Ryder - Caveman Insticts Book Three

by Gower, Hazel

  “What! What the hell kind of answer is that?” the kid growled.

  My mate, my soulmate, who I’d given up hope of ever finding, groaned and her gaze went from her brother to me and back before she mumbled, “Men.” She stepped in front of her brother and narrowed her gaze on me. “Look, I’m sorry my brother kicked your um…brothers?”

  I nodded. I knew if I spoke it wouldn’t be anything but caveman talk.

  “Arses, but they were being douches. Arron was just protecting me. Can we just forget about it and put it all behind us? No one will press charges.”

  Oh, she was using the threat of pressing charges to keep everything quiet. I couldn’t help the smirk that spread over my face. I crossed my arms over my chest and stared down at my one, my soul mate. “Really?”

  Her relaxed stance changed. She straightened herself up and eyed me up and down, a smirk of her own spreading across her beautiful face. “Yes. Really. Now,” she nodded her head in the direction of my brother and cousin. “It looks like they found a nurse and you’re going in instead of waiting with us ‘normal people.’” She raised her hands in air quotes.

  Huh, what? What did she mean by normal people? I looked over my shoulder and sure enough, a nurse was guiding my brother and cousin through to the rooms. Sighing, because I knew the Silverman name had gotten us priority, I looked back at my mate, whose name I didn’t even know, and debated what I should do. Did I follow my brother and cousin, who were still under age at seventeen, or did I wait and get to know my mate?

  The choice was taken from me when a nurse walked over to me. “Mr. Silverman, if you could please come with me as your brother and cousin are both minors and need an adult or guardian with them.”

  My mate turned her back on me and I fought the urge to spin her around, throw her over my shoulder and take off with her. Without saying a word though, I followed the nurse. I’d find my soul mate again, and soon.

  What an arsehole. A beautiful, tanned, tall, muscular, hot, god like arsehole. He wasn’t what I expected from the little I learned from Arron. I’d met rich guys before, and they usually didn’t look like the man that came over. I’d gone to a private school and the brothers and fathers of friends didn’t look like the olive-skinned muscular guy I’d just stopped Arron from attacking. I wasn’t one to go all weak at the knees over Mr. Hottie. Gorgeous, muscular guys were a norm for me. With my father in the Army and my brother boxing, I’d seen my fair share of built, handsome men, but the guy I’d just seen had my stomach doing weird flips and flutters. His dark hair was military short and I saw the beginnings of tattoos peeking out of the collar of his suit. His cheeks were high and his jaw square. The stubble added to his manliness. Then I’d seen his eyes. They were green, but not just any green, a rich, rainforest green that had me losing myself in them for a moment.

  I thought I was a goner until he spoke. “Mine,” and he stared right at me. “You’re mine.” The first had snapped me out of his green gaze and the next one I fought my body’s reaction as tingles spread over me. Arron’s response spurred me into action and I knew I had to calm my brother down and ignore whatever was going on with me.

  My mind went over the short encounter for the next couple of hours while we waited to see a doctor. I couldn’t figure out my response to this man. I didn’t understand why I couldn’t stop thinking about him. What was wrong with me? I’d never obsessed over a guy. I’d had boyfriends. I’d only broken up with my last a month before we moved down to Brisbane.

  The man had been hot, but not my type. I usually went for men…less domineering, muscular, powerful, and well, just less. Even meeting the Silverman for that short time, I could feel all those things radiating off him. He reminded me a little of my father. I shivered and not the good shiver. My dad was someone you didn’t cross or go against. He was in shape and wasn’t one to take no for an answer. I was sure that was what the guy I’d met was like too.

  “Stamon. Arron Stamon.”

  Groaning as I heard my brother’s name and realized I was still obsessing over the encounter, I stood with my brother and promised myself once I walked through the doors and into a room, I would stop thinking of the Silverman. Hopefully I’d never see him again.

