Second Time Around: A Small Town, Second Chance Romance (The Billionaire Brothers Series Book 1)

by Kelli Walker

  “Ryan!”

  I jumped up, scaring him into looking back purely on instinct. His eyes ran over my naked body, pausing over my tits, bouncing bountifully from their sudden jostling, before eyeing further down, past my waist to the bulging lips of my tight pussy.

  “Ryan.”

  He looked up, swallowing and breathing heavier.

  “My one condition for spending the day with you is that I need clothes. We destroyed half of them during our… rush last night… and the other half consists of a skirt and heels that only a hooker would wear in daylight.”

  I actually became a little embarrassed, somewhat for myself, but more so for him, as he failed to process my words. Feeling that I might have gone a little too far in my search for payback, I slowly, almost shyly, bent my knees and subtly picked up the sheet, wrapping it back around my body so Ryan might reveal himself not to be permanently damaged.

  “Ryan. Clothes. Will you go to my house and get me something I can wear, please?”

  He shook his head, blushing and clearing his throat. For the first time in a while, his eyes met mine, albeit exceedingly sheepishly.

  “Uh… Yeah, Harley, sure. Um… So, you aren’t mad?”

  I laughed sharply and trotted over to him. I bent down and kissed him on the cheek, just as I had two nights previously. “No, Ryan. I was messing with you for educating me on EMTs.”

  “EMPs.”

  I had just turned away, feeling sorry if I traumatized him, but upon hearing his correction, I whirled back around. “What was that?!”

  “E-...err...Nothing. I didn’t say anything.”

  I turned away, trying to hide a smile of cheap justice.”

  After a few minutes of recovery, he seemed to be back to normal, although I was pretty sure I kept just being a few nanoseconds shy of catching him eyeing me again. I didn’t mind, of course, finding it flattering and, for once in the last few years, feeling like I at least had some kind of personal power.

  “Hey, Harley, here. Look at what these stores have in-stock online. You can write down whatever you want, and I’ll go pick it all up. It’ll take me at least an hour to get back and forth from your house and, once I get there, I wouldn’t have any idea what to pick out anyway.”

  “Ryan, you don’t have to do that. I don’t mind waiting and, you know what, I can just make do with what I have to get out of the building and ride with you.”

  He insisted, backing up the decision by us getting to start the day together sooner with something more fun or relaxing than riding around needlessly in a rental car.

  “Look, I’m opening the closest shop inventories in my company’s browser. I know you aren’t interested in that stuff, so I’ll spare you the details, but it’s a pretty awesome improvement on anything the competition’s been putting out. I’m locking in ‘Quality-Lock,’ which makes it so you can’t see the price tags. Just pick whatever will make you happy, okay? If you don’t like anything from these stores…”

  “Okay, okay. This will be fine, Ryan. Thank you.”

  An hour later, I was showered, awake, and my headache had almost entirely abated. We left Ryan’s hotel room arm in arm, comfortably moving without any sense of urgency. Standing in the elevator’s crystal glass room as we descended, I rested my head against his shoulder, mentally pinching myself.

  I had picked out the cheapest looking pair of jeans I could find, a pair of matching underwear, a simple cotton V-neck, a pack of ankle socks, and what looked to be a twenty-dollar pair of flat-soled sneakers.

  But, to my initial discomfort, Ryan returned to the room with three bellboys, each carrying at least six bags of all manner of clothing articles, accessories, hygiene products, makeup, shoes, and more. He entered the room with a proud smile, asking me kindly to step in the restroom while a few hotel employees helped with something in the room. I kept the door cracked and watched in the mirror, wide-eyed as bag after bag was placed atop the bed. Ryan thanked each one of them, handing them what looked like huge wads of cash. The shock on each of their faces told me everything I needed to know. However much he effortlessly tipped them, I just knew that it was probably more money than even I, as a bank manager, was used to seeing at one time.

  As soon as I heard them close the door behind them, I burst from the bathroom and scolded him.

