to the restaurant and parked out back. Inside, the maître d showed them to a reserved table. Ryske pulled out her mother’s chair and Lena’s while her father was talking to a client at a neighboring table.
Harlow waited at the bottom of the table. When Ryske was done charming her mother and sister with his manners, she pointed at her chair.
“Help you with something, Trink?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” she said, wearing a smile. “How do you want this night to end for you?”
A smile contorted his lips, hiding a laugh. He came over to do his gracious duty, pulling out her chair and guiding her down into it before pushing her in at the table.
He took his seat between her and Lena.
Harlow leaned in, running a hand up his thigh under the table. “You’re doing good, cowboy.”
“It’s all in the wrist,” he said, without looking at her.
Her father was just taking his seat when Rupert came rushing in. “I’m sorry, it’s been a day.”
Rupert went around the table, kissing each of the women. Her ex wasn’t subtle about ignoring Ryske in his greeting.
“Such a friendly bunch,” Ryske muttered while Rupert settled himself.
“Come on,” Harlow leaned sideways to whisper. “He’s not the first man to be intimidated by you.”
Turning to meet her eye, his smile was wide and mocking. “Oh, I see what you did there, Trink. Very clever,” Ryske said, pretending to have figured something out. “You complimented me to make me forget that he insulted me. That’s good. Very good. You have talent.”
“If you let it go, I’ll suck your dick later.”
He straightened his fork and mumbled, “You already owe me one. You’re racking up a helluva debt.”
“Mr. Ryske,” Jean said, drawing his attention.
They were at a long table, three places on each side with Ryske in the middle between Harlow and her sister. At the other side, Jean sat between her husband and Rupert, who was opposite Lena.
“Just Ryske is fine, Jean,” Ryske said, leaning back and stretching an arm along the back of her chair. He was at his happiest when he was spreading himself around.
“Ryske,” Jean said. The way she kind of averted her eyes made Harlow’s mouth open an inch. Her mom was blushing. What the hell was it about Ryske that he could just turn it on like that? Her mother hadn’t been quite so loose when she thought he was just another businessman. “I’m a little confused. What is it that you actually do?”
“Oh,” Ryske said, bending his wrist to trail the back of his thumb up and down the outside of her arm. “I guess you could call me a jack-of-all-trades.”
Harlow was unnerved by how the shivers his thumb left in its wake were making their way to more sensitive parts of her body. The man wasn’t even looking at her. His arm wasn’t even exactly around her; it was just draped along the back of her chair with his forearm loose in a way that let his thumb reach her.
“Like a carpenter?” Lena asked.
“Sure,” Ryske said. Harlow kept her mouth closed, but that didn’t dam the surge of snorted laughter that caught in her throat. He glanced her way. “What? I work with wood.”
In the loosest possible definition. While she wasn’t buying it, and Rupert had a rather severe look on his face, the rest of the table were nodding along.
“What else do you work with?” Lena asked.
Ryske moved his arm off Harlow’s chair to twist toward her sister. “Well,” he said, taking Lena’s wrist from the table. Turning it over, he trailed the tip of his finger up the inside of her forearm at an excruciating pace. “I know how to manipulate electricity.” His voice dropped an octave and slowed to a purr. Resting Lena’s arm on the table, he kept stroking her forearm from elbow to wrist with that barely there touch, and raised his other hand to her face to caress her cheek. “I can subdue waterworks… inspire moisture and humidity…” Rolling his hand over, he let the back of his fingers slide down Lena’s slack jaw to her neck. “Turn up the heat…”
Harlow could only imagine the smolder that he was pinning on her sister. Given the girl’s daze, there was no doubt she was mesmerized under his spell.
Harlow grabbed a passing server, catching him off-guard. “I think we need some alcohol at this table,” she said and let the guy go. Stretching across Ryske, she eased his hand away from Lena’s décolletage. “Let’s stop seducing the youngsters, honey.”
Lena and Jean were both gaping at him. Both had to have their drinks ordered for them because they were unable to talk. Once the server scurried off to fill the orders, they were left to peruse their menus.
“There’s been something on my mind,” Brysen said.
