IT HAD BEEN TWO DAYS since Ryder and the Silverman fiasco. I knew he wasn’t going to give up so easily. I was sure he was playing with me. I was a mess, sure that Ryder or some other Silverman would make their move. People don’t just hound you for days and then stop when they see you again and you don’t agree with them. Maybe this was his plan, to get me so uneasy and unsure of when he was going to show up again I was all jumpy and anxious. To make matters worse, I was a bundle of need. I’d never masturbated as much as I had since meeting Ryder, but the last couple of days not only did I dream of the man when I slept, but I was day dreaming and sneaking away to relieve myself. I was becoming a sex fiend.
It was Thursday and late-night shopping. I’d just finished work and was eager to spend some money. Arron was at boxing. Thursday was one of his longest training days and therefore it was my lazy, relaxing night. I loved my brother, but he was hard work. I was teaching him how to drive so he could take himself to boxing and more of my time would free up, but he was still a learner driver and had to have a fully qualified, adult driver when he drove. I made sure he knew how lucky he was to have me. I was taught by our father he taught me the way he’d train his men in the Army. He almost caused me to quit a million times. I didn’t want my brother to go through what I had to with our father, and I knew Arron and our father would kill each other.
On Thursday, I took my lunch break later so I could pick Arron up from school and take him to boxing. I usually just a got quick takeout food, but today I hadn’t had time so I was starving. I drove straight to my favorite all you can eat restaurant, Devour. Lucy, one of the waitresses smiled as soon as she saw me come in. She nodded, put down the dirty plates she was carrying, and came over.
“Camron, I’ll see to this one.” Lucy winked. “She’s one of those troublesome customers,” she loudly whispered.
I rolled my eyes. “The service here is so good I keep coming back.”
Lucy chuckled and linked her arm through mine. We’d clicked from the first time we’d met and Lucy had become a good friend. She even visited me on the base. We were both shoe crazy and Lucy was the best bargain clothes shopper I knew.
“I finish in an hour. Have you come to eat and take me shopping, or are you going to make me go by myself to spend money I really shouldn’t? You do realize I called you yesterday and you didn’t call me back. What’s up?”
Lucy guided me to a table in the corner and I sat down. I debated what to say to her. Did I tell her all about the Silvermans and Ryder or just about the Silvermans? Lucy was slowly becoming a very close friend. My stomach grumbled and I gazed over the buffet. “Let me eat and I promise, when you finish work I’ll tell you what has been going on.”
Lucy clapped her hands. “Ooohhh, gossip. I can’t wait.” She smirked. “Go stuff your face and I’ll see you in an hour.” I giggled as Lucy skipped off. I knew she was excited to hear something juicy.
I went over to the buffet, grabbed a plate, and piled it full. As I sat back down at my table, I felt lighter. I was looking forward to talking to Lucy. I needed to get everything out. I wanted a second opinion on what I should do. I had other friends, ones I’d been friends with longer, but Lucy was easy to talk to and she was a lot like me. I knew she wouldn’t sugar coat anything and would give me her true opinion. It was hard to find friends like Lucy. I was a military brat so I knew the struggle of moving and making friends and keeping those friends. Only a few friends had stayed with me throughout the years and move after move, as my father moved up the military ranks. I wasn’t moving from this town. I was done moving. I loved my job and the friends I had and was making. What I needed to know now was if I should give Ryder a chance when he came at me again. I hated to admit it, but I couldn’t get him and everything he said off my mind.
Shoveling the food in my mouth I tried not to think of Ryder as I ate. His image was burned into my brain and any time it came up my body came alive. One thing I hated was that I was so damn turned on when I thought of him. I’d even caught myself a time or two day dreaming and a moan or two had slipped. My work mates had been teasing me like crazy. And that had me thinking Ryder wasn’t insane.
