And there was no way she was going to let him push her away again. It still sent a hot thrill through her when she remembered the way he’d touched her, the harsh possessiveness of his words when he’d told her to forget about other guys.
Oh, they were forgotten all right.
And her body ached for him to touch her again. She wanted more. She wanted everything. And she was going to have it, dammit.
She showered, dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved tee for work, and headed to A Piece of Cake to meet the girls. Carly had fresh cinnamon buns and coffees waiting.
“Please tell me you hooked up with Ryan last night,” Gabby said with a huge smile as she slid onto the seat next to Emma’s.
She grinned. “Define ‘hooked up’.”
Mandy came up behind them, her eyes wide. “Holy shit, Emma. Tell us everything.”
“We were at The Music Factory last night to hear his brother DJ—which is a whole other story because I’m so proud of Trent—but after everyone else left, we were still dancing, and somehow dancing turned to kissing, and?—”
Gabby gasped.
“He took me down this hall in back, and holy crap, you guys…”
“What?” Mandy asked. They all leaned in, hanging on her every word.
“Well, let’s just say, things happened.” Emma felt her cheeks getting hot.
“Things?” Mandy repeated with a laugh. “What kind of things?”
Emma glanced around the bakery, but no one else was nearby to overhear her naughty confession. “Well, his hands were up my skirt, and he’s very good with his hands. And…he’s a dirty talker, and?—”
“Oh my God!” Carly squealed.
Mandy sat back with a wide smile. “Now that’s what I’m talking about. Way to go, my friend.” She raised her hand and slapped a high five with Emma.
“And then what happened?” Gabby asked.
“Then he walked me to my car and said we’d talk about it today.”
“Like I said in the beginning,” Mandy said, “Ryan Blake is a sheep in wolf’s clothing. He’s the perfect guy for you to experiment with, Emma, because he’s a gentleman at heart.”
Emma knew Mandy was right, which meant she had to watch out where Ryan was concerned. She’d spent most of her life wanting him, and once she had him, she’d have a hell of a time not falling head over heels in love with him.
A few hours later, she was back out at Off-the-Grid, overseeing several seasonal contractors as they reseeded the grass in the field behind the house while she finished up the flowers she was planting along the walkway.
Ryan came sauntering out of the building, looking all badass and sexy, and she practically swooned into the begonias. “Got a minute?” he asked, his expression masked by his sunglasses.
“Sure.” She stood, wiping the dirt from her hands.
“Let’s walk.” He led the way down one of the many paths into the woods on the property, looking for all the world like he was just out for a casual stroll, like he was the same Ryan he’d been her whole life until last night, when he’d kissed the daylights out of her and given her an orgasm in the back hallway of The Music Factory.
“Beautiful weather,” he commented as they walked.
“Yeah.” She chewed her bottom lip. He’d better not be planning to act like last night never happened because?—
“So here’s the thing,” he said once they’d rounded a corner, firmly out of sight from anyone else on the property.
“Yes?” she asked hopefully.
“The thing is…” He blew out a breath, shaking his head. “I have no idea what to do about this thing between us.”
Nervous laughter bubbled out of her, and she slapped a hand over her mouth. “Me either. So maybe we should quit overthinking it and just see what happens.”