by KB Winters
“I’m good,” I wriggled free of his touch, putting some space between us so I could think clearly. “So, where did you want to walk to?”
“My hotel is up here on the left.” He gestured with his chin in the direction of one of the high rise hotels. “I have a pretty amazing view. Why don’t you come up and see for yourself.”
My heart jolted, tapping out a frantic eight count beat. I shook my head. “That’s all right. I’m sure you’re tired.”
I cringed at my lame statement. It had barely cracked nine o’clock. There was no way he was going to sleep. Ryker laughed and reached for me again. “Come on, Everlie, have a little fun with me.”
I shook my head. “Ya know what, I think I’ll just catch a cab and go home,” I said, putting on the brakes and turning towards the street. Tori had insisted that we take a cab to the restaurant, even after I’d told her I had no plans of drinking at dinner—or at least, not enough that I’d need a cab to take me home. In hindsight, she’d obviously just been planning to run off with Bennett and wanted me to go off with Ryker and not have to worry about getting the car out of the parking lot before we racked up a massive bill.
“Hey, hey, come on Everlie, I didn’t mean anything,” Ryker said, coming to a stop beside me. He kept his hands to himself, but was standing so close to me, I could feel his body heat on my skin. “We can just walk if that’s what you want.”
I considered his offer. He looked sincere, but he was still way too hot. I didn’t trust him, and I was starting to not trust myself either. “Listen, Ryker, in case you hadn’t figured it out already, I’ll be super blunt, I’m a good girl. I don’t date around, or sleep around for that matter, and I definitely don’t do one-nighters. I know Tori and Bennett are probably going at it like a couple of spring time rabbits, but that’s not me, all right?”
Ryker held open his hands. “I get it. I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do,” he replied. His voice vibrated through me and when he set his hand on my bare shoulder, a bolt of heat hit me straight between my thighs. I am so in over my head. How could Tori leave me like this?
“Come on, let’s keep walking for a little bit, then if you still want to go, I’ll grab you a cab. Deal?”
I fidgeted with my lip as I thought about his offer. I couldn’t think of a way to back out without sounding like a complete basket case. I didn’t think the reasoning that he was too sexy to walk with, would come out right. “All right. Deal.”
We walked on, and Ryker inched back closer. His fingers brushed mine every few feet as we kept the same pace, making small talk about the city or the peculiar people we encountered on the street. He came to a sudden stop at a corner, and I crashed into him. “Oof! Sorry,” I stammered, as he stabilized me. “And before you say it, yes, ballet dancer with a clumsy streak.”
He laughed and it took me a second to realize he still had his hands braced on my arms, holding me close to his rock solid chest. “Don’t worry—I’ll take good care of you.” The suggestive tone crept back into his tone, giving his words a deeper, darker meaning, and I pulled free from his grip.
“Thanks, but I got it.”
We waited for the light to change so we could cross the street, and I mentally started working through a reasonable excuse to leave. He hadn’t done anything wrong, per say. In fact, I’d been having fun until he tried to kick up the flirting again. There was no denying that I was attracted to him, and I’d be completely lying if I said my mind hadn’t wandered through some deviant fantasies as we’d walked together, but I also knew myself, and how I would feel about a one-night stand. Some people could do that and not bat an eye—I just wasn’t one of those people.
Even for someone as ridiculously good looking and charming as Ryker Newman.
I shook my head, as though I needed to finalize my decision, to lock it into place in my mind. I wouldn’t go there.
“Want to get a drink?” Ryker asked, coming to a stop on the sidewalk. I looked up and realized he’d circled us back around to the hotel he’d pointed out earlier as the place he was staying. “Relax,” he said, reading my expression. “The hotel has a bar.”
From the outside, his invitation sounded harmless enough, but I knew it wasn’t so simple. I also knew that if I turned him down, I’d never hear from him again. He’d be just like Ben or any of the other one date guys I’d met over the past couple of years. My stomach twisted at the thought of not seeing him again, but I found the willpower to shake my head. “No, thanks. I think I’m gonna head home.”
