Bound (22 page)

“Hey.” His fingers wrapped around my wrist. “Don’t go.” His tone was soft and contrite now.

I sighed deeply, not looking at him. My need to escape was growing stronger by the second. I was overwhelmed by the idea of Ryke sexting – or worse -- with this Candy chick.

He moved so he was standing in front of me, reaching up to remove my sunglasses. I still refused to look at him.

“I’m not gonna lie to you,” he said. “I’ve hooked up with lots of women. We travel a lot, and it’s easy to be with someone for just one night.”

“It’s fine!” I shook my head, my cheeks warming. “I get it, Ryke. You have lots of—”

He touched his fingertips to my lips, sending a jolt rippling through me. “Let me finish. I’ve been with a lot of women, but they don’t mean anything to me. I haven’t seen that woman in a long time. We haven’t been to Dallas since . . . February I think.”

I shrank back an inch, meeting his eyes. But the warm pleading I saw didn’t move me. “It says Dallas because that’s where she lives? You keep track of your hookups by city?”

His downcast eyes and deep sigh made me wonder if he was embarrassed. Good. I wanted him to squirm.

“Uh . . .” He ran a hand through his hair. “Yeah.”

My head dropped and I shielded my eyes from him, processing this bit of information.

“Kate—”

I held a hand up to stop him, but he reached for my cheeks, his large hands forcing me to look up at him.

“Ryke, don’t.”

“Don’t hate me for things I did before we even met,” he implored, his brown eyes full of emotion. “I’m sorry. I’ve done stupid shit, but you can go through my phone and you’ll see I haven’t done anything since I met you.”

“You can do whatever you want.” My voice was almost a whisper.

There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. “I really like you.” He slid his hands from my face around to the back of my neck, caressing my skin.

I didn’t know if it was t
he warmth of his hands or his words, but something inside me melted. My control was slipping away, and I grasped at it frantically in my mind.

“I like you, too, but this . . . it isn’t a good idea.”

His lips curved up in amusement. “Why not?”

One of his hands was wrapped around my hip now, and I felt my control sliding away again. “For so ma
ny reasons,” I managed. “You already know the big one. And this . . . it’s a different world than I live in, having hookups in every city.”

“They’re nothing, Kate.” His hand left my hip and I missed it as he reached into his pocket for his phone.

“It’s my mom,” he said. “They’re here. Come with me to the airport.”

I needed to clear the swirling emotions from my head, and I couldn’t do it in his presence. I was never all the way in control when Ryke was around.

“No,” I said, backing up. “I’m going to stay at my mom’s while your parents are here.”

His face dropped with disappointment. “I want you to meet my parents.”

“Your parents want to see you, not your scatterbrained assistant.” I smiled and slid my sunglasses back on.

Ryke shook his head, his mouth set in a line. “You’re more than that to me, and you know it.”

“Then don’t hurt me!” My voice was filled with warning. “Don’t try to convince me I’m the one who can make you give up all other women!” My voice shook now, and I was glad I’d put on the dark glasses so he couldn’t see the tears pooling in my eyes.

He came closer, his face softening with sympathy, and it made me step toward the door. I couldn’t let him charm me again. If I went with him, I knew I’d hate myself before we even arrived at the airport.

“Please come with me so we can talk,” he coaxed. “This isn’t easy for me.”

I laughed bitterly. “It may not be easy for you, but it’s painfully difficul
t for me. Everything is still a bit raw, Ryke. I’m still hurting, from Quinn and just … everything.”

“Can’t you just trust me?
Let me hold you up when you hurt. Whatever I am, I want to share it with you.”

I wanted to tell him it wasn’t jealousy making me so c
razy, it was how badly I wished I could be uninhibited enough to send him a message like the one from Dallas . . . or Candy, or whatever the hell her name was. To make him want me, and then take me.

I shushed my overactive libido
, the pounding of my heart making me a little lightheaded. “I just need a little break. I need to go to my mom’s.”

He nodded once and walked over, taking my
hand. “I’ll walk you down.”

The silence in the
elevator made me sense everything else more acutely. The fresh smell of new carpet. The swooshing sensation of my stomach dropping with the elevator. And Ryke’s large thumb stroking across my knuckles.

When the elevator opened, we w
alked toward my beat-up Honda, which looked sad next to his Mustang. Ryke had paid for the work on my car, telling me it didn’t cost much. I knew he was lying. The air conditioning even worked again.

He walked me all the way to my driver’s side door, opening it. Then he swept his arms around my waist and pulled me against him. He held me close and pressed his face into the crook of my neck, where I felt his hot breath through my hair.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, loving the closeness of him. His body was warm and strong and I wished I didn’t have to let go of him.

But I did. I slid back, looking up at him. “You need to go get your parents.”

He nodded. “Can I call you tonight?”

“I work for you,” I said, looking away. “You can call me anytime you want.”

“You know this isn’t like that. So can I?”

I smiled, his words warming me. “Yes.”

***

My mom was perched on the edge of a chair in the living room, her back straight and her hands clutched over her knees tightly.

“Kate, are you sure this is a good idea?” she asked me for the third time.

“Yes, it’s fine. Lexi was on the way somewhere when I called and they’re just stopping by for a minute so we can meet the baby.”

“But—”

“Mom, she’s my friend. She’s sad about what happened to me and I’m happy about what happened to her.”

“I’m not suggesting otherwise,” Mom said. “It’s just that you’ve been doing better—”

“I am doing better, you’re right. And I think it’s because I’m finally facing things. This is something that’s important to me, okay?”

