Wildfire Hurricane (A Ryder Boys Novel Book 1)

by Amelia James

  “So you went there and fucked him?”

  “What?” Simone staggered back a step, glaring at Mal. “No. I didn’t.”

  “Then how did he get this?” Dash threw something shiny at her.

  The chain wrapped around her fingers as she caught it reflexively. She opened her palm and dragged her thumb over the dual-hearted necklace he’d given her. “That’s not possible.” She clamped her hand on her chest, searching for the silver pendant she always wore, but found only bare skin. “How did you get this?”

  “You took it off when you fucked him!”

  “No!” She waved Dash off and stalked toward Mal. “I want to hear it from you.”

  The bastard smiled. “It kept getting caught on my dick while you were giving me a blow job, so you took it off and gave it to me.”

  “Jesus Christ!” Dash ran his hands through his hair.

  Simone spun toward him. “He’s lying! I never take this off. Not even for you.”

  His hands clenched into fists. He rocked back and forth as if wavering between them. “Were you going to tell me about this or did you plan to keep sleeping with him while I was at school?”

  “That’s crazy!” She shoved the necklace in her pocket. “I’m going to college too. And Mal goes back to law school next week.”

  “So you know when he’s leaving? Got plans for a big send-off?” He stalked toward her, eyes blazing.

  “No! Damn it, Dash, listen to me!” She slapped her hands on his shoulders and forced him to stop. “I didn’t sleep with your brother. I would never hurt you like that.”

  His lower lip quivered and his eyes shone. “How could you do this to me when you know I have doubts? How do I know the last two years haven’t been another performance?”

  “A performance?” She’d never been fake with him—ever.

  He wrenched free of her. “Do you even care about me? All you do is beg for attention, and you have no idea what’s going on around you—how other people feel.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  He shook his head and stomped toward his truck.

  She ran after him and grabbed at his arm. “Dash, talk to me, please. I don’t understand.”

  “No, you don’t.” He turned, evading her grasp as he walked backward. “We’re done, Simone. I’m leaving tomorrow, and I don’t know when I’ll be back—or if.” He stopped and reached for the door handle, giving her one last snarl of pure rage. “I hate you both.”

  “Dash, wait!”

  He jumped in his truck and sped off, spraying gravel as he drove away.

  Simone’s entire world collapsed around her, crushing the air from her lungs as she turned on Mal. “What have you done?”

  “Don’t worry. He’ll come running back to you when he cools off.” Mal laughed.

  “This isn’t a joke!” Her fingers curled, itching for revenge.

  “It’s hilarious. I knew this would piss him off, but I didn’t expect him to lose it like that.”

  “You bastard!” She punched Mal in the gut, dropping him to his knees. “I’ve made Dash really angry a lot of times, but he never once said he hated me. This is for real!”

  For real. He’d accused her of performing for his attention, of being so wrapped up in her problems that she never noticed he suffered too. “I’m guilty. He needed to hear me say that I loved him, but I didn’t unless he said it first. That’s why he believed Mal. I knew he loved me, but he didn’t know I loved him.”

  She reached into her pocket and pulled out a silver, dual-hearted necklace, the same one Dash had given her for her sixteenth birthday. She’d spotted it in her jewelry box that morning while looking for her watch, and picked it up for reasons she couldn’t explain.

  “You and me wrapped around each other in an infinite loop.” He’d locked it around her neck, and she’d never taken it off. How did Mal get it? She’d tried to forget that night, but now she had to remember and explain.

  She got out of the car and waited for Dash. Mal said he’d be there. Her watch showed him to be fifteen minutes late. She’d give him fifteen more, then go to Conifer Lake where they’d originally planned to meet.

  Gravel crunched as a car pulled up and Mal got out. “Hey, baby.”

  “What are you doing here? Is Dash all right?”

  “He’s fine.” He rolled his wrist and laughed at his watch. “Probably pretty pissed off by now since you haven’t shown up at the lake.”

  “What? You told me he wanted me to come here.” She marched toward her car.

