Ryan Hunter

by Piper Shelly

  Liza laughed, but I could also feel her shivering slightly every time I hugged her tight against my chest. Mmm, it was just the way I wanted her to react to me. Spinning her around, I caught her with her back to my front, running my palm from just underneath her breasts down over her stomach until my hand lay splayed over the small strip of naked skin on her belly. With gentle moves, I made her roll her body with mine to the music.

  “What are you doing?” she shouted over her shoulder between hiccups of shy laughter.

  Nuzzling her temple, I said in her ear, “Distracting you.” I moved her again and loved how her body rubbed against mine, making me go wild for her.

  It was probably a good thing that Phil came in at that minute and motioned for me to come over as our gazes caught across the room, because otherwise I might just have dragged Liza back out into my car to fucking make out with her for the rest of the night.

  Liza smoothed her clothes, that had turned into a mess from my holding her, as we headed over to the oblong bar where Phil served some drinks to a couple of patrons. When they left, he grabbed two cans of Coke from the fridge and placed them in front of Liza and me. Since there were no speakers above the bar, we could talk in an almost normal volume back here.

  “Phil—Liza,” I introduced them. “Liza, this is Phil, my older sister’s husband.”

  Liza shook hands with him then guzzled down what seemed to be three quarters of the Coke on one go. I helped her onto one of the high, leather bar stools and took a casual stance between her legs, turned to face the bar.

  Phil knew that whoever I brought with me to this club wasn’t my girlfriend, so he asked, “You know each other from school?”

  “Sort of. We play soccer together now,” I told him. “New co-ed team.”

  “Really? That’s cool.” He turned an interested face to Liza and pulled his shoulder length hair into a pony tail. “Do you like it?”

  “Yeah, it’s great. Love the training.”

  What did she just say? Slowly to make an impact, I turned toward her, raising one brow.

  “What?” she mouthed, returning my look with an irritated one of her own.

  Our gazes locked for the length of a heartbeat, then I tucked her soft strands behind her ear and leaned closer. “I still have the text where you say you’re done with soccer, Liza.”

  I realized how she swallowed at my taunt. But then she leaned back just a little and looked me sternly in the eye. “Did you really not know my name before I sent you that message?”

  Ah, girl, if only you knew. But I wouldn’t tell her. Not now, anyway. With a laugh, I shrugged it off. “Why, Matthews? You were devoted to Mitchell. What would I care?”

  That earned me a hard shove against my shoulder, but she grinned, anyway. “You’re such an ass, you know.”

  “I’ve been told girls go for that,” I mocked her. If a smile from me could make her dreamy, I wondered what a wink would do. I tested that then drank from my Coke, but with my eyes still on her face, and enjoyed how her cheeks flushed a delicious pink. She tried to hide behind her can of Coke then as she took another swig, but her gaze returned to me, and the moment we shared looking at each other filled me with a desire for her that topped everything I’d known in the past.

  I was abruptly pulled out of that moment when a girl looped her arm around my neck and pressed a kiss to my cheek. For the time of a heartbeat I froze, scared this was one of my acquaintances coming over to say hello at the utterly wrong moment. Then I looked into familiar brown eyes.

  “Hi, little brother,” Rachel said and shoved her long black hair back over her shoulder.

  “Hey,” I said back and relaxed. I knew she was burning to hear who the girl by my side was, so I waited until she came around, then I told her, “This is the friend of a friend. Her name is Matthews, and she’s on my soccer team. Well was…is…I don’t know.”

  The girls shook hands, and Liza said after a short scowl at me, “My name is Liza.”

  “Don’t mind him. The oaf was never comfortable with first names.” Rach sold me out. “I’m lucky—I’m his sister.”

  Yeah, right. “That doesn’t mean a thing, Carter.” I pulled her hair like I used to do when I wanted to annoy her as a child and laughed. Then I popped another soda and clinked cans with my brother in law.

  “So, the friend of a friend, huh?” I heard Rachel say to Liza, and she sounded way to curious. “Where is that friend?”

