Mistake Me Not

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Sorcha honked and waved as she passed. Ryder boosted Lacie into the truck and got to his own seat. He cranked the engine and handed her his aviators.

“You left these,” Ryder said.

Happy to oblige him, she slid them on. “This is weird.”

“What?”

“How normal this is,” she said. “It is, isn’t it? I’m mad and confused and we’re practically strangers but—”

“It’s normal,” he said. “I know.”

During the journey back to hers, his hand remained on her thigh, but it didn’t stay still. He drummed his fingers upward, playing it coy, while they chatted about Shep’s history both with Ryder and with Sorcha.

Not far from her place, his palm inched up further toward her crotch. Playing him at his own game, she slid down in the seat bringing his hand into direct contact with her heat. He swerved the truck like he had when she’d smiled on the first night of their road trip. The way he scrambled to get both hands on the wheel and back in lane made her laugh.

“You did that on purpose,” he said, grinning at her.

“You were being coy.”

“Do you want me to be direct?” he asked. “Let me find a place to park.”

“I’m sorry,” she said, bringing her feet up under her to lean over the console and drape her arms around his neck. “I won’t play with you.”

Kissing his cheek, she rested her head on his shoulder. He appreciated her proximity, and they rode for a moment. Curiosity ate at her. Coy was usually her color, but she’d gotten away with speaking her mind, it had got them this far.

Tilting her head, the tip of her tongue touched his earlobe, she breathed it into her mouth sucking gently as her hand fell away from his shoulder.

“Now, baby, we’re almost—”

She cupped the length of him through his jeans though the length of her hand wasn’t sufficient. Hissing in the end of his sentence, he swerved again.

“Baby!” he chided. She took her hand back to his shoulder. “No, put it back.” With the car back on track, he snatched her hand and pressed it to his groin.

“You’re always hard,” she said, kissing the side of his neck.

“I’m always hard for you,” he said. “I’m in agony, baby.”

“I should tell you,” she said, nuzzling closer. “I’m not very… experienced. But I want to touch you, it excites me.”

“I can tell from the way you’re wriggling there. I love that wriggle.”

“I won’t be able to do anything for you, you know… if we get to it.”

“If?” he asked and took her palm to his mouth. “We don’t know what this is, but it’s definitely headed in that direction.”

“I wouldn’t want to disappoint you. I’m being up front.”

“Let’s just keep doing what we’re doing. It’s worked out so far.”

“Except for the part where you lied to me.”

“I didn’t want to scare you and I didn’t know how or when to say it, to tell you.”

“We haven’t not known each other long,” she said. “Can we just promise no more secrets? No more lies.”

“You got it, baby.”

Ryder pulled the truck over outside her building and pulled on the brake. The quicker she could pack, the faster they’d get on the road. An hour wasn’t much time.

“You stay here,” she said, unclicking her seatbelt.

“That’s my order,” he said, catching her wrist. “Why do you want me staying here?”

“Because if you come in, I won’t get anything done.”

“I’ll keep my hands to myself,” he said. “I promise.”

“What about your mouth?”

“That I can’t promise,” he said but unclicked and opened his door. “Stay.”

Without giving her time to answer, he got out, rounded the vehicle, and opened her door. “You’re a gentleman on top of everything else?” she asked.

“It’s easier to be a gentleman when we’re in public.”

The moment the front door of her apartment closed behind them, he kissed the top of her head. “Get packed,” he said. “Then we’ll get busy.”

Her eye was drawn to that bulge in his jeans, now that she was aware of it, part of her was fascinated. It was like her birthday gift was right there in front of her but frustratingly wrapped and out of her reach.

“Who is this guy we’re meeting next week?” he asked.

It was a subject changer from what had been in her mind and her body language.

“I’ve been commissioned before,” she said. “But I’m not a huge fan of private projects.”

“Is that who all the men were? Darwin, Briggs, Spencer, and Elijah?”

“You remembered all those names,” she said to herself. “Yes. They’ve all shown interest, and I think they’re trying to outdo each other. I haven’t even decided if I’ll do it yet.”

Lacie headed into her bedroom to throw some things in a bag but left the bedroom door open to continue talking.

“Do you go to a lot of meetings with men like that?”

“Sometimes,” she called. “But I hate going alone, which is why I asked you to join me. Usually, I drag Sorcha along with me.”

“I’ll join you for all of them from now on.”

“Planning to never let me out of your sight,” she teased, throwing her toiletries to the bottom of her bag and piling clothes on top.

“I plan to be supportive,” he said. “Whatever you need.”

She took the bag to her bedroom door and dumped it at her feet. “What are we doing here, Ryder? You and me, what is it?”

“What do you want it to be?” he asked, putting down the snow-globe he’d just shaken.

“I don’t know,” she said. “This is new for me. I told you that.”

“Whatever this is it’s new for me too. s*x is easy, this is… different.”