  So it turned out there was somewhere that didn’t care that I was a Silverman. The Army base. They wouldn’t let me onto it without a family member or a friend that lives on it to escort and be responsible for me. I wasn’t on official police business and the men at the gate had rung my precinct when I tried using that. So now I sat across from the base entrance waiting like a creepy stalker for my soulmate to leave.

  My brother told me Arron’s last name and I’d run a search to find out all I could on “my one.” Her name was Divinity Stamon. She was twenty-one years old. Five feet and half an inch. Sixty kilograms. A hairdresser and beauty consultant. She had an apprenticeship at Golden Locks and Beauty and had a brother, Arron Stamon, of whom she was the legal guardian while their father was on deployment. That was the information I could find out on her. I’d rung Zeck and asked him to dig deeper.

  I hadn’t gotten to see Divinity again since the first meeting at the hospital. After going in with my brother and cousin, we’d left emergency and gone straight up to maternity just in time to find out that Bailey had given birth to a big nine-pound baby boy. Even just born you could tell the kid was going to be a clone of Richard, with blond hair and big blue eyes.

  Little Sebastian almost overshadowed what my brother and cousin had done and that I’d gotten them fixed up. My mother was stilled pissed at me for taking over and not contacting her. She became furious when she found out what Oakley and Andrew had done to Divinity that caused Arron to beat them up. I had debated if I should tell my mother what Divinity was to me, but I wanted to see her again before I told anyone.

  My mother was making my brother and cousin do an elaborate apology. I smirked, because even my mother was having trouble getting in contact with Divinity, but she had a plan. And if there is one thing my mother, or any Silverman for that matter, is good at, it’s planning things. So, I figured if I couldn’t see Divinity again before Monday, well then, I would just gatecrash whatever my mother was going to think up.

  Rich people were not only arseholes, they thought the rules didn’t apply to them. I’d had the gate security call me so many times over the weekend, I was sure they were now at the stage where they were getting pissed off. I giggled when Arron told Kyle—one of the men posted at the gates this weekend—that the next time a Silverman asked to see, or speak, with us to give them our father’s Skype information and contact him. Our dad wasn’t someone who was happy to have his time wasted on what he called ‘silly childish bullshit.’ He wouldn’t reply kindly to what any of the Silvermans had to say and he wouldn’t care who they were.

  Getting off the sofa, I went to my brother and hugged him, careful of his cast. He had a broken wrist and nose. Micky hadn’t been happy with Arron, but I’d worked my charm. The old man was wrapped around my pinky and after taking to him, I’d convinced him not to punish Arron too much. Micky was still teaching him, but Arron had to devote time now to teaching children twice a week. I loved my brother, but he wasn’t what I would call a role model, or good with children in anyway, so I thought his punishment was fitting. He’d been complaining since Friday, and three days later he was still whining, no matter how many times I told him it could have been worse, that Micky could have quit training him altogether.

  Thanks to the harassment from the Silvermans we hadn’t left the house all weekend. Neither myself, nor Arron, had wanted to run into any of them, not that he was allowed to leave the house because I’d grounded him for the weekend for his actions. I wasn’t happy though about the Silvermans. I had planned to go out clubbing with some of the girls from my work, or even my bestie Lucy, but no, I’d spent Friday night in hospital and last night and tonight I was reading.

  “Monday, I’ll go into the school and we’ll get everything we need so you can mov
e schools.”

  Arron’s good arm came around me and he leaned his chin on my head. “Thanks. I know I only have a little over a month left, but I just can’t be around them. I love ya sis. You’re the best.” He sighed. “You good to deal with Dad? You know he won’t be happy about the money he paid for uniforms and fees.”

  I squeezed Arron’s waist. “Don’t you worry about that. I’ll sort out Dad. You just get by until we can get you transferred to a new school.”

  “Thanks, sis.”

  Giving Arron one last squeeze, I let him go and sat back on the sofa and picked up my Kindle. “No problem. Go play some violent game on Xbox. I’m reading.” I snuggled into the sofa and didn’t even bother turning to see if my brother did what I told him to.

