This Time Around (Maybe) (17 page)

That gets Ryan’s attention because he turns from me to scowl at his sister. Reid stands up, and motions Xand
er to join him outside. Well, shit. Ryan shifts to move and I try to distract him with a wet, hard kiss. It works for a few moments but he pulls away, giving me a look that says, ‘I know exactly what you’re trying to do.’ He stands with me in his arms, and then gently deposits me onto the chair, then goes out to follow Reid and Xander. Summer moves closer to me, eyes wide, while Sephie looks bored, and a little pissed off.

“He’ll be fine,” Dash says. “
Xander’s safe because Ryan and Reid won’t touch him because of Summer. They won’t want her upset.”

“They can still warn him away,”
Summer adds.

“They can try,”
Sephie says, putting her drink down on the table. “Xander’s pretty badass, come on.”

Summer and I share a look. Xander is badass, and anyone would be stupid to mess with him, but Reid and Ryan are both trained fighters.
I wonder if anyone mentioned that to their sister. About fifteen minutes pass before they all return. I check them all over for any signs of a fight, but there is nothing. Good. Xander looks slightly angry, whilst Reid and Ryan wear identical scowls. Men!

“Shall we call it a night?” I ask
Summer. “I think it’s time for bed.”

“Sounds good,” she says, standing up and grabbing her bag. “Dash do you want a ride home?”

“Yep,” Dash replies, downing his drink and standing. Reid and Ryan didn’t drink, so they could both drive. My gaze clashes with Ryan, green on blue, and I know that I have my own battle on my hands.

Tonight
—my mission is to resist my husband.

*****

My hands fist on the sheets and my head tilts back in pleasure. Ryan kept his part of the deal and then some, that’s for damn sure.

“I think I’m the luckiest woman alive,” I blurt out, sighing contently.
“That was amazing.”

“Now are you going to make me the luckiest man alive?” comes a raspy voice. Ryan leans up, wiping his mouth with his hands, leaning over me. He’s still fully dressed, while I’
m completely bare, yet I don’t feel any vulnerability at all. If anything, I feel beautiful and powerful, because he makes me feel that way.

“You know the rules…”

“You can’t be serious,” he growls. He leans down and sucks one of my nipples into his mouth, and I know then that I’m going to have to give in. For my sake, not his. He pulls back and undresses himself, quicker than I’ve ever seen him do so. He lies on top of me, and looks up at me, a question in his eyes.

“Fine,” I snap, reaching down to position him.

Ryan chuckles, making me scowl into the dim light.

“I win,” he says, slamming home.

Bastard.

*****

“What happened with Xander last night?” I ask as we’re having breakfast. I tried to make bacon and eggs. I say try because the bacon came out great but the eggs are a little runny, and not that tasty. Ryan eats them anyway, not once complaining. He’s probably just happy to get fed.

“Nothing
. We just had a little chat,” he says, emphasising the word chat.

I roll my eyes. “She’s a grown
-ass woman.”

He lifts his head to look at me. “Yes
, she is, and she can make her own decisions. We haven’t been there for her, her whole life. We can’t exactly walk in and take over. As much as we want to,” he mutters the last part.

I look down to hide my smile. “Aren’t you mature?” I tease.

He takes a bite of toast and chews then swallows. “Hey, I can control myself.”

I raise an eyebrow in disagreement.

“Maybe not when it comes to you,” he amends, standing up and taking his plate to the sink. “Thank you for breakfast. It was good,” he lies.

“Was it?” I ask dryly, forking my eggs.

He walks past me and kisses me on the head. “It was, because you made it.”

“What’s your plans for the day?”

“Going to the gym, and then I have a business meeting. After, I’ll be at the bar.”

“Business meeting?” I ask.

“Yeah, looking at my options,” he says vaguely, banding an arm around my waist and giving me a kiss. “I’ll see you in the evening.”

“Bye,” I reply, leaning in for another kiss, this one deeper. He grabs his gym bag and walks out. I tidy up his apartment—I don’t know why I keep my place when I practically live here anyway.
Am I keeping it as a security net? A back-up plan? I frown, wondering if some part of me is questioning whether this will work out. Am I just waiting for something to go wrong? I don’t want to be like that, but I suppose I need to be realistic. At some point, I’m going to need to take that leap and move in with him. I know he is waiting for me to decide when I’m ready. He’s even spoken of buying a house for us, for when we want to start a family. While I want children, I’m not exactly ready for one just yet. I know that Ryan will be an amazing father when the time comes, because I’ve seen him with River. He’s amazing—attentive and patient.

I lock up and head to my apartment, unlocking the door and walking in. Isis is nowhere to be found
; she must be at work or uni. I call up my mum and chat with her for a while, and then I clean up my apartment. I’m about to relax and watch some TV when Summer calls asking if I want to hang out with her. Sure beats sitting around here, so I agree.

“Where are we going?” I ask as we get into her car.

“Xander’s house,” she says, reversing the car. “I thought we could hang out there. Is that cool?”

“Yeah, who’s there?” I ask, staring out the window.

“Just Xander. My dad might drop in at some point.”

“No classes today?” I ask.

“No, I’m on break now. So happy because exams were stressing me out,” she says, puffing out a breath.

“I can imagine.”

“So Ryan said you want to own your own dance studio one day?”

I turn to look at her. “Yes, that’s my dream.” I’ve wanted to own my own studio since as long as I can remember. I’ve been saving most of my money, hoping that one day I can make my dream a reality.

Summer gives me a sly smile. “I haven’t seen you dance yet. Clubbing doesn’t count.”

I laugh softly. “You can drop by any time and see me in action.”