  “Not here,” I told her with an evil grin, letting her know that for tonight, Liza was my friend. Liza seemed to enjoy that fact just the same as she met my gaze.

  The only one who didn’t look happy was Rachel. “Just when will you grow up and settle for one?”

  Luckily, Phil backed me up as he leaned over the bar and kissed my sister. “He’s young, baby. He has time.”

  “I know.” Rachel gave me a wry look. “I’m just waiting for the day that a girl sees through you…and decides to like you anyway.”

  “Yep, me, too.” I really was. And hopefully, Liza would just be the one.

  “That calls for a drink!” Philip announced all of a sudden, and I could have murdered him for that.

  But instead, I froze, and a weird shower skittered down the back of my neck. What the hell—he couldn’t be serious. This wasn’t me bringing a random girl to the club to have some meaningless fun, goddammit. It was Liza. And I would do many things with her right now, but I wouldn’t ruin our first kiss with a stupid game.

  Chapter 10

  PHIL PLACED TWO small glasses on the counter and shoved one toward me. Immediately, I passed it on to my sister, not intending to play along. “You can have your drink with Rach. I’ll skip tonight.”

  “This game is stupid,” Rach pointed out with a disgusted grunt.

  But Philip ignored her and made a wry face at me. “You pass? With that beautiful drinking partner?”

  She was beautiful, but that was not the point. “I’m not having this drink with her.”

  “Why? Is she shy?”

  Maybe she was, but who gave a damn? Above all, Liza was special. And Phil needed to understand that. “She’s too nice,” I said, determined to put an end to this. At the same time, I noticed Liza’s attention focused on me, and it was anything but pleasant.

  “Ah, she’s a prude then,” Phil concluded wrongly.

  That seriously pissed Liza off. “I’m not a prude! And I’m standing right beside you, so I would appreciate it if you told me what the hell you two are talking about.”

  Trying to soothe and reassure her, I stroked her cheek with my knuckles. “She’s decent,” I corrected Phil.

  “Yeah, and decent is a shit word for prude,” Liza muttered, dropping her gaze, but then she looked back at me and scowled again. Or maybe it wasn’t a scowl after all? “Why don’t you want to do with me whatever you’re used to doing with others when you come here?”

  Oh, girl, if only you knew how very much I want to do just that with you. With everything I’d found out from yesterday’s diary entry, I could just imagine how the thought of my denying her would hurt her. It made her vulnerable to me, and in that exact moment, I realized with a start how much this appealed to me. I always thought I’d go for the sassy and strong type of girl, which Liza definitely could be if she wanted to. But it was her vulnerability that attracted me the most.

  And yet, I couldn’t take advantage of it. Anybody’s first kiss should be romantic. Something Liza would remember for the rest of her life…and smile when she did. She’d hate me if I spoiled this for her. But heck, when I looked at her cute pout, I could hardly withstand the temptation. “You don’t know what you’re asking for, Matthews,” I growled.

  “Well, it won’t kill me to find out, right?”

  It wouldn’t kill her, no. But she might kill me, if I screwed this up. Her eyes fastened on mine. Holy shit, what if I just gave it a try? If I made it good for her, she might acquire a taste for it. More me.

  Taking in a deep breath, I dra
wled, “Okay. But remember, I gave you fair warning.”

  Liza looked like she couldn’t make up her mind between being stubborn or scared as hell of what I was going to do with her in a minute. Well, she didn’t have to be scared. The girls I’d been out with bragged about me being a good kisser for a reason.

  With a quick glance at Philip, I nodded, and he filled the two glasses with tequila, obviously happy about the new development. Rachel grabbed the bottle from his hand when my glass was only half-full. “That’s enough for him,” she insisted.

  That was okay. There could have been water in the shot, and I wouldn’t mind, because the most essential part of this game was actually not the drink but the half slice of lime that Phil just placed on my glass.

  While my anticipation grew to a point that reached my pants, Liza looked every bit ready to back out. I gave her a half-smile, one which I knew made her go stupid and dreamy. “You still game?”

