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“It doesn’t have to be. No one else has to see. As long as Race hears you, that’s what matters.”
“My mom makes me apologize in front of everyone all the time.” Roman sighed the sigh of a person much older than him. “You’re saying I can do it when it’s just the two of us?”
I realized I’d walked into a potential minefield and took a moment to think before answering. “I don’t know the rules your mom and dad have at their houses. I can’t tell you not to listen to your parents because you should. When you’re here, though, I don’t think you have to apologize in public, unless you want to. Or unless you just punched everyone at the party. That apology would probably have to be public.”
He laughed, thankfully, and his shoulders dropped a bit lower. “I thought you were going to be mean. Mom told us all about evil step-mothers. You’re not mean, though. You’re pretty nice, I guess.”
I reached out and ruffled his hair. “I’ll take pretty nice. You’re pretty nice, too.”
Ryder stepped into the kitchen and his eyes were burning holes into me. The look on his face was as intense a look I’d ever seen from him.
Roman saw his dad and held up his hands. “I’m going to apologize to Race, Dad.”
I swallowed around a lump of nerves and watched Roman go back outside. I couldn’t quite meet Ryder’s eyes so I started slicing the cake to distract me. “I’m sorry if I overstepped. If you’re pissed at me, I get it. I just wanted to try to help. If I said anything wrong, I’ll-”
Ryder gripped my chin with his thumb and index finger and lifted my face to his. “Thank you.”
“Thank me?”
He nodded. “Thank you. I’ve been having a hard time connecting with him. He’s so fucking angry at me all the time and for the first time in so long, he smiled at me tonight. He’s willing to cook with me. It’s selfish of me but I didn’t want to lose that by telling him off for hitting Race. I heard some of what you said. You really are an angel, Fiona.”
I blinked away tears and wrapped my arms around his waist. “He’s a good kid. It won’t be hard forever, especially not when it’s so clear he has a huge heart.”
“He’s just hiding it like a Vevus flytrap for now, huh?”
I groaned. “That analogy alone should explain so many of my emotional issues to you.”
“I need to be alone with you soon, angel. Desperately.”
I closed my eyes and nodded. I was letting things happen as they did, but I was struggling to sleep at night because I couldn’t stop thinking about being with them again.
“The boys are with Sara tomorrow. Come over and let me cook some of my too fancy food for you? Please.” Ryder slid his hands around to my ass. “I need you, Fi.”
My head was nodding before he even finished. “Okay. Yes… Yes, please.”
26
***Fiona***
Ileft Avery with Mallory and drove to the address Ryder gave me. I was surprised when I ended up in the parking lot of one of his restaurants but then I saw him jogging across the lot to me. He was dressed in low slung jeans and an open chef jacket with nothing underneath. His hair was even doing the most to seduce me with the way it was messily tousled.
My mouth watered instantly as I drank in the sight of his bare chest. “Um, hi.”
He gripped my head and pulled me into a heated kiss. His mouth tasted like chocolate and I felt like I’d died and gone to heaven. He could kiss and he tasted like a snack? Heaven.
When he pulled back, his lips were tinted red with my lipgloss. “Come on. I’m determined to feed you before I act like an animal but if that doesn’t happen soon, I’ll just order from the restaurant and eat you until it comes.”
I flushed and hurried along. “I love how vocal you are. I don’t ever have to wonder what you’re thinking about my body and what you want to do to it. I’ve never had that before you three.”
“I don’t know if you’d love it if you could hear the dirty shit I’m thinking right now, angel.” He swiped a key card over a door at the side of the building and held it open for me. “Up the stairs.”
I’d only made it up three steps when he grabbed my hips. I laughed and spun around to face him. “You aren’t going to finish cooking for me if you can’t keep your hands to yourself.”
He pushed me down so I was sitting on the step and knelt on the stairs in front of me. His eyes burned into mine as he slowly worked my dress up my thighs. “I’ve been patient but I’m losing my mind, angel. I need to taste you.”
I lifted my hips when he gripped my panties and yanked them down. “Just don’t burn your apartment down.”
“Fuck the apartment.” Ryder buried his face between my thighs and ran his tongue over my slit before parting my lips and finding my clit. He reached one hand up to cup my breast while he did and growled when I cried out his name.