Ryker’s expression darkened and while he offered a small smile, and a slight nod, I knew he didn’t feel it. “All right, I did promise I’d let you go if you wanted, and I’m a man of my word.” He stepped to the curb and flagged down a cab. One screeched to the curb seconds later and he opened the back door for me. “It was nice to meet you Everlie. Thank you for a very lovely evening.”
He reached for my hand, and I gave him mine, expecting him to shake it, but he turned my hand over, and planted a soft kiss to my palm. Only then, did his smile reach his eyes. His lips on the tender skin of my hand let off an entire box of fireworks in my stomach, and it took every drop of self-control to keep from flinging myself into his arms. I offered him an unsteady smile when he released me, and waved before sliding into the cab.
Ryker shut the door and gave me a wink before the cab pulled away from the curb.
I hadn’t made it a hundred feet away before I was questioning whether or not I’d made the right decision.
Chapter Six
Everlie
By the time the cab dropped me off at home, my mind was in a full on tug-of-war over having refused Ryker’s offer. But as I went inside, I snapped at myself to get it together. If he wasn’t interested in anything but getting me into bed, then I wasn’t missing out on anything other than a hot night of meaningless sex. I laughed to myself, imagining Tori’s reaction if I were to tell her that. I could practically hear her say, “But, Ev, that was the whole point!”
Not surprisingly, she wasn’t home yet. I went to my room, stripped out of Tori’s dress and laid it over the arm of the ungodly gold rocking chair I’d inherited from my grandmother, and made a mental note to take it to the dry cleaner’s the next day. I slipped a large, faded t-shirt on and pulled on a pair of baseball socks before sinking down into bed. It was already nearing midnight, and I forced my mind to shut down, so I could get some sleep and not stay up half the night thinking about Ryker.
In the morning, before I even opened my eyes, I was overcome with fragments of memories from the night before. The entire thing still had me confused and conflicted. I’d been hoping a long night of sleep would release the frustration I’d been holding onto when I’d gone to bed. I rolled out of bed, flicked on my bedside radio clock to a country station, and padded into my attached bathroom to take a hot shower, singing along with my favorite songs as they swirled through the open door, mingling with the steam and the sound of the water hitting the tile floor.
After dressing and sweeping on some mascara and lip gloss, I piled my hair into a tight top knot, releasing a few strands around my face, and went out to the kitchen to get some breakfast into my system before leaving for the dance studio. Saturday was my busiest work day, with booked out classes from ten to eight, a new group of students rotating through every hour. Tori was already in the kitchen when I got there, sitting at the small teak table for two, with a huge mug of coffee in her hands. She glanced up at my approach, her blue eyes bright against a bloodshot background. Her hair was frazzled and fluffy, but she smiled at me like a cat that had just spent all day in the sun. “Morning, Ev.”
“Morning,” I replied. I didn’t want to be mad at her, but I couldn’t stamp down the flares of frustration from the night before, or the way she’d abandoned me to go off and get lucky.
She leaned back in her chair and stretched her arms above her head. “What time did you get back last night?”
“Ten som
ething, maybe eleven.” I grabbed the carton of milk from the fridge and dumped a cup in the blender. My back was to Tori as I worked, adding some greens and a banana to the mix, with a scoop of protein powder to top it off.
“Everlie, are you serious?” Tori was watching me, I could feel her eyes on my back. I didn’t have to see her face to know the expression she was giving me. I’d seen it a dozen times before.
I flicked on the blender, the sound of the ingredients munching together into a smooth, green purée drowning out Tori’s lecture. When I cut the power, she was still ranting, “—I mean, I basically served him up on a platter! What the hell happened?”
“Nothing!” I shouted. I spun around to face her. “Nothing happened, Tori. We walked around and talked a little and then I headed back here. I didn’t even want to go last night, but I did because you asked me to! How can you possibly be mad at me?”
