Chapter Three
Ryan spent an hour on his phone investigating Lucas fucking Whiting. By all accounts, he’d turned over a new leaf and was now in the business of revitalization and not acquisition. Damn it. Ryan wasn’t sure how Stacy fit into Whiting Properties, but he was going to find out.
He lay on the bed in his hotel room and hoped watching a little SpongeBob SquarePants would relieve the tension that felt like a vise around his chest. He’d laid here for hours now, trying to figure out what the hell was wrong with him. Why the hell did he care if Stacy moved to Baltimore? He could hire someone else. Hell, he didn’t even need to do that. He could run his business on his own. He’d done it for several years before Stacy had come along. He could certainly do it again.
Then why the hell did he still have this feeling of desperation that threatened to paralyze him?
Anxiety. That was what it was. He was having a fucking anxiety attack over running his own business. That was ridiculous.
Ryan sighed. That wasn’t it. It was why Stacy had moved to Baltimore. Had that one little kiss fucked things up this badly? He’d been worried that things might be awkward at the office for a few weeks, but damn. Moving to Baltimore seemed extremely drastic.
Then there was also the fact that he hadn’t been able to get the thought of that kiss out of his head since Wednesday night. He kept telling himself over and over that she wasn’t his type, but it wasn’t working. Every time he tried, the thought of her kissing him back and how she’d gripped his shirt, holding him close, flashed in his memory. But that was stupid. They’d worked together for years now. She was sweet. He liked rough and dirty. Stacy wasn’t a rough and dirty kind of woman. But damn, the thought of bending her over his desk and flipping up her frilly, tulle skirt and taking her from behind had been keeping him awake the last few nights.
The song “Radio Ga Ga” coming from his phone made Ryan pause. He looked at his phone. Derek the classic rock freak, of course. Derek made it a habit to change people’s ringtone to a Queen song anytime he found their phone unattended. Not AC/DC or Led Zeppelin, always Queen.
Ryan swiped his thumb across his phone. “‘Radio Ga Ga’? Really?”
Derek chuckled. “One of my favorites. You ever see the video of their performance at Live Aid at Wembley Stadium? Epic.”
“No, Derek. I can’t say that I have. I’ll take your word for it.” Ryan sighed.
“Did you find her?” Derek asked.
“Yes.”
“Well?”
“Well what?” Ryan asked with a snarl.
“What happened?”
“Nothing. We talked for like five minutes, and her new boss came, so I left.”
“That’s it? Nothing else?”
“I kind of made an ass of myself, but at the time I believed it to be justified. She’s coming over to my room soon. She’ll probably yell at me about it. I’ll explain why. Everything will be fine,” Ryan said as he searched his suitcase for some ibuprofen.
“Tell me something.” Derek paused.
“Yeah?”
“Why’d you go after her?”
“It’s my fault she left,” Ryan said with a sigh.
“How so?” Derek asked.
Ryan sighed again. What the hell, the truth would come out eventually. “I kissed her.”
“And?” Derek was amused.
“And I apologized and promised it would never happen again. And she still ended up leaving.”
“You’re a fucking idiot,” Derek said without pause.
“I know, man. I shouldn’t have done it. I wasn’t thinking. It just happened,” Ryan said as he popped the top on the bottle of ibuprofen.
Derek laughed. “I swear. For someone who finished in the top of his class, you’re such an idiot. I’m gonna let you in on a little secret that everyone in this town knows but you. Stacy has been nursing a crush on you for nearly two years. Everyone knows it. Except you.”
“What? No she hasn’t.”
“Yes, dumbass, she has. That crack about never doing it again was probably what sent her packing. She’s been waiting for you to do it for years,” Derek said.
“She’s not my type. I’m not hers.”
“How do you know she’s not your type? How do you know what her type is? Have you ever seen her date anyone?”
Ryan had to stop and think for a moment about that one. No, as a matter of fact he could only recall one guy in the last couple of years. But he could just tell. She was too good for him. Anyone could see that.
When Ryan didn’t answer, Derek continued, “I don’t know if you two are compatible or not, but if your only intention is to convince her to come back to be your secretary, then pack your shit and come home now.”
“So if I’m not willing to date her, I need to come home?” Ryan asked.
“All I’m saying is, according to Ashley, this is an amazing opportunity for Stacy. Don’t fuck it up for her just because you need someone to run your office,” Derek said.
* * * * *
“How’d it go?” Riley asked as Stacy packed up her laptop.
