Her cheeks redden as she sheepishly replies, “Yeah?”
“How are you feeling?”
“Good. It’s a bit tender and sore, but I’ll survive. I think I may have a bruise on my hip from earlier, but there isn’t much I can do about that now.”
Ryker snarls beside her and immediately begins to lift her shirt trying to locate the bruise. When he finds it on her right hip partly covered by her jeans, he tugs the shirt back down while cursing under his breath.
“I’m okay,” she says as she rests her hand on his arm instantly soothing him.
The rest of the journey back to Carson is quiet, and when they approach Main Street, Norah finds it odd that the streets are deserted. Of course with the storm raging outside everyone is staying indoors. But it’s bizarre none-the-less.
They have driven past Ryker and Jameson’s neighborhood needing to stop by his sister’s pharmacy to pick up some more first aid supplies. They don’t have to wait long to have Jameson rush inside and exit just as quickly. But Norah is antsy. She wants to rid herself of her clothes, take a hot shower, and eat food. Maybe not in that order.
The thought of food has her stomach rumbling loudly enough that the other passengers in the vehicle turn around.
“Sorry.” Norah covers her stomach with her hands and bites her lips as she glances out the window.
From his seat, Jameson turns around and hands her a bottle of water and a bag of beef jerky.
“I thought this may be better than nothing,” he says as he hands them over and she returns his smile at the offered snack.
“Thank you.”
As they pull into the gated driveway, she’s surprised to find a corral of cars parked along the circular section wrapping around a group of hedges in the center. Norah doesn’t need to ask why they’re here; she knows that they want to check on their brothers and sons. So she’s surprised when the group descends on her the moment she steps from the SUV.
A thousand questions start flinging around her.
“Is she okay?”
“What happened?”
“Did they find out who it is?”
“Why is there no food in the house?”
The list goes on and on as she stands frozen just outside the open car door.
“Guys,” Ryker shouts causing everyone to stop mid-sentence. “While I’m sure that Norah appreciates everyone’s concern I think she’d rather get inside and rest.”
“I’m still hungry,” she whispers under her breath, and Sydney’s ears perk up. His baker sister ready to come to the food-rescue.
“Well, Dylan, can you whip something up with whatever you can find in Ryker’s fridge? It’s pretty bare,” Sydney suggests.
“I just flew for over half the day and tackled a would-be kidnapper. And you want me to cook?” Dylan asks with astonishment.
“Well, yes,” Sydney says with the prettiest set of doe eyes Norah has ever seen.
“God damn,” Dylan says under his breath as he marches up the front steps and into the house. Sydney turns around with victory written on her features, and Norah cracks a returning grin.
Instead of heading toward the kitchen with everyone else Ryker guides Norah up the steps toward his bedroom. Once inside he locks the door and practically tosses her onto the bed. Being mindful of her he crawls on top of her body and weaves his hand in her hair, tilting her head upward.
“Fuck, I need you,” he reveals as he nips at her bottom lip.
“I’m yours,” she replies as she returns his heated kiss.
They lie like this, kissing each other with the same passion until his erection begins pressing against her thigh. Her body heats, her breasts ache, and wetness pools in her panties. Norah bets if Ryker were to touch her down there he would be amazed at how soaked she is.
It’s hard to believe that only yesterday she was a twenty-three-year-old virgin and now she’s had sex with one of the most famous rock stars on the planet.
A slow sexy smile grows on Ryker’s face as he looks at her, pinning her with his steely gaze.
“I’m hungry,” he utters as he licks his lips, that dangerous tongue peeks out and making an appearance.
“We can go downstairs,” Norah offers as she tries to sit up, but he uses the weight of his hips to pin her in place.
“Not hungry for food.”
At first, she doesn’t understand but as he slides down her body tugging her pants and underwear along with his grip her recognition grows. With her pants scrunched at her ankles, he moves her feet onto the bed, bending her legs with her knees in the air. Ryker spreads them apart and gazes at her dripping pussy. Something about Ryker’s gaze can do that to a girl.
