CHAPTER THIRTEEN 

RYLAN

We locked up the house and took off in my truck in silence. 

At first I headed back toward Cassie's friend's house. But when we got to the stoplight, I thought fuck it and turned left instead of right. 

Cassie looked over at me, blinking slowly. 

"Where are we going?" she asked quietly. 

"My place," I said. "Because I am not leaving you. Especially not like this."

She said nothing in protest or support, but just sat quietly on the rest of the drive until I pulled into my parking garage.

"You live downtown?" she asked. 

"Yeah, I own a high-rise in this building," I said as I helped her out. "It's not much but like I said, I'm a simple guy."

We took the elevator up to my condo on the tenth floor. It was an open, loft-style space with exposed brick, high ceilings, and a wrought-iron staircase leading up to the open bedroom loft. 

"Wow," Cassie breathed as she walked in. "Gorgeous place."

 It was only then that I realized how overtly masculine my place was. Everything consisted of straight, hard lines and rough textures. No softness or feminine touches to be seen. Cassie, turning in a slow circle as she looked at everything, was the loveliest, feminine shape in the room. 

"Make yourself at home," I said, trying to not be distracted by how radiantly she stood out amongst everything. "Can I get you anything? Takeout? Coffee? A blanket and pillows?"

"Just a blanket would be great," she said, wrapping her arms around herself. "I don't think I could keep any food or drink down if I tried." 

I jogged up the stairs to pull a blanket off my bed and threw it over the railing so that it landed right on top of her on the couch. 

She giggled as I bounded down to join her and I was happy I could still make her laugh, at least a little. 

We pulled the blanket around so it wrapped up both of us, then I pulled her to my chest once again where she belonged. She nestled against me and let out an exhausted sigh.

"I can't believe everything that just happened," she said. "None of it feels real." 

"It'll pass," I assured her, stroking her hair. "I'm sorry you had to see the two of us get ugly and violent." 

She pulled her head away and looked at me with eyes wide and full of concern. 

"I'm such an idiot. He hurt you! Do you need to go the doctor?" Her hand grazed across where Mark hit me on my side.

"No, I'm fine," I insisted. "The cops asked me the same thing and took some pictures. It'll bruise up but it's nothing serious." 

Her eyes narrowed and lips pursed, unconvinced. 

"Are you sure? You should probably get X-rays just in case."

"If it gets worse I will," I promised. "But right now it doesn't feel like anything to be concerned about." 

Her eyes grew bashful, long red lashes fluttering down toward her cheekbones. 

"Can I see it?" she asked barely above a whisper. 

My cock stiffened at her request. Unfortunately it wasn't the body part she was referring to. 

The moment I lifted my shirt to my chest level, Cassie let out a small gasp. Her eyes welled with tears and she covered her mouth with her hand.

"Oh my God, Rylan," she whimpered, reaching out to touch the tender flesh.

The bruise already darkened to a greenish purple and stretched from just above my hip bone to just under my pectoral muscle. Marky boy got a couple good punches in but he didn't have the strength to do any real damage. The guy was big, but he was all bark and no bite. 

My whole side felt sore and I figured I'd be popping some Advil tonight, but I felt fine other than that. No ribs felt broken or anything. 

It honestly looked worse than it felt, which explained Cassie's distraught reaction. 

"I'm so sorry," she cried, gently running her fingers over the discolored flesh. "I should never have brought you with me, never should have let you get involved in my mess."

"Shush, hey." I tilted her chin up to face me. "If I wasn't there, you could be seriously hurt right now. For all we know, that bastard could have killed you and not remember it in a few hours. I was not going to let that happen. A little bruise is nothing."

"It's not just that, you could have gotten arrested!" she said sniffling. "And if he wasn't so drunk, he could have hurt you a lot worse. So many things could have gone wrong!"

"But they didn't," I said soothingly, cupping her face. "Everything is and will be okay." 

My heart was touched at how concerned she was for me, how selfless she was. I felt so incredibly thankful she had the wisdom to bring me along and didn't just assume she could go there alone. She at least was not naive, even if she blamed herself for my battle wound. 

"How can you just be okay with this?" she asked me. "My whole life is a hot mess right now. Most people would stay away. Why are you being here for me and literally taking hits for me?" 

