Ryeland spent his entire Saturday afternoon playing tennis with Suzette in preparation for the end of the summer tournament. She was a great player, trained by professionals back home, and they had a great shot at winning the junior championships. Except being on the court with her was the last place he wanted to be and had only agreed to appease his father, and of course, the money raised would be going to good cause.
It was also his father’s way of putting the two of them together, but that didn’t mean Ryeland was suddenly going to fall head over heels for her. No, he was completely caught up in Melody, despite the fact that his parents had come right out and told him to stay away from her. Too bad, because he had no intention of listening, and he’d be damned if he was going to sneak around with her. She deserved better than that from him.
Another couple took to the court as Ryeland put his racket down and grabbed his towel to wipe his forehead. Suzette came up to him, looking all cute and bubbly in her little white tennis outfit.
She offered him a big smile and placed her racket and towel on the bench. “You going to the Cave tonight?” she asked as she pulled her long blonde hair from her ponytail and let it fall over her shoulders.
He tossed his towel over his shoulder. “No, I actually have plans.”
“Oh,” she said, disappointment on her face as she plucked at an imaginary piece of lint off her skirt. “I just thought we could hang out. You’re never around anymore.”
“We just did hang out.”
“Not like this.” She waved toward the courts. “Somewhere private.”
Ryeland liked Suzette well enough and while he didn’t want to hurt her feelings, he didn’t want her to think there could be anything more between them either.
“I’m meeting Melody for dinner tonight.”
Her eyes narrowed in on him. “Melody? As in Mel Spencer?”
“Yeah.”
Disgust moved into her eyes, and Ryeland noted the quick change in her personality.
“Do your parents know about this?” she asked.
“Who I see is my business, not my parents’.”
She gave him a dubious look and asked, “What are you doing with her anyway?”
“I like her.”
She put a hand on his chest and blinked thick lashes over blue eyes, a move she probably had perfected in the mirror. “Ryeland, if it’s sex you want…”
Ryeland removed her hand and stepped back. “I’m with Melody, Suzette,” he said, and turned to walk away.”
“It won’t last, you know.”
He swung back around. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
She lifted her head high, tipping that judgmental nose of hers in the air. “She’s a whore, Ryeland. She’s only hanging around you because she wants something. When she gets it, she’ll toss you away like you were yesterday’s garbage and move on to the next guy.” She folded her arms and tapped her foot, the look on her face daring him to challenge her. “You’ll see.”
Ryeland clenched down on his jaw to keep his anger in check. “Don’t talk about her like that.”
“She’s probably already sleeping with some guy behind your back.”
His thoughts raced back to the night she’d hopped on the shuttle and took off into town, saying she had some things to take care of. Then he considered last night when she left Jaelyn because she had something to do. She never did say where she was or what she was up to. Then again, he’d never asked.
Ryeland shook his head and quickly pushed those dark thoughts right out of his mind. Melody was not what everyone said she was, and he refused to let anyone plant anything in his head that said otherwise.
“If you want to go slumming this summer, fine, go slumming. But don’t expect me to be here forever. Just so you know, Ryeland, I’m only going to wait until the end of the vacation season. After that, don’t expect me to be here when you come crawling back.” She scooped up her racket and towel and darted to the women’s change area, leaving Ryeland standing there staring after her, hardly able to believe what he was hearing. He fisted his hair. Jesus, did she think she could talk about Melody like that and expect him to want her if didn’t work out.
Ryeland threw his towel over his shoulder and walked away, determined to put Suzette out of his head. He had a great night planned with Melody and had been looking forward to it for days now. No way would he let Suzette get in his headspace and ruin it.
He checked his watch. He had just enough time to grab a quick shower and dress before the courier arrived with the package he’d sent for. At least his parents were out at some party tonight and he wouldn’t have to field questions when they saw what he’d had shipped across the country.
He hurried back home. Inside the chalet he found Evan playing video games as he babysat Ashley and her new friend, Tabitha, as they played with Corky.
“Ryeland,” Ashley said her eyes lighting when she saw him. “Want to take Corky to the lake with us?”
He felt bad that he hadn’t spent much time with the two of them since they’d all arrived. But Ashley had been at camp all week, and when Evan wasn’t out with his friends, he was flaked out on the sofa playing games.
“Not tonight, kiddo. I’m heading out.” When she frowned he found himself promising to take her and her friend to the drive-in tomorrow, and that seemed to make her happy. He caught the spark of interest in Evan’s eyes before he quickly blinked it away and turned back to the television.
“Listen, bro, you think you can come help me out with the girls?” Ryeland asked.
“No,” Evan said. “And the drive-in is lame.”
“Yeah, well I heard Samantha is going to be there.”
