AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He used to flirt with me all the time. We never had even a small conversation without him trying to get in my pants.”
Jana’s face turned serious, her gaze going to the stairs. “What happened?”
Cassie lifted a shoulder, sadness weighing on her chest. “I let him in. Everything changed after that.” The friendship she’d cherished for twenty years –gone.True, she and Ryan got along better than most co-parents she knew, but she missed their old friendship.
Fifteen minutes later, Cassie watched Jana drive away. After locking the door, she scanned the room. Ellie hadn’t made much of a mess. Tidying up could wait for morning. After the party and the car ride with Ryan, she just wanted to climb into bed. This night had drained her. She needed to recharge her batteries.
Slowly, as if walking through snow drifts, she trudged up the stairs. Stopping in Ellie’s doorway, she took in the scene. Ryan lay on Ellie’s small bed with his head propped at an angle on a pillow against the wall and his booted feet hanging off the end of the bed. Ellie snuggled into his side with her curly head on his chest. Every time he breathed in, her little head rose and fell.
Cassie meant what she’d told Ryan earlier. Though she’d like someone to share her life with, she wasn’t looking for a father for Ellie. No man could love their girl more than Ryan. And Ellie was just as infatuated with him. As she watched them, Cassie’s heart swelled. She creeped across the room, then slipped the book from Ryan’s hand, returning it to the shelf.
“Ryan.” She gave him a slight shake. “Hey, Ry.”
His brown eyes peeked open, a smile slowly curving his lips. “Hey.”
Her speeding heart caused her breath to catch. “She’s asleep. Want me to help you up?”
He shook his head, levering up and slipping out from under the still sleeping girl. Rearranging her into a more comfortable position, he kissed her forehead then covered her with a blanket.
“That didn’t look comfortable.” Cassie studied the tiny bed, wondering how Ryan had managed to squeeze his tall frame onto it.
Next to her, he stretched his hands above his head. His shirt lifted, revealing a swath of bare skin and the band of his boxers just above his belt. Those vee lines Sophie had gone so crazy for called out to Cassie like freaking runway lights pointing her home. Face flaming, she turned away. Ryan had been sexy her whole life. Nothing had changed. So, why couldn’t she stop thinking sexual things about him now?Because he gave you your only partner orgasm in five years last week.
Needing to put some space between them, she led the way out of Ellie’s room. “It’s late. You can stay if you want.”
Ryan stumbled to a stop. “Are you… In your…”
“No.” She shook her head to further accentuate her words. “In the guestroom.”
A slight blush worked over Ryan’s cheeks. Damn it, vulnerability made him even cuter. Shaking himself into action, he closed Ellie’s door and followed Cassie down the hall. She could feel his gaze over her backside. Her skin tingled just from his stare. If he actually touched her, her body would combust.
“Are you mad at me?”
His voice and his question surprised her. She stopped and turned to face him. “No. Why would I be angry? Why do you think that?”
Running a hand over his sleep creased face, he shrugged. “Things have been weird this week.”
She opened her mouth to protest, but he silenced her with a pointed glare. “Then in the car, you got really quiet. You didn’t want me to come in.”
“Didn’t stop you,” she mumbled.
A laugh puffed through his lips. “So, what’s the problem? Did you think if I came in I’d want a couch repeat?”
Her stomach fluttered at the mention of the couch and heat climbed into her cheeks.
Her face must’ve been as bright as holiday lights because Ryan offered a shy smile. “Sorry.”
Looking away, she shrugged. She hadn’t been worried about dry-humping Ryan on her couch again. That had been a fluke – a perfect combination of circumstances that lead to disaster. Ryan didn’t wanther. If not for Ellie’s interruption, he could’ve taken the blonde from the party home. Eventually, he probably would. He didn’t need to come here and try to convince Cassie to make him come in his pants. His date had been a knockout and didn’t appear to have any qualms about getting naked with Ryan for real sex.
No, Ryan’s possible naughty intentions weren’t what had her turning quiet and introspective. She could still hear the sincerity in his voice as he told her “Sex with someone you love is always better. Always.”
How had Ryan had sex with someone he loved and not told her? Until Ellie, they’d shared everything, whether Cassie wanted to hear it or not. Now he’d been in love, and she hadn’t even known. The warring emotions inside her made it difficult to make sense of her thoughts, even to herself. Articulating them to Ryan would be impossible. Jealousy was an obvious side effect. For her, nothing had ever compared to sex with Ryan. Physically, that one night had been more satisfyingly explosive than anything she’d ever experienced with Levi. Emotionally, Ryan was right. Sex with someone you loved was better. Although she’d thought she loved Levi, she’d never felt their emotional connection in every part of the physical act like she had with Ryan. Foolishly, she’d thought Ryan had felt the same way. That maybe sex with her had opened his eyes to the possibility of the two of them being more. Until she’d visited him in Costa Rica. Squeezing her eyes closed, she forced her thoughts away from that memory. Jealousy wasn’t the only thing she felt at Ryan’s confession. Sadness swamped her too. She wanted Ryan to be happy, and she wanted him to feel free to share that happiness with her. Before she’d screwed up their friendship, he would’ve told her he’d fallen in love.
“You’re going to give yourself a headache.” Ryan rubbed his thumb over her forehead, smoothing the wrinkles. “What’s wrong, Cass?”
His voice blanketed her, so deep and reassuring.
Taking a fortifying breath, she went for it. “Earlier. You said sex is better with someone you love.”