  “I told you three… no, five things. Five! What is all this? Unless you opened that pack of socks and put one in each of these bags… Who do you think you are, buster?!”

  His refusal to stow his smile only infuriated me further. He danced a little jig, celebrating in the midst of my cursing him. He grabbed one of my hands, then the other, forcing a surprised gasp from my chest as I lost the grip on my bedsheet, and he pulled me, naked, into a ridiculous kind of swing, spinning me round and round across the bedroom.

  We stepped out into the South Dakota sunshine, and I followed Ryan to a waiting valet. A pair of keys and another fold of cash was exchanged, but I was confused.

  “This… Either I’m crazy, or this is not what we rode in to get here last night.”

  “Your powers of observation certainly haven’t dwindled over the years, Harley. While you were looking at the clothes options online, I had that sensible thing exchanged for something… a little more befitting our day of pleasure-riding.”

  I lowered the sunglasses I’d chosen from the collection he’d brought me, eyeing Ryan suspiciously.

  “I… That wasn’t intended to be an innuendo or anything. Uh…”

  I smiled and replaced the lenses over my eyes. He relaxed, realizing that I was still a little more prone to mess with his state of mind than he was used to.

  He opened the passenger door, and I graciously stepped into the scarlet-red convertible, trying my best not to seem impressed or overwhelmed.

  As Ryan trotted around and jumped happily over the closed door, plopping down on the bench seat beside me, I couldn’t help but smile. He pulled out into the warm summer air, and I released my ponytail, letting my hair blow wildly around my face before learning how to keep it streaming behind me. I laughed, and Ryan smiled. I reached down and placed a hand on his thigh, leaning on his shoulder as he wrapped an arm over me.

  Each passing detail among the scenery and beautiful splash of color brought me further confirmation: slowly, cautiously, I began to finally swallow a difficult truth; this wasn’t a dream.

  I smiled and squeezed his leg as we wandered the county roads, heading deeper into the space between towns just as we had so often, so many years ago.

  Ryan

  I felt like this was my only chance. I kept glancing over at Harley on the convertible seat next to me, still having trouble believing she was there with me. I never wanted to let her go again, and, for the first time since I could remember, I found myself truly nervous.

  I drove us to all the places we used to go, all the places we loved to be alone and spend time together. We rode out of the town outskirts and into the next town over. We walked around the quiet little strip of shops and stores, window shopping while we talked. Without meaning to, our wandering brought us in front of the little jewelry store where we purchased my watch and her bracelet. It was strange being there, like stepping into a museum display from a different time.

  “When I saw you at the viewing, I couldn’t believe you were still wearing yours.”

  “I know it’s been years, but this place looks just the same. I feel the same, too.”

  I squeezed her hand in mine, and we kept strolling aimlessly down the sidewalk, reminiscing about the past warmly but noticeably straying from any discussion of the future.

  She pulled me playfully into a quaint cobblestone ice cream parlor. We each picked out a flavor and accepted our cones with a smile to the friendly old man behind the counter. I followed Harley outside and sat down next to her on a bench in the sun. Finally, it seemed as though she had worked up the courage to ask me about my plans.

  “So, how long, exactly, are you planning on staying?” />
  “Oh, a while. I’m not in any rush, Harley.”

  “How long is a while?”

  I could see that she was perhaps even more nervous than I was. I wanted to alleviate all her worries, but I honestly wasn’t sure.

  “I guess I was so busy with work that I never really realized how much I miss home. I don’t know how long I can stay away, but I know that I want to try and make things right with my dad. Plus, I’d forgotten how much fun getting into trouble with Hollis and Andy can be.”

  She smiled, but her eyes told me that I hadn’t quite answered her question the way she wanted me to. Her hand was resting comfortably in her lap. I reached down and gently covered it with my own.

  “I also want to keep spending time with you if that’s okay. And I’m not just talking about today. I don’t want you to think I have expectations, but I’m happy if things keep going just like they are now. We’ll deal with the real world when it shows up again. For now, I feel like I’m in a dream and, if it’s okay with you, I’m perfectly happy refusing to wake up as long as I can.”

