by Cara Roman
Ridge shut the door behind him and turned her around to face him. "Where's your bedroom Leigha?"
She stared up at him a minute, powerless to fight what was happening between them. Reaching out she caught his hand and led the way across the small house to her room. As soon as they were in her bedroom she shut the door, and shoved him up against it. The heat that started simmering inside of her from his possessiveness in front of Ty was turned up to full on boil now. The satisfied smile on his face as his back met the hard wood was her undoing. Launching at him she was all hands and lips, she couldn't get enough. His shirt went flying across the room, and her fingers dug eagerly into his skin. She was working on his pants when he yanked her own shirt up over her head.
"Hurry." She said as she scraped her teeth along the muscles of his chest.
Ridge didn't say anything, but he made quick work of her pants. Wrapping her arms around his neck she hopped up, knowing his arms would be there to catch her. His fingers dug into her thighs as he reversed them, and pressed Leigha back into the door. Resting his forehead against hers he pulled his hips away just enough for his dick to slide up inside of her. Leigha closed her eyes on a moan. How could he always feel so damn good? Ridge kept the pace slow for the first few minutes, until Leigha was digging her fingernails into his shoulders needing more.
"Ridge!" She moaned into his mouth.
"Right here Sugar." He said in between kisses.
"Would you move?" She said trying to buck her hips against his. But with his body pressing hers into the door she didn't accomplish much.
"I am. Do you need more?" He asked looking into her eyes.
"God, yes. More, Ridge so much more." Leigha said.
"Remember you asked for it." Ridge said pulling her legs open even further. His hips started moving faster, her ass hitting the door in loud thumps.
He let himself go, his dick pumping into her relentlessly. Leigha threw her head back and cried out loving every savage second of it. The pressure was building deep inside of her center, and she raced furiously towards that feeling, her breath coming in quick gasps. Ridge leaned down, and licked along her neck, and she held him to her with her fingers in his hair. Her body broke around him as she came hard, her legs shaking in his hands. Ridge didn't slow his pace, he just kept powering into her dragging her orgasm endlessly out. Just when she managed to catch her breath another one crashed through her, and she screamed. He pounded her into the door erratically before he stopped, and she felt the warmth of his orgasm shooting up into her pussy.
"I'm not the same dumb eighteen year old who left you. I'm going to be the man who never lets you down Leigha. I swear it. Just believe in us." Ridge whispered against her ear.
There was nothing Leigha trusted herself to say to that, so she turned his face and kissed him. Ridge stepped away from the door and carried her across the room to her bed.
Chapter 12
Leigha was reeling. Everything inside of her felt like it was spinning out of control in a free fall hurtling towards the ground. Ridge wants her to believe in him, but she can't even believe in her own heart, so how the hell can she trust his? There was no denying how right it felt when she was inside of his arms. The way his body fit perfectly with hers, like they were two pieces of the same whole, and destined to be together. But she had thrown all caution to the wind once and given him every ounce of love she had inside, and he shattered her into millions of lost fragments. Nothing could make her want to feel like that again. The desolate loss of hope crushing her soul slowly one day at a time. Nope. Not happening. And, yet, Leigha wasn't asking Ridge to leave. It felt too damn good being with him, and she was feeling happily drunk on their chemistry.
"Leigha?" Ridge asked hesitantly.
Lifting her head up from his warm chest where she was sprawling she answered, "yeah?"
"Was Ty telling the truth? Was it like that for you?" She felt him tugging the end of her braid, pulling the band off. He sifted his fingers through her hair, freeing it.
"Are you asking me if you broke my heart Ridge?" Leigha asked sitting up.
"No, I'm not stupid. I know I hurt you. I'm asking just how bad I broke it." Ridge said surprising her.
