Page 24 of Riding Danger

I narrowed my eyes at him. “And a taser.”

He let out a chuckle and stepped up to me. “Not my kink, but I suppose I could get into it, if it was your thing.”

Tingles ran down my spine. Up until that moment, neither of us had acknowledged the attraction happening between us. It was there, we both knew it. But I needed to continue to deny it.

I dropped my eyes and took a step back. “You will not find out what my thing is.”

The fact of the matter was that I had never used my cuffs outside the job. Not that the idea didn’t have appeal. It did. And with Ryder, it had lots of appeal. Taser? Not so much. I knew what that baby could do and I was not letting it anywhere close to my naked body.

Loud footsteps came stomping down the hall. “Have you two kissed and made up?”

Ryder laughed and I frowned at my son. “There was no kissing. And nothing to make up.”

He darted his eyes between me and his father. “You two should really get to that kissing thing. Just not in front of me.”

Ryder shook his head, a smirk still playing on his lips. “Are you ready to go?”

Ethan tugged his backpack over his shoulder. “I even packed my game console and some games.”

“You do realize I have those things at my place right.”

Ethan’s eyes lit up. “That’s right. I sometimes forget you’re loaded. Or do I say we?”

“Yeah, kiddo, we’re loaded.” He turned to me with his brow raised.

All I could do was nod. “Get the test. Get your peace of mind.”

He removed a sheet of paper from his pocket and handed it to me. “You need to sign this. It basically states you give your consent for the process.”

“Just like that?” I took the form from him and motioned for him to turn so I could use his back as a backing board.

“Give your mom a kiss.” He took Ethan’s backpack and slung it over his shoulder. Then he looked at me. “Don’t worry about dinner, I’ll sort it out.”

Something about that declaration rattled me and my stomach both fluttered and plummeted at the same time. The domesticity of it all seemed right. But there was also something intimate. An understanding I never had before.

Once they both left for their day, I finished getting ready before heading to the diner to pick up breakfast sandwiches for me and Joel.

It had been a long time since Harry hadn’t been at the diner first thing in the morning. Therefore, it was a surprise to see Maggie at the counter handling things. She was chatting to Valerie. I hadn’t realized she was still in town.

I needed to make time to meet her for a drink. We were practically family before I was rescued and since her mom had died, she had no one.

She smiled the moment she saw me. “Shiloh…I haven’t seen you around much.”

“I’ve been busy.” It was true. Sort of. “With Ryder in town, and making sure Ethan adjusts to his presence, I’ve been a little overwhelmed.”

Maggie rolled her eyes but turned and called to the kitchen. “Two breakfast sandwiches to go.” It was the thing about living in a small town filled with family businesses. Everyone knew your order. “Well, well. If it isn’t my long-lost sister. You think since you’re hanging out with rockstars, you can neglect dear old me?”

I pulled her into a hug because the reality was that it had been a while. We both had kids, and most mornings I did drop offs and she did afternoon pick-up. But we didn’t actually see each other all that much.

“Where’s Harry this morning?”

“Flu. Tess ordered him to stay home and asked me to fill in this morning.”

I could only guess that her kids, who were three and seven, were with Tess.

“So…” She smirked at me and I braced myself for what was coming. “Have you banged the rockstar yet? Also, how could you not tell me he was your baby daddy.”

I frowned. “I wanted to tell him first. Then when I couldn’t get hold of him, I didn’t want to tell anyone.”

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