Ray of Light

by E. L. Todd

  Ryker was a slow eater. He switched from sipping coffee to eating a few bites of his meal. He was quiet, staring at me most of the time. “Safari was cool with you staying with me?”

  “He’s jealous.”

  “Poor guy.”

  “I’ll make it up to him when I get home. Maybe take him on a walk or something.” I finished eating and felt my stomach extend with all the food I shoveled inside it. “Man, I was starving.”

  “Skipped a few meals?”

  “I hadn’t eaten anything since lunch yesterday.”

  His eyes darkened. “I thought you had dinner with Zeke.”

  “I did but we didn’t do much eating.”

  Now he looked psycho.

  I realized how that sounded. “I mean, we were talking a lot, so I didn’t get a chance to eat all of my meal.”

  The smoke cleared. “What were you guys talking about in so much detail?”

  “Well, I told him I was seeing you.”

  “And?”

  “And what?”

  “What did he say to that?” Ryker abandoned his coffee and food altogether, focusing his attention directly on me.

  “Nothing, really.” What was he supposed to say? “I told him that it’d been kind of going on for a few weeks, and he didn’t seem surprised. He warned me you were a bit of a player, but he also said I could handle myself.” The conversation was pretty ordinary.

  He nodded slightly, like he was satisfied with that response.

  “Zeke and I tell each other everything. I know about all of his lovers, and he knows about mine. It was nice to finally get it off my chest.”

  “Do you go into detail about it?”

  “Usually.”

  “Hmm…”

  “What?”

  “I don’t have a girl friend like that. I don’t tell anyone about my personal life.”

  “Really?” That sounded terrible. “That’s so sad.”

  “Sad?” he asked. “Why?”

  “You don’t share your life with someone else? Tell them about the people in your life? How things are going?”

  “Well, I have friends,” he said. “I just don’t tell them what I do in the privacy of my bedroom. Let alone a woman.”

  “I like it,” I said. “I like being that close to someone.”

  He rested his elbows on the table. “I’m assuming Rex knows?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Did he shit a rainbow?”

  “No.” I wasn’t sure if I should tell him everything Rex said. It might put him off a bit.

  Ryker read it in my eyes. “He wasn’t happy, huh?”

  “Uh…I wouldn’t say that.”

  “He was pissed?”

  “No…he just said I should be careful. He likes you as a friend and a person. He says you’re loyal and fun to be around. But he said you weren’t exactly the kind of guy he wants with his sister. He told me you were bad news and I shouldn’t tread into this with ignorance.”

  “That’s not so bad.”

  “I told them you were different with me.” I watched his face for a reaction. I wanted to see the agreement there, to know I was right.

  He answered. “I am.”

  That’s all I wanted.

  The tab arrived, and Ryker quickly shoved cash inside.

  “Let’s split it.”

  “No.” He snatched the tab away and placed it on the other side of the table so I couldn’t reach it.

  “Why?”

  “You’re my date. I pay for you.”

  “You think this is a date?” We were at a cheap diner on a Sunday morning. I hadn’t showered and my makeup was gone. My hair was all over the place and it refused to be tamed. This was a weird form of the infamous walk of shame.

  “Kinda.”

  I didn’t argue because it wouldn’t get me anywhere. I quickly learned that Ryker was a bit stubborn. We left the diner then walked outside. Instead of crossing the street to his apartment, I stayed on the pavement.

  He stopped and looked at me, unsure what I was doing.

  “Well, I should head home. Last night was fun.”

  His eyes became hooded. He regarded me with obvious confusion. “What makes you think you’re going anywhere?”

  “Well, it’s Sunday. My friends usually come over and we watch football, make lunch, and play board games.”

  “Every Sunday?” he asked incredulously.

  “Pretty much.”

  He put his hands in his pockets.

  “You’re welcome to come if you want—”

  “I’d love to.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me across the street with him. “Just let me shower and we’ll go.”

  “Okay.”

