Page 58 of Promised Summer
“I think I would just tell him I wanted us to live together and ask if he wanted the same?” Ryker finally said.
I let out the longest sigh in the history of sighs.
Ryker laughed and gave me a hard smack on my back.
“Ow! That hurt!” I yelled, but he ignored me.
“If you want to live with him, just ask him. He’s looking for a place, so doesn’t that work out perfectly?” he said.
“You make it sound so easy,” I grumbled.
“Isn’t it? What’s so complicated about it?”
“The timing just isn’t right. We’ve only been back in each other’s lives for a couple of months. Hell, you told me I was moving too quickly by living with Deke, and we were together for a year at that point!”
“You know very well the issue wasn’t how long you two were together, butwhoyou were with. Things are different with Ryan,” he replied.
“Yeah, they are,” I agreed softly. I never had a suffocating feeling thinking about returning home to Ryan. The thought that he and Karla would be there today to welcome me had me feeling light instead.
“We all like him, you know?” Ryker stated with asmile. “At first, I was worried that he might hurt you again, but I’ve seen the way he looks at you. I’ve seen the way he treats you, and it’s everything you deserve. He’s a good guy.”
“Yeah?” I said with a smile. Considering my friends hated my ex, this was very high praise.
He nodded and beamed. “Yeah, so why are you worried about the timing? When you know, you know, and I think you know, you know?”
He clamped his mouth shut and frowned after dropping that tongue-twister. I laughed and pulled him in for a shoulder hug.
“Yeah, I know,” I repeated with a teasing smirk.
He shook his head and tried to push me off, but my grip on him was too tight. It was only when my phone rang that I finally released him.
My smile grew wider when I saw Ryan’s name appear.
“Speak of the devil, huh?” Ryker commented with a shake of his head. He returned to his lunch while I answered.
“Hey! I was just talking about you,” I said in lieu of a greeting when the call connected.
“Oh yeah? What were you saying about me?” Ryan asked. I could hear the smile in his voice. Before I could get a reply in, his tone turned serious. “Wait, now’s not the time for that. Lily’s going into labor!”
“What?!” I exclaimed. I jumped to my feet so fast I startled Ryker.
“How is she doing? Is she okay? Are the pups already here?” I asked frantically. Now I was really thankful Ryan had offered to stay with Lily today so she could be at home near her nest.
“No pups yet. She’s been restless all morning and refused to eat her breakfast. She’s been lying in her nest for a few hours now, and I think her contractions just started. Are you able to come home early?” he asked, obviously nervous. In the background, I could hear Karla shouting about one thing or another.
“I’m on my way.”
“Okay, but drive safe, please,” he urged.
I took a slow breath to calm myself. Ryan lost someone he loved in a car accident. I wouldn’t make him go through that experience twice.
“I will,” I told him softly, hopefully conveying that I was calm enough to drive safely. “I’ll see you soon. I love you.”
He whispered his own words of love, then hung up to check on Lily.
“The pups are coming,” I told Ryker as I quickly packed up my stuff.
“Go,” he said, shooing me off. “We’ll take care of things here.”