“I might take you up on that,” she replies. “I love this song,” she says, turning the volume up. It’s some ‘Gangsta’ song that Reid told me drives him insane, because she plays it on repeat. Over and over again. I think it’s cute. We pull into Xander’s place and spend the day watching movies and eating junk food.

I learn two things.

Xander is as sweet as he is sexy. And he definitely wants Sephie.

This ought to be interesting.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Ryan

I look around the vast space, happy with what I see. This is the fifth building I’ve seen today, and they definitely saved the best for last. This is the perfect location. I head home and have a quick shower before I head to Knox Tavern. Tag is at the bar, Jade is standing next to him talking. He’s nodding at whatever she’s chatting about, but he looks like his mind is elsewhere. There are about three people sitting at the bar, and I do a double take when I see one that I recognise. I’ve only seen a photo of him once, when I was annoying Summer and snooping through her shit. I say a quick hello to Tag and Jade, and then stand in front of him. He looks a little bit different than the photo, older and muscular. He still has the same shaggy dark hair, blue eyes and his eyebrow pierced.

“I wouldn’t be here if I were you,” I say, smiling to soften my words.

He bobs his head, his lip curling. “I wanted to say hello to Summer.”

I lean on the bar. “Probably not a good idea.”

“Are you her man?” he asks, his eyes searching mine. I have to give him credit for meeting my stare head on.

“No. I’m the nice twin,” I reply, and I hear Tag chuckle behind me.

Summer’s ex-boyfriend, Quinn, lifts his beer to his mouth, his eyes giving away nothing.

“Does Summer know you’re here?” I ask, waving hello as a regular walks in.
“Or are you surprising her?”

“Just dropped in to say hello. I was in the area.”

Yeah, I bet he was. “How did you know she worked here?”

“She mentioned it once or twice.” I bet Reid doesn’t know they still keep in touch, if that’s the case.
I leave Quinn and head into the back. Tag follows me, a curious look on his face.

“Who’s the pretty boy?” he asks.

“Summer’s ex.”

He laughs. “Reid is going to love this.”

I scoff, “You have no idea.”

“How did it go today?” he asks, sitting down in my chair.

I smile. “Found the perfect place.”

“She’s going to lo
ve it.”

“I know,” I brag.

Tag runs his hand over his bald head, and stands up. He heads to the door, but before he leaves, he turns around and says, “By the way some girl asked for you today.”

“Who?” I ask, cocking my head to the side.

He shrugs. “Blonde.”

“No idea, probably my past trying to bite me in the ass,” I mutter under my breath.

*****

The lights are all out when I get home, except for the lamp in the bedroom. I rub my eyes, tired after a long day, and look to the middle of the be
d, where Taiya is fast asleep on her stomach. The sheet pools just above her ass, the sexy dimples on her lower back showing where her shirt has ridden up. Her curls fan the pillow—fuck, she’s beautiful, even when she’s sleeping. After a long shower, I slide in next to her completely bare. I push her hair to the side, baring her delicate neck. I place a gentle kiss on her jaw, breathing in her scent.

“Ryan?” she says softly, her voice thick.

“I’m here beautiful,” I whisper back, banding my arms around her waist and pulling her into me.

She sighs
, “Love you.”

“Love you
, too,” I reply, closing my eyes and falling asleep with a smile on my lips.

*****

I pull off her blindfold, and watch as her wide green eyes take in her surroundings.

“
Wha—what?” she stutters, turning in a full circle.

“Do you like it?” I ask, unable to stop the smile on my face. “It’s yours.”

“What do you mean?” she asks, bemused.

“Your dance studio. Your dream,” I tell her, hoping she envisions it just the way I have.
Taiya has told me in detail over the years, just how she wanted her studio to be. The mirrors, the flooring, the changing rooms, everything. I can only hope that this is what she wants, that this will make her happy.

She turns to me, her eyes wide and her mouth slightly open. “You bought me my dream dance studio?”

My heart beats faster. “Yes, I mean, it needs some work, but−”

“This is mine?” she says, cutting me off, a look of awe on her face.

“Before you start with the speech about how you can’t accept it, yes, it’s all yours. It’s in your name, to do with as you please. You’re my wife and I live to see you happy, so yes. I hope you like it.”

“Like it? Are you kidding me?” she asks, jumping into my arms and kissing me.

“Thank you.” Kiss. “So much.” Kiss “It’s perfect.” Kiss. “Love you.”

“You’re welcome,” I say softly, our eyes connecting. No words are really needed, because this one look says it all. “There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to make you happy.” I tell her honestly, not caring what I sound like, not caring how many times I tell her, or show her how I feel. Because I
know
what it’s like not to have her in my life. I know firsthand that everything is better with her around. Everything tastes better, feels better. The grass sure as hell isn’t greener on the other side, and I’m never going to take this woman for granted.

Ever.

“Where are we going?” she asks, her eyes still glazed in surprise and excitement.

I take her hand in mine, our fingers intertwining. “I thought we could celebrate a little.”

She looks up at me, and the expression of happiness on her face makes me want to take her right now, on the floorboards of the soon-to-be studio. When she raises an eyebrow at me in challenge, I know that she’s got the same thing on her mind as I do.

“Are you sure?” I rasp, already looking around for the best spot. “It’s going to be hard and fast.”

“Just how I like it,” she purrs, already unbuttoning her jeans.

I smirk. “Someone’s eager.”

“And wet,” she adds, taking a step back from me. “But first you have to catch me.”

It looks like she wants to play. I take a step towards her, and she retreats once more. Without warning, I run after her, lift her up and pin her against a wall.

“You asked for it,” I say hoarsely, pulling off her top and pulling her bra down. “So beautiful.”