Chapter Nine

Then

 

After a few dates, Ryleigh quickly became a fixture in my life. One month turned to two, then to three, and now it was the end of the season. I’d spent every available moment with the girl, who I learned was sweet, creative, and a joy to be around.

She was artsy—she was working on opening her own photography studio.

She was sweet—she rarely had a bad word to say about anyone, which made her yelling and swearing at me that early morning in late November, that much more comical.

But equally, she never babied my moods—which definitely happened when it came to bad game.

In fact, she did just the opposite.

I spent a lot of time at her apartment, and if I came over after a shitty game, she’d give me my space for some time, but then try to talk me down from my moods.

The woman understood the game. She could talk to me through plays. We’d discuss things I did and things I could have done differently. It was interesting, to say the least, to have that type of support at ‘home.’

The apartment that me and the guys shared was hardly ever used these days, not with Caden’s Caroline off tour, and both Nick and Teague’s women more than ready for the next step.

As for me, I couldn’t tell you how many nights I slept in my bed versus Ryleigh’s, just that I was in hers far more often. Shortly after we got together—that hotel room moment wasn’t my best, but I may have still gone in for the kiss after dropping her off that night; the kiss led to dinner the next night, which eventually lead to a whole lot more—I learned part of the reason for her quiet ways was the woman had been a virgin. That first time…

I could remember very vividly how she tried to cover her face, convinced that if she couldn’t see…

She was a fucking hoot.

Now, it was the end of the season and she was going to come to our end-of-season banquet on my arm, and I couldn’t be more fucking excited.

The last time the booster club put on a party, Ryleigh and I had nothing between us but a note and a few eye locks. Tonight, she was my date.

My girl.

When I got back from the gym, walking into Ryleigh’s place like it was my own, she greeted me as she always did—standing at the top of her stairs. She’d already showered and was wearing nothing but one of my dress shirts, as far as I could tell. She gave me a smile before moving back to the bathroom, where I easily followed her to.

“Guess I’m not wearing that shirt tonight?” I asked, grinning from behind her.

She stopped at the bathroom sink, flashing me her sweet smile. “I thought the green one would look better on you.” She shrugged her shoulder. “It matches your eyes.”

“Will my khakis be fine, or should I go grab some slacks?” I asked in a teasing manner, moving to the dresser that I’d claimed as my own, to grab a pair of khakis Ryleigh had ironed and pressed the day before.

“Shut up.” I could hear the laugh in her voice as I pulled them out, then went to the closet for the green dress shirt. I walked with them over my arm, back into the bathroom, where I deposited them on the lid of the toilet. I started to peel myself from my gym clothes, but my attention was snagged by her.

Ryleigh stood on her tiptoes, looking into her makeup bag.

I finished pulling off my clothes, but kept looking at her. I wanted her, and I knew she wanted me. The woman wasn’t immune to my naked body, and sure enough, her eyes slipped over to me.

Only, she wasn’t as sly as she thought.

Ryleigh’s face blushed bright pink when she realized she was caught.

“I can’t help it!” she muttered with a smile.

Chuckling, I moved to stand behind her. My cock wasn’t to full attention, but it could get there quickly, and easily, enough. “I didn’t say anything,” I said, slipping my hands around her waist only to drop down to the bottom hem of the shirt.

“What are you…” she started, but stopped when I dropped my lips to her shoulder. Whatever she was about to say was lost when I gently nibbled on her favorite spot.

“I can’t help it,” I mimicked against her skin. She tipped her head further away, allowing me more access. “Ryleigh?”

When she replied in what could only be passed as acknowledgement, I continued. “We don’t technically have to be there on time.”

“Hmm?”

In the mirror, I saw her eyes flutter open. My hands were still down by the softness of her thighs. I hadn’t brushed them up under the shirt yet, so I used the opportunity to squeeze her hips gently before turning her to face me. Now, I slipped my hands behind her to grab her delicious ass, covered in cotton panties, and she brought her hands to my chest.

I bent to whisper in her ear. “I’m going to take you… Here, on the counter.”

She wound her arms around my neck, her smile impish. “Oh yeah?”

“Mmm. Yes.” I hooked my fingers into the top of her panties and slowly slid them down her thighs, bending at the knees to pull them off. She stepped out of them and, before standing again, I pressed love bites to her thighs.