Leigha stared down at him, trying to arrange her thoughts into something that would make sense. Ridge laid there against her pillows, waiting. He looked ready to ward off blows, like he knew the answers weren't going to be good. "At first I didn't realize I'd lost you. I was so damn hopeful for your career, and I really believed you would make it. Then each time we talked I felt further and further away from you. We lost us a tiny chunk at a time, which I think is infinitely worse than a clean break. At least that has a chance to heal. I was trying to collect all of the lost pieces of my heart for years. By the time you caught the dream you were chasing I wasn't a part of you anymore. But I was still so happy for you. The first time I heard your voice flowing out of the radio I sat down and cried I was so fucking proud. Then you got married, and I stopped trying to put myself back together like I was before, because there was no point. I didn't want to be that woman anymore. I quit the bank job I spent years in college striving for, and threw absolutely everything I had into Caffeinated Sprinkles. My work gives me everything I need, and love isn't something that I want anymore." Leigha said as honestly as she could. She laid there breathing for a few minutes feeling her words sink into his soul.
"I pulled over at the border. I sat in my truck staring at the Indiana state line for at least an hour. All I wanted was to turn around and come back to you. But who would I have been then? Another idiot with a dream he was too scared to follow. I could see it all so clearly stretching out in front of me. I would come home, get some job that meant nothing to me, but I would have you, so I wouldn't even care. Until all of the what ifs started stacking up around me, turning me into a hard and brittle man. We've all seen guys like that. As much as I wanted to come back to you, I was terrified that one day I would wake up next to you and resent you because I chose you over my dreams. I just couldn't be that man. I just couldn't." Ridge said running his hand over his face.
"I never asked you to chose me over your music Ridge." Leigha said softly.
"I know you didn't, but I almost did." Ridge tugged the ends of her hair. "And it fucking scared the hell out of me."
"That's not what I wanted from you. I knew you were meant for bigger things. I just thought I would be a part of them I guess." Leigha said with a shrug. "But all you talked about on the phone was how Nashville was, and all the cool shit you were doing. You never really asked about me, or school."
"I was lying." Ridge admitted sitting up.
"What do you mean?" Leigha asked shocked.
"It was hard Leigha. I was playing anywhere they would let me, and all I ever heard was I was good, but not good enough. I needed more twang, less grit in my voice. I wasn't from down south, so how could I be country enough. Every single day I thought about giving up and coming home. But how could I tell you that? That I felt like a failure, and I knew that I shouldn't have left you. So I made it sound great, hoping you didn't see what a fool I was. I didn't ask how you were because I was too afraid of the answers."
"When you stopped calling me I thought I wasn't enough to compete with that life." Leigha said feeling like the world she knew was slipping away. Thinking back to those phone calls she wondered how she didn't notice he was lying. She was so busy missing him that she wasn't really analyzing what he was saying. It never occurred to her he missed home, simply because he never said it.
"I couldn't afford to pay my cell phone bill and still eat, but I had too damn much pride to admit that to you. Then when things finally started rolling for me, I thought maybe I shouldn't call. I figured that you were probably better without me there. That way you could find some guy that wasn't too busy choosing a career over you. You deserved so much more than me." Ridge said throwing her for yet another loop.
"Are you saying that you were, what, afraid to call me?" Leigha asked,
her voice laced with incredulity.
"I'm a selfish bastard Leigha. I didn't want to hear you had moved on, even though I knew you should."
"Move on? I was a complete mess Ridge. I wasn't sleeping, forgetting meals, I'm sure I looked like a zombie at best." Leigha shook her head.
"You've never seen how beautiful you are, even a mess I'm sure half of the campus was dreaming about you being theirs. I was just the first guy to get you in the back of his truck, I didn't get to keep you holding on forever." Ridge said low.
"You weren't just my first, you were everything to me, and you married another woman." Leigha said, the words feeling like they ripped out part of her as they came out.