“Great! He’s leaving a lot of the decision-making up to me, which is weird and awesome,” Stacy said as Riley slid into the booth, across from her.
“Ah, well, this is all kinds of new for him. The Collins House isn’t his normal business venture, so I’m sure he’s thrilled to have someone like you to handle it,” Riley said with a grin.
Stacy smiled. “Let’s just hope I don’t screw it up.”
“I’m sure you’ll do a great job. Now tell me about the guy who was here earlier. You know him?” Riley asked.
Stacy sighed. “Yes. That was Ryan. My former boss.”
“Your former boss drove two hours for what? Offer you a raise to come back?” Riley asked.
“No. I don’t know. Maybe he did. We didn’t get that far into the conversation,” Stacy said, looking down at the table. “Please don’t think this is a reflection of my work ethic, but I left without advance notice. I left without any notice. He found out from my friends that I’d moved.”
“That sounds like an interesting story,” Riley said, sitting back and raising two fingers to her brother at the bar.
“It’s not really. Pathetic, maybe. Interesting, not so much,” Stacy said with a frown.
Riley laughed. “Oh, well then, I definitely wanna hear it.”
“No offense, but you’re my mom’s friend. It just feels…weird.”
“For now, let’s pretend we’re just a couple of friends having a Guinness and talking about boys,” Riley said as her brother placed two pints on the table. “Thanks, Tris. Put it on my tab.”
“Yeah, right. That tab is long enough to circle the Earth twice. You better hope I never cash it out,” Tristan said as he walked away.
Stacy smiled. That was Tris. She was going to have to learn all these names and try to keep them straight now that she’d moved here.
“Same for you on Sunday’s Side,” Riley called after him.
“Thanks for the beer,” Stacy said as she sipped the cold brew.
“You’re certainly welcome. Now tell me about the guy,” Riley insisted.
“Okay. Long story short, I’ve practically been in love with Ryan for over a year. He doesn’t feel the same. I’m moving on, in a place where I don’t have to see him on a daily basis.”
“Maybe I need the long story long version. How do you know he doesn’t feel the same way?” Riley asked.
Stacy took a long pull of her beer. This was embarrassing as hell. But at the same time, she really should take advantage of talking this out before heading over to see Ryan. She needed to make sure she was strong and didn’t allow that cocky little grin to convince her to go back.
“I’m his best friend. He tells me pretty much everything. He’s gorgeous and a huge flirt. I’m a pushover when it comes to Ryan, and I’m not even sure he realizes it. I guess you could say he takes me for granted,” Stacy said, shrugging.
“And you’ve never told him or let on that you have a thing for him?” Riley asked.
“No. Ryan doesn’t lack female attention, ever. He’s been in several relationships and they are never serious. I didn’t want to be one of them. Especially when I work for the man. How awkward would that be? I was hoping that it would just happen naturally. Like I said, I’m his best friend. I hoped that would evolve into more.”
“You’ve said twice that you’re his best friend. Is he not yours?” Riley asked with a furrowed brow.
“No. I mean, he’s pretty close. I tell him everything…except about being half in love with him. He never asks about guys. Not that I would have anything to say.”
“What caused the quick decision to come to Baltimore?” Riley asked.
“Ugh. Last week. God, it’s horrible,” Stacy said, shaking her head.
“It can’t be all that bad. He was here, wasn’t he?” Riley grinned.
She had a point. “Last week we accidentally kissed,” Stacy said in a rush.
“Ooh, now we’re gettin’ to the good stuff.”
“Yeah, well, he apologized profusely and promised it would never happen again. He talked about us not being each other’s types. It was humiliating,” Stacy said, dropping her head and staring at her beer.
“You know what? You two remind me a lot of Aaron and me. I’m sure you’ve heard the story,” Riley said, sitting back in her seat.
“Yes. Mom told me all about your crazy Las Vegas elopement.” Stacy smiled. “Your husband is an amazing man. And see, that’s what I want. I want Ryan to be crazy about me like Aaron was about you,” Stacy said.
“He is amazing, and I’m very lucky. Lucky that he didn’t give up on me and move away,” Riley said with raised eyebrows.
Stacy was taken aback. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“You’re like Aaron. He never told me how he felt. And I probably would have laughed if he had. And I’m not suggesting that you run out and marry Ryan, but maybe you need to take a chance and show him that you believe you two belong together,” Riley said with a smile.
“Show him? Show him how?” Stacy asked.
Riley patted her hand. “That’s what you need to figure out.”