  I could tell that she was struggling with it all, wanting to fight against my words, but she seemed to bury those feelings. She smiled warmly and agreed. I smiled back, trying to be as comforting as possible.

  “I can’t remember the last time I was this happy, Harley. It was probably the last time we spent a day like this together.”

  “I… I feel the same way, Ryan.”

  We moved on to the next town, then the next, before settling onto a road stretching farther out into the black hills filled with forests of pine, meadows of tall wildflowers, and hardly another car in sight.

  Harley

  As the sun fell behind the hills and the night air brought a chill in the breeze around the car, Ryan raised the convertible’s top and pulled back onto our hometown’s more familiar streets.

  We pulled to a stop outside my parents’ home, and he rushed to get out first, running around to my side and holding open my door before I could touch it.

  “Thanks, Ryan.”

  He smiled. “My pleasure.”

  Ryan walked me to the door, just like he used to. I knew that I was willingly swimming in dangerous waters, but being with him made it impossible for me to pull away.

  Not ready to say goodnight, I sat down on the wicker porch swing, moving over so Ryan could join me. He sat, and we melded comfortably up against one another, replaying our favorite moments from our day of walking, talking, browsing, and eating from all kinds of different places.

  “I can’t say I’ve ever had eggrolls, a chorizo taco, and gelato all in the same day before.”

  “I just want to go back to that last shop. I feel like we could spend every hour they were open for a whole week looking around, and we still wouldn’t have seen everything. There was so much! And every time I thought we’d reached the last room, there’d be a thin little doorway into another section. How long do you think it took them to gather all that junk?”

  “Junk?! Are you kidding? That was like a treasure trove of quirky little wonders. Where else could you stumble on a thousand dollar baseball card, a brand new pair of sneakers, all the wrapping paper you could ever want, AND an all-you-can-eat stir-fry bar?”

  A sour sorrow rekindled my worries when Ryan made the mistake of wondering why we waited so long to spend time like this again. I spit out a fiery retort before I could stop myself. Seven years was a long time to just let go in a day.

  “Gee, I don’t know, Ryan. Maybe it had something to do with you breaking up with me?”

  “I… You’re right, Harley. I can’t tell you how sorry I am…”

  I cut him off, “You could try.”

  He sighed. “Harley, I’m sorry. I was young; it wasn’t something I wanted to do… but I knew it was the best decision for both of us. I had to go to New York, and I couldn’t put you through that.”

  “When are you going to stop pretending like I had anything to do with it? You say all that like it was a mutual decision. I never said I had a problem with you going to New York, and all you told me at the time was, ‘This isn’t going anywhere,’ and ‘I don’t think we’re meant to be together.’”

  “Harley, I never stopped thinking about you. I haven’t even been in another relationship since then.”

  “What is that supposed to do, Ryan, make me feel better? Am I supposed to be somehow happier about the whole thing since, apparently, you broke my heart because you cared so much?”

  For a moment, her angry inferno fanned out as something seemed to cross her mind. She continued talking before I could entertain what might be the cause.

  “Wait… What do you mean, you haven’t been in another relationship? I don’t believe that for a second.”

  “Honestly, Harley. Why would I lie about that? You were the only girl I was ever serious about.”

  “Oh, okay, Ryan. I was the only serious one, so everyone you’ve been with since then was all fun and free, not like stupid, serious Harley.”

  Actually, I was pleasantly shocked by his confession, but, in the moment, I didn’t want Ryan to see it.

  “Oh, come on, Harley, are you really going to tell me that you haven’t been with anyone in all this time?”

  I didn’t want to admit that I hadn’t even come close to seriously considering anyone either. Irritated, I just refused to answer the question.

  “I… That’s beside the point. I’m not the one who was left standing alone in the park, wondering for seven years what I possibly could’ve done to make you hate me so much.”

  “I didn’t hate you! I loved you! And I never stopped!”

