Page 64 of Rushing Into Love

Walking into the house, I paused in the darkened living room, pulling Bree in close to me, placing a gentle kiss on her soft lips. She relaxed into me, opening her mouth to mine. I kissed her hard and deep, pressing my chest up against hers, her breath ragged and shallow with need. My hands traveled down to her waist and around to her ass. I pulled her into me and her breath caught in surprise. Every muscle in my body was tense, I wanted her so badly.

“Ryder,” she murmured against my lips. “As much as I’d love to stay here and continue this, we should get back; your mom will get suspicious.”

“She won’t be suspicious,” I said, dipping down and kissing her neck, trailing kisses down to her breasts. “She can probably guess what we’re doing.”

Bree pulled away slightly, made eye contact with me. “Exactly. We have to get back.”

“Fine,” I said, fondling her one last time before giving up. “I’ll get the gifts, give me a sec.”

Leaving Bree alone in the living room, I went to the closet in search of my dad’s gifts. I was gone less than five minutes, but when I came back the atmosphere in the room was a lot frostier.

Bree stood in the same exact spot, but she was holding my cell phone, looking good and pissed off.

“What’s the matter?” I asked.

She held the phone out to me. “See for yourself,” she said in a low, angry voice.

I took the phone from her tentatively, as if it were a snake, and glanced down at the screen.Not good.A close-up of a familiar set of breasts. Another highly suggestive photo, this time a little further away, of a thong-clad rear. Then another breast shot, including nipple.

Perfect. Just what Bree needed to see right now, I thought.

“Shayna?” Bree guessed, hands on hips.

I nodded, rolling my eyes. “You got it.” I scrolled through the photos, taking screen shots and forwarding the evidence on to my lawyer before deleting the pictures.

“What the hell is she playing at, Ryder?” Bree crossed her arms over her chest.

“I have no idea, Bree, trust me. She’s a narcissist and she’s totally unstable! It’s one of the many reasons why we’re not together and why she can’t see Charlie. I have no idea how she found me, let alone my cell number.” I sighed, running my hands roughly through my hair.This was getting messy.

“I should get you home soon,” I said, picking up the gifts. “I don’t want you to get dragged into this mess.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, Ryder, I’m already in this mess!” Her body shook with anger. “She practically railroaded my career and now she’s coming back for more!”

“Exactly why I should get you away from me. She’s dangerous, Bree. I need to protect Charlie and now I need to protect you.”

“I can watch out for myself, thank you very much,” she said, hands on her hips in determination. “I don’t need you or anyone else to protect me. I told you I wouldn’t bail and I’m not going to. Are you?” She looked up at me, her green eyes wide with worry.

I exhaled. “No, of course not. I just want to do right by you and my family, that’s all. I’m doing the best I can, Bree.”

Softening a little, she dropped her hands, coming towards me. “I know, Ryder.” She placed her hand on my chest in the exact spot where my heart was beating out of control. “I know.”

We clung tightly to each other for a long time, neither of us wanting to let go, both nervous of what might happen next.

* * *

Despite what Bree said,I thought it’d be best if I cooled things down with her a little, at least until the Shayna situation was back under control. We texted and talked on the phone every day, but I only saw her at football. Luckily, work was pretty busy for both of us, so she didn’t push the issue.

My lawyer filed a new restraining order against Shayna, using the photos she’d sent as corroborating evidence. My hope was this latest antic would squash all hopes of visitation Shayna ever had and I could breathe easy again.

Ring, ring.

I checked my cell; it was my lawyer calling. Inhaling sharply, I answered my phone. “Hey. Please tell me you have good news.”

“Better than that, buddy. Great news. The judge granted the restraining order and rejected Shayna’s appeal for a new trial. He denied all of her parental rights, even her bid for visitation. You’re in the clear.”

I exhaled, breathing again. “And the restraining order stands for every member of my family, plus Bree?”

“You got it. Shayna can’t come within fifty yards of any of you or your residences, workplaces, or Charlie’s school. Even better, it’s a permanent restraining order, so it’s good for the next three years. That’s a huge win.”

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