More than Distance

14

I shut the door to the office and crossed my arms. “What was that last night?”

He looked up at me with a scowl. “What, when you took off and left me to deal with the fallout of our parents’ marriage by myself?”

“No, when you sent Ryan to get me.”

He gave a slight shrug. “I was drunk. I couldn’t have picked you up even if I wanted to.”

“But you didn’t want to.”

“Not really, no.” His eyes narrowed. “I can’t believe you just walked out during dinner.”

I unfolded my arms and sighed. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left you like that.”

“No s**t. We’re supposed to have each other’s back when it comes to this kind of stuff.” He slammed the desk drawer shut and stood up. “And what were you thinking going off by yourself to that beach? It was late and you shouldn’t have been there alone. Especially since your car was having problems.”

“I was fine. I’ve been to that beach a hundred times before.”

“Not alone.” He ran a hand along his shaved head. “It’s probably better Ryan picked you up and not me, ‘cause I would have let you have it. All I can say is, thank god Ryan got to you quickly before something happened.”

“Nothing would have happened! I just... I had to get away, okay? I needed to be alone. That was the only place that made me feel better.” My eyes welled up with tears thinking about dinner last night, replaying the moment when my parents said they were splitting up. I swiped them away with the back of my hand.

Daniel walked around the desk and gave me a big hug. “Hey, don’t cry, baby sister. Everything is going to be okay.”

“No it isn’t. Mom and Dad…”

“They’ll work it out. They’re just going through a rough patch.”

“Do you really believe that?”

He hesitated. “I have to.”

I nodded and wiped at my eyes, feeling silly for crying in front of my brother. He’d seen it before though and he always made me feel better. Even if we bickered sometimes and he made me crazy with his over-protectiveness, he was always there for me when I needed him.

Daniel wrapped an arm around me and led me out the door. “Come on, let’s figure out what’s wrong with your car.”

Together we headed back to my Mustang, but I stopped abruptly when I spotted Ryan pulling into the shop on his bike. What was he doing here? I’d planned to avoid seeing him again before I left for New York, but now every time I turned around he was there. Couldn’t he just leave me alone?

By the time Ryan had dropped me off in front of my apartment last night, every one of my nerve endings had been on fire from sitting behind him with my arms wrapped around his waist, feeling his broad shoulders and hard back against my chest, watching his strong arms handle the bike. I’d burned with both annoyance and desire, a confusing mix of emotions I wanted to extinguish as fast as possible.

Now he was here and every inch of me flared with heat at the sight of him in his black leather motorcycle gear. It was like the universe was taunting me with something I’d once wanted badly but couldn’t have. Something I’d tried to forget, but apparently my body still craved as much as ever.

How dare he come back into my life after six years of silence? How. Dare. He.

“Hey, man,” Daniel said. “Didn’t know you were coming by. You here to work on Carla’s Mustang?”

“I actually came by to clean the chain on my bike and change the oil.” Ryan began pulling off his motorcycle gloves. “But I’m happy to help if Carla needs me.”

“I don’t want your help.” My voice came out steelier than I intended, and Daniel glanced back and forth between the two of us. He didn’t know about what happened six years ago or how uncomfortable it was for me to be in Ryan’s presence now.

“My bike could use an oil change too.” Daniel clasped Ryan on the shoulder with a grin. “The three of us here, just like old times, eh?”

“Yeah, great,” I muttered.

I popped the hood on the Mustang and leaned over it, examining the engine compartment while the two guys talked about their bikes. Like I’d suspected, the timing chain in my car had snapped and needed to be replaced. Luckily that was an easy fix and the car would be running smoothly again in a few hours.

I didn’t say a word to Ryan while we worked, but it was impossible not to look at him. My eyes were thirsty for glimpses of him, as if I’d been in a visual drought until he’d arrived back in my life. Today he wore a soft black t-shirt that hugged his toned frame, and when he reached up to grab something off a top shelf, it slid up just enough to give me a peek of his abs and the hint of his hips disappearing into his jeans. I imagined resting my hands there and how I’d be torn between sliding my fingers higher or lower.

His eyes cut to mine, like he could feel my gaze on him. He scowled and I looked away. The daydream evaporated.

My phone started ringing in my purse and I’d never been more glad for a distraction. I fished it out and saw Giselle Roberts’ name flash on the screen.

I stepped outside the garage area and onto the sidewalk, away from the noise of the shop. “Hello?”

“Hey, Carla. How are you doing?”

“I’m good,” I said, even though I’d been anything but good in the past week. But I wasn’t about to unload all my drama on my future boss. “How are you?”