"Because none of this is your fault," I answered. "You're a wonderful, kind woman who was misled by false promises. You're so selfless and wise. And simply because you've captivated me from the moment I saw you." 

There was no stopping the confession the moment it tumbled out of me. I had to get it out there. She eventually had to know the effect she had on me, how other women paled in comparison to her gorgeousness and the way she lit up a room. How badly I wanted to be the hero in her story, defending her when she needed me and stepping aside when she had it handled. 

"Rylan..."

In one moment I watched her lips speak my name. In the next I leaned in, desperate to taste her. 

When our lips touched it was like the softest, gentlest explosion. So intense and yet so soft and warm. 

The chemistry was immediate. Her hands already sailed over my hot, bare skin from touching my bruise. With some quick adjusting she straddled me, her shapely thighs on either side of my hips as our kisses grew deeper, hungrier. 

She tasted so sweet, like soft spun sugar with a hint of chocolate and I couldn't get enough. She let out little whimpers and sighs as my tongue probed her mouth open, answering every demand of my kiss and begging for more. 

Just the sensations of her bombshell curves underneath my hands drove me wild. My cock engorged fully between us, seeking the sweet, wet heat of her pussy beneath her jeans. 

I let out a low moan as her lips trailed to my neck, nibbling my ear as her hands caressed across my bare chest and abs. Damn, this girl knew how to please and she was eager to do it. 

"Fuck, Cassie," I groaned, filling my palms with her gorgeous tits, thumbing across her rock hard nipples before running down her waist to her ass. 

"Rylan," she moaned into my neck. "You make me feel so good." 

My hips rolled against hers. I held her tight little waist in place as I ravaged her neck with kisses. Every spark of chemistry since we first met led up to this moment of passion.

But something still wasn't right. Tears leaked from her eyes. Her hands still trembled from the shock of what happened not even an hour ago. 

She wanted this badly and fucking hell, so did I. But even with her on top of me, grinding against me, kissing and touching me, I couldn't bring myself to take it further. 

"Cassie," I murmured, pulling away just slightly. "We should slow down." 

"What, why?" she asked, her voice cracked with emotion. 

Fuck, she was so emotional, so vulnerable right now. The last thing she needed was another guy messing with her heart. 

"You're still in shock from what happened," I said carefully. "I'm here for you but I don't want to take advantage of you during a sensitive time."

"You're not taking advantage of me," she insisted. "I'm on top of you. I'm consenting to everything. I want this. I want you."

"I want you too," I answered. "So fucking badly, believe me. But your mind isn't clear right now. Emotions are still running high. I just think we should take it slow and let things blow over before we… get involved."

She blinked and stared at me for a moment before sliding off me and reaching for her phone.

"I guess I'll take an Uber back to Beth's then," she muttered. 

Shit. I fucked this up. 

"I can take you back," I said. 

"No, that's okay." 

"Cassie," I said, almost a plea. "I'm so into you but I don't want to be that guy, like Mark said, just swooping in on a girl after--" 

"In case you forgot, I'm a grown-ass woman, Rylan," she snapped. "You don't have to treat me like some delicate, inanimate doll. I can make my own decisions and handle myself." 

"I know that." I swallowed the dry lump in my throat. "I didn't mean to imply you weren't." 

"If you're not into fucking big girls, you can just say it," she said coldly. "You don't have to act all nice then freeze up once we start getting physical. After everything else that's happened, I'll be grateful to hear the truth from a guy for once." 

My jaw dropped. How could she possibly think that of herself?

"Cassie, you're hot as hell and just my type," I said incredulously. "Here, see?" I took her hand and placed it over my bulge, still rock hard. She didn't take her hand away but her expression didn't change. 

"I'm so fucking attracted to you," I went on. "Everything about you drives me wild. But I'm also not like your ex. I won't take advantage of a girl when her self-esteem is at an all-time low and she's seeking comfort to fill that fresh void in her life. No, I want you at your best, Cassie. I'll be there for you through thick and thin, but I won't make things harder for you when you're already down."

She said nothing until her phone beeped. 

"My ride's here," was all she said before getting up and walking out my front door.