  “Wait.” Mal caught up with her. “I lied about that. I’m sorry.”

  “Then why are we here?”

  He placed his hand on her shoulder. “I wanted to tell you I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “For trying to take you from him. You two are meant to be. I can see that now.”

  “I hope you have a shovel in your car, Mal. The bullshit’s getting deep.”

  “And for kissing you, and touching you when I caught you changing. I never should’ve done it.”

  “That was months ago.”

  “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it.” He massaged the back of her neck with his fingers. “I never meant to hurt you.” A flash caught her eye as he pulled his hand away.

  “He wasn’t apologizing! The bastard stole my necklace!” The book-laden stacks muffled her voice, smothering her words as if the revelation hadn’t mattered at all.

  She jumped to her feet and jammed Dash’s book in her pocket. She clasped the necklace on, vowing never to lose it, even if she lost him. Especially if she lost him. “Oh my God!” They’d left the radio behind in their scramble to evacuate the command center, and she’d had no word from him for hours. Is he still alive? She choked down a sob and ran through the bookshelf maze, spinning around one blind turn after another. “How do I get out of here?”

  “Simone?” The bookshelf maze misdirected his call.

  “Dash!” She ran toward the sound, bouncing into his chest as he appeared, soiled and soot-covered, an apparition from her past she could no longer live without. “You’re here! You’re safe!”

  “Ah, darlin’.” He swept her up against worn, bound leather and cold steel shelves. The smell of burnt timber wafted over them. “Takes more than a wildfire hurricane to get rid of me.” He dragged his open mouth along the column of her neck, his breath hot on her skin.

  She laughed, deep, enduring bubbles of joy she hadn’t felt in far too long. A rebellious impulse seized her. “I’ll try harder next time.”

  He rolled his eyes and squeezed her tight, nipping at her ear. “I’d expect nothing less.” Then he stepped back and his eyes got serious. “I need to tell you something.”

  Oh shit, this is bad. “What?” She held onto his shirt as an old fear expected him to bolt again.

  “On the way here, I saw your apartment complex in the path of the fire.”

  Her heart pounded and the room turned hot and swirling. “God, no.”

  Dash slid his hands under her arms, steadying her. “Maybe it’ll stop, or the wind will drive it away from your building.”

  “Really?” Simone cocked an eyebrow and read bullshit on his face.

  “No, it’s gone.” He stroked her cheek with the back of his fingers. “Will you lose much?”

  His touch focused her thoughts. “Everything I have is in that place, most of it still in boxes.” She unpacked what she needed to get by, but the things that made up her life sat taped inside cardboard.

  “Mine too. I’ve been here three years, but I’ve been dragging boxes around every time I moved, things I never unpacked, never found a place for.”

  She smiled, knowing she’d done the same. “All my track trophies.”

  He nodded. “Football.”

  “Ticket stubs, my prom corsage. Every single flower you ever gave me, dried up and dusty.” Gifts he’d given her, events they’d shared.

  “The Rolling Stones record you gave me for C
hristmas.” A short laugh escaped him.

  He still has that? “Did you ever get a record player?”

  “Nope.” He grinned then pulled her close and buried his face in her hair. “Things I couldn’t look at every day, but I couldn’t bear to part with.”

  A sob welled up in her throat. “Oh God, the poem you wrote me.”

  “What poem?” He leaned back and frowned.

  “The dirty one I sent back and told you to write something nice.”

  “You kept that? That last time I saw it, it was stuck to your boob.” He peeked down her shirt.

  “Written words are permanent, you said. And you’d written ‘I love you.’” She’d never give up those words. Never. “So I kept it in my journal. It’s probably burning now.” She’d never read it again after he left, but having his love in ink kept her hope alive.

  “I’ll write you a new one.” He nuzzled her hair. “Every day. Nice ones with pretty words.”

  She slipped her hand between them, stroking down to his thighs. “I want some dirty words too.”

  “As you wish.” He cupped a handful of her ass and squeezed.