Samantha Preston, aka, Suzette’s kid sister. Ryeland had seen the way Evan had been looking at her the other night when Ryeland got stuck chatting with his father and Mr. Preston in the yard. No doubt his father had already put that relationship into motion too.
“How do you know that?”
“Because you’re going to ask her.” He pushed on Evan’s ball cap, driving it over his eyes.
“I guess she can come if she wants.” Evan adjusted his cap. “But the only reason I’m going to go is because Ashley probably wants me there. Right, Ash?”
“Yup,” she yelled out as she threw a ball for Corky.
With that settled, Ryeland made his way to the shower. He washed quickly, splashed on his favorite cologne, then pulled on a pair of cargo shorts and white button-down shirt. The doorbell sounded and he rushed down the stair, getting there before Evan could even lift himself from the sofa.
He paid the courier and carefully packed the delivery into a cooler bag. He checked the clock again. If he hurried he could catch Melody clocking out.
“Catch up with you guys later.” He scrubbed his hand over Ashley’s hair, then hurried down to the lodge’s main building. Melody was just exiting.
“Hey.” He leaned into her and gave her a little nudge to set her in motion.
“What are you doing here so early?”
“I couldn’t wait any longer.”
She looked down at her work clothes. “But I want to shower and get changed.”
“I can wait.”
“Ryeland—”
“I don’t mind.”
“You’re crazy, you know that.”
“Yup.” About you.
She laughed, “Okay, let’s go.” She slipped in beside him, and he noted the way she looked him over as he pulled onto the road. “You look nice,” she said. “Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
He drove her the short distance to the staff quarters and parked. She looked at him, a moment of hesitation on her face.
“Did you want to wait inside?” He bolted from his seat and met her before she had a chance to change her mind. She laughed. “I take it that’s a yes.”
“That’s a hell yes,” he said.
He followed her to her room, and once inside she pointed to her chair. “I won’t be long.”
Ryeland stretched his legs out, and nodded toward her manuscript. “Can I read?”
“No,” she said quickly, then grabbed a magazine off her nightstand. “Read this.”
He looked at the cover and then back to Melody as she rooted around inside her closet. “Uh, just so you know. This is bullshit.”
“What?” she pulled a white dress off a hanger and turned back to him.
Gripping the magazine in two hands, he turned it so she was looking at the cover. “How to turn him on in three easy moves.”
She gave an embarrassed laugh, a pink flush crawling up her neck. “I buy it for the pictures.”
He laughed along with her, “Yeah, and guys buy Playboy for the articles.”
“You buy Playboy?” She planted one hand on her hip and arched a brow.
“I never said I bought Playboy,” he teased. “And for the record, Melody, you don’t need any moves to turn me on.”
“Ryeland,” she warned, pointing toward her door. “You want to go back outside to wait?”
“Nope.” He flipped open the magazine. “I’m going to sit here and take this quiz here on how to rate my mate.”
Melody rolled her eyes and disappeared into the bathroom. He flipped through the pages, and listened to the shower turn on, then off. A few minutes later her hair dryer sounded, and when she finally came out, looking more beautiful than ever in the sleeveless white dress, the magazine fell from his hands and he stood.
Her sweet smell filled the room and he breathed deep. He cleared his throat to stifle a groan, but there was nothing he could do to stop his blood from growing hotter. It raced through his body at breakneck speed, building momentum like an unleashed tornado. Every muscle tightened and bunched, one in particular. He fisted his hand to stop himself from pulling her against him, and crashing his mouth down on hers. Her unmade bed taunted him, had his brain conjuring up images of the two of them on it, her body pinned beneath his, while he kissed a path downward.
“…Ryeland.”
“What?”
“Are you ready?”
“Oh, yeah.” He shook his head to clear it, and wondered how he’d make it through the night without touching her, tasting her. He wanted her so goddamn much, but promised her he wouldn’t ask for anything. Damned if that wasn’t just about killing him.
He drove them up the mountain, parking on a trail that led to the hot springs. She eyed him curiously when he grabbed a blanket from the back and the rest of the supplies.
“What are you up to?” she asked trying to peek inside the bag.
“You’ll see in a minute.”
She went up on her tiptoes. “Want me to carry one of those bags?”
“Nice try,” he said, and handed her the blanket.
They entered the pebbled path and Melody looked around. “This trail leads to the hot springs.”
“Yup. It’s a great spot for a picnic, don’t you think?” They trekked through the woods a little longer and when they finally reached their destination, the sun had dipped lower in the sky. He took the blanket from her and spread it out in the clearing near the water. He sat and as he patted the spot beside him, he noticed the look on her face.
“What?”
