Page 132 of Love Not Qualified

I placed a foot in front of Ryker, stretching my hand to Haelyn. “Ryker, this is Haelyn. Haelyn, this is Ryker.”

She gave him a soft smile. “Nice to meet you.” Haelyn offered him her hand, but when he took too long to reciprocate, she took it back. “I’m sorry, I got used to the formal handshakes at work,” She turned it around so easily I was surprised. I knew she remembered my brother was cold.

He kept silent, analyzing her. I knew he wasn’t doing it in a rude way and I hoped Haelyn picked that out as well.

“I was thinking of making dinner tonight while you and Tristan do something,” Haelyn tried again with a smile on her face.

Ryker tilted his head. “Cool.” Then walked past her right to the stairs.

Her eyes followed him until he disappeared at the first floor and she didn’t look back at me until she heard his door clicking shut. She looked as if she was about to throw up and I could barely hold in my laughter.

She placed a hand on her stomach, glancing down at her feet. “He hates me.”

I put my hands on her shoulders, making her look at me. “He doesn’t hate you, I promise.”

Haelyn bit her bottom lip. “He doesn’t hate me now, but I just offered to cook dinner when I only know how to cook cheap things.”

I smiled. “Do you know how to make banana bread, fries, and chicken breast?”

“I think so.”

“Then do that and I’m sure he’ll love them. Stop being so harsh on yourself,” I said, then kissed the top of her forehead.

Haelyn relaxed in my arms for a moment, breathing harshly before she pushed me away. “Now, go away and spend some time with your brother, I have things to do.”

Before I walked away, I stopped at the edge of the staircase to watch her. She searched through every cabinet, taking things she needed out and laying them on the kitchen island. Haelyn had her tongue resting on her bottom lip as she whispered what she had to do.

When I looked at her, she seemed like she belonged there and when I glanced at the rest of the house, it looked empty at the loss of her. She was what we needed here. What I needed here.

I walked to Ryker’s room, knocking on his door. When I got inside, his XBox was already out, waiting for me to join. I didn’t utter any word but took a seat next to him.

We played FIFA for a while until Haelyn called me from downstairs and we both walked out of his room with no complaint. I looked at him from the corner of my eyes and I was surprised to see a touch of eagerness on his face.

Maybe he missed having someone taking care of him as much as I did. I didn’t remember the last time someone made dinner for us besides our cook who was paid to do that.

When we got downstairs, the kitchen island had three plates on it, napkins, a candle, and dessert in the middle. She smiled at me and took a seat on the single chair which left me to sit next to Ryker.

She really wanted him to not notice she was even here.

Ryker and I took a seat and Haelyn started placing food onto each of our plates, then sat down and filled hers as well.

“Thank you for making dinner,” I told her.

She blushed but tried to hide it away with her palm. “I hope you guys like it.”

Haelyn was still tense, I could see it. And while I didn’t like to see her that way, I knew it was just a matter of time until they were going to get adjusted to each other.

I tried to think about something to say to disturb the silence—since it was the only thing that was bothering her—but I couldn’t find anything to say.

“How did you meet?” I heard Ryker say, and I almost choked out with the first bite of my food.

I glanced at him from the corner of my eye, but he kept his attention on Haelyn, eating his food. To say I was surprised was an understatement. Ryker had never willingly started a conversation with someone he didn’t know, if anything, people tried their hardest to make him talk, but with no success.

Haelyn’s eyes popped to him, a smile forming on her lips. “Your brother pretended to be Chad Bitt on a dating app.” She laughed, the tension easing from her body.

Ryker looked at me with a stern look, but enough to transmit he wasn’t proud of me.

“NotthatChad Bitt, but he used that name, then somehow made me work for him as Tristan and fall for the both of them. Luckily for him, I liked Tristan more than some made-up character.” She flashed me a look that saidyou’re still to be punished for doing that.

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