  I tried to get back into my book, but I had a sinking feeling in my stomach that this weekend was just the beginning of my dealings with the Silvermans.

  I HAD PUT ON MY armor today with care. My heels were my highest, adding five inches to my height. My killer outfit was Calvin Klein skinny black jeans, my best push-up bra with my Hell Bunny fitted classic blue fifties style top. My hair was straightened to perfection and my make-up was flawless.

  Ignoring the whistles as I walked into the school with a tense Arron on Monday, I calmed my nerves by breathing deeply. I was sure that when I made it into the office I’d find at least one Silverman. There’s no way a family hounded you all weekend and didn’t leave you alone at the one place they had access to you.

  Arron’s fingers gripped my arm as we walked through the office door and they tightened as I saw a group of people that I just knew were the cursed Silverman. “Oh for fuck’s sake,” I muttered. There wasn’t just one or two of them. There were frigging seven.

  The big giant I’d met at the hospital was there. He was hard to miss. He was huge and stood out like a sore thumb. Ryder. I’d learned his name from Kyle, one of the guys that manned the gate this weekend. I could have looked into them on the internet, but I didn’t want to know anything more than I did about the Silverman family. I had no intention of seeing them or having anything to do with any of them again. Unfortunately, I wasn’t that lucky and they obviously didn’t get the hint from me ignoring them on the weekend. The dipshit kids that started all this shit were there along with two older women and men. What looked to be bodyguards covered the windows and exits of the office and I had the urge to turn and run. Holy crap. Who the hell did these people think they were that they needed this much security? It was a damn school for Christ’s sake.

  The older lady, dressed in what I considered older people’s designer wear, stepped forward. She eyed me up and down and raised her eyebrow. She seemed to be fighting a smile. I learned thanks to my father to watch for even the slightest movements or emotion. He wasn’t one to show any.

  “Miss Stamon?” Her eyebrow fell when I nodded. “You’re a hard woman to get in contact with.” I still didn’t say anything, waiting for her to continue. “I believe my son Andrew, and nephew Oakley, owe you an apology.” She huffed a very delicate sound. She held out her hand. “I’m Gillian, Andrew’s mother. I would like to personally say I don’t condone my son’s behavior and he’s being punished for it. We Silvermans would like to personally apologize.”

  I shook her hand. “Thank you.”

  The two dipshit kids stepped forward and both apologized. I just bet the cocky one who tried to give me a hug was Gillian’s son Andrew. I spun when I heard a growling noise when the little shit got close to me and saw Ryder glaring at his nephew.

  Even after the apologies the Silvermans stood around, still staring at me and Arron. I wasn’t sure what else they wanted me to say or do. There was no way I was going to get Arron to apologize, not when he only did what he did to protect me. So I pasted a fake smile on my face and thanked them again, making sure I caught all the Silvermans’ gazes, bar the big guy, Ryder. “Well, thanks. Now all that’s done, if you’ll excuse us, we’ll get out of your way.”

  I gripped Arron’s hand in mine and tried to go around the group to the office ladies, who I noticed had watched the whole scene with interest. It was Gillian’s delicate cleared throat and, “I beg your pardon.” That had me stopping and turning back to the Silvermans.

  These people were really starting to annoy me. Narrowing my gaze, I glared at Gillian. “You are pardoned.”

  Gillian’s gasp wasn’t delicate and I couldn’t hold back my small giggle when I heard a deep chuckle, and I just knew it was Ryder. My giggle stopped though and a shiver ran through me when, in that same deep voice, I heard, “That’s my woman. Mine.”

  Holy crap, that deep voice was dangerous. My pussy pulsed and I hoped my face wasn’t red.

  The other woman stepped forward, a huge smile on her face, and she beamed at me like I was the Goddamn sun. “Oh, you don’t know how long I’ve waited to meet you!”

  What the hell? “Um, well, I don’t think a weekend is that long to wait.” I shrugged, but maybe for rich people it was like, forever. “Look, I forgive everything. Arron is going to get transferred to another school, so nothing like this can happen again and we won’t have to have any issues, or meet, again.”

