“It’s okay.” I hugged her back and then I smiled at her. “It’s actually… good to know that he rarely brings girls to your gatherings.”
Ryder chuckled, “Oh, sweetheart! You have nothing to worry about, you were the first!” He stared at me with dancing eyes and I knew that the charade has begun. Ryder is not a stranger to me from now on. He’s supposed to be my boyfriend. It’s time to resume the play we started in Bryan’s and Geena’s wedding.
I smiled at Janis and Jake shyly. I knew I was blushing. Ryder put an arm around my shoulders and gave me a kiss on the temple. Then he pulled out a chair for me.
“So, how did you two meet?” Janis asked.
We spun the same tale. I met Ryder through a common friend and he fell in love with me at first sight, as if love at first sight is possible at all. He pursued me but I was careful since I just came out of a serious relationship and so on and so forth.
His friends were amazed but I could tell that Janis was sizing me up. Trying to see if I genuinely liked her friend and not his money. Jake was trying to measure Ryder’s reactions to me. Maybe trying to determine if Ryder was not just after the sex.
It was easy to smile and look in love with Ryder. He was sweet and funny. I can almost immediately tell what his punch line was going to be before the words are out of his mouth, and so I find myself giggling ahead of Janis and Jake.
By the end of lunch, I think I almost had Janis convinced that I didn’t want Ryder’s money. She was surprised that I didn’t know all the names of Ryder’s businesses and I didn’t really show interest. Instead, I was genuinely concerned about how he’s going to fit me in his busy life.
Janis was fascinated about what I do. I told her about the concepts I have done for the weddings and she was impressed. I knew from the look on Jake’s face that he was going to propose to her soon… give it a year or less. I might have a potential customer here. Although, I don’t know if they will hire me if they find out that I was just pretending to be Ryder’s girlfriend just so he’ll win his wager with them.
We spent the whole afternoon together, all four of us. I discovered that Janis and Jake, although both coming from rich, powerful families are both down to earth. They do not have that heir or heiress syndrome, they don’t feel that everybody should bow down to them.
It was easy enough to laugh with them and joke with them. They felt like… normal people, and so did Ryder.
I realized that for the whole afternoon that we are together, I forgot that I didn’t know him. He felt like the Ryder I was with at the wedding. I felt like I didn’t know he was filthy rich. Like I thought he was just the bartender that I can laugh with and talk to. Like he was not out of my league at all.
We swam in the beach. Ryder had a mischievous grin on his face that I instantly knew he was planning something.
I started running away from him but he was too fast for me. He caught up with me after barely five steps. He carried me in his arms towards the water until we landed with a splash.
I was shrieking. When we emerged from the water together, he was roaring in laughter and I was punching him by the shoulders with a pout on my face.
Then his face descended towards mine and he gave me a thorough kiss on the lips, which I welcomed… and enjoyed.
We played charades. Janis and Jake, who claimed they’ve been together for almost all of their lives, couldn’t get each other’s clues.
Ryder and I on the other hand, just had this connection… like we could read each other’s minds. He would give me a simple clue, a simple gesture, and the right word would come to my mind.
One time, Ryder acted out a clue. He pointed a finger at himself, and then gestured an imaginary cap being put on his head.
“Bartender?” I guessed.
He nodded. I shouted and jumped for joy. He came to take me in his arms, and lifted me off my feet. I gave a little hop in the air and wrapped both my legs around his waist. We were both laughing, then I leaned forward and gave him a kiss.
We were still laughing when he put me back on my feet.
They decided to kick it up a notch by moving on to phrases.
“Are you sure, guys?” Ryder asked them teasingly. “You can’t even get the words ‘pancakes’ and ‘lions’.”
We annihilated them. It was like Ryder and I had known each other for a long time and our minds were totally connected.
The last word we did was the most difficult one and Janis and Jake were quite confident that we wouldn’t be able to get it.
I stood in front of Ryder and showed my ring finger.
“Ring?” He asked.
I nodded. I pointed at myself and then at him, I made a hugging gesture, and I ran my finger from my eyes down my cheeks.
“A fake diamond ring!” He guessed.
I shrieked and ran to him again. He caught me in his arms and spun me around. He was laughing. I felt like crying, remembering my fake engagement ring for the first time in months. I stared up at Ryder and he was smiling apologetically at me. But I felt like it all happened in another life time.
Ryder leaned forward and kissed me passionately. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him back. We only stopped kissing when Jake not-so-subtly coughed at us.
Ryder chuckled and kissed my forehead before finally releasing me.
“How long have you guys really known each other?” Janis asked in amazement. “I wouldn’t make that one out for a fake diamond ring!”
“Neither would I if it didn’t have a story behind it.” Ryder said.
“Okay, tell us the story this time.” Janis said.