He wastes no time skimming his fingers through her center, seducing her with each pass as he gently glides the tip of a finger in her slit and coating her folds in her feminine juice.
“Fuck, I love how wet you get for me.” Ryker stares at her sex completely mesmerized. As if he sees his favorite toy on display. He brings his fingers to his mouth and groans as he tastes her flavor and Norah’s mouth runs dry as she watches the look of ecstasy on his face.
“I know we need to go downstairs, but I really need to have you on my tongue right now.”
Ryker doesn’t wait, he bends forward and slides his tongue up her slit and then begins circling her clit. Norah’s hips jerk off the bed, and he has to use his arm to pin her down.
He laps at her wetness spilling from her body and with his thumb circling around her bundle of nerves she can feel the tightness building in her core. Norah’s orgasm comes quick and before she can warn him her hand reaches out and grips his hair as her body stills below him.
“I want to make you come all the time,” he states after he wipes his mouth on her thigh. “It’s one of the most amazing things I’ve ever seen. Almost as lovely as the blush on your cheeks,” he points out only making her blush more.
She brings her hands up to her cheeks, but he pulls them back just as quickly.
“I fucking love your blush. Don’t cover it up.
“Now, I’m going to go back downstairs and hang out with my family. You, my sweet girl, are going to take a shower and get comfortable. You come down and eat, and I’ll get you something for the pain. The numbing solution is probably starting to wear off.”
He’s right, she can feel the ache and burn behind her ear starting to intensify.
“Okay. I won’t take long.”
“You better not or else I’m going to have to come join you again.”
She takes a quick shower and tosses on a pair of leggings and a T-shirt because frankly she’s had a rough day and deserves a little bit of comfort. Down in the kitchen, the voices amplify with each step she takes until the bustle is loud enough to leave a ringing in her ears.
As she steps into the kitchen, she’s surprised to find such a large mass of people gathering around the living room and kitchen, their hands filled with plates piled high. Norah looks over at the counter and her mouth waters at the taco bar someone has set up.
“Hey, princess. Feeling better?” Ryker asks as he comes to stand beside her.
“Yeah. I thought Sydney said there was nothing to eat in the house.”
“Well, it’s amazing what a chef can come up with when he’s given tortilla shells, beans, and five pounds of ground beef.”
“It smells delicious,” she says as she inhales the hearty scent.
“Take a seat. I’ll fill you up a plate.”
“Thanks,” she says smiling up at him, and she can clearly see the feelings he has for her in his eyes. And it’s almost overwhelming, but she knows if she could see her own face that the same feelings are reflected back.
She takes a seat in the middle of Ryker and Jameson’s sisters as they talk about Cassidy’s baby and as Ryker sets the plate in front of her she looks up into the sad eyes of Sydney from across the way. She had suspected that she and her husband Dylan had been trying to conceive but from what Norah can gather those
attempts haven’t been successful. Unfortunately, all of the siblings are so blissfully happy she wonders if they even notice how depressed and alone their sister feels.
Norah tries not to let the thought fester as she pictures the way Ryker had broken through her innocence without a barrier to protect him. She is doubtful that she could be pregnant, but she supposes the chance is always there.
What would it feel like to carry Ryker’s child? Not just the child of a famous musician but one brought into a home full of love. What would her child grow up to become? Who would he or she look like? Would he have soft hazel eyes like Ryker? Would she inherit the blonde locks that run in the female Connelly family?
Norah feels a nudge at her shoulder, and she turns her attention to Nikki and shakes her head free from those careless thoughts. In the back of her mind, she is certain that Ryker will grow tired of her soon. She’s just something new, nothing special or extraordinary.
Trying to appear as if she wasn’t thinking about babies with her boyfriend-of-sorts Norah takes a hefty bite of her taco. A bit of excess juice from the meat dribbles down from her mouth toward the end of her chin and thankfully Nikki hands her a napkin.