  “I don’t have to drink this, do I?” she whispered uncertain.

  “No, you don’t,” I assured her, hoping she’d keep up her bravery. “That’s for me. You only assist with the lime.”

  She looked at the juicy fruit then back at me and nodded. “Game on.”

  That was my cue. Smiling to myself, I took the lime off the Tequila, clinked my glass to Philip’s, and held the slice out to Liza. “Bite.”

  “What?”

  “Bite,” I said again as I put the glass down and dragged the brim of my cap around to the back of my head so it wouldn’t poke her in the eye. Then I knocked back the shot, the sharp taste of liquor burning down my throat.

  Liza’s eyes staked mine as she leaned forward and bit into the fruit I held out to her. With a grimace, she jerked away. All right, that would do. Tossing the slice into my empty glass, I reached around her neck and slipped my hand under her soft hair. There was no time to think, or I might have changed my mind…for her sake, not for mine.

  Her eyes grew wide with surprise as I yanked her toward me, and with my mouth pressed gently against hers, I slid my tongue across her tender bottom lip, licking away the sour taste of lime juice. Just because she deserved it for her earlier sweet pout, I gave her lip a gentle nip. Then I went for the full taste. With a little more pressure in the right place, I worked her mouth open with mine.

  I realized that I had stunned her breathless, but when I roamed her mouth with my tongue, she was ready to give me back in full. In a sensually slow motion, I stroked her tongue with mine, savoring the beguiling mix of Coke and lime, together with Liza’s sweetness.

  God, how long had I been waiting for this moment. For this first real taste of her. It seemed like forever, and it was totally worth the wait. Getting high from her amazing smell and from how soft her skin felt against my palm when I caressed her neck and cheek, I didn’t want to ever stop kissing her. But if I also wanted her to live through this, I knew I had to pull away, so she would finally start breathing again.

  I pulled a tiny inch back and told her with a soft, low, and utterly happy voice, “Thanks for your help with the lime.”

  “Uh-huh.” Her gorgeous eyes turned a darker shade of green with innocent passion. “Anytime.”

  I loved her being baffled, because her luscious lips were slightly parted, inviting me back in. She stared at me as though we were the only people in the room. Hell, if this was true, she’d be lying on that bar now, trapped underneath me, and a simple kiss wouldn’t fucking do.

  Rachel squeezed in between me and Liza, sending a disapproving scowl at Phil and me. “Look what you did, you oafs. You scared the poor girl.”

  “Nah, she isn’t scared.” Giving up my place next to Liza, I winked at her over my sister’s shoulder. “I bet she enjoyed it.”

  And now the sweetest smile slipped to Liza’s face. With a light blush, she turned her head away.

  Oh yes, vulnerable. And so up for more. I was dying to know what she’d be writing about in her diary tonight.

  While Rachel fired a volley of questions at Liza that showed she’d noticed my genuine interest in her, I turned to Phil and had another soda with him. We ranted about the three guys on stage that performed a song by OneRepublic.

  “When was the last time you stood up there and sang karaoke,” Phil asked with an obvious hint at me.

  It had been months. And the last time wasn’t such a great success, because Justin and I had sung a duet when we had drunk a little too much. But it was always fun to stand on stage and have the crowd cheering for us. “It’s been a while. You know it’s hard to find a partner who can actually sing.”

  Philip gave a subtle nod toward the girls.

  “Rachel?” I asked, narrowing my eyes.

  Phil shook his head, moving his eyes toward Liza and back at me.

  Now I quirked my brows and said a bit lower, “Liza?” Sliding a look over to her, I considered the idea. There was a small chance she could sing. Most girls could. But she didn’t look to me like someone who’d like to become the center of attention in a stuffed club. “She’d never agree.”

  “She would have never agreed to the lime kiss either. But she obviously liked it a lot.”

  I laughed out loud. “You think I should surprise her?”

  “What’s the worst thing that can happen?”