“I suppose it’s probably moot anyway. If these guys are still at that place, we’ll all end up—”

“What?” he barked, marching from the center of her living room to face her in the doorway. “What do you think will happen?”

“Do you see my face?” she asked. “That pain in the back of your head came from somewhere. You’ve probably got a concussion, that’s what the gooey eyes are for.”

“We weren’t prepared. It was my fault. I was distracted. You will never be in that kind of danger again. Look at me, Dusty,” he said, taking her shoulder. “I promise you.”

“This isn’t about guilt, is it?”

“I’ve wanted you since the minute I saw you, I’m not going anywhere. This is important, Dusty. Do you trust me?”

“Why do you call me Dusty?”

He lifted her hands. “I saw the dust on your hands in Shep’s office.”

“It’s clay,” she said.

“I know that now. Do you work downstairs?”

Curiosity nipped her. “How do you know that?”

“I saw the trapdoor under your rug earlier.”

“It was closed,” she said, impressed by his keen eye. “You don’t miss a thing, do you?”

“I want to know everything about you,” he said. “I notice you.”

“That’s a good quality in your line of work,” she said. “How can I support you?”

“What?”

“If you want to support my work, how can I support yours?”

“We’ll get this case dealt with,” he said, skimming his fingers down her face. “Then worry about us.”

“Is there an us?”

“Oh yeah,” he said, resting his hands on her waist to guide her backwards.

Looping her arms around his neck, she hopped up when he lifted her from the floor. His mouth smothered hers, but he was careful about laying her down on her bed. Other things played round in her mind; things that should be dealt with because none of them could say how long the case would take.

The only thing Lacie could be sure of was that Sorcha needed her, she needed all of them. Whatever it took to support Sorcha, Lacie would get her through it. But it was unsettling, not knowing how this would all turn out. Sorcha wouldn’t like that either, though she’d never admit it. Sorcha was shiny happy… on the surface at least.

Ryder’s body was incredible. Her hands, of their own accord, shoved his tee-shirt up out of the way so her fingertips could dance over the ridges of his abdomen. She wanted more. On a mew, she turned her mouth away from his and tugged his shirt higher. The long fingers of his hands were flat on the bed at each side of her head in a half push up. When she whimpered again, her unspoken request was granted. He grabbed his tee-shirt at the back of his neck and pulled it off to toss it away.

Once it was gone, she sat up and whipped off her own top. The grin he’d worn over her request vanished when he realized her b*a was on show. When Ryder’s mouth opened, Lacie was sure he was about to drool into her cleavage. She’d never thought of her breasts as particularly magnificent, but no one would know that from Ryder’s expression. Except when his hand came toward her, it was her shoulder he touched.

“Your skin,” he muttered. “It’s like silk.”

Still lying on the bed, she expected his mouth to join hers, but his hand skimmed over her breast to her abdomen.

“Are you okay?” she whispered, taking her hands to his face when his desire cooled to torment.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there,” he said, tracing the red welts on her stomach.

“They’ll fade,” she said. “Bruises heal, Ryder.”

“I let you down.”

“You wouldn’t have been there at all if it wasn’t for me. I should apologize to you.”

His gaze sprang from her torso to her eyes. “Stay,” he said.

His hands stroked her belly, her hips, her waist, then came to settle cupping her breasts. His eyes remained fixed on hers.

“Where?”

“Here,” Ryder said. “Stay home, out of harm’s way. I’ll deal with this.”

“I can’t abandon Sorcha,” she said, sliding her own hands up his perpendicular torso. “You have incredible form.”

“I’ll look after Sorcha. I still don’t understand why this is so important, and without knowing why—”

“She’s pregnant,” Lacie said, scrutinizing the grooves and ridges her fingers were learning.

“What?”

“That’s in strict confidence,” she said. “No one can know I’ve told you, not even Sorcha. Her parents don’t even know.”

“And Bruce is…?

“Yeah,” Lacie said, sliding the leather of his belt from its buckle.

“Your friend sure can pick ‘em. I suppose that’s why she sent you to Shep in the first place.”

“He can’t know, you can’t tell him.”

“We’re not exactly bosom buddies,” he said, pinching her n*****s through the satin of her b*a. “Can I take this off?”

She whipped his belt from the loops on his jeans. “I’m not asking permission to undress you, am I?”

Arching up, she lifted her brows, daring him to do his worst, and of course he didn’t shy away from the challenge. His fingers forged forward until his palms covered her ribs, eventually his thumbs slid under the b*a catch. The release made her moan, even though he hadn’t touched her yet. Bliss was here, under him, all alone.

Shivering in anticipation of his hands, her eyes hadn’t opened. But it was her lips that got his attention. Extending her arms upward, she hung them around his neck. His hair tickled her forehead, sending the cascade of vibration through each nerve ending. Her n*****s were hard and sore, and the contact of his chest hair rasping over them made her squeak. He groaned; she took the chance to suck his lower lip.