She sat next to him and crossed her legs, tugging her dress over her knees. “I just…I didn’t expect this.”
“You’ve never been on a picnic?”
“No.”
“Then you’ve been hanging out with the wrong guys, sunshine.”
“Apparently. Like you said, I’m a bad judge of character.”
“Until you met me, right?”
“The jury is still out.”
He laughed, “Okay, fair enough. For now. You hungry?”
She nodded and rubbed her stomach. “Starved.”
“Good.” He pulled two wine glasses from his bag.
She shook her head and held one hand up, palm out. “Ryeland, I don’t—”
He produced a bottle of juice. “It’s alcohol-free fruit juice.”
“Oh.”
He tapped his head, liking the pleasantly surprised look on her face. “I remembered.” He twisted off the cap and filled their glasses. “How come you don’t drink, anyway?” She looked down, her lashes lowering, coving her eyes…her expression.
“Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
She blinked back up at him. “It’s okay. It’s just…well.” She took a sip of her juice, then said, “It doesn’t do nice things to people I care about.”
He thought about the rumors he’d heard about her mother and guessed she was too embarrassed to talk about it. Never wanting her to feel shame with him, and wanting her to trust him enough that she could share hurtful things, he said, “Yeah, I know what you mean. There is rarely a day that I don’t see a glass of wine in my mom’s hands. And when she’s had too much she gets all emotional and talks a lot about when I was a sick kid.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah, but I don’t want to talk about her. I want to talk about this.” He pulled the food from the cooler bag and handed a foil wrapped sandwich to her. “In case you never make it to Montreal,” he said.
“Oh My God.” Melody’s mouth fell open when she unwrapped the foil to reveal a thick smoked meat sandwich, all the way from Schwartz’s in Montreal. She looked at him. “How…why?” She shook her head, her lashes blinking rapidly. “I can’t believe you did this.”
“Special delivery, and because I wanted you to have one,” he said, answering her questions in order. “I mean, you did treat me to a chocolate swirl the other night, so I wanted to treat you to something famous from my city.”
“This is incredible.”
“Wait until you taste it.”
“I can’t believe you did this,” she repeated. She went quiet for a moment then in a soft voice said, “Ryeland, you really can’t be this sweet.”
He tossed her his best lopsided grin. “You think I’m sweet?”
That pulled a smile from her. “You’re a lot of things, remember?”
“Of course I remember. You never let me forget. You can add sweet to the list later, but for now, let’s eat.” Ryeland unwrapped his sandwich and bit into it. Melody did the same as he let loose a loud groan. “Damn, that’s good.”
“So good,” Melody agreed around a mouthful of meat. She chased it with her juice then took a big bite of her pickle. “Oh my God, so good.”
Ryeland laughed and went to work on making another huge dent in his sandwich. They both grew quiet, a comfortable silence falling over them as they ate, and after awhile Melody looked at him, her eyes serious.
“Ryeland.”
“Yeah.”
“If being a doctor is important to you, what are you going to do about it?”
“I don’t know. I took the LSATs and I’ve been accepted to law school. I guess I’d have to take the MCATs and start applying to med schools. It’s too late to get accepted anywhere now. I’d have to wait a year.”
“What will your father do?”
“I don’t know. I understand a man wanting his son to follow in his footsteps, but it’s not like I’m throwing my life away and bringing down the family name, which is the most important thing in the world to him. I wish he could just accept me for who I am and I don’t get why he can’t. Unless I become a lawyer in his firm I’ll never be good enough.” He scoffed. “None of my choices are ever good enough.”
“Like me?” she asked quietly.
His eyes snapped up. “No, Melody. No, don’t say that.”
“You told me you’d never lie to me, but you lied about that fight didn’t you?”
“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings, and the fight was more than just about you. So it wasn’t really a lie.”
“They’re never going to like me, Ryeland.”
“What matters is that I do.”
“Why?” she asked.
“Jesus, you have no idea, do you?”
She shook her head.
“You’re so tough, a girl who fights for what she wants, but yet you’re so sweet and genuine. You’re real, not fake, and you have this fire inside that drives you. You’re different from anyone I know.” She continued to stare at her sandwich in her lap, plucking at the foil wrapping. Wanting to pull a smile from her, he said, “You’re not even the kind of girl who worries about what her hair looks like.”
Her eye lit and she punched him. “Hey,” she said. “I combed it and blew it dry for you.”
He angled his head. “You did that for me?”
“Well I couldn’t go out with it wet,” she said, like she was trying to backtrack. “It gets cold in the mountains at night.”
“Yeah, you’re right.” He pointed toward her food. “Now finish your sandwich.”
