Over Ruled: On the Wild Side Series

by Lizabeth Scott

  “Excellent.”

  Nate would still be at work when they got in, and he certainly didn’t want them stopping by his shop. But Milo knew the drill. In Denver, he was Nate. “I’ll have Ian get in touch with your security and he’ll see you get in my house and anything else you might need.”

  “Great. Thanks, Lukas.” Milo paused and Nate felt something else was coming. But instead, Milo said, “We’re both looking forward to meeting Rylee. See you tonight.”

  Nate ended the call and slumped back in his chair. If there was one thing he knew, it was that he had to keep Rylee from meeting Kiersten and Milo. Now, how could he make that happen? Their routine was for Rylee to spend the weekend with him. They had plans for going to the movie to see the new action release. He had to cancel. How could he do that? His skin began to crawl because he knew what he had to do. If there were any other way…

  “Hey, are you ready for lunch?” Rylee asked. Nate looked up and smiled at the beautiful woman walking toward him, nothing but happiness on her face. And he didn’t want to do anything to screw that up. Even if he had to fudge the truth. He took the takeout bags from her and set them on his desk, giving her a kiss that seemed much too brief. And, that quickly, he wanted her.

  “Perfect timing.” Rylee started unloading the bags and he grabbed them a couple of drinks from the fridge. “Remember, Cora is off this afternoon. She’s taking her mom shopping and out for dinner for her birthday.”

  “How long have you and Cora been friends?” Nate asked as he took his seat.

  Rylee handed him a wrapped sandwich and replied, “Since forever. We met in school. She was drawing a dog and doing a horrible job. I showed her how to turn her stick figure dog into a more realistic one. From that day on, we were buddies.”

  They unwrapped the turkey hoagies and Nate’s mouth watered. “Did you ever think of doing anything with your artistic ability?” he asked, before taking a bite.

  The sandwich in her hands paused on its way to her mouth, and Nate caught a glimpse of self-doubt in her eyes. “I thought I was doing something with it,” she said softly.

  Did Rylee not know how incredible she was? He swallowed before saying, “Of course, you are. You change lives, Rylee. But what were your dreams?”

  Rylee chewed slowly, debating his question. Finally, she shrugged. “I never had dreams. I couldn’t afford them. You heard what my mother was like. My earliest memory was waking up and finding one of my mom’s boyfriends watching me and Grace sleep. I had no idea what he was doing, but I knew in my five-year-old heart that it wasn’t good. By the time I was ten, I’d installed slide locks on our bedroom door, and I’d lost count of how many uncles we’d had. By fifteen, Mom was on to bigger games and her outings would sometimes go on for months. I was left to raise Grace. So, there were no dreams.”

  Nate’s eyes widened in shocked disbelief. How could that happen? “She would just leave you two on your own?”

  Rylee picked at her food and Nate could see her reluctance to talk about that period of their lives. “Yeah. Grace and I loved those times. We didn’t have to put up with her drama. I got a job at the packing plant after school and weekends. It was enough to pay the rent and buy food. And thanks to the lady that owned the thrift store in town, we had a pretty good second-hand wardrobe. She’d save us the good stuff.”

  Nate had grown up with every advantage a kid could have, surrounded by a family that loved him and nurtured him. Rylee hadn’t had any of that, and yet, she’d developed into an incredible woman. His mom would say she had strength of character. “You’re amazing, Ry. That took a lot of courage and determination. You were just a kid with a lot of responsibility forced on you.”

  With an indifferent shrug, Rylee said, “It was, but it was all we knew. What about you? What was your childhood like?”

  “Loud,” he replied with a chuckle, and that was putting it mildly. “My family lives very close to each other, and we were always together. Just imagine a small private school where you’re related to the majority of the students.”

  Rylee’s brow rose, “Private? Come on, I’ve seen your home, your fancy car, and I’m in love with your luxury bathroom. How did a rich boy like you end up in a tattoo shop in Denver? There has to be a story there.”