Her sigh above me had my hardening cock shoot to full-mast. I needed to be in her.

Standing, I started to rummage through one of the bathroom drawers, the one where occasionally condoms ended up after I emptied pockets, as I kept one hand on her. I needed to touch her. Before I could dig through the next drawer though, Ryleigh placed her hand on my forearm.

“I went on the pill.”

My gaze whipped over to meet hers, and my eyes searched her blue ones. That had to be the best fucking news… “You sure?”

She nodded. “I want to feel you. Come here, Noah.”

I wish I could say that first time bare inside her lasted, but it sure fucking didn’t. I swooped her up, placing her ass on the counter, and was in her in seconds. The sex was quick and a little awkward—she was surrounded by makeup and hair products, my shaver and cologne—but shit, it’d been fun.

Sex with Ryleigh was always fun.

Whether it was the two of us fucking against the wall, or making love on the bed, I absolutely always had fun with her. I laughed more while making love to her, than I ever did in the past with any other woman.

Ryleigh was it.

She was my person.

I knew it in my gut.

After we both came, I helped her out of my shirt and reached to turn on the shower. We had to wash the sex off—the smell was high and erotic, but with both of our cum slipping down Ryleigh’s thighs?

I had to turn off the train of thought before we were going for round two.

We didn’t necessarily have to be to the party on time, no, but we did have to make it to the party. And right now? I was really close to playing hooky.

“I can’t get my hair wet,” she warned, stepping into the shower before I could. “We have thirty minutes until the dinner starts. In and out, Noah.”

She should have known better, though.

Even with a warning from Ryleigh about no funny business, soon, I was wrapped in her wet heat again, making her shout as her back slipped against the wet tiles. And as for in and out?

I was.

Again and again, until we were both shouting out our releases.

We finally emerged from the shower, thirty minutes later. Through it all, Ryleigh’s hair managed to stay up in a bun on her head, where it stayed dry, so points for me.

We dressed together, and I nearly called hooky again at the sight of Ryleigh’s dress. It was a dark green number, and the back…shit, it left her back bare as it dipped lower, lower, lower, to right above the swell of her ass.

“Is it okay?” Ryleigh asked, glancing over her shoulder to look at her reflection.

“Fuck yes, it’s okay,” I managed to croak.

***

We got to the party—late, of course.

“About time you two got here,” Teague joked, after I helped Ryleigh into her chair. Caroline sat to his left and smiled across him to Ryleigh, who waved.

I moved to sit in my own chair, the open one to Teague’s right, and chuckled, “You know women and getting ready.”

Ryleigh coughed into her hand and I looked over at her. Her eyes were tearing up, and her water glass was in one hand while the other was over her mouth.

“You okay, Ryles?”

She nodded, blinking and lowering her hands. “Yeah. Uh-huh.” Then, she raised her brows at me and lifted two fingers in front of her face.

Because yep, we did it twice. We fucked twice and that was why we were late.

I grinned, but wasn’t about to admit that to my buddies. Instead, I leaned in and claimed Ryleigh’s lips with mine in a quick, hard kiss. Her retaliation? She palmed my dick through my pants.

She was a sassy one.

After dinner and Coach’s speech about all of our team’s accomplishments—we had a major turnaround at the midpoint of the season, which allowed us to go into postseason next week—Ryleigh excused herself to go to the bathroom. I couldn’t help but watch after her as she walked away.

“So,” came from my right and down sat Jason, into Ryleigh’s currently unoccupied seat. The rook and I had stayed on decent terms. We were teammates, but other than that, we didn’t talk.

He never mentioned Ryleigh.

I never mentioned his whole fairy-godmother spiel.

“When’s the wedding?” he asked now.

I’d forgotten how much I hated his meddling. I hated that he was the reason Ryleigh and I were thrust together—I should have been man enough to do it myself, not letting some rookie run my life. Ryleigh and I were good now, so fucking good, but I didn’t need the reminder of this kid pushing it to be.

I shook my head, trying to ignore him, but the kid was insistent and kept asking. Eventually growing agitated with him, I pushed away from the table, so frustrated with this kid’s hand in mine and Ryleigh’s business. “There’s not going to be a wedding.”