by E. L. Todd
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. You don’t owe me anything…” I didn’t tell him my story just to get an answer out of him. I only did it because I couldn’t keep it in any longer.
“I know. I want to.”
I looked into his eyes as I waited for the story.
“I’d sworn off relationships my entire life. I’ve never been the monogamous kind of man. My father cheated on my mom a lot, and I saw his same flaws within myself. Then I met this woman named Rae…” He paused when he spoke her name out loud, like it was the first time he’d told someone about her. “We fooled around and had a good time. But I got to the point where I felt something for her, felt something strong enough that I didn’t want to be with anyone else. I went into the relationship utterly terrified and not having a clue what I was doing. But she was patient with me, and we made it work. But then my dad got sick…and he and I fought a lot. I didn’t know how to cope with it, and I never told Rae about any of it. Then she told me she loved me…and I freaked out. I dumped her.”
I wasn’t sure who I felt worse for—him or her.
“I spent the next three months sleeping with women whose names I never remembered. My father’s cancer only got worse, and he didn’t have much longer to live. But I couldn’t forgive him for the things he did. And then he died…and that’s when I felt everything. I couldn’t avoid it any longer, and I collapsed.”
Tears burned in my eyes, feeling his exact pain thudding inside his chest.
“I finally grieved and felt overwhelmed. But the agony forced me to wake up from the coma I’d induced myself in. I knew I loved her, loved her long before she loved me, and I worked my ass off to get her back…but she had already been seeing someone for a while. And she fell in love with him. In the end, I was too late.”
I ran my hands up and down his chest, supplying a small amount of comfort.
“I couldn’t stay in Seattle. Everything reminded me of her. So I moved here…to start over.” He held my gaze, the pain bright in his eyes. “My story is nothing like yours. My misery is completely my fault. But I do understand what it’s like to need a distraction, to need something just to take your mind off things. Ever since I met you, things have been a little easier. The sex is great, and just having a person beside me numbs the pain. But you never have to worry about something serious happening between us. The one time I tried to have a relationship with someone…I fucked it up just like I thought I would. I’m not cut out for this game. So if you’re worried about us ever becoming anything meaningful, you don’t need to worry about it. Because it’s obvious we’re both too fucked up to ever feel anything real for one another.”
***
That conversation I had with Ryker was one of the most depressing ones I’d ever had. It was so raw, dark, and devastating. He was in love with a woman he couldn’t have, and I was too messed up from seeing the love of my life run off with my best friend.
But it brought us closer together.
I didn’t just see him as a sex machine with only one purpose. I didn’t just see him as a beautiful man.
Now I saw him as one of my closest friends.
I didn’t think about Nathan as much, but I kept thinking about Ryker. I wondered what Rae was like. Was she blond? Was she brunette? Did he still talk to her? Was she the love of his life the way Nathan was the love of mine?
I went to dinner with Madeline and Jenn after work, getting Italian food at one of our favorite places. We talked about mutual friends, Jared’s new girlfriend, and the basketball game that was on last night. Eventually, Nathan came up.
“Have you heard from him?” Madeline asked.
“Yes…unfortunately.” It happened nearly four days ago, but it still seemed like yesterday. I told them how he ambushed me outside of my office and followed me all the way up the street.
“Geez, what a psychopath,” Jenn said. “Why is he so determined to talk to you?”
“I don’t have a clue.” There was nothing that important he could possibly say to me.
“Does he actually think you guys can just pick up where you left off?” Madeline asked. “He left without a backward glance. He never called to check on you. He never tried to do anything. And then he thinks he can have a conversation with you whenever he feels like it?”
“I have no idea what’s going through that idiotic brain of his.” But it was nothing logical.
“Well, I just found out that he’s going to Vanessa’s wedding next week,” Madeline said. “I didn’t even know he and Lily were on the invite list. But apparently, he’s coming and she’s not.”
“How did you find that out?”
“Because Vanessa called me,” Madeline said. “He’s coming for Mark—since they were good friends in college. And she wanted me to give you a heads-up.”
I dragged my hands down my face. “Ugh, I didn’t even think of that…” I thought Lily and Nathan might be there, but I figured they wouldn’t have the balls to show their faces if I was on the invite list.
“And since he’s working so hard to talk to you, he’s definitely coming,” Jenn said. “It’s just another opportunity to see you.”
“Unless you aren’t going to go?” Madeline asked, her eyebrow raised.
I wanted to cancel right on the spot. I didn’t want to spend the evening dodging Nathan as he tried to corner me for a conversation I didn’t want to have. But I didn’t want to cancel either because if I did, he would know I did it just because of him. Losing face wasn’t an option. “No. I’m not going to let him stop me from doing something. That means he won. I can’t let that happen.”
“That’s true,” Madeline said. “Then he would have power he shouldn’t have.”
“But do you really want to deal with him all night?” Jenn asked. “Wait, why don’t you take Ryker with you?”
Making public appearances wasn’t really our forte. We just shacked up together behind closed doors and had amazing sex. “Uh…”
“I did ask Liam to be my date for the wedding.” Madeline cringed as she dropped this awkward piece of information on me, that she may be seriously dating my brother now. “So if you bring him, Liam will know about it.”