  There was, but not one he was ready for her to hear. “You caught me. Yes, my family has money. And I was expected to go into the family business. I supposed you’d say I rebelled. Dale, a college mate and my best friend, was into tattoos. I discovered I had a knack for shading. We learned together, and by the end of our four years, we were working at a shop in town.”

  She peered at him closely before asking, “And why don’t you have any tattoos? Is it a religious thing or something?”

  “Yeah, it’s something like that.” He hoped she’d leave it at that, because he couldn’t explain why members of his family weren’t allowed to have them. Nate had always wondered what would happen if he’d just shown up with a family crest on his arm. What would the board of elders have done? Kick him out of the family? He didn’t think that would be possible. Exile him from the country? Maybe. But it was more respect for his parents and what their family stood for that kept his skin ink-free.

  “And how did you get to Denver?” Rylee asked as she began to clean up the remains of their lunch.

  “My friend Dale. He opened his own shop here in Denver.”

  Her hand paused in picking up a sandwich wrapper. “Do you mean this shop is Dale’s?”

  “Yeah. I only run it for him. Dale opened another shop in Texas.” A shop that Nate funded. It had been a tradeoff, really. He’d asked Dale to let him take over the Denver shop, and in return, he’d given him the startup money for another shop anywhere Dale wanted.

  Rylee tossed everything in the trash and walked into his waiting arms. Tipping her head, she stared into his eyes for more than a moment. “Why do I feel like this isn’t a permanent move for you?”

  Nate grinned—Rylee was getting to know him so well. He kissed her lips gently and loved the way her lids fluttered open like coming out of a daze. “It isn’t. Someday I’ll need to go home and take my place in our business.”

  Her face grew pensive. “I understand, Nate, and I’ll…I’ll miss you.”

  Just the thought of leaving Rylee behind sent a panicked fever through him. “When that time comes, maybe you could come with me? Maybe you’d want to come with me.”

  Her eyes went wild and Nate knew she wasn’t ready to admit what was growing between them. He took her lips again and kissed her until they were both left panting. “You don’t know how much I wish my next appointment would be late.”

  Rylee laughed. “Mine too, but we have tonight.”

  “About that. Something work-related has come up suddenly, and I need to go away this weekend.”

  The disappointment in her eyes was obvious, but she covered it with a nod of acceptance. “Oh, sure. No problem, I’ll take the kids for the weekend and give Grace a break. She’ll love that. Don’t forget, Harper is coming by this afternoon.”

  Nate grinned; his buddy was in for a big surprise. “I should be able to finish her top-secret ink today.”

  “Isn’t it exciting? That after so many years apart, they got back together. I told Deke he was wrong for dumping her back then. He never should have kept the real reason he broke up with her a secret.”

  Nate felt a hit to his gut. In all reality, he’d just lied to Rylee. But there was no way he’d let them end up apart for so many years. “He thought he was doing what was best for her.”

  Sadly, Rylee shook her head. “That’s what so sad. All Harper ever wanted was Deke. If he’d only asked her what she wanted, they could have been together this whole time. Secrets kill relationships.”

  After that, Nate’s stomach was churning so badly he was afraid his lunch was going to come back up.

  With a last kiss, he took her hand and they left his office to get back to work. “I still have a few minutes until my nex
t appointment. I think I’ll run over to Tasty Tarts and Sweet Brews and grab a selection of Joyelle’s treats. Harper is eating everything in sight these days. But who am I kidding? I want some, too.”

  Nate watched her hurry out the door with a smile on her shining face and wanted to run after her and tell her all his secrets. But he knew that would be just as wrong as his lie from earlier.

  Nate had wondered what it would be like seeing Kiersten again. As he approached their table, the feelings of hurt and loss just weren’t there. Maybe he’d never really loved her?

  “Luk, it’s so good to see you,” Kiersten said. She was a beautiful woman. Her thick hair was chocolate brown with golden highlights, her complexion was flawless, and she always had a smile on her face. And she wasn’t Rylee. He returned the hug she gave him, and he felt no more than he would have for a dear friend. He breathed a silent sigh of relief.

  Kiersten looked behind him and asked, “Is Rylee joining us?”