We sat on the benches. Ryder pulled me so I can sit on his lap. He wound his arms around me.
“The very first time I saw her was when she was walking out a jewelry shop.” Ryder said. “I was picking up a jewelry for my mother. As I walked into the shop, she ran into me. She wasn’t looking at where she was going. Her eyes were… blinded by tears.” I leaned my head against Ryder’s shoulder as I listened to his story. “We collided with each other and I had to hold her steady to prevent her from falling on her bum…
“But instead of pulling away from me, she held on to me and leaned her cheek on my shoulder and she… cried. She wept in my arms, without looking up to see who I was. It was as if she had received such terrible news and she was desperate for some comfort. When she ran into me, she took her chance. She held on to me. I didn’t know why she was crying, but somehow, I felt for her. So I held her for a while. I… provided the comfort that she needed at the time. And she… smelled so good, and felt so soft in my arms, I couldn’t help it either.”
“Why were you crying?” Janis asked curiously.
I took a deep breath. And then, with courage, I said quietly, “The guy at the jewelry shop told me that my ex-fiancé gave me a fake diamond ring.”
There was silence. I stared at Janis and Jake and they were looking at me apologetically.
“I’m sorry.” Janis said.
I smiled at them. “It’s okay now, guys. I’m over it. I’m lucky I ran into Ryder that day. And I’m lucky to find him again shortly after that.”
It's true. I was lucky I ran into him that day. I was also lucky that I found him again. At the time when I needed him the most. And it didn’t matter whether he was the bartender or the owner of the bar… he was my savior. My knight in shining armor. When I looked into Ryder’s eyes, I know he knows that I meant those words too. He gently leaned forward and gave me a kiss on the lips. And then he leaned his head towards mine and breathed in the scent of me.
I sighed. I wanted to cry. I realized that he is the same Ryder that was with me at Bryan and Geena’s wedding, back when I thought he was just a mere bartender. Nothing changed except for the fact that I know who he really is now. But other than the rich birthright, he seemed like the same amazing guy who helped me show Bryan and Geena that I was better off without both of them! The same guy who helped me get over my broken engagement with flair. It wasn’t u
ntil that moment that I realized how much I missed him. Just how much I had wanted to be with him without the pain I feel for Bryan and Geena.
As I leaned into his shoulder, I realized that the time is now. Now, I am completely over Bryan and Geena. I’m still angry at them, but I guess that will not change for a long time. Now, I have Ryder with me again. He’s just so sweet and perfect. But I know his life is complicated and I may not be able to keep up with it. And besides, being over your previous relationship doesn’t mean you have to jump into a new one immediately.
But I have this weekend. He’s mine again.
After this… I’m just not yet ready to be heartbroken again. I could have fun. But I can’t hope for forever. Not yet. I’m still too vulnerable.
So maybe for now, I should just enjoy the moment while this lasts. For this weekend only…. Ryder Van Woodsen is mine.
***
The minute I stopped pretending, I started welcoming all his gestures. I started responding positively and that encouraged him to do more. I didn’t care. I only have this weekend when he belonged to me. Outside of this time and place, this fairy tale couldn’t be real. I’m not yet ready for a relationship. And I doubt I’ll ever be ready to have a relationship with Ryder Van Woodsen.
We partied after dinner in a bonfire by the beach. Janis and I are becoming more comfortable with each other. She’s great. She’s chatty and she seems real. Some thought that heiresses are airheads. Janis looked like she’s got a good head on her shoulders.
“So you were engaged once.” She said when Jake and Ryder went to get our drinks.
I nodded. “He was my best friend for years before we started dating.”
“Why did it end? Because he gave you a fake engagement ring?”
I shook my head. “No. It was over long before that.” I sighed. “I was planning our wedding when I caught him having an argument with my cousin over whether or not they should keep their baby.”
Janis’s eyes widened. “You did not!” Her tone was abhorred, as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“Did too.” I giggled humorlessly.
“And you called off the whole wedding?”
I nodded. “But I made the big mistake of not canceling all the arrangements myself. I threw all the contacts and receipts in his face and asked him to make the cancellations himself, if he wanted his money back.”
“And then?”
I sighed. “He didn’t cancel. Probably figured it would be easier and much cheaper for him to push through with the wedding than call it off. So… my dream wedding happened. From the invitations, down to the honeymoon suite! It happened exactly how I wanted it to be. The only difference was, I wasn’t the bride anymore!”
“He didn’t!” Janis had her hands on her mouth. “That is disgusting! How… how could your cousin do that to you?”
I shrugged. “Beats me. But I think I’ve had a bit of my revenge already.”
“How?”
“I attended the wedding.”
Janis’s jaw dropped and I had to smile at that.