My brother was the least of my problems right now. “Ryker made it sound like Liam wouldn’t care if I started seeing Ryker.”
“But then again, he thinks you aren’t seriously seeing anyone,” Madeline pointed out. “If he thinks this could be different, he might change his reaction.”
That was true. But right now, I could deal with Liam’s disapproval. I couldn’t deal with Nathan nagging me all night long. “Actually, it’s perfect. If I take Ryker with me, Nathan will assume I have a boyfriend. Then he’ll back off for good.”
“Do you think Ryker will go for it?” Jenn asked. “Since you guys are just…fuck buddies?”
Under the circumstance, I think he would. “Yeah, I told him about Nathan the other night. He would have to be a huge asshole to say no.”
“Good,” Jenn said. “But it looks like I’ll be the only one without a date. Ryker have any hot friends?”
“I could ask.” I’d never been introduced to any of his friends. But now that I was officially his friend, things could change. “I’ll see what he says.”
“Thanks,” Jenn said. “If he has a twin brother, that would be perfect.”
I laughed. “If he had a twin brother, I’d be taking advantage of that.”
“One Ryker isn’t good enough for you?” Madeline asked incredulously.
“Trust me,” I said. “I can never get enough Ryker.”
Chapter Thirteen
Ryker
Ever since that conversation in the shower, things had been different with Austen—in a good way. There was no trepidation, no secrets. I could be myself around her completely, and I sensed she felt the same way.
I offered to take her out to dinner since dinner was something we’d never done before. Normally, we screwed at my place, and I made somethi
ng afterward. But now that the weight of expectations was completely gone, it felt like two friends having dinner together.
We went to a nice place on the Upper East Side, a restaurant I used to go to all the time when I particularly wanted to impress a woman. I didn’t have that intention with Austen because she and I were in a good place. But that didn’t mean I didn’t enjoy taking out a beautiful woman for a nice evening.
We shared a bottle of wine, and I ordered the New York strip, and she had the pork chops. Candles were lit on all the tables, and couples spoke quietly from their secluded booths. A small glass vase contained a single red rose. It was definitely a romantic place.
She looked beautiful in a black dress with curled hair. Her lips were painted red, and she wore that dark eye makeup I liked. She was definitely the most beautiful woman in the world with those long legs and flawless skin.
And I got to take her home.
“This place is fancy pants,” she said as she eyed the other tables. “I’ve always been a Taco Bell lady myself.”
I chuckled. “Taco Bell is great—once in a while.”
“This wine is awesome. How did you know?”
I used to date a woman who ran a vineyard. She knew a lot about wine, and when we weren’t screwing, I learned a few things from her. “Someone introduced me to it. I’m glad you like it.”
She devoured all the bread in the basket then moved on to her next glass of wine. Sometimes she made eyes at me across the table, the blue color beautiful and vibrant. She wanted to sink her claws into me.
I knew her well enough that I could tell.
“There’s something I want to ask you…”
“To shack up in the bathroom?” I waggled my eyebrows.
She laughed like she thought I was joking. “This place is too fancy for that. In a bar, sure. In a Taco Bell, absolutely. But not something this swanky.”
“Damn. I should have taken you to Taco Bell, then.”
She laughed again, the sound spectacular on my ears. “As much as I love Taco Bell, I can tell this place is gonna be a million times better.”
I watched her sip her wine again while I waited for her question. My legs were crossed at the ankle under the table while I held my hands in my lap. I hadn’t worn slacks and a collared shirt since I left COLLECT, but now I was back in my old attire. I preferred jeans and a t-shirt. That was a big reason why I loathed getting another job. “What’s your question, sweetheart?”
“Well…” She leaned forward over the table, her cleavage on display. I suspect she didn’t realize it because she probably wouldn’t lean so far forward if she did.
I kept my eyes on hers since this seemed important.
“I have this wedding to go to next Saturday. I was wondering if you would be my date.”
That was it? “Sure. Can I fuck you in the bathroom there?”
“Absolutely,” she said with a chuckle. “But there are some stipulations.”
“Such as?”
“My brother is gonna be there. Not sure if that’s weird for you.”
Liam didn’t seem to care if I dated his sister, so it shouldn’t be a problem. We weren’t really dating anyway, so it shouldn’t matter. “It’s not. What’s the second one?”
“This is the bigger issue…”
“Okay.” Now I was eager for her to spit it out.
“Nathan is going to be there.”
The second she said his name, my vision turned red. Austen and I had only become close recently, but the idea of anyone hurting her like that was disgusting. He had the perfect woman, and he chose to trade her in for some faithless whore. I’d love to pop one right in his jaw. Fucking shithead.
“I would just not go but—”
“Don’t not go because of him. Don’t let him dictate your life.” She’d better show up, her head held high.
“I agree. But I think it would be a lot easier if he thought I was seeing someone…”
Now her request became clear. “You want me to pretend to be your boyfriend?”
“Exactly,” she said. “When he realizes I’m seeing someone, I think he’ll move on and bug someone else.”
“You don’t think he’ll assume it’s an act?” He knew she’d been single for the past few years. He might figure out it was just a stunt.