“I’m not mad, Ev. I just don’t get it!”
I sighed and folded my arms. “You don’t get me, is what you mean.”
She didn’t deny it. “All I’m saying is that you had the perfect chance for a good time and you blew it!”
I whipped around and busied myself, pouring the smoothie into a shaker cup, deciding against sitting at home and drinking it down. I needed to get out, away from Tori and her disapproval. I snapped the lid on and it let out a loud crack sound. “I don’t have time to talk about this with you, Tori. We’re different people, okay. You do you and I don’t lecture you, so please, just let me do me. I’m a grown woman, I don’t need you telling me how I should live my life, especially not on something like who and when I should sleep with a man!”
Tori shook her head, as though in disbelief, and stared into her coffee. “You’re right, Ev. I’m sorry. Do you. I just know how stressed out you’ve been lately, and thought you might have some fun if you just let yourself go for a night. That’s all I was trying to do.”
I sat down in the chair across from her. “I appreciate that you were trying to help, but you need to let me do things in my own speed. That’s all I’m asking.”
She nodded. “Understood. Well, at least, as much as I can possibly understand. I still think you’re crazy for not letting Ryker fuck your brains out! Seriously girl, that is some mad self-control you’ve got there!”
“I gotta get to work,” I said, pushing away from the table. “Will you be here tonight?”
She smiled and shrugged. “I don’t know. Bennett and I didn’t do a lot of talking last night, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he hit me up later.”
I nodded and slipped away before I said something the wrong way. I didn’t want to kick up more trouble between us, especially after she’d apologized for pushing me too hard.
* * * *
The day at the studio was just the escape I needed. It was impossible for me to stay pent up and frustrated when I had dozens of little faces watching my every move and doing their best to copy me. I loved each and every one of my students, and even though teaching sometimes made for long days, it was the most rewarding job I’d ever had.
Sometimes, after a series of dance auditions, I’d find myself worried that I’d get a lead role and not be able to keep teaching. What had originally started as a way to keep in shape and trained, had turned into one of the biggest passions of my life, and I couldn’t imagine leaving it behind. I hoped I’d never have to choose between having my name in lights, and being there for my students.
Each class flew by, and although I was exhausted, I was happy with the progress all of my students were making. Even the little toddlers had seemed to bring their A-game. If there was such a thing as toddler A-game. The clock on the studio wall was rapidly approaching eight o’clock and I sighed, knowing the end of the day was so near. I had no doubt that Tori would be gone all night with Bennett, and I’d be left alone in the apartment. It wasn’t that I couldn’t be alone, but I knew if I spent the night alone, my mind would wander and lead me to thinking about Ryker, and what might have happened. That would lead to thinking about all of my other close-call relationships that had ended before they’d really begun. And all of that would lead to thinking about the future and what I wanted out of life.
And I didn’t think I had enough wine in the house to deal with it all.
My last class wrapped, and I waited around until each student had been picked up, before cleaning up. I put away all the props and wiped down the wall mirror and barre. The school was funded mostly thanks to an education grant, and I was currently the only teacher. Which meant a lot of paperwork to keep up with. Even though I was exhausted, I decided the best use of my time would be to get a jump on the monthly accounting logs. It beat going home to an empty apartment.
I was refilling my water bottle at the filter in the sink in the tiny storage room that served as my break room, when I heard the front door bell go off. I shook my head, swearing I’d locked it after sending the last student home. The studio was in a less than desirable neighborhood, and I was always super cautious being there alone, especially at night. I went out into the main room, my limbs shaking and my heart thumping out a warning in my chest. My racing pulse screeched to an abrupt stop at the sight of Ryker standing in my studio. He was wearing all black, street clothes, as compared to his more dressed up look from the night before. I could see tattoos on his right forearm, a detail I hadn’t seen the night before. He had the same wicked grin as our eyes met, but it was somehow magnified once his exterior appearance matched his bad boy demeanor.
I was in trouble.