She smiled but didn’t look happy. “Of course.”

I stared out the window, a knot in my chest, until Lexi’s silver SUV pulled into the driveway. She got a car seat carrier out of the back and carried it to the front door, where I met her.

“Hey,” I said, reaching out to hug her after she’d stepped in.

“Hi.” She sat the seat down on the floor and I glanced in. The tiny, round face I saw tugged at my heart.

“This is Cade,” Lexi said, untucking a pale blue blanket from around him.

“Oh, my gosh,” I said softly. “What a perfect boy you are.”

Cade’s eyes widened with awareness and I laughed at his expression. Lexi turned to me, her eyes bright with curiosity.

“So how are things with Ryke?”

“I still have no idea,” I said, rolling my eyes. “Can I hold him?”

Lexi paused a second before reaching down to unlatch the straps on the seat and I heard my Mom’s loud
This Isn’t a Good Idea
sigh.

I sat down in a chair in the corner and opened my arms. As soon as Lexi handed off her bundled infant, a wave of emotions swept through me. Sadness, happiness, grief and joy – all at the same time.

As soon as I blinked, warm tears hit my cheeks and Lexi reached out to take Cade back.

“No, I’m okay,” I said. “He’s beautiful, Lex.”

“Thank you.” I could tell from the waver in her voice that she was crying, too.

Cade’e eyes flew open and he seemed to realize he was in a stranger’s arms. He made a few whines that I knew were a windup for an all out scream fest.

“You better take him,” I said, reaching a finger down to touch his soft, round cheek.

“Just rock him
back and forth,” Lexi said. “He loves that. And sometimes I hum, too.”

“What do you hum?”

“Oh, anything. TV commercials, the ABC song, Lady Gaga. He likes it all.”

I swayed the baby in my arms and he instantly quieted. I grinned at Lexi.

“Your arms must get tired,” I said.

“Yeah, John’s a better rocker than me. And we have a swing, too.”

I had wondered if I’d look at Lexi’s baby and see the daughter I never met. But I didn’t. He was hers, and all I felt was happiness for her and John. There was also a touch of something that surprised me.

I wanted this. To hold a baby in my arms and rock it gently. To smell the fresh, powdery scent and hear the sweet, ti
ny coos. Until I had one in my arms, I had no idea how much having a baby still meant to me.

“Are you nursing?” Mom asked Lexi.

“Yeah. It’ll be tough when I go back to work at my salon, but I have a pump.”

My phone beeped from my pocket and I reached for it, trying not to disturb Cade.

Ryke
. His name on the screen made my stomach flip.

“Hey,” I said quietly into the phone.

“Hi. Are you busy?”

“Actually—”

“We can’t stay,” Lexi said, reaching for Cade. “I have to get him home to bed.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive. Call me soon, okay?”

She buckled Cade back into his seat and covered him, giving me a quick hug on her way out.

“You want me to call later?” Ryke asked.

“No, Lexi was just leaving.”

“Tell her I said hi.”

“Ryke says hi,” I said as Lexi walked out the door. She smiled brightly and waved.

“Okay,” I said. “I guess this is where I go to my room so I can talk to you. Living at home makes me feel like a kid again.”

“Yeah, it’s weird having my folks here, too,” Ryke said.

“Did you guys have a good dinner?”

“Yeah. I told them about you.
They want to meet you.”

Heart racing,
I stepped into my bedroom and closed the door. “What did you say about me?”

“That you keep me in line and I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

My excitement faded as I realized he’d told them about my work as his assistant. I didn’t want him to know I was disappointed.

“Well, without you, I’d be selling my blood to pay my college loans. Did I tell you I’m almost ready to look at apartments?”

“Apartments? Like moving out?”

I laughed at his surprise. “Ryke, I’ll be 23 next month. I only moved back home because I couldn’t find a job. Wait, are you saying I should stay here? Are you getting rid of me?”

“Hell no,” he said. “It’s the opposite. I don’t want you to move too far away and find some other job.”

“If I get another job, trust me, there are lots of people who would love to be your assistant and would do a much better job than me.”

“I don’t want anyone else. I want you.” His serious, slightly hurt tone made me smile.

“
It’s not like I’m actively looking for another job or anything. For now keeping you in line is a great job for me.”

“I said more than that about you to my parents.”

I held my breath, waiting, but he didn’t say anything else. “What else did you say?” I prodded.

“My mom already knew
there’s more to it. I’ve told her about you on the phone. When I met them at the airport she said, ‘Where’s Kate’?”

“No, she didn’t.”

“I swear. I told her you had better things to do.”

“Ryke!” I sat on
the end of my bed, watching my face twist with horror in the mirror above my dresser.

“Relax, sweetheart. I didn’t say that. I did miss you
today, though.”

My heart sped up as I listened to the sweet intimacy in his deep voice. I hadn’t felt this connection with him since the last night of our camping trip.

“I missed you, too.”

“Wh
at’ve you been up to?”

I sighed and sprawled out
on my old twin bed. “Lexi brought her baby over and I got to hold him.”

“How was that?”

“It was . . . good, overall. There were a lot of emotions, but I’m glad I did it.”

“I admire you.” Ryke’s words warmed me
, but I laughed them off lightly.

“Do you want to see how the other half lives and help me apartment hunt?” I asked.

He groaned into the phone.

“I know, you’re busy,” I said.

“No, it’s not that. I just don’t want you moving into some shithole where I’ll be worried about you all the time.”