No matter how many times I told myself Ryder was crazy and his family was pushy and I wasn’t a fan of their abuse of power. I couldn’t stop thinking of him. I’d even spent the weekend before meeting Ryder’s family at the school thinking about him too. I’d thought it strange since I’d only meet him briefly at the hospital and put it down to being curious, but after our talk at his house I couldn’t go more than a couple of hours without thinking of him. All I hoped was that he was worse off than I was.
Lucy sat with me as I savored the chocolate ice-cream. “Work is done. I’ve been hanging for gossip and you don’t bull shit. So it’s the best.” She raised her brow and sat forward on the seat. “Spill.”
In that moment, I loved Lucy. She always seemed to know just what to say. “I can’t stop thinking about a big, bulky, bossy, manly man.”
“What!” She got off her seat across from me, moved beside me, and leaned in closer. “You like meek men,” she whispered.
Rolling my eyes, I nodded. “Yeah, but you know why.”
Lucy’s head bounced up and down. “Yeah, your dad is…is, well he’s very male.”
I laughed at my friend’s assessment of my father. It was a nice way of saying my dad was over the top bossy and overbearing. “Yeah, that’s Dad. That’s why I don’t understand why I can’t get the guy off my mind. I don’t want a man like my father and this man is way too much like him.”
Lucy practically bounced on her seat. “Name. Who is this hunky man?”
“Ha, I never said he was hunky. How do you know he is?”
Lucy giggled. “Are you saying he isn’t?”
I knew I was probably bright red. Any time I thought of Ryder my body heated and it came alive, eager for him. I’d been dreaming of him and since I’d seen him, I couldn’t get him off my mind. I hated that he had so much control over me and I barely even knew him. He was everything I’d told myself I didn’t want in a man. I hated that he was so attractive. That not only was his body perfection, but his face was so handsome. On a groan, I nibbled on my lip as images of Ryder came to mind. “No. He is gorgeous. Beyond handsome. He has tattoos.”
She squealed. “Ooohhh, I can’t wait to meet him.”
I shook my head. “No, you don’t understand. He’s crazy. He thinks I’m his soulmate. He wants me to move in with him.”
“Wow!” She bounced. “Please tell me his name. He sounds so yummy.”
Laughing at her excitement I took a calming breath. Ryder was a Silverman. Everyone knew who the Silvermans were. “Ryder. Ryder Silverman,” I mumbled.
Lucy’s eyes widened. “You’re shitting me.”
“I, um, I guess you know him.”
“Ha, I don’t think I know a person who doesn’t.”
“Yeah, I met a bunch of them. The Silvermans are hard to miss.”
“I’ve seen one before,” Lucy whispered like she was spilling a secret. “He had a huge entourage of bodyguards.” She inched closer to me. “I don’t know a Ryder though. I’d heard about a bunch of others, but not him.”
“He seems to be a bit of a black sheep. He didn’t have any guards, but he’s a cop, so maybe he feels he doesn’t need them. He’s huge though and doesn’t look like a rich entitled man.”
“Soooo.” Lucy’s drawn out word had me smiling because I knew she was about to get to the point. “What’s the problem?”
“You did hear me tell you that he thinks I’m his soulmate?”
“Yeah, how romantic.”
Rolling my eyes, I sank back into the seat. “He’s insane. I don’t know about romantic, but I can’t stop thinking about him. Do you believe in soulmates?”
Lucy nodded. “Yes. You don’t?”
Closing my eyes, I wondered if I did believe in soulmates. I didn’t think I did, but after the last couple of days I wasn’t sure. I felt a pull towards Ryder, but I didn’t know if that meant he was my soulmate. If soulmates even existed. “I don’t know.”
Lucy jumped up and stood to the side and held out her hand. “I’m going to tell you what I think you should do and once I’ve said this, I’ll leave this all alone and we’ll not talk about it all again tonight.”
Nodding I sighed. I knew Lucy would tell me and act the way I needed her too. “Thanks.”
“You might not thank me when I tell you what I think you should do.”
I waved her thought off. ‘Tell me straight.”