She nodded and took another bite, smearing mustard all over her mouth. She licked it off and said, “I’m so full. I don’t think I’m going to be able to finish it.” She held the other half of her sandwich out to him, a pleading look in her eye. “Help?”
“You sure?” he asked.
“Positive.” As he took it from her and caught the warm smile on her face, he fought the urge to lean in for a kiss. Christ, she was so sweet, so…everything. For a brief moment he thought about asking where she was the other night, but he didn’t. Except asking meant he was letting others get into his head, and he refused to do that.
He finished eating then crinkled the foil, tossing it into the bag. He leaned back on his elbows and glanced around at the clearing. Crickets chirped in the distance and a noise sounded in the underbrush. Melody stiffened and he wondered if it had more to do with the way he’d shifted closer than the animal lurking nearby.
“You okay?” he asked.
She wrapped her arms around herself and stared at the sky. Ryeland followed her gaze and took in the streaks of pink and purple bruising the horizon.
She rubbed her hands over her arms. “Yeah, it’s just, the sun is going down and the temperature is dropping.”
“We could always get in the hot springs.”
“I don’t have a suit.”
“We can wear our clothes.”
“I guess it wouldn’t be the first time you caught me soaking wet and fully dressed.”
“Then I take that as a yes.” He jumped to his feet and pulled her up.
She yelled when he scooped her into his arms and carried her to the edge. “No, I was kidding.” She whacked him and wiggled to get free. Jesus, he wished she wouldn’t wiggle like that. “And we just ate.”
“Don’t care.” He jumped, and she wrapped her arms around his neck to hold on as the warm water enveloped them. She pushed away from him and they both came up sputtering.
Laughing, she swiped her hair off her face and swam away. “You’re crazy.”
“You think?”
“Yeah, I think.”
He moved closer when she stopped swimming, watching the way the water dripped down her face, making her look so sexy, so damn tempting. His cock thickened, need propelling him forward and urging him to act on what he was feeling. Her smile fell and her mouth opened slightly as his gaze dropped to her lips.
He took a breath and let it out slowly as he closed the distance between them, standing so close he could feel the pounding of her heart. “You want to know what I think?”
She stared into his eyes and he could almost hear her brain buzzing. She opened her mouth and closed it again. When she finally spoke, her voice was so soft, so quiet he had to strain to hear it.
“Okay,” she whispered.
With his heart picking up tempo, he ran his thumb over her cheek then cupped her chin. “What I think is I’d like to kiss you.” When she didn’t flinch, he leaned forward and pressed his mouth to hers. His lips moved over hers, reveling in the warmth, the softness.
“Ryeland,” she whispered into his mouth.
“Yeah?” he asked, barely able to think straight as she melted against him. His body tightened, pleasure racing through him.
Her breath grew shallow, her chest rising and falling quickly against his. “What are we doing?”
“We’re kissing.”
“Friends don’t kiss.”
“Friends kiss,” he murmured.
“No, they don’t.”
Breathing hard, he rested his forehead against hers, working to keep his shit together. “Do you want me to stop?” he asked, his voice so tortured he barely recognized it. “If you want me to stop, I will. Just tell me and I will.”
She didn’t speak for a long moment, then she finally whispered, “I don’t.”
Thank you, Jesus.
He pressed his lips back to hers, his hungry mouth coming down hard this time, savoring, tasting, his tongue slashing urgently against hers because he couldn’t quite get enough. Fuck. She tasted like candy and sugar and honey all rolled into one. In fact, she tasted so goddamn good, so incredibly sweet, his body screamed for more. His cock thickened, aching to be inside her.
She moved against him, the warm water heating his body even more. Her nipples were hard, scraping against his chest in mind-blowing ways. He pushed her wet hair back and his brain shifted through all the things he wanted to do to her, all the places he wanted his mouth, as she shivered under his touch.
Jesus he wanted, needed, more…everything. Her hands slid around his back, her fingers surfing over his body, tentatively at first, then with more urgency. He tugged her impossibly closer. She was so soft, so warm. His blood pounded harder and he could feel his brain shutting down, his body taking over. He breathed harder, deeper, struggling to keep his head on straight and his shit together before they did something she wasn’t ready for. No matter what, he wanted to be the kind of guy she needed, the guy she could trust. He inched back and sucked in a few shaky breaths to get it together.
He wasn’t some selfish high school jock anymore, who wouldn’t think twice about taking her right here in the hot springs. Yeah, he wanted her—goddammit he wanted her—but he didn’t want to rush her and ruin things between them. Fighting an internal battle, he grabbed a fistful of his hair and tugged. He growled and that’s when he caught the way she was looking at him.
“What?” he croaked out.
“Do you want to know what I’m thinking?”