Page 10 of Ryder

This girl likes answers, though, so I should stop smirking and be honest with her. I can accomplish that partly with my body, so I step closer, set my hands on her shoulders, and slide them up until I’m holding her face and my fingers are wrapped around her neck.

She swallows.

I set my forehead against hers and inhale her sweet scent. “My intention is to drag you around this odd mansion so that I won’t be alone all day. I suspect I’m going to find some of the strangest things in every room, and no one will believe me if I don’t have a witness. I need someone to laugh with me every time I discover another hilariously eccentric trinket. You do know how to laugh, right?”

She rolls her eyes. “Yes, Ryder. I can laugh. If I recall, your brother is also somewhere in this mansion. I bet he would explore with you.”

“That may be, but he won’t appreciate it if I plaster him against the wall in every room and kiss him.”

She swallows harder. “This is probably true. What makes you think I will be receptive to such advances? And let’s not forget you thought I was a child when you met me. Have you changed your mind? Or do you think I’m just easy?”

I chuckle. “Claire, you are anything but easy, and for the record, I was pulling your chain. I never thought of you as a child for a single moment. Am I too old for you? Probably. But that’s not going to stop me from exploring the chemistry we have. You can argue and fight me on this, but you know it’s there. You feel it, too.”

“Does that line work for women in the big city?”

I laugh again. “I have no idea. I’ve never tried it.”

“Oh, please…” She rolls those pretty green eyes again.

I give her neck a squeeze, keeping her from turning away from me. “Such a sassy girl. Do the local boys let you talk to them that way?”

This time, she’s the one who chuckles. “Local boys? Do you have any idea how many single men in this town are in my age range?”

“So, you’re saying the reason you’re here is because you haven’t been laid in a while?”

She gasps. “Ryder…”

I give her a slow cocky grin. “Are you going to stay with me today and take a risk?”

“Not if you think it will end with me in your bed. I’m not that kind of girl.”

I widen my grin. “Challenge accepted.”

She swallows again, her cheeks turning bright red. She’s so easy to rile up, and I love it. I would never coerce a woman to sleep with me. Claire is intriguing enough that I want her to stay because I’m truly interested in seeing where this heat between us might lead. It’s a bonus that I make her blush.

My love life has been boring for a long time. I dated Stacey for several months, if one could call that dating. It was more of an arrangement where we hooked up when it was convenient. I never thought about a future with her. She was fun. No strings attached.

But Claire? My heart was beating faster within moments of meeting her. My cock was hard, too, but I’m not an asshole. I would never fuck a random woman in a small town where I’m planning to spend the next ten years. That could potentially ruin my already horrible reputation—the reputation the townspeople assigned to me and my family before any of us arrived. Not to mention I would never want to cause rumors to spread about Claire either.

I get it. The folks here are scared—understandable, based on what I’ve learned so far. Sleeping with the baker’s twenty-two-year-old daughter is not a good idea.

I’ll remind myself of that several times today. But what harm is there in spending the day with a woman who makes me laugh, challenges me, and keeps my dick hard at the same time? “Stay,” I say gently. Begging is not my usual modus operandi. “I promise my cock will stay in my pants.”

Claire shakes me off and takes a step back. For a moment, I think she’s going to tell me to go fuck myself, but she reaches for her back pocket and pulls out her phone.

“Do you need to call your daddy and get permission?” I tease, regretting my words as soon as they leave my mouth.

She jerks her head up and shoots daggers at me with her eyes.

I lift both hands, palms open, and take a step back. “Sorry. That was uncalled for.”

She cocks a hip. “For your information, yes, I am going to text my daddy and tell him my plans. I’m going to do so because it’s the polite thing to do. I work in my parents’ bakery and live in their home. Like most people in this town, I’m not made of money. I can’t afford to move out. I couldn’t afford to go to a big university and move away. My parents needed me to work in the bakery because they couldn’t afford to hire outside help. So, I’m going to text my parents and let them know where I am and that I’ll be home later than planned because I’m a thoughtful daughter.”

Something about the way she dresses me down makes me even hotter for her. I lurch forward and yank her against my chest, trapping her arms and her phone between us. I want to kiss her. Instead, I bring my lips to her neck, nibble a path to her ear, and say, “You’re right. You should text your parents.”

She’s panting when I release her. “You give me whiplash,” she mutters as she lifts her phone with shaky hands.

While she quickly types, I stare at her and wonder if I could possibly give her whiplash every day for the rest of my life. I can’t believe I would entertain such an idea. I’ve never thought about a future with any woman I’ve ever dated or slept with. I’m forty years old, and no one has ever captivated me like Claire Kennett. Visions of this woman in my life flash through my head. Claire in my bed, in my shower, under me, and holy fuck…round with my child.

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