Page 15 of Tin

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Sidney’s expression perk up, but I try not to react to either one of them or their assumptions.

“Mom called while I was at the car, and you know how that goes.” My mother’s a worrier. Anytime I go longer than forty-eight hours without checking in with her, I’m setting myself up for a lengthy conversation complete with tears and a guilt trip. As it is, I’ve been due for one since yesterday, but I’ve managed to dodge her calls thus far, and will have to keep doing so at least until we get back home and I get some privacy, at which point I’ll have to hurry up and get it over with before she speaks to Kirsten and blows my little lie here to shit.

“You really shouldn’t go so long without calling her.” Holding Sophie’s hand, she starts walking to the opposite end of the barn where Riker has turned up with Sassy.

“I hardly think three days is a long time. Besides, what do I have to talk about? I don’t do anything different from one day to the next,” I grumble as I follow behind everyone else. I have to keep my headdown to avoid accidentally exchanging some sort of a loaded glance with Riker. With Kirsten’s eagle eyes watching my every move, there’s no way even a hint at a flirtatious smile would go unobserved.

“Sassy give you a hard time?” Sidney asks when we reach the crossties.

He takes a step away from the mare, letting Sidney take over to start her lesson. “Wasn’t Sassy’s fault. Someone else was feeling a little feisty and caused a bit of a distraction. But it’s all good. I straightened her out.” He looks and sounds completely serious, so the fact that I’m turning a thousand different degrees of red right now is entirely unfounded and, thankfully, goes unnoticed by my sister. She’s only all too happy to get back to her daughter’s riding lesson so she can get this part of her day done and over with.

With everyone else once again occupied, Riker takes off to do whatever it is he does around here. I have every intention of ignoring him as he passes me by, but lust, the traitorous bitch, ignores me and lifts my eyes to lock with his. He doesn’t smile or even smirk. He just winks, and I swear my panties evaporate into thin air.

CHAPTER SIX

RIKER

It’s nearly three in the morning already. I should really be sleeping. But Quinn showed up sometime before midnight and hasn’t left since. I’m not complaining. On the contrary. I’d rather spend all night not sleeping with her than spend all day tomorrow thinking about how well rested I am.

She’s been on my mind more than usual today. That’s a lie. She’s been on my mind nonstop ever since I saw her at her niece’s birthday party more than three weeks ago. Today was different, though. It wasn’t just about missing the feel of her skin on mine or wanting to press my lips to her perfect mouth, or the million and one other horny thoughts I have about her every three seconds or so. It was about her. Little things have been collecting in the back of my mind. Like the way she is with Harley, protective and almost possessive, but in the most tender way possible. She loves that dog. SometimesI think she doesn’t know how to love, but then I see her with Harley and I know she’s capable of depths some of us will never reach. Same when she thought I was cheating on Sid. How she said she didn’t care about me or her but that she wouldn’t hurt someone else.

I already knew I wasn’t part of the equation. I’m good with that. I shouldn’t be someone she cares about because I’ll never be able to return those feelings. But she should care about herself. Being here with me should be about both of us getting what we need and walking away content. Or, at least, not any worse off than we were before our paths crossed. I may not be the guy to make her dreams come true, but I don’t want to be the piece of shit who adds to the nightmares either. And I need to be sure she won’t let that happen. I need her to care abouther. Because I won’t.

She’s lying next to me, quietly staring at the ceiling. Our heads are on opposite ends of the bed as a result of our most recent entanglement. I don’t think I’ve sixty-nined anyone since high school, but then that’s kind of right in line with everything we’re doing right now. Just fucking our way through the encyclopedia of sex one position after the other.

I run my hand over her smooth calves. They’re toned and tight from running just like the rest of her body. Moving down toward her feet, I take one of her soles into my hands and start rubbing it, pressing into it with my thumbs.

“Oh, that feels good,” she moans from the other end of the mattress. I like the sounds she makes when she’s enjoying herself. I like how expressive she is in everything she’s thinking and feeling. There’s never any guessing with Quinn. At least not in the present. Her past is another story entirely.

“Quinn?”

“Uh-huh?” She barely even moves. Just lies there, still staring dreamily at the ceiling. I know that expression. She’s in between. Disconnected from the world and whatever haunts her here, but still hovering too close to truly escape it. It’s where I go, too, when I’m with her.

I lift myself up onto my elbows to get a better view of her face. “How old are you?”

Her brows furrow, and I know I’ve brought her back. I feel an instant sense of guilt because I know how hard it is to leave and how precious the time spent in between is.

“Twenty-two.”

Twenty-two. She doesn’t seem like twenty-two. Shit, one look into her eyes and anyone’d think she’s older than I am. This girl has seen things. Life-altering things. Things no twenty-two-year-old is meant to see. And now more than before I want to know what they are. But I won’t ask. I shouldn’t. I can’t.

“What the hell is a twenty-two-year-old doing screwing an old guy like me?” It’s all I can think to say to lighten the mood.

She sits up, grinning from ear to ear. “Benefitting from all your years of experience, one orgasm at a time.” I know before she’s even lying on top of me that I’m not getting even a minute of shut-eye tonight. And I don’t give a damn.

QUINN

It’s been nearly a month now. A month of running at least once, sometimes twice, a day and winding up at Riker’s place. If he has a life outside of work and fucking me, I don’t know when he has time for it. I don’t have one. So it’s not interfering with anything other than time spent listening to Kirsten tell me all the ways I should be living my life right now, and I’m always happy to take a break from that merry-go-round.

She has a point, of course. I can’t spend the rest of my life living in her game room. Nor do I want to. But things are...complicated.

The sun is starting to set later, now that we’re moving into summer, and I have to keep reminding myself that Riker won’t be home from work for another hour because feeding time has been pushed out as well. I’m antsy and tempted to go for an actual run, when the phone rings and my heart stops. Only two people ever call me. And I spoke to my mother this morning, so I know it’s not her.

“Hello?”

“Quinn. Got a minute?” It’s Devyn. My lawyer.

I sink down onto my bed. “There’s news.” It’s not a question. She wouldn’t be calling me if there wasn’t. She knows how much I hate the phone.

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