“You’re stressing about what these Silvermans are going to do next. What do you think Ryder will do to you? I think you should turn the tables. Go to them or better yet, go to Ryder. You know where he lives. Confront him. Say what you need to. Get him out of your system, but do it on your terms by going to him and not him capturing you unaware.”
Lucy had a point. I wasn’t one to avoid anything or stress about what could or may happen. I needed to do things on my own terms. Getting up I hugged Lucy. “Thanks. You’re right.”
She beamed at me and winked. “Oh I know I am.” Giggling, she squeezed me before steeping back. “Okay, you need to go shopping. It will help. I can see your brain struggling with all this.”
Threading my fingers through hers, I smiled. “You’re right. Let’s go.” We walked through the restaurant. Lucy was right again. Going out and having fun shopping would help.
We left the restaurant, Lucy going to her car and me going to mine. The hairs on my arms stood on end and my body felt tight. I could feel eyes on me. I’d felt them for days now. It didn’t feel bad, but I was sure someone, or a couple of people, watched. I had a strange feeling though that the man I couldn’t stop thinking about was responsible. Ryder. He was making sure I was safe. Warmth spread through me. Maybe giving him a chance wouldn’t be so bad.
Divinity was out tonight. I had someone watching her. I intended to take her tonight to our home. I was done waiting for her and I now knew why my cousins went a little crazy. Divinity was all I thought of. My work was suffering and if I didn’t claim her, I’d soon get myself killed.
I knew her brother was at boxing until late and I had convinced my brother Oakley to go and tell him where his sister was, and bring him to the house. Oakley had promised he’d be nice to Arron. I had no doubt after the earful our mother and Aunt Gillian had given him he’d never fight with Arron again.
I’d always thought my cousins were over the top for all the security they had. I understood that people with money and power had enemies and that people got jealous. I’d known that my cousins had been kidnapped when I was a young boy. I’d been told about the biker shooting and even helped Bailey’s brother when he’d been shot. I’d gotten a bodyguard for Divinity. Two, actually. I knew she couldn’t be guarded when she was on the base, but I also knew she was safest there. After I went to the biker’s club house, I knew I could never leave Divinity unguarded when she was off base.
I’d finished work and now sat in my car, trying to calm my caveman instinct. I was eager to go find my woman, throw her over my shoulder, take her to our home, and convince her to stay with me forever.
Chad, one of the two men I had guarding Divinity, called. I wasn’t expecting a call and became instantly worried. “Tell me she’s okay?”
Chad was a friend. He’d been in the air force and then he joined the police force where I’d met him. He was older than me by ten years and had achieved a lot. Two years ago, he left the force to start his own security company. My family had employed him from the start, but when I rang to ask if he had men to help guard my woman he’d offered himself and another of his best men and Richard had provided more men.
He chuckled. “She’s fine. I’m ringing to tell you that I think she knows she’s being watched.” Chad’s chuckling turned into a groan. “Your woman sure can shop. She’s with a friend and I don’t think we’ve missed a store. She’s walked into everyone and has spent at least fifteen or twenty minutes in each. She spent two hours in a clothing shop. I’m thankful the shopping center is closing. She’s finally walking to her car.”
“Thanks for calling. I was going to her tonight, but I’ll see her tomorrow. Arron is staying at Mum and Dad’s house with Oakley. I’m glad she had fun shopping. Bye.” I hung up, glad that Chad had called. Resting my head on the headrest, I closed my eyes and knew if Divinity knew she was being watched she would be cautious and I wouldn’t be able to take her. Divinity was smart and thanks to her father, she knew how to protect herself. She wasn’t a pushover. I liked that she was a fighter. I liked that she was feisty and I knew she would need it all to be a part of my family. I would get her tomorrow. I should have gotten her sooner, but I knew she needed time to digest everything I’d told her. I knew she only worked a couple of hours tomorrow. I would pick her up before she made it back to her father’s home.
Tomorrow I would claim my mate.