Page 79 of Save Me

“Plus, it’s Italian.” Then she looked right at him. “And you are Italian.”

“So you think I should give it an Italian name?”

“You’ve mentioned more than once how you want something different.” She picked up the notepad on his desk with a bunch of names written and crossed off. “None of these are doing it for you because they sound just like every other tattoo place that you can find in every city across the country.”

Another nod.

“I’m just saying…be creative. You might translate some of these into Italian, so it just has a different ring to it.” Then she shrugged and waited for someone to say something and when they didn’t, she added, “It was just a thought.”

But…he kind of liked it.

Actually, he liked it a lot.

It made sense and yet…it had the potential to change everything they’d accomplished with the overall design.

His heart started to hammer hard in his chest and he felt a level of excitement for this project that he hadn’t felt at all the entire time.

He was inspired.

“Um…” He carefully maneuvered them in his chair before Ryleigh simply stood up and moved behind him.

Scanning his desk, he found a sketch pad and immediately began drawing. He felt everyone’s eyes on him, but he didn’t care. He knew they were curious, but they’d have to wait.

“Billie? Get Ryleigh something to drink,” he murmured.

“I’m fine, Billie,” she whispered. “But thanks.”

Ryker had no idea how much time passed, but no one disturbed him, nor did they move or speak. Eventually, he tore the sheet off, turned and ran it through the scanner, and sent it off to his designer. When he faced everyone, all he did was let out a long breath before briefly explaining, “I’m going to wait and see what Jimmy says and then we’ll discuss.”

He read the disappointment on their faces, but he didn’t believe in letting anyone in on his plans until he knew they could move forward with them.

Standing, he said, “I think that’s all we’re going to get done today. I appreciate you all helping and I’ll be in touch.” Reaching for Ryleigh’s hand, he winked. “Do you have work you need to get to?”

“Sadly, yes. I have some new clients that need designs from scratch, another client would like me to refresh their website, and then some graphic design stuff and logos…you know…the usual.”

He laughed softly as they walked out of his office and then out of the shop. “But it all doesn’t have to be done today, does it?”

“No, but some of it does. I’m seriously behind since I’ve been spending so much time helping at the pub,” she said wearily. “I know I don’t have to, but…it’s something I’ve always done. Just not this much time.”

“Extenuating circumstance,” he said, gently squeezing her hand. “How’s your dad?”

The sigh she let out spoke of just how exhausted and sad she was and Ryker cursed himself for wasting her time watching him vaguely sketch when she needed his attention more.

“He’s doing okay,” she told him. “But this isn’t going to be a quick recovery. I told Jamie that he’s going to need to hire a full-time cook because I can’t keep up this pace and neither can he. The truth is that Mom and Dad could be out of the picture at the pub for a while and we have to make sure everything keeps running smoothly. That’s not going to happen if we’re both trying to juggle too much ourselves.”

“Smart. And what did he say?”

“He reluctantly agreed, but this isn’t the way he envisioned taking over. It’s a lot to deal with.” She went quiet for a moment before looking up at him. “We’re all going over on Sunday for dinner. We’re going to have it catered—at least part of it—but we thought it would cheer Dad up if we went back to our normal routine. I’d love it if you came with me.”

“Really? Are you sure now’s the right time?” Although he had no idea why he would even ask such a thing, considering they were really in a good place with each other. The last few weeks were the best of his life. They were spending time together like they always did—although maybe a little more—and there wasn’t this giant weight hanging over him about how he didn’t know if it was all going to end. They hadn’t talked about their feelings—at least not on a deeper level other than how much they enjoyed spending time together—but he knew where he stood.

And hopefully, someday soon, Ryleigh would tell him she felt the same way.

“I’ll admit that it might be weird since Dad’s not feeling great and I’m sure my mother is going to be twitchy because we’re bringing food rather than her making it, but maybe that’s not a bad thing?” Her laugh was low and a little awkward. “I mean, they all know we’re dating and my mother assured me she’s done picking on me and that she’d behave herself, but…” Another sigh. “I just wish there were a way to know that she meant it. Like…like a crystal ball that would tell me it was all going to be okay and everything would be perfect and no one was going to say or do anything that would tick me off or offend you…or…”

“Hey,” he said softly, stopping them in the middle of the sidewalk. “If me being there is going to add more stress to you, then I don’t have to go. We’ll get there eventually, Ryleigh, but I don’t want it to be like this. You already have enough on your plate without worrying about me.”

“That’s just it, Ryker. I don’t know if there will ever come a time when I don’t freak out about it because I can only base my feelings on the way things have gone in the past. We have to get over this hurdle but…I wish there were instructions so that it would just go so smoothly that I’ll look back and laugh because I had nothing to worry about.”

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