"Yeah, another one of my mistakes. I've more of them than good choices I think. But it wasn't my biggest though, not by a long shot. Suzy was an easy choice. She was in the business, and we had so many things in common. Our lives were moving parallel to each others. It made sense in a way, and my manager, publicist, and record label executives fell all over themselves when we hooked up. It looked perfect on paper, added up so nicely. But at the heart of it Suzy and I should have just stayed friends. I never loved her the way I should have, and she deserved to be." Ridge said sighing. "Like I said, I'm a selfish bastard. I've wrecked three lives with my shit choices."
"I don't really know what to say to you right now." Leigha admitted. "I'm going to need some time to process all of that."
"Want me to leave?" Ridge asked leaning in and tucking her hair behind her ear.
His eyes looked so scared she would say yes, because if she did, he would go. With all of the doubt swirling in those gorgeous forest eyes, he looked so much like that eighteen year old boy she loved so much. Something had changed between them. Opening her mouth and closing it again, she couldn't make herself say the words asking him to leave even though she knew that she probably should. Shaking her head she tilted her head up for a kiss. He pressed his lips softly against hers briefly. "Hungry?" She asked when his lips left hers, changing the subject. "I've got some steaks we could grill."
"Yeah, I could eat. Steaks sound pretty good." Ridge smiled with obvious relief.
"Baked potatoes, and salad too. I'm all set." Leigha laughed climbing out of bed. "By the way, you don't have to mark your territory with Ty, like I told him, he never had a chance." Walking to her closet she pulled on black leggings, a white tank top, the amazingly comfortable kind with the bra built in, and a long red cardigan. After she was dressed she turned to look at Ridge, he was sitting on the edge of her bed staring at her. His face was all soft, and he had a small smile on his mouth. Going on impulse she walked back over to him, and gave his smiling lips a smacking kiss. "Come on, I'm starved." She said and walked out of the bedroom.
They both silently agreed that the deep soul baring conversation was over for the night. Everything he had said was still floating through her mind, but she refused to dwell on it right now. Ridge commandeered her grill, and she got everything else ready. It felt right having him making dinner with her, and she didn't give a damn that she shouldn't be liking it. Tonight they weren't Ridge and Leigha high school sweethearts still trying to recover from each other. They were just Ridge and Leigha enjoying dinner together, and it was enough.
Chapter 13
Saturday's at their coffee & cookie shop were always a bit hectic. Everyone was stopping in to pick up goodies for the weekend, or gathering at the tables to catch up with friends over steaming mugs filled with their choice of personal caffeinated heaven. They were packed from the moment they opened until they closed the doors for the evening, and it was always Leigha's favorite day of the week. Silas usually tagged along with Dani, and today he was sitting at a small two top table with a hot cocoa, cookie, and a video game in hand. He would look up every time the bell dinged announcing new people coming in, waving at everyone he knew, and in a town this small he knew basically everyone.
Tina was filling orders today while Leigha ran the cash register, mainly so she could keep a watchful eye on Silas, but Tina was also asking for more responsibilities, and trying to learn every aspect of Caffeinated Sprinkles. Leigha was quite impressed, and Dani mentioned she thought it might lead to Leigha being able to take a day off now and again. Leigha just laughed considering Dani never took days off either. But it brought up a good point, they were doing well enough now that maybe adding another baker might free Dani up some too. Leigha was mulling all the options over in her mind, turning them this way and that looking for flaws when she heard the excited gasp from Tina next to her. Knowing exactly what that meant she looked up and saw Ridge striding across the shop, nodding his head in friendly greeting here and there at people as he passed by them.
"Hey Sugar." He said with that smirk she adored, as he stepped up to the counter.
"Hi Ridge." Leigha couldn't help but smile back at him. "What would you like today?" She asked.
"Mmmm well that's kind of hard question to answer right here. But lets just start with a large coffee, black." His voice was filled with charm, and promises for later. Leigha felt a delicious shiver creep down her spine just thinking about it. "Is that Dani's boy?" He asked with a tilt of his head over in the boy's direction.
"Yeah, that's Silas." Leigha answered. "He usually spends Saturday's with us."