  “People always say things can be replaced, but some things can’t be saved.” The hope sputtered and died. She rested her head on his chest.

  “But others can be rebuilt.” His heart thundered under her ear.

  She raised her head and studied his face, searching for signs that he was being brave for her. “That takes a lot of work, and a solid foundation.”

  He shifted in front of her, holding her arms, all focused determination and strength. “I know, but damn it, we gotta try or I’ll always wonder ‘what if?’”

  The question that had plagued her without end. “I’ve been asking myself that for years.”

  “What if Mal was lying? What if you were innocent? Funny thing is…it doesn’t matter anymore. What if I’d believed you, stuck around and fought for you?”

  It doesn’t matter? No. Never did. Joy flickered in her heart. “Fought with me.”

  “Hell yeah.” His eyes lit. “I loved that, no matter how crazy you made me. But I thought all the fighting meant that we couldn’t last, and I was fooling myself thinking that you’d stay with me, especially when we were going to separate colleges.”

  She had to tell him, had to explain. “I chose the best school for me, and I could let you go somewhere else because I knew you loved me. You were my anchor, my lifeline back home, and I’m sorry you felt…” Unloved? My God, I’m such a fool. “That you didn’t know…” Tell him!

  But Dash rushed ahead with his confession. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you. I was afraid…of losing you, and when I walked away, I couldn’t go back and face what I’d done to you.” Thirteen years. Both of them too stupid and too stubborn to figure out what went wrong.

  “We’ve lost so much.”

  His eyes turned grim and his grip on her tightened. “We’re going to lose more. This fire is out of control, and that storm is still coming. The worst of it hasn’t hit yet.”

  Reality smacked her in the face. “Does anyone else know?”

  “No, I told them the shelter is safe.” He stepped back, running his hands through his hair.

  Of course, no sense causing a panic. “But if the fire gets across the river…”

  “There’s no stopping it.” The words escaped in a hoarse whisper.

  “Jesus.” Her heart raced and spots swam before her eyes. She reached for Dash, but her grip faltered and missed.

  He clasped both her hands in his. “But no matter what happens, no matter how bad things get—you and me—we’re staying together. I won’t desert you. Not again.” He wrapped her in his arms, holding her close while they trembled.

  She slid her hands up his back into his soot-caked hair while he nuzzled the base of her neck. Her inability to tell him what her heart held had cost them far too much. I can’t lose him again. Not while I can do something about it. “I love you, Daschle Herbert Ryder.”

  He stiffened at the sound of his full name, and his teeth closed on her skin. She gasped and he lifted his head, a light flickering in his eyes. “Say again?”

  With pleasure. She pointed to her chest. “I.” She made an X over her heart with her arms. “Love.” She drew her fingertip along the scar on his cheek. “You.”

  The spark turned into a full blaze, and he brushed his nose on her cheek. “That’s what I needed to hear.”

  His lips caressed her face, sending shivers of long-neglected but never forgotten pleasure rippling through her body. “I know.” She grabbed a handful of his filthy hair and made him look at her. “I’m sorry I didn’t say it more often.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t listen.” He bent down and licked under her shirt, tangling his tongue on a silver chain. Dash leaned back and touched the pendant. “Is this the necklace I gave you?”

  Simone nodded. “I kept it, just tossed it in my jewelry box, but this morning it caught my eye. I couldn’t put it on, but I brought it with me. I can’t explain why.”

  He traced the charm with his finger. “Two hearts bound by chance, held as friends, torn apart too soon.”

  Much too soon! “Brought back together…?” An obstacle loomed in their path. “What about Cassie?”

  “She knows it’s over with me. I never loved…” He clamped his lips together and pressed his forehead to hers. “Anyone else. Only you.”

  She caught his face in her hands and swept the past away with a kiss that seared her soul. Her body went up in flames, ignited by imminent lust and fueled with enduring love. He came back! He’s here and he chose me! But in place of the boy who’d run from her all those years ago, stood a man with experience and knowledge and kisses that turned her legs to jelly and whose touch set her body ablaze. Intent guided his acquainted mouth and purpose drove his familiar hands, stirring something new and uncertain in their wake. Could she love the man like she’d loved the boy? Or should she love him better?