  After shaking hands with his brother and the bro-hug slap to the back, Nate took his seat. These two people knew him best; there was no way he could lie to them. So he didn’t even try. “No. She’s not coming.”

  Kiersten, ever the worrier, picked up on his distress. “Oh, no. Luk, what’s wrong?”

  Milo waved the waitress away and rested his arms on the table. “Come on. What’s going on? Did you make Rylee up?”

  Nate cut his eyes to his brother. “No, Rylee is real. But when I told you I’d found someone, I may have fudged the truth.”

  “So… you aren’t in love with her?” Kiersten’s face fell with disappointment.

  Nate heard Kiersten’s question, but he was stuck on that one word. Love… “It’s serious, but we haven’t gotten to that point yet. It’s just…”

  “You haven’t told her who you really are?” Milo finished for his twin.

  He stared into his brother’s eyes. Eyes that were an exact replica of his own. SuMartra blue. He should have known his twin would have figured it out. “Yeah, she doesn’t know, and when she does, I have a feeling we’ll be over.”

  “You don’t think she feels the same for you?” Kiersten touched his hand, and he didn’t feel a single spark or tingle. Not like he did from a simple smile from Rylee.

  “I’d like to think that she does. But her family is here. It’s just her and a sister and three nieces that need her. But it’s more than that. Rylee isn’t cut out to live the life we do. She’s too gentle and too…good. And talented. She’s an incredible artist.”

  “You love her, Luk,” Kiersten stated.

  He felt a lightening in his heart to be able to say that. “Yeah. I do.”

  Kiersten’s eyes filled with compassion. “Then tell her. Let the decision be hers, don’t make it for her.”

  Milo took a sip of his water. “So we’re not going to get to meet her this weekend, are we?”

  Nate’s gaze went to his brothers, “No, sorry. But by your wedding, I’ll tell her everything, and hopefully we’ll both be helping you celebrate.”

  When they got home, Kiersten excused herself to go to bed, and Milo followed Nate into his study, where he poured them both a drink.

  “It’s incredible, isn’t it?” Milo asked as he took a seat on the couch and propped his feet on the sofa table.

  Nate joined him. “What’s that?”

  Their eyes connected and Nate knew what he was going to say before the words left his mouth. “Finding the one you love.”

  Admitting he loved Rylee came easier the second time. It also made him feel guilty for keeping secrets from her. Never again. “Yeah, it is. I just hope…”

  “It will work out,” Milo said and the brothers’ eyes met. “Luk, I never wanted you to leave home, but I understand why you did. Kiersten and I fought our attraction for years because neither of us wanted to hurt you. But it just became unbearable to lie about our feelings for each other. And then when she announced she was leaving because she didn’t want to come between us, I couldn’t let her walk out of my life.”

  “I get it, Milo. You and Kiersten were closer. It was always supposed to be you. I’m sorry I made things harder for you two. But now, knowing how I feel about Rylee, I get it, and I’m sorry I caused you pain when you should have been filled with joy.” The twins had a silent healing moment between them and with a nod, put the issue behind them.

  “You know your time away from home is running out?” Milo asked.

  Staring into his glass of amber whiskey, he nodded pensively. “I know.” His days of being Nate Kensington were numbered.

  “All the others are envious of you, you know. None of us have been able to experience normal life, and while you may have bodyguards, I’m sure no one knows they’re there. You can go to the store, run errands, or even walk down the street without causing a traffic jam.”

  Life with his family was filled with obligations that were often tedious and trying, but there was also great love. His siblings and cousins had grown up together, living in the palace most of their lives. So many were scattered across the world now, but they always came back together when needed. “It’s been amazing being on my own, Mils. But I’ve missed home. I want to come, but I want to bring Rylee with me. I’m just not sure she’ll want to come.”

  Chapter 10

  Rylee

  * * *

  “Auntie Rylee!” Three little voices cried her name, accompanied by Cooper’s barking as soon as she walked in the door. The pizza box in her hands sent them into a frenzy of running in circles and screaming at the top of their lungs, which only fueled Cooper’s yapping.

