Page 104 of More Than a Spark

“I couldn’t help myself. I had tobewith you. No drive-by pick up tonight.” He flashed me a coy grin.

“Well, it was a pleasant surprise.” I let my gaze run over him from head to toe, his strong shoulders pulling his gray hoodie tight, the way his jeans hugged his round ass. It was hard to believe he was all mine.

We stopped at the elevators, and he pressed thecallbutton. “So, all the guys are out tonight. They’re letting us get reacquainted.” He hooked a brow.

“Yeah? Let me guess, Cash came up with that?” A grin swept over my lips. I’d missed all my friends, too. And the gigs…we had a gig to play at Gila River casino this weekend. It would be a regular event now.

“Maybe it was Cash. Maybe it was me.” He kissed my cheek. “I can be romantic when I want.”

“Yes, you can.” The elevator doors slid open, and I stepped inside with Ryder following. “In any case, I’m looking forward to a nice romantic evening at home with you.”

“Good.” He pressed the button for our floor.

* * *

After unpackingmy suitcase and starting a load of laundry, I strolled out of my bedroom and into the main room of the house. Ryder had been setting something up in there, I could hear him while I’d been doing my chores and whatever he was cooking smelled amazing.

I stopped after leaving the hallway, my gaze catching on candles lit up on all the tables in the room, the lights all turned off. A bouquet of red roses centered the dinette along with platters of food.

“So, I got some ideas from all the guys.” He walked to me and took my hands in his. “Come on and let me tell you about it.” He led me to the table and pulled out a chair at the head of it. “Have a seat.”

I sank into the chair and he pushed me in. My gaze scanned over an opened bottle of white wine and sauteed prawns on the table with roasted potatoes and an arugula salad. He’d been very busy while I’d unpacked. “Looks good.”

“Yeah? I got a recipe from Eric.” Ryder dropped into a chair next to mine, then served the food onto our plates. “Eric told me he made this for Caleb while you guys were in Mexico.”

Nodding, I said, “Yeah? Caleb always said Eric was a great cook.” I poured wine into my wine glass, then into Ryder’s.

“The red roses are something Devin and Axel said I had to have. I guess Brandon gave Devin red roses to tell him he loved him for the first time and Remy used them to tell Axel.” He sipped his wine.

“You’ve been spending a lot of time with my friends.” I cut into a prawn, then trailed it through the sauce and ate it, a mixture of butter, garlic and white wine flooding my tongue. Pointing my fork to my plate, I said, “Damn, this is so good.”

“Thanks.” His cheeks pinked while he ate some of his salad.

“It’s good to see you getting along so well with everyone.” I stuffed a potato in my mouth. “But I knew you would.” I patted his forearm, resting on the tabletop. “It was always my dream to have you here with me and the guys.”

“Guess dreams do come true?” He beamed at me.

“Yep.” I drank more wine. “How was the therapy session with your mom this week?” I’d totally forgotten to ask about it during our last call.

“It went really well. We’ve learned how to communicate with each other and for the first time in my life, I feel close to her.” His eyes glistened in the candlelight. With a huff, he shook his head. “Funny how just talking to someone the right way can open up so much.”

“Yeah.” Nodding, I ate the last of my shrimp and started in on my salad. “So, what are we doing tonight besides eating this awesome dinner?”

As a wry grin crept over his mouth, his face flushed. “I have a little something planned. Just eat up first.”

“Okay.” I ate a little faster and downed my wine, then poured another glass, and glanced at his plate. He was almost done eating, too. I peeked at his face. He was acting a little weird. Was something up? I finished off my food.

“Okay, let me clear the table really quick.” He threw me a knowing grin. “You stay there.” He stood up and moved all the plates to the kitchen island, then fell into his chair.

My pulse quickened. Something was definitely going on. “Ryder?” The corners of my lips twitched with an almost smile.

He snatched both my hands and held them over the table. “So, Milo, remember when you first thought you had to move to Seattle without me?”

“Yeah.” My gaze locked to his. Why would he bring that up?

“And remember that we talked about um…” He dipped his head and bit his lower lip. “Shit, I don’t want to mess this up, so I’ll just say it.” He fell to the floor next to me on one knee, then left my hands to reach into his front pocket. “Milo, it was rushed the last time, but I thought about it, talked to your friends, to our parents and now…” With his eyes glittering in the low light, he held out a simple gold ring. “Will you marry me, for real?”

My heart jolted and I gaped. I fought to steady my breath. “I…I already told you yes.” I grabbed his cheeks and planted a hard kiss on his lips, my eyes stinging. Wait, he’d been talking to people about this?

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