When she released him, his tongue salved her top one, then he went on an excruciatingly slow stroll down her neck. His hands held her breasts, rolling, teasing her n*****s in preparation for his mouth. She couldn’t get closer. She needed to be closer. Forcing her body upward, her voice begged for more on the wisps of breath that escaped her lips.

“Ryder,” she begged, rocking herself against the perpetual ridge in his jeans.

With superior strength and weight, his hips pinned hers. He lifted his head to look at her. His fingertips slid up her ribs, under her arms, making her flinch; he enjoyed noting that she was ticklish. When their fingers locked together above her head, his eyes became darker, his palms held her in place. She had no chance of going anywhere, and she wouldn’t even if she could. His gaze gobbled up the feast of her body, her breasts free, b*a gone, on show for him.

“Ryder,” she said when he didn’t move.

“Shh,” he said, freeing one of her hands to palm one breast then the other. “You’re gorgeous. I want to remember this.”

“Remember what? We haven’t done anything yet.”

“Oh yes, we have,” Ryder said. “I want to remember everything about the first time I see you.”

“Okay,” she said, walking her fingers down his chest to the line of hair that snuck down into his jeans. “Can I see you?”

“We’re topless,” he grinned. “We’re doing this a little at a time.”

“Are we now?” she asked, rolling her head to see the nightstand clock. “We better get a move on. Time’s ticking away.”

“We have all the time in the world,” he said.

“Our friends will be here soon, and if we don’t get—”

“I’m not rushing this, when we’re intimate—”

“Everybody ready?”

Lacie hadn’t heard the front door open. Her living, kitchen area was the size of a postage stamp. With the bedroom door open, there would be a clear view from the front door Shep and Sorcha must now be entering.

She didn’t have to worry about decency. Ryder was off the bed in a flash, body-blocking her while swinging her bedroom door closed. Pushing up onto her elbow, she enjoyed the novelty of having such a perfect specimen of maleness topless, in her bedroom. A man who was enjoying her as much as she was him.

“I’m glad you didn’t have your jeans off,” she said.

“Wouldn’t have mattered,” he shrugged, hooking his thumbs into his belt loops.

“It would have to me,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to be the one closing the door and giving Shep an eyeful.”

Slowly, he shook his head. “Wouldn’t have happened. From here on in, no male gets to see what I’m looking at.”

“My breasts aren’t that great,” she said reluctantly leaving the bed to head for the wardrobe.

Pondering her outfit, Lacie didn’t have time to make a selection. His reflection joined hers, moving in close from behind. Propping his chin on her head, his hands crept around to cup her breasts.

He rolled her n*****s between his fingers. “I beg to differ,” he said.

Both examined the simple action of those long, tan fingers kneading her pale flesh then resting and holding her in such a tender way. While he remained engrossed, her eyes wouldn’t stay open. She pushed herself back into the column in his jeans that had become her favorite companion, but he moved his hips away.

“Don’t encourage me,” he said.

From the usual pant in his voice, she had a feeling he was encouraging himself.

Opening her eyes, she witnessed his hands all over her so slow, so tender… so tormenting.

“Come on, you two!” Sorcha’s voice called from through the wall. “Get your clothes on!”

Sorcha’s giggle was as loud as her voice. Lacie reluctantly left his hold to retrieve a short-sleeved smock top, which she pulled on.

“That’s it?” he asked.

She tied her hair on top of her head again. “What do you mean?”

“No b*a?” he asked, unable to take his eyes from her chest.

“I’ve got some packed. I don’t know where the other one went. Does it bother you?”

“Yes,” he groaned. “But only in the same way everything about you does.”

“I wasn’t wearing a b*a in the car when we… when you…”

“You take pleasure in tormenting me,” he said.

She smiled. “I don’t.”

Part of her did enjoy his torment just a little. It was an incredible power to wield with such a man. It couldn’t be common for him to be so easily distracted.

He hooked his arm around her and snagged his own tee-shirt from the bed as they headed to the bedroom door. Mentally, she checked everything she needed was packed. Ryder had packed without knowing that they were going somewhere. She couldn’t imagine why he would be so readily equipped. She feared it meant that situations like the one they’d been in weren’t unusual for him. He may get himself hurt with some regularity.

“Oh,” she said, ducking away from his arm when he opened the door to the living room an inch.

“What?” he asked, watching her skirt the bed to open the top drawer of the nightstand.

“Nothing,” she said. “Go on. I’m right behind you.”

He didn’t carry on, he waited for her. When she reached the bedroom door, he opened her hand to see what she’d retrieved from the drawer, then he groaned again.

“Sorry, but I take them to give myself a break.” Her birth control pills kept her regular and light. But she knew from the look in his eye just what they meant to him, and the tingling within her started again.

“We have guests,” she murmured, sliding the pills into Ryder’s back pocket.

Her bag was already in the living room where Shep and Sorcha were. Lacie didn’t want to reveal any more of their private life to Shep than was absolutely necessary. With a quick peck on a bounce upward, Lacie opened the door to join their guests. Apparently, they all had an adventure to get to.