“I doubt it. That doesn’t sound like something I would do. And I wouldn’t be asking you now if we weren’t already sleeping together. It’s not like it’s completely false, you know?”
“I get what you’re saying.”
“So if you don’t want to do—”
“I’d love to be your date, sweetheart. And I’ll make him wonder what your face looks like when I’m fucking you. I’ll make him wonder if I make you come harder than he ever did. I’ll make him question ever leaving you for that classless cunt. Don’t worry about it.”
Her fingers moved through her hair as she took me in, the heat entering her gaze. She parted her lips slightly like she needed more air from what her body just experienced. She sipped her wine then licked her lips, the skin of her chest reddening slightly.
I knew what all those signs meant. “Want to take the food to go?”
“Oh, thank god.”
***
I moved on top of her on the bed, my favorite position to take her in. She spread her legs to me, her fingers digging into my hips as she yanked me toward her, desperate for my enormous cock to stretch her wide apart. Her hair trailed around her face as it lay back on the pillow, looking soft and lustrous. Her lips were parted and wet from my kiss, her pants filling the space between us.
“I have a condition.”
My statement brought her out of the moment. Her hands gripped my arms as she looked up at me. “Condition for what?”
“For being your date.”
“What?” Her nipples were hard from the way I sucked each of them fiercely.
“I’ll go as your date if we forget the condoms.”
Her eyes narrowed at my request.
Now that she and I were at a new level of friendship, I didn’t think my request was that unfair. “When one of us sleeps with someone else, then we’ll go back to condoms. But for now, it doesn’t make any sense. I want to come inside you.”
Her cheeks reddened at the last sentence, her desire obvious by the look in her eyes.
“Sweetheart.” I pressed my head to her entrance, feeling the wetness that pooled just for me. My head absorbed the moisture, feeling the stickiness of her lubrication. I wanted to shove myself violently inside her, to feel that tight little pussy bare once again. “Answer me.” I wanted her direct audible consent before I went ahead and did what I wanted.
“Okay.”
Hallelujah. I slipped my cock inside her, feeling absolutely no resistance like I did with a condom. I inched my way farther inside her, sinking deep as I moved as far as I could go. My entire body tensed as I felt the incredible pleasure rip through my nerves. She felt amazing, like the queen of all pussies.
She dug her nails into my arms as she breathed through the pleasure. Moans escaped her mouth, loud and incoherent. Her eyes glazed over like she couldn’t even think. It was like the first time we’d ever had sex, and every movement was euphoric.
“You have no idea how good you feel.” I slowly rocked into her, moving through the smoothness her body produced in arousal. My entire length was coated with her desire, moving in and out with pure slickness. I already wanted to come, but I was too much of a gentleman for that.
“Ryker…” She hooked her arms around my neck and kissed me, her hips moving underneath me to take my length over and over. Together, we moved our bodies to make each other feel as good as possible. “I’m already going to come.”
Thank god. “Me too.” I moved my tongue with hers as we breathed together, our bodies making sex sounds as they combined together over and over. My hips thrust into her harder because they were out of my control. I couldn’t stop myself from rocking the bed, falling into her
incredible pussy with everything I had.
I was desperate to finish but even more desperate to make sure she finished before I did. So I deepened the angle and rubbed my pelvic bone against her clitoris, giving her the extra stimulation she needed to come right then and there.
Thankfully, she did. “Ryker…” Her pussy clenched around me, her come gushing all over my cock.
I couldn’t last another second, not when I could feel her bare pussy gripping my cock like that. I pumped into her hair, making my headboard slam against the wall, and I came deep inside her with a loud grunt. “Fuck.” My cock twitched as I released my come, filling her with every drop I had.
She grabbed my ass and pulled me farther into her, sheathing my entire length as she took all my come. “I can feel it…so heavy.”
I automatically grabbed her neck in response, suddenly feeling a new rush of arousal even though I was already satisfied. I didn’t pull my cock out because I wanted to stay buried inside her forever, feeling our come mixed together with carnal satisfaction. “You’re aren’t going home tonight.”
“I’m not?” she whispered.
“No.” I kissed her as I felt my cock harden again, going back to full mast like I didn’t just dump everything I had inside of her. “Because I’m going to be coming inside you until morning.”
Chapter Fourteen
Austen
I bought a pale yellow dress for the wedding, something bright and summery that wasn’t bright enough to steal focus from the bride. The straps covered my shoulders, and it was tight on my waist until it reached slightly above my knee. I did my hair in wavy curls and wore more makeup than I usually did. I shouldn’t care about making Nathan jealous.
But I did.
Ryker picked me up right on time. He looked me up and down with approval before he gave me a thumbs-up. “Day-yum.”
I chuckled and felt my cheeks redden, flattered by the flirtatious compliment. “You look nice too.”
“Well, obviously. I mean, look at me.” He spun around with his arms up, showing his tight ass in his slacks. When he turned back around, he wore a smile that told me he was joking. He wore a white collared shirt with a blue tie, the shirt fitting his lean and toned body perfectly. He didn’t just look nice. He looked like a million bucks.