  “That she hates me afterwards and doesn’t ever talk to me again?”

  Phil chuckled. “Good point.”

  I listened to the next song, deciding that the guys earlier were a lot better than the two girls who were blaring a Whitney Houston song. Liza and I could do better than that.

  When I overheard how my sister started to compare Liza’s and my preferences in food, I made up my mind quickly and figured it was time to cut the conversation off and save Liza from the grilling.

  “She’s the devil in disguise, hunting for potential in-laws,” I warned her. “Don’t let her make you sign anything.”

  Rachel slapped me on the shoulder for that remark, but I didn’t care and just grinned at her, because we both knew I was right. Then I took Liza’s hand and pulled her off the barstool. “Let me save you from the Spanish inquisition,” I said in her ear and made her follow me through the crowd.

  A few feet away from the stage, she probably realized what I had in mind, and she pulled me to a stop. “You’re kidding me, right?”

  “Nope.” I added a smile to that. Something she could concentrate on and forget the panic that now caused her hand to shake in mine. And indeed, she walked with me up the stairs onto the stage, though a little reluctant.

  I left her by the microphone for a second to tell the DJ which song he should play. When I turned around again, Liza made an escape for the stairs. With my arm around her waist, I stopped her and dragged her back to the mike.

  “You’re so going to pay for this,” she hissed, but I thought she was more thrilled at the thought of singing than frightened. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have made her come up with me.

  Leaning down to her ear, I told her, “You can hate me later. Now, we sing.”

  When the music rolled out, Liza stared at me with huge eyes. I figured it was up to me alone to perform the first lines of Country Roads. I hugged her tight against me and adjusted the mike to my height, then I sang, and Liza was silent.

  The emotions playing out in her face screamed: I’m going to kill you for this! And I thought, okay, if I was going to die anyway, we would at least have some fun before. It was her turn to sing, and I held the microphone in front of her kissable mouth.

  Her nails dug into my stomach where she clamped my shirt, and I could feel her heart hammering in her chest where she pressed against me. “Sing,” I mouthed and gave her the most encouraging look manageable.

  Liza grimaced and squeezed her eyes shut. But she opened her mouth and within a few seconds her panicky croak turned into a really beautiful singing voice. Her eyes opened again, and she looked at me with wonder, like she was totally amazed about herself and how well she did. Heck, she even smiled as we s
ang together. Soon her clawed fingers uncurled, and she pressed her palm against my chest. I placed my hand on top of hers, trying to give her the safe feeling she needed.

  When the crowd started singing with us, her face lit up even more. I got the feeling she really enjoyed herself and figured we could do a little more than just stand poker stiff. Slipping behind her, I took her hands and lifted them over her head. Together we clapped to the beat, and our audience mirrored us. I stood very close to her, enjoying the nearness, and sang in her ear while she had the mike all to herself. She delivered an amazing show. That was my girl. Vulnerable like a kitten, but strong and brave when she needed to be.

  The song’s end was drowned out by the clubbers’ whistles and shouts, prompting us to perform another song. I was totally up to it, but this time I thought it better to ask Liza first. “What do you think?”

  “I think I’m going to kill you.”

  Yeah, I knew that and laughed.

  “No way are we doing this again.” She grabbed my hand like I’d done with her before and made me follow her down from the stage.

  I shrugged and grinned at the expectant crowed as I was dragged away.

  When we reached the bar again, Rachel had switched sides and stood with Phil behind the counter now. “That was awesome!” She beamed at Liza and me together. “You’d really make a sweet couple.”

  Liza laughed about that. “Yeah, right.”

  Yeah, right? Did that mean no? I gave her a wry look and she cast me the same look back, then she stuck her tongue out at me and laughed again.

  Okay, Hunter, make something of that, I thought.

  A little later, she asked me if it was okay to leave. It was almost midnight, and I remembered that I’d promised to take Cinderella back before one. I let Rachel kiss my cheek as we told them goodbye, and she whispered into my ear that she’d come home tomorrow and intended to get all the details about me and Liza.