  We entered his apartment, but Ryker didn’t head for the shower. Instead, he grabbed my face and kissed me. He guided me into the bedroom, his entire body consuming mine.

  The second he touched me, I melted. I loved those kisses. Now that I was full and had an empty bladder, I was ready to go. My fingers dug into his hair, and I breathed into his mouth, lost in him.

  We undressed then moved back to the bed. Ryker positioned me on my hands and knees and came up behind me. He kissed my spine from my ass to the back of my neck. “I’ve wanted to take you like this since the moment I saw you.” He grabbed a fistful of hair and yanked my head back slightly, exposing my mouth to him. Then he kissed me hard before he grabbed a condom from his drawer and rolled it on.

  He entered me quickly, stretching me at the same time. Last time he was gentle, but now he just wanted me. I loved the fullness and the way his chest felt against my back. He kissed my shoulder as he moved inside me. Then he pressed his face against my cheek, breathing hard. Like two wild animals, we moved together and gave in to the carnal passion of desire.

  “Beautiful.” He hooked one arm across my chest and gripped my shoulder, holding on to me as he rocked into me. “Look at me.”

  I looked over my shoulder and watched him slam into me with everything he had. He stopped thrusting for a moment and gave me a slow kiss that belied the intensity of the rendezvous. It was soft and full of affection. His tongue moved with mine, giving me intimacy on a new level. He brushed his nose against mine before he pulled away and returned his motion in full force.

  ***

  Before I reached for the doorknob of my apartment, Ryker pushed me into the wall and pinned me there. Our fingers interlocked as they dug into the wall. He looked down at me, his eyes focused on my lips. “I better sneak in a few.”

  “Sounds like a good idea.”

  He gave me a half smile before he leaned in and kissed me gently. His lips were always addictive, like the best cocaine the world had ever seen. It wasn’t just his mouth but the way he used it. He kissed me like he’d fallen hard and deeply in love. I gave in to that fantasy every chance I got.

  He pulled away reluctantly when ten minutes had come and gone. “Maybe that wasn’t the best idea.” He pressed against me, showing off his hard dick through his jeans.

  “I can help you get rid of it.”

  He gave me that same look I always got. The fire burned in his eyes and he became an otherworldly creature—desperate for one thing.

  “I can just turn around…” I turned and gave him my ass. “And you can give it to me just like that.” I looked at him over my shoulder, biting my bottom lip.

  He took a painful breath, his shoulders tensing.

  I wasn’t being serious, but it was fun to tease him. The longer I watched his face darken, the less of a joke it became. Now I really did want to drop my pants and feel him fuck me right outside the apartment.

  He moved closer to me, his face brushing against mine and his hand gliding over my ass. “If you can be quiet.”

  He called my bluff, but now I didn’t think I should call his.

  “I think I hear something.” Rex’s voice came from inside the apartment.

  Ryker immediately stepped back and adjusted his jeans.

  I straightened up an
d tried to act natural, like Ryker and I were just talking about the weather or the Space Needle.

  Rex opened the door. “What the hell are you doing?”

  “Talking,” I snapped. “What are you doing?”

  “Wondering why quiet voices are coming from outside my apartment.”

  “Maybe they were ghosts.”

  Rex actually believed in ghosts, so it was fun to tease him. “Okay, not funny.” He stepped away so we could come inside.

  I walked inside and felt Ryker grab my hand.

  “None of us felt like cooking, so we ordered pizza,” Jessie said from her seat at the table.

  “She’s full of it,” Kayden said. “None of us know how to cook.”

  I rolled my eyes and turned to Ryker. “Would you like a beer?”

  “Sure. Whatever you got.”

  I opened the fridge and handed him a bottle. I grabbed one for myself. It was surprisingly normal considering everyone warned me Ryker was bad news. But it felt like nothing had changed.

  Jessie waved me over. “Guess who came in yesterday?”

  “Who?” I went to the area between Jessie and Kayden.