Harlow tried not to roll her eyes when she saw her father was peering over his menu at Ryske. Everyone was doing it; he was like a zoo exhibit at their table. They’d really believed he was what he’d told them he was, except now he was there in front of them, a completely different person. He sat differently, talked differently, had a whole different air about him. Everyone at the table was fascinated. Except Rupert, he was still glaring.
“What’s that, Brysen?” Ryske said, not moving his eyes off the menu.
He was taking all of this in his stride; she was proud of him for that. It was his way to just go with it, but this was her family.
“What made you target Harlow?”
Oh. Wow. That got Ryske’s attention in a different way and he lowered his menu. “You want to know if she’s a weak spot.” Her father nodded. “She’s not naïve if that’s what you’re asking. She knows the world better than any of you do.”
Though that statement startled her father, he gathered himself and seemed to look at Ryske with new respect. “But you targeted her…”
Ryske’s laughter surprised everyone. “For sex,” he said. “She was never a professional mark.”
“Honey,” Harlow said in an attempt to temper him. The moment she realized she’d just done exactly what her mother would do was the same one she vowed never to moderate him again.
Folding his menu, Ryske put it on the table and laid his hands on top. “Harlow’s no fool,” Ryske said, meeting Brysen’s eye. “You’d be surprised what she’s capable of… I wasn’t, but I saw something none of the rest of you did.”
Pushing his chair back, Ryske removed the suit jacket he wore and hung it over the back of her chair. One at a time, he offered her his cuffs. Sensing what he wanted without her asking, Harlow took out each of his cufflinks and put them on the table to fold up his shirt sleeves.
“What did you see?” Lena asked.
“Her true self,” he said, watching her fold up his sleeve. The second it was up, he picked at the corner of the dressing over his new tattoo. “The glue’s catching, Trink. It’s pissing me off.”
Grabbing the corner he’d picked, she ripped it off fast and hard. His growl made her grin. “Oh, baby, did that hurt?”
“You’ll pay for it later,” Ryske said, pulling himself back into the table.
Bending down to get her purse from the floor, Harlow put his cufflinks away and folded up the dressing, sticking it to itself. They knew not to leave evidence behind, so she tucked it into her purse to be trashed later.
“I think you took advantage of her when she was vulnerable,” Rupert said. “You played us once. There’s no reason to believe you wouldn’t do it again.”
“And I think you didn’t hear her. You wanted her to be something she wasn’t,” Ryske said, linking his fingers on the table. “You’re right to be suspicious of me. I’d think you were an idiot if you weren’t. You don’t know what I’m capable of.” He pressed his weight to an elbow to lean a fraction closer. “I’ll give you a hint, there’s not much on the incapable side.”
Lena gasped. “Oh my God, you’re some kind of crimin
al! That’s what this is about.”
Her sister never had been the quickest wit. She was too easily distracted. At least they knew she was caught up, for now, at least.
“I think it’s a little suspicious that immediately after meeting you, Harlow is in jail on a murder charge,” Rupert said.
Harlow grabbed for Ryske’s thigh under the table, telling him in her own way to keep his cool. “If Harlow would’ve let me do that time for her, I would have.”
“Oh, so you take your orders from her?”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Rupe,” Harlow snapped.
“Seems to me your boyfriend should take care of business.”
“Like you did,” Ryske said, picking up the drink that the server had just put down in front of him. “You don’t have a damn clue what she’s been through.”
Her heart began to pump harder. No one had mentioned the half million yet. Maybe that was why Rupert was being so salty. Could be that he thought he’d been the mark and she’d facilitated Ryske taking him for that money. The sooner they could get it back to him, the better.
“She said she tells you everything,” Rupert said.
Rupert laid eyes on her. She wondered if he was thinking about the money. Was this him trying to decide if he’d been conned?
If she’d been honest with him about her need and lack of options, Rupert may think that Ryske didn’t know about the money. Going to an ex to bail her out might be emasculating for some men, so she might have kept it a secret… if she’d been with a lesser man than Ryske.
“Yeah,” Ryske said. “We don’t spend a lot of time discussing your sex life if you’re having a crisis of confidence.”
Harlow slid her hand to the inside of his knee. “He’s not thinking about that, Crash,” she murmured and looked at Rupert. “It’s complicated.”
Go All In (A Go Novel Book 4) Page 9
