Page 9 of Ryder

Opening the door, I could hear Ryder telling them a wild story involving racing his motorcycle and almost crashing. Shaking my head, I hurried down the walkway to my little Honda Civic. All I wanted to do was go home and forget about Ryder Raven, but something told me that was much easier said than done.

Chapter 5

Ryder

I couldn’t get Scarlett out of my mind.

Something told me she wanted me, but also despised me, too.

Everything about her was sexy as hell, even when she was glaring daggers at me from across the room.

I loved visiting with the boys. Christian always had a tone of questions and Connor and Cooper were always arguing and it was hilarious to watch them go at it. These boys reminded me of my brothers and friends, Storm and Jagger.

They had a special bond that I missed. Even though I worked my ass off to get the career I had, I still missed the simple days.

“Hey, what’s going on? Are you even listening to me?“ Blaze asks through the phone.

He had called to talk to me about my upcoming race, but I wasn’t really listening to him.

I was out at the track, watching a few guys do practice laps. I should be focused on racing or what my brother was saying, but instead, I was lost and consumed by all things Scarlett.

“Sorry man, I’m just a little distracted,” I admitted.

A racer drove past me, the roar of the engine almost causing the pavement to shake.

“I know you are busy. Call me later,” Blaze says.

Guilt takes over as I feel bad for ignoring my brother. I need to get my head cleared. All thoughts of Scarlett plague me and I just don’t understand why this feisty woman isn’t interested in me. Never has a woman looked at me with such detest.

Call me crazy, but I need to find a way to make her like me.

Chapter 6

Scarlett

The next two days were glorious.

I caught up on chores around my house, enjoyed lovely evening walks on the beach, and spent my nights curled up on my couch drinking wine and watching Netflix. It was pure heaven.

While I had time away from All Our Children, I had also managed to conjure up the bravery to put in an application for a new position opening up at Future Leaders. They had recently had a member of their marketing team move away and needed to fulfill the position. It was something I had dreamed of doing forever, but my commitment and relationship with the boys at All Our Children had stopped me from applying for other open positions at Future Leaders. Now, though, I felt like it was time for me to spread my wings and try my next corporate venture.

As I completed the application, I submitted it and sat back, sipping a glass of my Riesling. A wave of sadness washed overme at the thought of not working with the boys anymore. While I would always hold a special place in my heart for them, at some point, I needed to do what was right for me.

Closing my laptop, I was about to get up and get ready to order myself some dinner when I heard my phone chime with a text message.

Reaching over to my coffee table, I grabbed my phone and saw Allison’s name flashing on my screen.

Allison:Don’t make plans for Sunday night.

Oh no, there was no telling what Allison was up to. Ever since she and I had become friends while working at All Our Children, she had been trying to set me up on a date with one of her husbands' single friends. So far, none of them had been a match.

Quickly typing out a reply, I smirked to myself.

Me:Why, are you planning another arranged marriage for me?

I saw the little bubbles appear, and I could just picture Allison angrily texting out a reply, her fingers moving at lightning speed across her keypad.

Allison:You will thank me one day when you aren’t fifty, with twenty cats running around your apartment. Meet me at Charlies Steak House on Sunday night at seven.

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