  “That one cunt I told you about,” Jessie said. “She actually tried to make another appointment with me.”

  “Did you take her?”

  “Uh, no.” Jessie rolled her eyes. “She didn’t appreciate nice hair when she had it. That ship has sailed.”

  Rex’s voice came into my ear. “You fuck with my sister, I will fucking destroy you…”

  The second I turned my back, Rex was at it. “Hold on, guys…” I headed into the kitchen and found Ryker cornered by Rex.

  “You’re my friend and you’re a good guy, but my sister is a whole different ballgame. Do not fuck with her. I mean it—”

  “Hey, what’s going on over here?” I joined them and tried to act casual.

  Ryker had the grace to cover for Rex. “We were talking about the game and placing bets.”

  Rex raised an eyebrow in surprise.

  “Oh cool,” I said. “Who’s your money on?”

  “The Steelers,” Ryker said. “And I have a feeling Rex is going to lose what little money he has.”

  “We’ll see.” Rex walked into the living room and joined Zeke on the couch.

  Embarrassed, I sighed. “I’m so sorry—”

  “It’s fine,” he said quickly. “It doesn’t bother me. He’s just looking out for you. Now that I know what happened when you were young, I totally get it. He means well.”

  “You’re really going to back him up?” Rex just came over here and threatened to destroy him.

  “I’d do the same if I had a sister.”

  It was then I realized I didn’t know anything about Ryker. I didn’t know where he grew up, if he had any siblings, why he was the way he was…we didn’t talk about anything. Actually, all we did was screw. “Even so…”

  “Look, we’ve gotten past the initial stage of us seeing each other. Now it’s smooth sailing from here on out. And I told him this wasn’t a hit-it-and-quit-it type of thing. If that were the case, we wouldn’t be seeing each other right now. He knows that.”

  “I’m still mortified…”

  He rested his fingers under my chin and lifted my gaze toward him. He looked down into my face, amusement in his eyes. “You think a guy like him could get under my skin?”

  “Probably not.”

  “Nope.” He gave me a gentle kiss before he walked into the living room.

  My lips felt numb the second his mouth was gone. I turned and looked at my friends. They were both making stupid faces and grinning like idiots.

  But then again, I was doing the exact same thing.

  ***

  Safari was by my side the entire afternoon, not wanting to be apart from me anytime soon. He liked Ryker, even though he was the reason I was gone most of the time.

  At the end of the evening, everyone left. They all had work in the morning. There were pizza boxes scattered everywhere, but I didn’t feel like cleaning up.

  And Rex never cleaned up.

  Ryker stayed by my side for the entire evening. Three empty bottles of beer were on the table, his only refuse. “So, can I stay over tonight?”

  Since I slept with him last night, I didn’t think he wanted to do a back-to-back. “You want to?”

  “Why are you always surprised when I say things like that?”

  “Because I’m surprised,” I said like a smartass.

  “You think I want to sleep alone after last night?” he asked. “And this morning?”

  “It’s just…” I eyed Safari beside me. His head was resting in my lap, and he looked up at me with his puppy dog eyes. “There won’t be much room for you.”

  “Can’t Safari sleep on the ground?”

  “He can but he won’t. Besides, it’s his bed.”

  Ryker seemed more amused than irritated. “How about he sleeps at the foot of the bed?”

  “I think I can get him to do that.”

  “Then that works for me.”

  “I have to warn you, my bed isn’t nearly as nice as yours.”

  “That’s fine,” he said. “I care more about the woman in the bed anyway.”

  “But we both have work tomorrow.” Maybe he forgot.

  “I can be at the office a little late. You forget, I own the place.”

  “Just because you own it doesn’t mean you can slack off.”

  “Actually, it does.” He smiled in an arrogant way.

  “Since I’m sleeping with my boss, do I get special privileges?”

  “Actually, yes.” He leaned closer to me and lowered his voice. “You can come into my office and give me head whenever you want.”

  I smacked him playfully in the arm. “I’m never skipping out on work to do that.”