  “I want to make love to you, Simone.” Dash ground his hard erection against her, his hips moving in slow, hypnotic circles while he shoved her jacket off. “Like we never have before. Naked. Nothing between us.”

  “Yes. Please.” She groaned and slid down rows of books, rolling on the floor in his arms while he slipped his hands under her shirt. His knee landed between her thighs and he pressed them apart. She arched, dragging her aching flesh up his leg and straining for his stiff cock, but her pants thwarted her efforts. “Get these off.”

  He whisked her shirt over her head then tugged her jeans down, dragging her panties with them. She tossed her bra aside and lay nude on the rough carpet while he stood and pulled his shirt off. His hot gaze consumed her.

  “Fucking hell, woman.” He grabbed his crotch and stroked his cock through his pants. “Seeing you naked is gonna finish me before I start.”

  She let her legs splay, exposing her wet pussy.

  “Now you’re trying to kill me.” He sank to his knees.

  “I want you to see what’s yours.” She slipped her hand between her legs and spread her folds. “Now. Then. Whenever you want it.”

  “Mine.” He licked his lips and unbuckled his belt.

  “Always.”

  Dash groaned and closed his eyes as if he couldn’t bear to look any longer. He dropped down on his elbows and slid his hands under her ass, lifting her begging flesh to his mouth.

  Simone gasped and sank her fingernails into his shoulders when his tongue touched her clit. “Oh God, I love this! I love you.” He teased her with fleeting licks, darting from one sizzling spot to another. Sparks raced to her toes, curling them as she shoved his pants down with her feet.

  “Mmm…your pussy,” he whispered between sweeps. “I licked it so it’s all mine.”

  She giggled as his tongue wiggled inside her. He reached up and tugged her nipple to a stiff, throbbing peak, then he stroked lazy circles with his thumb, sending waves of don’t-ever-stop goodness washing over her and pooling betw
een her thighs. In no rush, he licked her slit from top to bottom, lingering now and then to nibble or suck. Her body tightened—too much. This is Dash. You can let go with him. The spiral coiled, poised to spring, but the release held fast, waiting to be unlocked.

  Chapter 13

  Dash moaned on her flesh but refused to stop his leisurely exploration, feasting on her with an insatiable hunger. Slow. Tasting every sweet morsel. Craving more, but giving her everything he’d never had the chance to before. Why did I leave her? Pain drove him away, and pride kept him from coming back. He’d been too young and inexperienced to see it then, but now with her naked and quivering under him, all the lies he’d once believed crumbled, leaving his heart unprotected for the first time in years. Could giving it to her again get back the volatile romance they’d shared? Do I want that again?

  Simone tensed beneath him, arching up into his mouth. He denied her nothing. Making up for thirteen years would take time and patience, love and understanding, raw sex and unlimited fucking. He slipped two fingers inside her and stroked while his tongue flicked over her clit.

  “Oh God, yes. Please.” She begged and pleaded, thrashing on the hard carpet.

  They’d managed to pull his clothes off. One quick move would plant his cock in her pussy, but he waited, reading her body’s signals with the experience he’d gained since their last high school tryst. They’d settled into a practiced routine: blow job for him, fingering her, and then fucking. He’d been planning to lick her sweet flesh like this on the night before he left for college, but it never happened. Nothing would stop him now.

  Simone rose up on her elbows. “Stop, damn it.”

  Oh, hell no. He pulled his hand free and braced himself on either side of her hips, using his mouth and his nose to fight off whatever seemed to be holding her back.

  She dropped to the floor and shuddered. “Mmm…please.” She draped her legs over his shoulders and pulled him in.

  Don’t give up. He focused on her clit, swirling his tongue around it, then sucking, fully intending to stay there all night. His cock protested, but a sudden convulsion from the naked woman under him settled the argument. “Come for me, darlin’.” He breathed the words on her hot flesh.