Chapter Sixteen
They walked across the street to the infamous Big Reds, and it being a Friday night, the place was packed. Throughout dinner, as the drinks had been consumed, as Ryder had treated Sophie with cordial respect befitting his neighbor, she’d come to a life-altering conclusion.
Fuck it.
She’d studied Ryder sitting next to Cheryl, looking all kinds of wrong sitting next to her, and decided she needed him. All the martinis she’d drunk had clarified everything in her mind.
The simple truth was, she needed the way he touched her. The way he looked at her. The way he baited her. The way he made her laugh. The way his tongue felt in her mouth, and a thousand other things.
So when his foot had rested against hers, she hadn’t moved. And when his hand slid over her skin, she’d opened.
On a date with two other people was not the time or place to have this realization, but life wasn’t interested in timing.
Besides, she had an idea of how to make amends.
She’d been watching Cheryl and Bill all night, and they belonged together. Their conversation with Ryder and Sophie was awkward and tense, but they were easy and engaged with each other. All through dinner they’d paired off, only not with the person they were supposed to be on a date with. They thought they wanted people like Sophie and Ryder, but they didn’t understand it would never work. They needed calm.
And Sophie and Ryder needed wild and chaos.
Sophie was going to get them together.
Ryder pushed them up to the bar and turned to her, his gaze flicking over her mouth before dipping his head and yelling in her ear, “What do you want, darlin’?”
She tilted her head back to say into his ear, “Let’s do shots.”
“Tequila?” The hand farther away from Bill and Cheryl strayed to her hip.
“Tequila.”
They looked at Bill and Cheryl, who were shaking their heads.
Cheryl held up her hands. “I can’t do shots. I’ll take a white wine.”
Bill waved them off. “Beer for me. I’ve got practice in the morning.”
See? Utterly perfect for each other.
Ryder signaled the bartender and gave their order. A few minutes later, he’d handed Bill and Cheryl their drinks and turned back to Sophie.
He picked up the shot and handed it to her before taking one of his own. “Salt?”
His gray eyes heated. She shivered as she remembered the press of his tongue against her skin. She shook her head. “I’m good.”
They clinked the tiny glasses together. “Bottoms up.”
They downed the shots and put them back on the bar. All Sophie wanted to do was jump him, but instead she said, “Let’s dance.”
He squeezed her hip. “Let’s.”
Cheryl smiled. “Do you mind if we sit this one out?”
Ryder tensed but then Bill said, “I’ll sit with her, you guys go ahead.”
Ryder didn’t hesitate. He grabbed Sophie’s hand and led her onto the dance floor, where a country song played. A second later he spun her into his arms and she was pressed flush against him.
It was a medium tempo, and he started gliding her through a two-step. She melded into him, not understanding how someone so much bigger than her could fit her so right.
He gripped her around the waist and looked down at her. “Have you learned your lesson, Sophie?”
She leaned back and raised her brows. “What lesson would that be, Ryder?”
He dipped his head a little lower. “That you don’t want me as your friend.”
“Is that what this is? Teaching me a lesson?”
“I was giving you what you claimed to want, and you don’t like it one bit.”
Her mouth dropped open and she could only gape at him. “You are so arrogant. And cocky. I can barely stand you.”
The song shifted, slowed down, and he pulled her closer into his arms. She leaned in despite herself.
His erection brushed her belly and he whispered into her ear, “Admit it and I’ll give you what you really want.”
She bit her lip, her nipples puckering tight. “And what do you think I really want?”
“You want me to take away your options.” He bent lower, nipped at her earlobe. “You want me to slam you up against the wall and take you. You don’t care where we are. How we won’t even make it to bed. How we might not even make it out of this bar.”
She sucked in a breath and clutched his shoulder.
He licked a spot on her neck before scraping his teeth over her skin. “I’ll make it real dirty, darlin’. I’m going to do what you’ve been dying for since the day we met.”
“What’s that?” Her voice was all breathless and panting.
“I’m going to take you in hand, and I’m not going to fucking let go.” His arm tightened around her waist. “Because that’s what you want, Sophie. What nobody else has ever been able to give you. It’s why you can’t stay away from me no matter how much you try and talk yourself out of it.”
Throat dry, she swallowed hard. “And why can’t you stay away from me, Ryder?”
“That’s easy.” He lifted his head and looked into her eyes. “I know you can take it. I know you want it. But more, I know you won’t settle for less. You’re greedy and you’re going to demand everything from me.”
Just like that, it all made sense. How and why they fit. Because they needed the same thing.
He curled his hand around her neck. “Admit it.”
She licked her lips. “I admit it.”
He fisted her hair in his hand. “Here’s how it’s going to be. There will be no more dates with anyone else. No more backing away. No more trying to distance yourself. Because it’s not going to work, Sophie. You and I are happening. You might leave, but you’re sure as hell not going to forget me when you do, and we both just have to accept that.”
Her heart slammed into her chest. “Aren’t you high-handed?”
“Like I said, I’m giving you what you want. And don’t even try and pretend it doesn’t make you wet.” His hold tightened, pricking pain along the back of her neck. “It makes you wet, doesn’t it, Sophie?”
“Yes.”
“Are your panties damp for me?”
