Taming Ryder

Chapter 2

I'm feeling particularly petty today, so I decide not to stay over and catch up on this lost cause of a project I've been working on. It's only going to end up in the trash anyway. Instead, I head out to my car, stopping first to examine the tire that was flat just last night.

It's a brand new tire.

I get in and suddenly remember that I'm going to have to high tail it to the nearest gas station unless I want to push this bad boy. I start it up and begin praying, but I'm shocked to see the needle of my gas gauge rise up just above the E.

"He put gas in my car too?" I whisper to myself.

Ever since last night, I can't stop thinking about this mysterious guy who decided to do me a solid for no reason. And not even because he may be the most gorgeous human I've ever laid my eyes on. It's really because have no idea why he'd go out of his way to help me. I'm a loner and other than Piti, I have no friends. I don't mind. Actually, I like it that way. I rarely even talk to my own family. I'm not a terrible person, but I find being friendly a chore, so I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around his random act of kindness.

As usual when it's been a bad day, I find myself in the drive-thru of Happy Burger, ordering a double patty melt with extra pickles.  After I get my food, I waste no time digging in. I grab my burger out of the paper sack and unwrap it while sitting at a traffic light. Before I even get it to my mouth, my body is slung forward forcefully when someone slams into the back of my car. I drop my burger in my lap and brace myself on the steering wheel. My car smashes into the car in front of me and smoke rises from the engine.

It takes me a few seconds to react, but the blood trickling down my forehead quickly pulls me from my daze. I struggle to open the door, but it doesn't budge. Smoke begins filling the car, causing my eyes to sting and my lungs to burn. I wave the smoke away from my face, but it doesn't do much. I pull my shirt over my nose to help filter the air and try the door again, but I'm too weak to make any difference.

Just when I'm about to give up, the door is pulled from its hinges and a strong pair of arms wrap around me, lifting me from the car. I'm carried a few feet away, where my hero gently lays me down on the grass. Even though he doesn't say anything, I can still feel his presence near me.

"She needs help over here!" He calls out, and I immediately recognize his voice.

My eyes flutter open and as my vision comes into focus, I notice the tattooed arms first. My eyes travel up and down his body a few times before meeting his. It's the same guy that offered to fix my tire.

"Are you stalking me?" I choke out.

There's a hint of a smile on his face, but his eyes remain full of concern. I must be hurt pretty badly. "I could ask you the same question, kitten. You did hit my car after all."

My eyes widen in surprise. "Really? That was you in front of me? Are you okay?"

That draws a smile on his face. "I'm fine."

"What about the guy that hit me? Is he okay?" I ask.

"He must be, he drove away. He probably had some warrants or something." He looks over his shoulder and grimaces. "Your car is in pretty bad shape."

I try sitting up, but the pain in my ribs causes me to lay right back down. I let out a painful laugh. "To be fair, it was already in pretty bad shape."

He smiles at me and I get a good glimpse of him in full daylight. My original thoughts were spot on. He is definitely the most good looking human being I've ever laid my eyes on. But there's something about him that makes me feel uneasy. Something I can't quite put my finger on.

"You fixed my tire," I say, thinking out loud. Still wondering exactly why he would go out of his way to help me, even though we don't know each other.

He looks down at me and shrugs like it's no big deal.

"You didn't have to do that. As a matter of fact, I wish you wouldn't have. I was late for work this morning and my boss thinks I made the whole thing up."

"Your boss sounds like an asshole."

I smile at his choice of words. "You have no idea."

Finally, I'm swarmed with paramedics and police officers. I'm bandaged up, but I refuse medical treatment. I can't afford it and the guy that hit me is long gone.

After I talk to the police, I look around for the mysterious tattoo guy that keeps coming to my rescue, but I don't see him anywhere.

"Hop in hooker," Piti says, coming to a stop next to the ambulance I've been sitting in. She leans out the window, taking in what's left of my car and blows out a low whistle. "Damn, the Crypt Keeper is really dead this time."

I roll my eyes at her stupid nickname, even though it's a pretty accurate one. My car was nearly twenty years old with a rusty blue paint job and a missing hubcap. I paid $800 cash for it a couple of years ago with the intentions of only driving it until I saved up enough money for a better one.

But that still hasn't happened.

I get into the passenger side of Piti's red Volkswagen bug and we drive away.

Piti keeps glancing over at me and I'm sure she's wanting to ask me if I'm okay, but after everything that's happened to me lately, she's probably afraid I'll snap.

"I'm fine Piti."

"Are you?"

I sigh, shaking my head. "I might as well be, right? There's nothing I can do about it."