"Mind if I pop into the back for a moment, I'd like a word with Dani?" Ridge asked.
"No, go on ahead." Leigha said confused. Ridge walked around the counter and through the door into the kitchen. As tempted as she was to go eavesdrop, there was no way she would do it with all of the people around to witness it. That would be pretty damn embarrassing, and start the rumor mill churning fast enough to make her head spin. Ridge wasn't even back there five full minutes, before he walked back out front and around the counter again.
"Can you add a few of whatever those cookies are Silas is munching, enough for the both of us." He added. "Dani said I could keep him company until y'all close in an hour."
He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket, and Leigha took the credit card and swiped it on autopilot, her brain having dissolved to complete mush at how sweet that was of Ridge. Tina was all to happy to hand over his coffee, and grab him some more of Silas's favorite candy chip cookies that Dani made every Saturday specifically for him. Ridge thanked her, and walked over to where Silas sat.
His table was close enough to the counter that Leigha could easily hear everything they said, "hey, Silas. I'm Ridge, I go way back with your Mom, and I asked if it was cool I sit with you. I really hate sitting alone, and thought maybe you might help me out?"
Silas looked up at Ridge for a minute, clearly taking his measure as only a child could. His face cleared and he smiled, "sure, I don't mind, do you know my Auntie Leigha too?"
"Yeah, we all grew up together." Ridge said sitting down in the empty seat. He took a sip of his coffee. After a moment he set the coffee down and handed Silas one of the cookies. The boy sent him a big toothy grin before taking a bite out of it.
"So how come I've never seen you around before Mr. Ridge?" Silas asked.
"Just Ridge, okay?" Ridge said. Silas nodded his head. "I moved away as soon as we all graduated from high school."
"Are you back to visit with all of your old friends? If we ever moved away I think I'd like to come back and see my friends sometimes." Silas said. "But my Dad moved away, and he doesn't come visit." He added quietly.
Leigha wanted to walk over and wrap Silas up in her arms. Just as she moved away from the counter to do that Ridge responded.
"My Dad wasn't around when I was growing up either. It took me a long time to understand that he probably didn't deserve to have me as a son. I'm thinking you're probably a pretty cool guy too, and if your Dad is missing out on all that then he isn't very bright either."
Leigha swallowed hard, and had to fight back tears. Holding her breath she watched Silas. He nodded his head up and down slowly. "Yeah, he was pretty dumb to let my Mom go too. She makes the best cookies, and
she laughs really pretty too." Silas confided in Ridge. "Although she still won't let me get a dog." He added with a shrug.
"Well my dog Boomer loves to make new friends, you should tell your Mom to bring you over sometime and you can play with him." Ridge said laughing.
"You've got a dog? That's so cool! Does he catch tennis balls when you throw them? My friend Charlie's dog does that." Silas beamed.
"Yeah, Boomer'll do that, he'll pretty much play fetch with anything. Tennis balls, sticks, frisbees, you name it." Ridge said taking a big bite out of a cookie.
"Sweet! I'm gonna go ask my Mom if we can come over so I can play with Boomer!" Silas said before jumping up and taking off into the kitchen.
"I think you just got plans for the night, whether you wanted them or not." Leigha called out laughing at Ridge.
"You might be right about that." Ridge said laughing too. Just then Dani walked out of the kitchen being pulled by a very enthusiastic Silas.
"Did you really invite us over to your house tonight to play with your dog?" Dani asked speculatively.
"He sure did." Leigha said before Ridge could get an answer out.
"See, I told you he did Mom." Silas said, clearly insulted his mother had doubted his word.
"We should have dinner over there Mom!" Silas said before turning to Ridge, "can you cook?"
"I can grill." He laughed. "How do you feel about barbecue chicken?" He asked Silas.
"Its pretty good. Auntie Leigha you should bring some mac and cheese," He turned to Ridge, "its really good, she puts crunchy stuff on the top, and makes it in the oven. We can make a cake!" He all but shouted with his excitement.