Page 80 of After Tonight

“So how about we just keep doing it?”

“No.”

She said it very firmly. Far more firmly than was really necessary. “Why not?”

“Sapphire Falls is sucking me in. And the orgasms have been distracting me. I have to stop so I don’t just keep saying yes to everything.”

“Saying yes isn’t so bad.” He lifted a hand and fingered the end of the strand of hair lying against her shoulder.

She tipped her head. “Really?”

“What?”

“You want to keep tricking me into this rut.”

His hand dropped. “This rut?”

“The easy way out.”

Now he leaned back. “Excuse me?”

She blew out a breath. “Come on. You know what I’m talking about. People grow up here, they don’t have any other options, so they just go along. They hook up with someone local, they take a job that’s easy. Something their family or friends arrange. And they stay.”

He nodded, his chest feeling tight. “Yep. That’s what a lot of us do.”

She shook her head. “I didn’t mean you.”

“Yes, you did. Everything you described is me. I grew up here. I took a job that was easy. I’m looking for someone local to hook up with.”

“But this is what you want. That’s different than just doing it because—”

“Because we don’t have any other ambitions?”

She frowned. “I didn’t say that.”

“But that’s what you see. You see that everything I’ve got just fell into my lap. Because I’ve just been sitting around here, my lap wide open.”

And the thing was—that wasn’t inaccurate.

Derek had never really had to work very hard for anything. This wasn’t the first time it had occurred to him. It also wasn’t the first time it had occurred to him that it made it hard for Riley to respect him. Did she like his business ideas? Yes. Did she think he was a hard worker? Yes. Did she believe and respect that he was happy? Sure. But he couldn’t shake the idea that she thought he could do more if he tried harder.

“I’m not going to lie to you,” she said.

He braced himself even as he felt a wave of relief. One thing he could count on was that he’d always know what was going on with Riley. He didn’t have to guess with her. “Good.”

“You’ve had a pretty easy life, Derek,” she said. “Your biggest worry is if your pizza is good. And…it is. So, yeah, things are pretty sunny for you.”

He knew he should be offended. And he was, a little. It wasn’t like his life was perfect. But then again, she had a point.

“Are you so sure the hard way is the best way?” he asked.

She shrugged. “I’ve always liked doing things my way.”

“And alone,” he said.

Again her chin came up. “Yeah, well, I guess I don’t need as much help as Lucy does. For instance.”

He shook his head. “This isn’t about Lucy.”

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