"Court, call your parents and tell them-"

"No," I snap, cutting her off. 

Piti doesn't know how strained my relationship with my parents actually is. I could never call my father and tell him how bad things have gotten for me. He expected me to fail. He's probably waiting for me to come crawling back, begging for my inheritance. An inheritance, might I add, that I only have access to by choosing his career path.

I'd rather be poor.

Piti is staring at me like I'm insane, so I try to think of something to say to keep her from asking too many questions about my family life. "My dad  will only say, 'I told you graphic design was a stupid career path, Courtney. If you ever want to make the Forbes list, you'll never do it working for someone else, blah, blah, blah."

Piti giggles at my impression. "It's great that your a strong, independent woman, but I just hate seeing you struggle like this."

"I'll be fine," I sigh, "I'll figure something out. I always do."

"You've been awful quiet," Piti says, handing me a cup of coffee and sitting down on the sofa next to me.

I blink a couple of times to break myself out of my daydreaming. "This guy...it just seems odd that I've seen him two days in a row now, right?"

"Maybe it's fate trying to bring you two together."

I scoff, but it turns more into a sarcastic laugh. "Well fate can suck it. No way will I ever date a guy like him."

"Wow, how incredibly shallow of you."

I look at Piti and roll my eyes. She knows how much I hate being called shallow. Growing up in a rich family, I was labeled that a lot. "I'm not shallow, okay? I'm just...I don't know, maybe a little afraid of him. He looks so scary."

"I can't imagine what could be so scary about a guy that's come to your rescue two times now."

"He just looks so...I don't know...evil."

"Well, obviously he's not."

"Yeah, I guess. He's just not my type." I laugh to myself, imagining bringing someone like him home to meet my parents. They'd probably have heart attack and die on the spot.

"Everything happens for a reason, Court. I think maybe tattoo guy is like your guardian angel or something."

"Or perhaps he's just a stalker."

Piti shakes her head at me. "No wonder you're still single."

A few days have gone by and I come to terms with the fact that my life is complete crap. I've been staying with Piti at her apartment to make getting back and forth to work a little easier, but I feel like I'm a huge burden to her. I hate feeling this way, but I don't know what else to do. I don't make enough money to just go out and buy a new car and the way things are looking for me at work, I'm never going to.

It's Friday and while most people my age are going out to the local bars and cuddling up to their significant other at the movies, I'm walking home in the freezing cold. Piti would kill me if she knew what I was doing, so I didn't tell her the truth. I'm supposed to go back to Orlando to visit my parents this weekend, but the hell with all that. I know the second I show up in a cab, the questions will start and I'll eventually have to confess to my parents that they were right all along. I'm a complete failure.

Piti has a date tonight, so I'm planning on going back to my apartment and getting wasted. I know drinking won't solve my problems, but they will at least help me forget that I have them for tonight.

It's only a few blocks from the office to my apartment, so I don't have very far to go. Everything is fine until I hear the unmistakable sound of a car coming to a stop behind me. I glance over my shoulder and pick up my pace. I've seen this car around here before, but I don't have a clue who it is or why it seems like they're following me.

Finally, I start to run. In three inch heels. It doesn't take long before I'm on my ass. I fight the urge to cry out and instead just spew out a few curses.

"I barely know you and I've seen you fall on your ass twice now," a deep voice says from behind me.

I turn around and see tattoo guy leaning next to his car with his hands in his pockets. I'm convinced that he's stalking me now. Oddly, I don't feel uneasy about him like I did before, even though he looks like someone I should be afraid of. "You can't just creep up on someone like that. What are you doing here anyway? You're stalking me, aren't you."

He chuckles and reaches out his hand to help me to my feet. This time, I take it. "I live just down the street, so sorry, kitten. I'm not stalking you."

We stand in front of each other awkwardly for a few seconds before he breaks the silence. "Look, I know you don't have a car and I have no idea why a pretty girl like you would be walking alone at night, so let me give you a ride home."

I look at him like he's crazy. "And let you know where I live after you've been following me? I don't think so."

He smirks, looking me up and down and causing a blush to creep across my cheeks. "How are you even walking in those shoes?"

I look down at me feet and back up at him. Even with the extra height my shoes give me, he's still a good four or five inches taller than me. Again, his intense green eyes catch me off guard and I have to look away just to avoid getting sucked in by them. I cross my arms over my chest and rock back and forth on my heels nervously. "I don't need a ride, but thank you."

I turn around and start walking away, but I don't make it far. He throws an arm around my waist and pulls me to him so that my back is pressed against his chest.

"Actually, kitten, I wasn't asking your permission," he whispers against my ear.