Page 6 of Keeping What He Wants

Chapter Two

Ella sat up in the recliner, watching as Ryker came inside their apartment and closed the door. He’d been gone nearly four hours but thankfully didn’t look like he’d been tortured. The longstanding disagreement between Ryker and her father had been going on since she’d been a teenager. It didn’t help matters any when Ryker had accidentally elbowed her in the face. She could still remember the anger in her father’s eyes as he’d gone after Ryker. Ryker had simply stood there too, thinking he deserved it.

The men were polar opposites of each other yet in some ways were the same. Ryker wanted justice in his own way while her father fully believed in the laws of the land. Pulling a soft blanket around her, she waited for him to say something.

“Ah, shit.” He glanced around. “What are you doing in here? You should be in bed.”

Ella snorted. “Not knowing where you are doesn’t make for a peaceful night’s sleep.”

“I’m fine.” He rubbed his hand over his face. “You don’t have to worry about me.”

She stood. “Don’t.”

He tried to judge her tone. “Okay.”

Walking over to her, he pulled her into his arms. She looped her arms around him and laid her cheek against his shoulder. She’d been worrying about him ever since high school, but he already knew that. He kissed her cheek and pulled back.

“Are you hungry? We can get breakfast.”

She nodded and he moved away. He patted his sides and cursed.

“Your phone is on the nightstand. You didn’t take it with you.”

He smiled at her. “I love you.”

She studied him, taking in his swollen lips. “Did he punch you?”

Ryker scoffed. “Baby, don’t worry about it. Let me get us some breakfast.”

Ella waited while he went to get his phone. She didn’t say anything while he ordered some prospect to get them food. When he hung up, he went to the kitchen and she followed him. She didn’t have to say anything to get his attention; she knew he knew what was on her mind.

“Yes, he punched me.” He kept his attention on her. “But I smarted off to him about you. So I deserved it.” He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. “Please stop looking like your puppy died. Everything is okay.”

“No, it’s not.” Ella sat on a barstool across from him. “How long is it going to be before one of you kills the other?”

He leaned on the counter in front of her. “You’re being a little dramatic. Nobody is killing anyone.”

“I don’t believe you.”

He tilted his head to the side. “I saved his ass for you. Why the hell would I kill him now?”

“Because it’s never going to end.”

He twisted the cap of the water bottle. “We’ve been over this before. I love you, Ella. More than I can put into fucking words. You’re what matters to me. He matters to you. It’s not even a question.”

“What if I stopped caring about him?”

Ryker frowned. “You care about a hurt little bird that fell out of a tree, Ella. You are incapable of not caring about your father.”

He was right. Ella propped her chin on her hand. Her life would consist of her being pulled back and forth between the two men she cared about.

“You’re just mad.” Ryker stared at her. “You need to talk to him.”

“He won’t talk to me.”

Ryker picked up his phone. Ella watched as he waited for whomever he’d dialed to answer. “If you want my help with your little situation, then I have a condition that has to be met.” He waited a few seconds. “I want you to fix the bullshit between you and your daughter.” He waited a few more seconds. “She wants to talk to you and it needs to be done in person.”

He hung up the phone just as someone knocked on the door. “He’s coming over.”

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