“Yes.”
“Should I take you to the bathroom and fuck you?”
“Yes.” She didn’t care what that made her.
“You don’t care that the first time won’t be in a bed?”
She rose to her tiptoes and whispered, “Ryder, anyone can fuck in a bed.”
“Let’s go.” He released her, grabbed her hand, and started dragging her toward the back.
“Ryder.”
“Yeah?”
“What about our dates?”
“Oh.” His brow furrowed. “Them. We can deal with them after.”
“But—”
“Sophie, they have to be blind, deaf, and dumb not to see there’s something going on between us.” He dragged his hand through his hair. “The whole town knows there’s something going on between us.”
“They do?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I don’t know, they just do.” He started to tug her back, and as much as she wanted him, she held firm.
“Ryder, it’s not right. We’ve already been total assholes, we can’t make it worse.”
He appeared ready to argue, but then he sighed. “What do you suggest?”
She was so on edge for him, she didn’t want to say it, but she still wanted to do something right tonight. “Let’s go back to the table, be nice for a few more minutes, and then take them aside separately and let them down easy.”
“Are you fucking serious?”
It pained her, but she needed to do this as penance. “Let’s do this one thing right. Then everything after can be wrong.”
“Christ.” He shook his head. “Fine.”
* * *
When they returned to the table Sophie said, “Another round?”
Ryder had had more than enough. His main priority at this point was getting rid of their dates because he really didn’t think he could take one more second of not touching her. Of pretending he had any interest in anyone but her.
Bill stood from his chair. “I’ll go with you to the bar.”
Ryder wanted to refuse him but thought better of it, as this gave him a chance to apologize to Cheryl and be done with this date from hell.
Sophie beamed at Bill and said, “Great.”
Ryder experienced a possessive urge to kiss her before she went but resisted. The sooner they got this over with, the better. He nodded and sat down, turning to Cheryl as they walked off.
He opened his mouth to speak, but she surprised him by holding up her hands and smiling. “It’s okay.”
“Okay?” Ryder couldn’t help glancing over her shoulder to where Sophie and Bill were swallowed up by the crowd.
She laughed and shrugged a shoulder. “You like Sophie.”
“Like” was a mild word for what he felt, but he returned his gaze to the pretty nurse and gave her the attention she deserved. He sighed. “I’m sorry.”
“Hey, it’s okay.” She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “I had a feeling the night of the Rileys’ party. But when you didn’t cancel, I thought maybe I was wrong.” She offered him another shy smile. “Tonight confirmed my initial impression.”
Ryder ran his hand through his hair. “Again, I’m really sorry. I should have canceled.”
She waved a hand. “No worries. You didn’t ask me out, Maddie did. And you haven’t led me on. You haven’t taken your eyes off her all night.”
“You’re being far too nice about this.” Because she was.
“Nice is underrated.”
That was a matter of debate, but he agreed anyway. “True.”
She smiled. “You belong with a woman like Sophie.”
“I belong with Sophie.” He didn’t want to think about the day she’d leave. All he wanted to do was think about having her right now. Tonight.
Sophie and Bill returned to the table, and the four of them stared at each other awkwardly.
Bill cleared his throat then looked at Cheryl. “You ready to go?”
She shot up like she’d been catapulted from her seat. “Yes, I hate bars.”
“God, me too,” Bill said, before holding out a hand to Ryder. “It’s been fun, despite the weirdness.”
Ryder stood up and shook the guy’s hand. “Yeah, sorry about that. I hope we can still be friends.”
Bill shrugged one big shoulder. “It happens.”
Ryder slid his hand over Sophie’s hip. “If it makes any difference, she’s a real pain in the ass.”
Sophie turned on a dime and knocked his hand away. “You jerk. I’m a delight.”
He grinned down at her. “You’re a menace.”
“I am not.” She turned to Cheryl. “It’s me who’s saving you. He’s pure evil.”
Cheryl smiled. “He’s always been a complete gentleman to me.”
Sophie huffed. “Haven’t you heard? The devil is always a gentleman.”
Cheryl laughed. “Then I’ll consider myself saved.”
Sophie smirked up at Ryder. “And I’ll consider myself damned.”
His gaze flicked over her mouth. Oh, she was damned all right. He planned on multiple lines of torture. Just as soon as he had her first. Preferably within the next five minutes.
“Well, you two have fun, and good luck.” Bill shook his head before saying to Cheryl. “You want to go for ice cream?”
“Sure, I’d like that,” Cheryl said.
They waved and said good-bye.
Sophie turned to Ryder, and he raised a brow. “How’d he take it?”
“He already knew. He said it was obvious.”
“Cheryl too.”
She grinned. “I told him when he took Cheryl home he needed to make out with her in the car.”
Ryder reached for her, sliding his hand around the nape of her neck, and she shivered. “What did he say to that?”
“That he’d already been planning to do just that.”
He leaned down and nipped her bottom lip. He gripped her around the waist. “I hope those two find a way to have really fantastic vanilla sex.”
She shuddered, her eyes going dark. “We’re not going to have vanilla sex, are we?”
“Not in this lifetime, darlin’.”
“Good, because I have a really short attention span.”
He grabbed her wrist. “Time to go.”