  “You can give me a lap dance.”

  “I’m not doing that either.”

  “I can bend you over on my desk—”

  “I’m not doing it.”

  He gave me a cute pout then kissed the corner of my mouth. “What’s the point in screwing the CEO if you don’t get anything out of it?”

  I didn’t want anything out of it. The first time we met, I had no idea who he was, and it didn’t matter to me either. I was still drawn to him in an unbreakable away. “You. I get you out of it.”

  ***

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” I tried not to laugh. Ryker lay beside me in my queen-size bed, Safari covering both of our bodies with his heavy torso and legs.

  Ryker kept moving, trying to get comfortable. “I always like a challenge.”

  “A challenge to sleep?”

  “Just in general.” He moved again, trying to snuggle with me. He hooked his arm around my waist but had to slide under Safari’s lifeless body. “Damn, he’s heavy.”

  “He loves his treats.”

  “I’ll say…” Ryker finally got comfortable, his head resting on my pillow. He looked into my eyes, a sleepy look on his face. “What made you get a dog? Living in an apartment…”

  “He was a stray. He kept walking into the street where the cars were swerving around him. It was only a matter of time before he got hit. So I pulled over and realized he didn’t have a tag or a chip. Those mocha eyes were so cute, and I totally fell in love. So, I took him home.”

  His eyes held a smile. “That was nice of you.”

  “I used to be a stray until someone took me in.” I was lost when Mom passed away. I did a lot of stupid things, hung out with the wrong crowd and started drinking before I was even sixteen years old. I snuck around with bad boys, not the good-hearted sexy ones, and Rex had a lot of shit he had to deal with that never should have been his responsibility. If he hadn’t set me straight, I wouldn’t have gone to college and gotten my life back on track. I owed my brother a lot.

  Ryker’s eyes fell in sadness. His fingers brushed my cheek and tucked my hair behind my ear. “You can’t be a stray when you’re loved by so many
people.” He kissed the skin just to the right of my nose.

  Ryker was much sweeter than I expected him to be. He seemed stiff and serious all the time, but sometimes, that attitude fell and revealed the true man underneath. “You haven’t heard from your father?”

  My dad ran out on us after I was born. Apparently, he couldn’t handle two kids and a depressed partner. “He came back when my mom passed away.”

  “He did?”

  “He tried starting a relationship with Rex and me, but we both wanted nothing to do with him. We were fine on our own. Then Rex threatened to kill him if he kept bothering us. I haven’t seen him since.”

  “Do you think his gesture was sincere?”

  “No.” Not even a little bit. “I think it was just awkward for him to see us and he didn’t know what else to say. He pitied us. I’m pretty sure he has a family somewhere else.”

  “Why?”

  I shrugged. “It’s a hunch.”

  “Well, I don’t think you or Rex need him anyway. You’ve both become exceptional people on your own.”

  “Thanks.”

  He kissed my neck then the shell of my ear.

  I closed my eyes, my hand resting against his chest. I could feel his heartbeat through the skin. It comforted me, listening to the cadence.

  Ryker shifted his body slightly and sighed. “How do you sleep like this every night?”

  I smiled. “You get used to it.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  Rex

  I rolled out of my bed and immediately made coffee in the kitchen. I wasn’t a big fan of waking up early. If my business ever improved, I’d make sure I didn’t have to be there until at least two.

  Voices sounded down the hallway as Rae and Ryker headed to the front door with Safari walking behind them.

  I told Ryker I’d break both of his legs if he fucked with my sister, and it wasn’t an idle threat. She’d spun out of control once before, and I wasn’t going to let it happen again. She and I were a team, and if you hurt my comrade, I’d hurt you too. I knew I was far too protective as a brother, but in a really weird and complicated way, I saw her as my own kid.

  Ryker said he didn’t have any bad intentions toward her, and this wasn’t a typical fling like all the others. He told me I should expect to see him a lot more. Apparently, he really liked her.