Page 80 of Falling for Them

“Damn it, Ethan! You know what I’m talking about.” He stopped in front of his desk and moved his computer screen around until I could see it. “You’retogether.”

“What the fuck?” I stood, leaning in to read the short article under a ridiculous headline about a love triangle with pictures of me, Libby, and Leo kissing. It was a lot to process, so I said the first thing that came to mind. “They think we’re gorgeous.”

“That’s all you got from that?!” His face was starting to turn red, and his eye twitched a few times. I had entered the danger zone.

While it was fun to push Ryker’s buttons, I knew where the line was, and I was kicking at it. I might have been his little sister’s best friend—and now boyfriend—but I was still his employee, and I liked my job.

I slowly took my seat and folded my hands in my lap. “That’s such an invasion of privacy.”

Libby was going to lose her shit when she saw the article and pictures. She was always worried about the image she put out into the world, and this would devastate her. The article hadn’t said anything bad about the two of us, but I was sure the internet trolls would be all over this.

Ryker sighed and sat down in his office chair like he’d just run a marathon. “I don’t know what to do here, Ethan.”

“There’s nothing you really can do. Unfortunately, Leo is sometimes in the spotlight, and he has a history. Libby and I were aware of that when we decided to give him a chance. I guess we didn’t think we’d end up being a breaking story so soon.” He stared at me, so I continued. “We’d all talked about telling you. Libby was going to tell you tonight.”

“She texted me and asked me if I wanted to go to dinner.” He picked up a pen and tapped it against his desk. “If Leo doesn’t get this cleaned up, I’m going to have to fire him.”

My stomach dropped. “Fire him? For being in a relationship with us?”

Ryker dropped the pen with a loud clunk. “No, because he runs a charitable foundation and the last thing it needs is a director who brings negative press. Donors and the parents of the kids we’re going to serve won’t care about his relationship status, but theywillcare that he is plastered all over the internet for it.”

I could understand that, but that didn’t mean firing him was the answer. “You asked me if things were serious… I can’t speak for Leo or Libby, but for me they are. I was unsure about him atfirst, but he has grown on me. And you know how I feel about your sister.”

“I do.” He was the most fidgety I’d ever seen him, and he stood again to pace in front of the window. “What I don’t understand is how you could want another man involved.”

“You have other men involved in your relationship.”

“That’s different. We were best friends already. This came out of nowhere.”

“He’s really trying, Ryker. He took us on dates, including taking Libby to a bookstore for a shopping spree. And this weekend, after Libby shared about camping in the backyard when you two were younger, he ordered an outdoor movie screen, and we had s’mores. He listens and he cares.”

Ryker stopped and turned toward me. “I don’t want to see her heartbroken…”

“She’s stronger than you give her credit for, and I don’t plan on breaking her heart.” I stood, knowing that Ryker probably needed some time to himself. “I’m going to go down and check on Libby and Leo, if that’s okay?”

Ryker nodded. “Thank you, Ethan. You might be a pain in the ass most of the time, but my life and Libby’s wouldn’t be the same without you.”

Was he trying to make me cry? “I knew you loved me.”

“Get out of my office.” He cracked a smile, and I took that as a win.

I stepped off the elevator on Libby’s floor, thankful that Ryker and Leo had set up the temporary office in the same building. The floor was quiet, which was to be expected since there were only currently three people working at the foundation.

Libby was in her office, her eyes already glossed over as she studied something on her computer screen. It had to be a rough adjustment going from reading about a duck and goose fighting over an egg which was really a soccer ball, to sitting at a desk in front of a computer most of the day.

“Hey.” I leaned against her door frame. “You have a few minutes?”

She jumped, her eyes darting to me. “Jesus, I didn’t even hear you.”

“You were really zoned out there.” I walked in and sat down in a chair across from her desk. “What are you working on?”

“Budget stuff. I have to present my operating budget for the academic side of things on Friday.” She scrunched her nose. “I thought when I agreed to help run this, I’d be more hands-on with the community.”

“That will come eventually… after you do all the hard work first.” I wasn’t quite sure how to bring up the news. She clearly hadn’t seen or heard about it yet. “Where are Leo and Carter? It’s quiet today.”

“Leo had an urgent meeting with his father, and Carter only comes in when there are meetings. He’s more of a contractor type of employee at the moment.” A smile broke out across her face. “You didn’t come down here for a quickie, did you?”

I cringed. “I wished that was the reason I was here…”

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