  We both sat silently, swinging back and forth slightly on the porch as we found ourselves suddenly being pulled toward each other romantically, but still feeling like we were supposed to be fighting.

  “You… What are you saying, Ryan?”

  “I love you, Harley. I always have. A part of me would be a whole lot more comfortable telling you that it was easy for me, that I fell in love loads of times. Believe me, there’s been a ton of girls who tried. Supermodels, celebrities, there was this European baroness - I’m sure you’ve seen her somewhere on television - she had these legs…”

  “Okay, stop. Ryan, I get it.”

  A smirk hid at the corner of his lips, and I mentally kicked myself, realizing he’d recognized my jealousy. “Then there was the Swedish swim team who attended one of our fundraisers… And, of course, I had no choice but to take one or two trapeze artists to various company dinners and retreats…”

  “Stoooooop. I don’t want to hear it! Why don’t you just go back to New York, then? You can keep your groupies with their plastic faces… and their diseases. If you’re happy knowing they just want to sleep with you for your money, then that’s just great, Ryan. Good for you.”

  I was openly pissed off. I pulled back from him, crossing my arms and grumpily looking away. I felt his hand on my arm, and I tried to shrug him away. Instead, his other palm brushed smooth and soft up my cheek, pulling me back to face him.

  “I’m kidding, Harley. You know, my stockholders probably owe you half their holdings. If it weren’t for me not being able to get you out of my head, I probably wouldn’t have thrown myself into so many lonely, sleepless nights working alone. There was no one I wanted to be with. None of them were you. So… I worked. I never imagined there was any way to go back, so my company became the only thing I could care about. If this hadn’t happened… I was ready to love you without being with you until my dying day.”

  I couldn’t stay mad at him. I could tell from his eyes that he meant every word.

  “We aren’t alone anymore, so I don’t have to hold it in. I love you, Harley. I always have, and I always will.”

  It was too perfect of a moment. I couldn’t trust it. My heart wouldn’t let me. I sat there, breathless as my chest ripped from the inside out, and I fought the urge to unravel in front of him. No matter how brilliant our day had been or how much I felt
the same way toward him, I couldn’t bring myself to admit it to Ryan.

  He took my silence as an acceptance of his words. “Harley, can I see you again tomorrow? I could pick you up for lunch or…”

  “Tomorrow is Sunday. I have church with my parents.”

  “Ah. Well, in that regard, I’m afraid I haven’t changed much over the years. I’m still not a huge fan of the whole…” He stopped himself, deciding now wasn’t the time to provoke a religious debate. “Never mind. Is the church still doing the summer picnics in the park after the service? I could meet you there… if you want me to, that is.”

  I hung my head to the side, letting my hair fall over my cheek and partially obscure my eye. “Of course, I want you to, Ryan. I just…”

  “I know, Harley. Look, we had a terrific day. Let’s do the same tomorrow. As the future makes itself known, we’ll deal with it together. Okay? Don’t worry. It’ll work out just the way it’s supposed to.”

  He stood from the swing, steadying its sway with his hand.

  “That’s what I’m afraid of, Ryan. You said the same thing last time, remember? Right before you left.”

  He leaned down and kissed my forehead. I looked up at him as he began to pull away. Ryan’s eyes met mine, and he slowly dropped back down, kissing me warmly.

  He stood and smiled as he turned toward the porch stairs. “I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”

  I nodded, forcing a tempered smile of my own. I watched him descend the path back to the curb, then looked down to stare at my knees as the car’s ignition roared, and Ryan disappeared into the night.

  I continued sitting on the swing, bringing my knees up to my chest and hugging my legs until I was nothing but a little ball swaying in the breeze. A creak at the house caught my ear, and I looked up from my contemplation to find my mom eyeing me with concern from the threshold of the screen door.

  “Hi, Mom. We’re a little old for snooping, aren’t we?”

  “I wasn’t snooping. I didn’t listen to a word, even though I certainly could have. I don’t need to eavesdrop to see what’s going on between you two again.”