Page 6 of Hook Up

“You claim you’re not built for relationships, but you haven’t found the right guy yet. When you do, all those things you swore off will be the only things that matter.”

Damn him for being so perceptive. I want to pop off with a smart retort, but he’s right. All my bravado is just that—armor to protect myself from winding up like my mother, alone and bitter at fifty. Oh, and broke to boot.

But unlike the other men who pass through my life, Ryder knows my family. The good, the bad, and the positively sordid.

In other words, the guy sees right through the excuses I toss around like confetti, and in true Ryder fashion, he isn’t afraid to state the obvious. He was always that way—such an old soul, even at the age of ten. Now, he’s an old soul in a delicious package.

What is wrong with you, Greer? You used to babysit Ryder. Snap out of it.

Granted, he is only eight years younger. An eternity when you’re a teenager but hardly a blip when you’re both adults.

Tearing my gaze from those intense blue eyes, I focus on my drink, as if I might find the answer in its depths. “I don’t want to end up like my mother.”

Ryder shoots me a reassuring smile as he grasps my hand, his fingers warm against my skin. “Greg told me she had a rough time after the divorce.”

“She never saw it coming. My father packed his things and snuck out in the middle of the night. He’d been fooling around with his co-worker for years. Hell, you probably met her at one of their parties. She was sleeping with my father while pretending to be my mother’s friend. I pity my mother for how they treated her, and I never want to end up like her.”

His fingers stroke along my palm, and I’m shocked by how his simple caress calms my nerves. Granted, it’s also firing up other parts of my body, but I’m choosing to ignore that fact.

“Don’t pity her. Your mother can look at herself in the mirror every day. Can’t say the same for your old man. Besides, didn’t his new wife up and leave him, taking half of everything?” Ryder swigs back his drink, a knowing expression on his handsome face. “That’s karma.”

“True, but his karma affected us all. Look at what happened with Greg. He had to quit racing. He loved racing.”

Those baby blues darken. “He told me he didn’t want to do it anymore. He claimed to be tired of the constant practices and travel.”

“He would tell you that. He was embarrassed. When my dad left, my mother couldn’t afford any of the niceties. Racing was a luxury.” Finishing my drink, I motion for another. Talk about a downer of a conversation. “Enough of our trip down my memory lane. Let’s lighten the mood.” Grabbing my refill, I raise the drink in his direction. “To reconnecting with old friends.”

Our gazes hold as we clink glasses and for the first time in years, I feel like my old self. That teenage girl, ready to take the world by storm, until the storm arrived, and I realized I wasn’t nearly as tough as I once believed. Storms can really knock the sails out of your dreams.

“It’s about damn time. It seemed every time I was on the island, you were off at school. Again. How long did you attend college? Forever?”

I chuckle, although Ryder isn’t far off, and I have the stack of debts to prove it. “Eight years, so a good chunk of my life.”

“You’re a doctor, right?”

“Nurse practitioner.”

“So, you’re like a doctor?”

I giggle, grasping his arm. “Don’t let a doctor hear you say that. They’ll have a conniption.”

“I can handle them.”

“You can run them over in your race car.”

Ryder laughs, and I’m mesmerized at how it lights up his face. Damn, but he grew up fine. I’m fairly certain with his easy grace and effortless good looks, he’s had more than his share of ladies at this point. I’m also certain he’s not the type to leave a woman with anything less than total satisfaction. “I try to play by the rules in my ride, but for you, I’ll make an exception.”

“There you are. I wondered where the hell you went.”

Austin’s snarky voice cuts into our conversation, and I turn, forcing a smile. Lovely. Judging by his red-rimmed eyes and belligerent expression, he’s now deeper in the sauce.

“Hi, Austin. This is my brother’s best friend, Ryder.”

Ryder’s gaze locks with mine, but despite his neutral expression, I notice the muscle jumping in his jaw. He’s none too happy at the interruption. “I was your friend, too, Gigi. Don’t forget all those trips to the record store.”

“We had fun.” Unlike Greg, who believed giving me a hard time was a rite of passage, Ryder always seemed interested in me. I even recall him claiming he had a crush on me all those years ago.

Austin throws out his hand, flashing Ryder a smile. “An old friend of Greer’s? Wow, maybe you understand what makes this woman tick. Damned if I know. I dated her for months and she never opened up. Not emotionally, anyway.” He winks, no doubt a drunken attempt at camaraderie, but his statement feels like a punch in the gut.

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