Page 41 of If You Fight

Chapter Thirteen

Serena

All day I worried about what my father could be doing to Ryder now that he was back at work for him. Robert Erickson prided himself on his skill in breaking people, and even though he’d promised me Ryder would never be beaten again, I knew in my heart he’d do something to make him suffer.

Sooner or later, he’d drop the façade and show his true self once again.

As I thought about what he’d do, I heard the door to Ryder’s apartment open and hurried to see how he’d fared on his first day back. My heart raced at the idea that he might be hurt even worse than before, but as I watched him slowly walk toward the living room, he seemed to be okay.

“Hey, I thought the deal was you’d be waiting for me naked in bed. I’ve been looking forward to that all day,” he said with a smile, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close.

I tilted my head to look up at him and thought I saw a dark area under his left eye. “What happened? Did he go back on his promise already?” I asked as I gently ran my fingertips over his cheek.

Ryder took my hand in his and brought my fingers to his lips in a kiss. “I’m fine. He didn’t do anything. It was just a regular work day, strangely enough.”

“Nothing? What did he say about what he did to you?”

“Nothing. He acted like everything was the same between us. Like he didn’t have his two goons rough me up right there in that office.”

“I don’t trust him. That sounds like how a psychopath acts.”

Bending down, Ryder kissed me sweetly and smiled. “Oh, he’s a psychopath. I have no doubt about that. For now, though, he seems to want to pretend like we’re okay and he has no problem with us being together.”

I placed my head on his chest over his heart and sighed. “So now we get to wonder when he’ll strike again. Sounds like the work of a psychopath.”

“Don’t worry,” Ryder whispered against the top of my head. “Whatever he does to me, I can handle it. As long as we’re together, I can take anything he dishes out.”

Looking up, I saw that sweetness I loved in him as he gazed down at me like all of this was perfectly normal for a man in love to deal with. “You shouldn’t have to, Ryder. I bet if you knew our life would be like this, you never would have let me into your room that night I came looking for you.”

Pressing his forehead to mine, he whispered, “I still would have.”

“So about that whole naked waiting for you thing. Give me a few seconds and I can make that come true.”

His hands drifted down my back to cup my ass before he gave it a gentle squeeze. “Just long enough for me to down some whisky and take the edge off the pain in my ribs. I’ll meet you in the bedroom.”

Before he turned to walk away, I stopped him and asked, “Are you sure you’re up to it? If you’re in pain, we can just relax tonight.”

Ryder grinned in that sexy way I knew meant he’d actually looked forward to coming home to see me naked in his bed. “I’m a red-blooded American male. Trust me. A few broken ribs aren’t going to stop me from pleasuring the woman I love. Even if my jaw was wired shut, I’d still be game to go down on you.”

“That sounds truly awful,” I said with a chuckle as the image of that ran through my head. “Nothing like looking down and seeing a man gritting his teeth near your lady bits.”

He ran his tongue along his lower lip and winked at me. “See? It could be much worse. Now get in there and get naked. I want to see you ready and waiting for me when I come in.”

“Oooh, I love it when you get all bossy with me.”

With his forefinger and thumb, he gripped my chin and tilted my head back to kiss me. “Good, and I’m starving for you, so I’m going to devour that beautiful pussy of yours.”

When he said things like that, a sweet ache formed inside me, like the mere description of what he’d do to me made me want him even more. I watched as he slowly walked toward the kitchen to get his drink and loved the way even when his body was racked with pain, he could still be so focused on me and my happiness.

Slipping out of my jeans and sweater, I placed them on the chair in the corner of the room and lay down. I wriggled out of my panties and bra, tossing them across the room to the same chair, and waited just as he’d ordered—naked and ready for him on his bed.

Ryder appeared in the doorway and smiled a grin so wicked I felt myself get wetter just looking at him. He’d removed his tie and unbuttoned the top two buttons on his black dress shirt, making him look so fucking sexy.

“You look beautiful there just waiting for me, like the perfect woman all for me,” he said in a low voice that hit me deep inside.

Slowly, he walked over to the bed, and I saw that intensity in his green eyes that never failed to make me feel desired. His gaze remained focused entirely on me, never wavering as he stared at my body like I was something to be worshipped.

“It seems unfair that I’m the only one undressed here,” I said as I reached out to tug him by the waist of his pants to bring him closer.

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