Page 65 of Ryder: Shadows and Desires
Andrew wears a more formal suit, both leaving their jackets unbuttoned. And screw Andrew, but this is a gnarly team. We are fresh, yet elegant, and give the appearance that we are here tofight, not mingle.
As I approach—no one seeing me yet—a beautiful woman dressed in a short skirt, heels, and leather jacket walks by Ryder, slipping him something obscure before she leaves the hotel. I pause to watch, brows furrowed. Ryder eyes the woman up and down, glowering as he takes whatever she gives him—it seems like a piece of paper.
I press my nude-matte lips together, trying not to smudge my lipstick. My stiff expression quickly turns to fret as I watch Ryder actually put whatever the woman handed him into his pocket.Did I just watch him pocket someone’s phone number?
Sighing and looking down at the generic rug beneath my feet, my heart throbs to a stinging, uncomfortable rhythm.
Fine. It’s fine. Just strut in and own the damn place. Jeremy trusted the gym to you for a reason—he knows you can handle this. Ignore Ryder if you have to. You can discuss that after the fight tomorrow. You both just need clearer boundaries, given the nature of who you are to him.
Raising my head and walking in with falsified confidence, I put my best face on.
Andrew spots me after I feel Ryder’s gaze burn into me. I purposefully keep my gaze ahead, not out of pettiness but because acknowledging him will make all these insecurities spin, and I can’t risk an inch of my mask slipping with Andrew present.
“Well, as I told my daughters on prom, you look like a heartbreaker tonight, Julie,” Andrew says, although somehow it’s not creepy.
I can’t begin to express how grateful I am that Andrew managed to compliment me without making my skin crawl.
“Yeah, everyone cleaned up well,” I say, finally glancing at Ryder. “Even grumpy pants over here.”
The corners of his lips curl into a smile. “I know how to clean up,” Ryder replies, that gravelly voice raking over my skin, effortlessly unwinding me. He stands up straighter.
“Alright, our Uber is almost here. Let’s go wait outside,” Andrew instructs, heading toward the door.
Glass doors automatically slide open for the head coach, leaving the two of us trailing behind. I march ahead, trying my best to ground myself. Ryder is faster than me, especially since I’m wearing heels. And honestly, I linger when I catch that he wants to say something.
As he strides by, he leans into my ear like how one might when trying to mention something in private but wants to avoid making a scene. I smell him before I hear him, that cologne like an evil persuasion.
Like a gentleman, he murmurs, “You’re distractingly gorgeous.”
He pulls away, concealing his thoughts and emotions as he coolly moves out of the hotel, hands in his pockets.
A storm of confusion rages in my chest.
Maybe he doesn’t know that I saw him pocket what that woman had given him? I so badly want to melt at the thought of being distractingly beautiful to him.
You’re overthinking, Jules. Relax.
We step through the automatic doors, the cold air of night mixing with the warmth of the lobby. Andrew asks Ryder, “Who was that woman just now? She gave you a look, man. I saw her lingering around the lobby earlier, too.”
My face falls, purposefully looking around like I couldn’t care less, trying very hard to listen to the words that fall from those tempting lips.
“Just some phone number. Pick up fighting as a hobby and gain twenty pounds of muscle, Andrew. It’ll happen a lot to you, too.”
I snicker, then my heart sinks.
Andrew chuckles and stops near the edge of the sidewalk of the parking lot. “Don’t mean to bust your balls, Ryder, but save her phone number for later. Once we get back, you go straight to bed. No drinking. No nothing.”
“Already planned on all of that, man.”
I fidget with my hand purse, numbing my concerns as we wait for the Uber.Deal with it later. Andrew goes to confirm that the white SUV is ours when one shows up.
Ryder doesn’t lean in, but quietly meanders closer to me. He very quietly says, “You know, I only took that number just becauseheis here.” He nods to Andrew.
“Oh,” is all I say as I suck in cold air, trying to find a response. “I didn’t care,” I lie in a high-pitched voice that completely gives me away.
In truth, the tension in my muscles loosenssignificantly.
Andrew waves us over, and before we move, Ryder shrewdly adds, “It’s alright. I don’t mind. I liked the feisty look that you gave her.”