“What—what are you doing here?” I gawked, smoothing the loose strands of hair around my face back behind my ears, just to give my hands something to do.
“I came to see you,” he replied, matter of fact like. “Nice place.” He let his gaze wander away from me and took in the small studio. One wall was completely taken up with the mirror and barre. The opposite wall, by the front door, had dozens of hooks for each student to place his or her bag and coat. I had a small desk in the corner, with an ancient computer, and a dinged up file cabinet. Both of which had been donations to the teacher before me who had started the studio several years earlier.
“How did you even find me?” I asked, ignoring his compliment. My southern mother would be horrified.
He shifted his dark eyes back to me. “I was hanging with Bennett, he called your girl, Tori, to meet up with us at this bar off the strip. When she got there, I asked where you were and she told me about this place.”
Our bury-the-hatchet conversation from that morning had apparently flown right out the window. I was going to kill her.
“Well, I’m sorry that you came all this way, but I was actually on my way out,” I said, sweeping my keys from the edge of my desk.
I made a move to sidestep him, on my way to the front door, but he stepped in sync with me, blocking my path. “Come on, Ev, don’t go running off. Show me around.”
He was too close, his body too warm, his cologne too enticing.
I stepped back and turned away long enough to take a deep breath and steady myself. Ryker strode across the room and stopped in front of the display case that housed all the ribbons, trophies and certificates that my students had earned in different competitions or shows over the years. The top shelf was where I stored some of my own most prized ribbons, and as I watched Ryker’s eyes move to read them, a smile spread across his lip. “Wow, very impressive.”
My cheeks flushed. “Thank you.”
Ryker turned back to face me and pocketed his hands. “How long have you been dancing?”
“Since I was little, my first official ballet class was right around five.” I relaxed. Talking about ballet soothed me, and with Ryker, it helped to take the focus away from the sizzle between us that was becoming impossible to ignore. “And, it just stuck, I guess. I think it was in my blood or something, even though no one else in my family was a dancer.”
Ryker nodded, and a spark lit in his eyes. “Show me,” he said, flicking a
glance towards the barre.
I gaped at him. “You want me to dance for you?”
He nodded and my stomach clenched. I’d danced in front of hundreds of people, but the idea of dancing, in the studio, alone, for Ryker was more unnerving than any audition I’d ever gone to.
“I couldn’t,” I replied, shaking my head.
“Yes, you can, Everlie. I’m an audience of one, how hard could it be?” He dared me, a mischievous half smile on his face. “If it helps, you can pretend I’m not even here.”
Yeah. Right.
I was about to leave, to walk out and tell him if he wanted to see me perform, he’d have to come to my next show—assuming I’d got one anytime soon. But something shifted, and against all odds—and probably my better judgment—I realized I wanted to dance for him, to show off, to make him see that side of me.
“All right. You get one track, and then you have to go home so I can close up,” I bargained.
“Deal,” he agreed, his smile growing. “Where do you want me to sit?”
I pointed to a chair on the opposite wall, wanting to put plenty of space between us. When he was seated, I went to the stereo system, selected a track from the last show I’d performed in. It had been over six months ago, and I’d had a small part in the ensemble, but had been an understudy for the lead, and had practiced the solo dances just as much—if not more—than the real lead, in case I needed to go on. The music started soft as I walked to the center of the room. Ryker’s eyes were trained on me, dark, and hungry.
I caught my cue, and began the routine. The song was about a lost lover, and was an incredibly beautiful piece of music, but it was very slow, almost mournful, which lent to long, sweeping motions. I lost myself in the song, remembering the performance, putting myself into the mind of the character. The background faded from my mind. I was no longer in a shabby dance studio in the middle of a poor, Nevada neighborhood. I was a beautiful prima ballerina, on a grand stage, telling the sad story with my body. I would leave every eye wet with tears, and at the end, the crowd would be stunned into silence for a full minute, before erupting with applause. They would throw roses and call me an inspiration, moving and meaningful.