“I went there with Ryder. I showed all my relatives how better off I was! I looked pretty and sexy, with an even sexier man in my arms!”
Janis laughed. “I’ll bet Ryder tried his best to impress your relatives!”
I nodded. “He wasn’t able to resist. He knew everybody was going to feel sorry for me because… I was supposed to be the bride that day. He tried his best to help me keep my head up high.” I stared over at Ryder who was approaching me with my drink in his hand. “A pretty thing like that? Even the bride wished she was me.”
Janis laughed again. “How wonderful! What a great way to get even! But still… what they did to you was… unthinkable.”
“Well, heartbreaks can go as far as that. I lost my job after that because I couldn’t believe in ‘ever afters’ anymore. I was telling bride-to-bes that green was the color of vomit, instead of the color of fresh harmony.”
“Wow! That’s severe bitterness.”
I nodded. “That was before Ryder came into my life..” By that time, Ryder sat beside me and handed me my drink.
“What about me?” He asked.
I smiled up at him. “I was just telling Janis how much you helped me get over my breakup. Well, you helped me get even with my ex-fiancé and my cousin first. I don’t think I would have done it if it weren’t for you.”
“When did you find out that your engagement ring was a fake?” Janis asked.
“After I received their invitation and found that everything was how I wanted it to be. I thought I should cash in on my bad luck. I was broke then anyway. I didn’t have a job and was living with my cousin’s half brother. At the jewelry shop, the guy told me that he won’t even pay a hundred dollars for my ring.”
“That’s cheap!” Jake said shaking his head.
“Yeah. He’s cheap.” I smiled. “But I’m over it now. That whole chapter of my life is over.” I looked up at Ryder. “I’m so much better now.” I said.
I wanted him to know that had he not been the Ryder Van Woodsen, I would keep my promise to him… that I would come to him when I finally get better. So he could get to know the real me. I know, that although I look happy in front of Janis and Jake, I couldn’t hide the trace of regret in my expression… and I’m afraid Ryder can see through me by now.
He stared back at me evenly, raising a brow. As if he knew… that I’ve kept two of my promises already. But I don’t have any intention of keeping the third.
I looked away, not able to bear the weight of his stare. I knew I was blushing when I looked back at Janis, who mistook the meaning of my blush for something else.
Janis beamed at me. “I’m happy for both of you.” She said. “I think you are what each other needs.”
Jake nodded beside her in agreement. He raised his bottle to us for a toast.
I was still thinking about the look on Ryder’s face when I went to the ladies’ room with Janis. She was still beaming at me.
“I am so happy Ryder found you.” She said.
“Why?”
“He’s happy.” She replied. “You make him happy. You two are like… soul mates. You have this connection that looks cosmic in some way. You… complete each other’s sentences, you fit together like pieces of a puzzle. I couldn’t believe that Ryder will finally find his match!”
“Come on! I won’t really say that I’m his match.”
“You are. You’re the one for him, I can tell.” She said. “Jake, Ryder and I… we grew up together. And in high school, Jake and I started hooking up. We felt guilty that we left Ryder behind. We started getting serious when we were in college. And somehow we felt that Ryder feels out of place with us, especially if we plan our future or if we become affectionate with each other. We… wanted Ryder to find his girl. So we’re sure that he’ll be as happy as we are.”
“And you believe he’s happy with me?”
Janis nodded. “Yes. Ryder didn’t seem interested in women, or dating. He didn’t care much about romance. We thought he was not interested in having a relationship at all. We tried hooking him up with women before. He’s just not interested. He was always busy with work. We didn’t think he’s ready to commit to any woman. We didn’t even think he was capable of being romantic. He didn’t show previous signs. That is why I was dumbfounded when he introduced you to us this morning. I was not expecting you.”
“I hope… I didn’t disappoint you.” I said shyly.
“Are you kidding me? You’re absolutely perfect!” She laughed. “You’re absolutely gorgeous. I can see why he’s taken with you, and I can tell you are not interested in his…” She trailed off, and then she turned red. I can tell she was embarrassed about what she was about to say next that she stopped herself.
“It’s okay. I know what you mean. I’m not interested in his money.” I giggled. “When I first… eh… started dating him, I didn’t know he was rich! I mistook him to be something else.”
“Oh my God!” She said. “You were the girl who thought he was a bartender?”
I stared back at her. How did she know that? “You know?”
She giggled. “I received a weird call from him one day. And he asked me, do I look like a damned bartender? I told him that technically, he is. He just owns his own bar. He said he met a girl, and she had mistaken him to be a bartender and she… liked him nevertheless.”
I blushed. That was true. I liked him better when I thought he was… normal like the rest of us.
“So when he finally came clean about owning the bar, what did you do?”
Knight in Shining Suit: Get Up. Get Even. Get a better man. Page 19