“So,” Nikki asks, the petite woman having a personality larger than life and commanding attention wherever she may go.
Norah remembers when Nikki first moved to Carson, she had been at the market with Jameson to pick up some things for a bonfire and in walked this gorgeous blonde that barely reached Norah’s shoulders. Not that the men cared. Nikki carried herself with such grace and confidence it was hard not to follow her every step with your gaze. Jameson had scurried off like the rest of the men when Nikki had approached the aisle Norah was standing in. Norah had watched as the blonde bombshell grabbed a box of Marshmallow cereal, the same box of cereal Norah had in her hand to eat in the morning, and she smiled. A box of cereal had formed their friendship, not that they got to speak very often. Norah tended to be busy with school, and Nikki has her growing family.
Nikki continues to stare at Norah waiting for her to elaborate but Norah isn’t quite sure what to elaborate on.
“So . . . what?”
“So, how are you doing? And how long has this thing with Ryker been going on?”
Norah tries to brush off her friend by taking another bite of her taco until she feels five pairs of eyes honed in on her. She places the taco back on the plate and reaches for her glass of water to take a sip.
“Which do you want to know first?”
“Ryker,” they all nod in unison. But then Cassidy quickly tacks on, “But leave out the extra stuff. That’s my brother, and I don’t want to think about you two having sex.”
“You have three brothers. How else do you think the babies are being made?” Norah asks sarcastically.
“Oh, I know it happens. I just would rather not have nightmares tonight, that’s all. Please continue,” Cassidy replies, waving her hand in continuous gesture.
“Well, strangely enough not until the wedding, which by the way Everleigh I am so sorry I crashed. I didn’t have a choice.” Everleigh shrugs her off, and Norah continues. “Anyway, I’ve known about him for years Jameson has been my best friend since college, and he spoke of his brother all the time. They are literally two halves of a whole. I always felt as if I knew him, knew what he liked and didn’t like, what things he enjoyed doing when he wasn’t traveling, but we never seemed to cross paths.
“I knew he was gorgeous not just because I’ve seen him on magazines or on television, but because your entire freaking family is like a walking runway show. Everyone in this family is stunning.
“But when he followed Jameson and me outside on Saturday I just . . . he looked at me, and I fell. I already knew a lot about him but when he touched my hand it was like everything shifted into place and all of those years Jameson had spent carrying on about his brother became years that I spent learning Ryker myself.
“It’s crazy to explain, and it makes no sense, but I fell, and I fell hard, and I think he did too.”
Norah hasn’t been making eye contact with the group instead she has been staring out the window overlooking the backyard and letting every vision pass before her eyes as if she is an outsider looking in. Every moment with Jameson as she hung on his every word concerning his brother and the way she had blushed the first moment she laid eyes on Ryker in person. Telling the girls how she feels allows her to relive every moment over again and Norah enjoys every second of it.
She finally turns her attention back to the group and finds them looking at her with stars in their eyes.
“That’s how it happened for us too. That insta-love crap that everyone claims doesn’t exist but you fight it tooth and nail until the pressure becomes too much,” Everleigh points out and Avery and Sydney nod along with her.
“Not me,” Nikki says. “I wanted Austin from day one, I just needed to knock some sense into him.”
“And you know about Harlan and me. Pretty sure we fell in love that first night together. Probably one of the scariest things I ever did was walk away thinking I’d never have to face him again,” Cassidy points out.
“Pretty sure I’ve been in love with Ryker since Jameson started telling me all about him and he brought me here that first time.”
“How do you think Jameson is dealing with all of this? I would have sworn you two would have ended up together,” Avery asks as she places her hand gently on her stomach and Norah has to wonder if Avery and her husband Logan are expecting again.