  Dotty, their neighbor’s daughter who babysat the girls, laughed at the craziness.

  “Hi, Dotty,” Rylee shouted above the chaos. “Change of plans, I can keep the girls tonight.”

  Dotty grabbed her backpack. “No problem. I have a test tomorrow and I could use the extra time for studying.”

  Rylee raised her brow and Dotty cracked, “Yeah, it’s probably not going to happen, but who knows?”

  “Okay, who’s ready for pizza?” A chorus of ‘me, me, me’ made Rylee laugh at their cute, happy upturned faces. It was good to see them so content with their new lives. Leaving the only home they’d known and moving into a tiny apartment had been hard on the girls, but they’d never complained. “Go wash up while I feed Coop and get drinks ready.”

  The girls flew down the hallway shrieking with glee, but Cooper looked up at her with what she’d come to think of as his smile. “Okay, boy, come on. Food and fresh water for you. And maybe a bite or two of pizza.”

  While they ate, Amy told her about a book Dotty had read to them. Then Anna chimed in with news about the dog next door who was expecting puppies soon. Rylee knew she was angling for one of them, but they already had Cooper and she didn’t think they could fit another body in her apartment.

  Angel, the youngest, crawled up on her lap, her eyes drooping, and Rylee didn’t think she’d make it through dinner.

  After cleaning up the mess from their pizza dinner, having an impromptu tea party, and playing nail salon with water-soluble, kid-friendly polish, Rylee checked her phone to see if she had a message from Nate. Not that she expected to, but she missed him. He hadn’t mentioned if he was traveling out of town, but that was a possibility.

  She tucked the kids in bed and took a relaxing bath, wishing she was in Nate’s soaker tub. With Nate. The way that man could make her feel was better than any dream she’d ever had. A cold shiver ran over her, Nate was by far the best thing ever to happen in her entire life. She let her fingers flow through the bath water. When her fingers wrinkled and the water had cooled, she pulled the plug and got ready for bed. As she was checking on the kids, she heard Grace come in.

  “Rylee? What are you doing here? Did something happen with Dotty?” Grace asked as she pulled her shoes off at the door.

  Rylee took a seat on the couch, “No. Nothing is wrong. I just had a change of plans. Nate had to go out of town on business,
so I gave Dotty the night off. I feel bad because I haven’t been spending much time with the girls lately. We had pizza, did our nails, and had a grand tea party attended by all the stuffies we could get around the table.”

  Grace grinned and collapsed beside Rylee on the couch. “I’m sure they loved it.”

  Rylee really looked at her sister. She looked exhausted, but the haunted look in her eyes was gone. Grace looked older than her years, but happy. “You look beat. How are things going?”

  Grace let her head roll until Rylee could see the smile on her face. “I’m fine, Ry. Really fine. Yeah, the job is shitty. And I mean that literally—what some people flush down the toilet is disgusting. But for once, I feel like I can determine my own destiny and I’ve been thinking.”

  Rylee chuckled and prompted, “About…”

  A flicker of insecurity flashed through Grace’s eyes. “Would you think it was crazy if I went back to school?”

  The anxious look on her sister’s face told Rylee this was important, and that her opinion mattered to Grace. It had been a long time since she’d heard her sister planning for her future. Before she’d gotten pregnant, she’d been on a college path. Rylee smiled, “No, not crazy at all. I think it’s wonderful. I always wanted you to go to college.”

  Grace nodded and let her eyes drift away. “I know, and I did too. I never expected to get pregnant.”

  “What would you study?” Rylee asked.

  Grace bit her lip and pulled a rumpled pamphlet out of her uniform pocket. “There’s a two-year nursing assistant course at the community college. I thought I’d start there, and if I could work it, I’d eventually get my license.”

  Never had Rylee been prouder of her sister. “You’ve already looked into it?”

  Grace grinned apprehensively. “Yeah, I’ve actually already applied. But it will all depend on the scholarships I can get.”

  Rylee would do everything in her power to make that happen. “I’ll help you as much as I can.”