  Ryder growled, “No. Mine.” His arms wrapped around me and on instinct my years of training kicked in. I stomped down on his foot trying not to think of how this was wrecking my shoes, elbowed his rock-hard stomach and spun and kicked him in the family jewels.

  The two teens that apologized broke out into hysterical laughter. “Oh, man. I love this woman,” howled Andrew.

  “Bro, she got you good,” the other said.

  Arron huffed and came to stand in front of me blocking my view. “You all need to stay the hell away from us.”

  My elbow was killing me and I was so angry because my gorgeous shoes were ruined. I’d stomped so hard the heel was loose. Moving back around I glared at the idiot who touched me and was now clutching his nuts. “You fucking arse. You are replacing these shoes. They’re a favorite.”

  Chuckles and giggles were mixed through the Silverman group.

  Gillian sniffed. “I like her, Ryder. Good luck.” With that I watched her link her arm with the older man that looked like Andrew and walk by Arron and me. She stopped at the exit door. “Go to class now, Andrew and remember you’re already on restrictions. Don’t make them worse.”

  Andrew groaned and left towards the classrooms.

  “Oakley, go too, please,” said the woman who said she’d been waiting to meet me. The woman turned back to me and beamed at me again. “I’m Oakley and Ryder’s mother, Carol. You can call me Mum, or Mother.”

  Oh. My. God. This woman was crazy. I was starting to think the whole family was all a little loopy. “Ah, er, thanks Mrs. Silverman.”

  Carol sighed, looked down at her oldest son who still looked in pain from my blow to the groin. “Good luck with this one. She’s a tough one.” She held the hand of the other older man and walked to the exit. She stopped by Ryder and rubbed his back “Are you sure you still don’t need any security detail?” Ryder’s nodded groan pleased her enough to keep moving.

  I gazed around the room now to see all the bodyguards gone. Ryder was staring at me warily, but he couldn’t hide the interest that shone in his eyes. I needed to ignore him. Turning from Ryder, I went over to the office ladies. “Show’s over now. I’d like to get my brother’s paperwork so I can organize a transfer for him.”

  She was a little vixen. I knew I had a stupid grin on my face. My soulmate was going to be fun. She was a feisty little thing and had a mouth on her like a trucker. The high heels she wore added some decent height, but she was still a lot shorter than me. Without her shoes on she wouldn’t even come to my shoulders.

  I liked that she had fire. That she tried to fight our chemistry. She had her back turned talking to the office ladies. My groin was still aching, but I’d suffer through it. I wasn’t going to leave without her. If I had to use my handcuffs on her I would. I was barely holding on by a thread, my c
aveman instinct was riding me hard. Her attack had caught me off guard. I trained, and even taught self-defense, so I knew how to get out of her hold. Now I knew she knew how to defend herself, I would be more careful on my next approach.

  Palming my cuffs in my hand, I slowly went up behind her while she was distracted by the office ladies. My woman was tough and I knew she wouldn’t come with me unless I fought dirty. Easing the cuffs down I hooked one onto myself and the other around her wrist. It didn’t take her long to freak, she spun and opened her mouth but I beat her to it before she could get a word out. “You’re under arrest for assaulting an officer of the law.”

  “Mother fucker,” she growled and tugged at her arm. “You’re not on duty, wanker.”

  Leaning down I whispered in her ear, “Oh, my little vixen, I’m always on duty.” I kissed her neck and her body relaxed against me for a moment before she seemed to realize what she’d done and grunted and pushed herself away turning to glare at me. I already really liked my mate. “Are you going to come willingly and quietly?”

  “Fuck no,” she hissed.

  Out the corner of my eyes I saw Divinity’s brother, Arron, about to attack. “I wouldn’t do that kid. Not unless you want to be in a shit loud of trouble. I promise that your sister will not be hurt.”

  The kid hesitated and looked from me to his sister. He took a step towards Divinity shaking his head and I raised my eyebrow. “I can’t leave my sister with you. I’m more scared of her than you.”