“He hasn’t said much. I know that he loves his brother, and he loves me as a friend, but I can’t imagine he had expected either of us to fall for each other. I’m worried that this new relationship has damaged our friendship. He always used to go on about how his brother must be surrounded by a harem of women, but I don’t think that’s the case and now that I know Ryker better it actually kind of bothers me that Jameson would say those things about his twin. I don’t know, I’m confused,” Norah points out.
Nikki turns completely in her chair to face Norah, and a solemn look etches onto her face.
“Now the real question,” she says as she tucks a loose strand of blonde hair behind her ear. “What happens if you’re forced to chose? On the one hand, you have your best friend who is the sole reason that you met Ryker at all and on the other, you have a man you’ve been in love with for less than a week.”
“Wow, I hadn’t actually thought of that.” Norah’s head spins as she considers how difficult the situation may be for the brothers. Could she choose between the two? Should she even have to? “I hope that a situation where I’m forced to choose doesn’t come to pass. I love them both, and I’d hate to be a wedge in their relationship. But I think if I had to choose I’d follow my heart. And if something ever happened between Ryker and me, I would hope that Jameson and I would be able to maintain a friendship.”
Norah weighs her words carefully and tries to explain it the best way she knows how. She would choose Ryker. She would have to; her heart wouldn’t allow her to make any other decision. Notoriously she has always thought out her every action carefully, using a scientific method of sorts to establish her actions and choices. For once she feels that her heart deserves the chance to make a lifelong decision.
“I would do the same, no doubt. But remember this situation is tricky. Because even though you would hope to keep a relationship with Jameson, Ryker is still his twin brother. And blood is always thicker than water,” Nikki admits.
Norah lets her friend’s words sink in and level out in her mind as she considers the choices. Taking a moment, she glances over to the living room where Ryker and Jameson sit on opposing ends of the couch, Harlan sitting between them. They both look over at her and smile; the twins mirroring each other, looking so similar in that moment it scares Norah. She loves them both but in equally different ways and isn’t that the crux of her problem.
*
RYKER LOOKS OVER AT the table of women but his vision is tunnele
d by Norah, she is all he can see amidst his siblings. She has a look on her face, a dreamy look that he can’t decipher but as Nikki starts to speak with her Ryker realizes that it’s not good news. Nikki turns completely in her chair to face Norah and then Norah’s face drops. He has never seen a look of torment cross someone’s face before. Not like this. Not like he would tear his own heart out to make her smile again.
She turns her attention toward him, and he smiles trying to reassure her but then she looks away again quickly, her face never changing.
“Dude, what did you guys do?” Harlan asks from beside him as he shovels another taco into his mouth.
“We didn’t do anything. We’ve just been sitting here.” Jameson points out, and Ryker nods.
“Bullshit. That girl right there is being pulled in two different directions and it’s all y’all’s fault.”
“Our fault? We don’t even know what we did,” Ryker states as he meets Jameson’s eyes narrowed in his direction.
“Sure ya do. You’re in love with her, that’s clear as day. But your brother here feels like you’re encroaching on his territory. We can all feel it, so can Norah. Don’t make her choose or you’ll both regret it. You’re brothers work your shit out.”
“What shit?” Ryker asks again completely dumbfounded. He pounds his fist against his thigh as he rests back against the couch.
Out of the corner of his eye he watches as Jameson’s eyes crinkle in the corners, a look of determination on his face. His brother stands from the couch and struts his way over to the table. Ryker can already see what’s going to happen before it takes place.
Jameson stands beside Norah’s chair and says her name, beckoning her to come to him. He places both of his hands on her face and bends forward, sealing his lips with a surprised Norah.
“What the fuck?” Harlan yells from his seat effectively saying the words that are stuck in Ryker’s throat. He’s paralyzed as he watches his brother, his best friend; kiss the woman he’s fallen for. Ryker waits to see Norah’s reaction, and thankfully she looks just as stunned as Ryker feels. Her eyes never close, they stare at her best friend as he destroys his brother.
Coming Unplugged Page 12