“I’m glad you were there to rescue him.” She reached over and gave Ted a congratulatory pat on the back. “I’m sure his mom is grateful.”
“Uh-huh. His supervisor, too. His boss chewed him out good. He didn’t even know the guy had gone up there without his harness.” He gave a hiss of annoyance. “The things you do when you’re young and stupid.” He’d just sucked in his breath to say something more when he frowned. “Expecting someone?”
Blake followed his gaze and found herself staring at a big, black and expensive-looking Mercedes Benz SUV parked in front of her building. Immediately, her heart tightened. Had Jerome decided to pay her another visit?
She didn’t have time to answer Ted’s question. He’d seen her face and the look there told him all he needed to know. He set off toward the vehicle, leaving her in his wake, and he was cracking his knuckles as he went. Ted must have totally forgotten Peggy’s warning because he looked like he was rearing for a fight.
There was no way Blake was going to let things get that far. She hurried to catch up. “Hold on. Let me handle this.”
“Not on your life. No man is going to come here and think he can bully you. Not in this town, he’s not.” Ted did not slow down. Within seconds he’d reached the SUV with Blake right by his side. It was when she skidded to a halt at the driver’s side that she got a good look at the person who sat there, and it was no Jerome Slater. Not by a long shot. The person who turned his head at her arrival, his eyes hidden behind the tinted lenses of sunglasses, was none other than Ryder Kent. Ryder was home.
“Ryder.”
At her gasp, his lips curled into that crooked smile she knew so well and then he raised his hand to lift his sunshades off his face and up onto the top of his head. “Blake.” There was a slight, almost imperceptible crack in his voice, but she heard it.
When she stepped back he opened the door and got out and then he stood there gazing down at her like she was a rare treasure he’d just discovered.
And, unable to help herself, she gazed back into the deep, dark pools of his eyes, wanting to run to him but not daring to move.
There was a sudden harsh grunt, making them both start. They turned to look at Ted who had just cleared his throat and now seemed slightly uncomfortable. “Well, I guess I’ll be moseying along. I’ll catch up with you another time, Blake.” He gave Ryder a slight nod, tipped his head toward Blake then he turned and sauntered off the way he’d come.
Blake smiled at his departing figure, glad that he'd quickly decided to give her and Ryder some space, and then she turned her attention back to the man who was making her heart dance to the beat of a very fast drum. “What are you doing here?” Her voice came out soft and breathless.
Ryder gazed at her a moment longer and when he spoke it was with a hint of amusement. “Checking in for work, boss. Do I still have the job?” But then as she watched him, before she gave him an answer, his face turned serious. “I missed you,” he said. That was all. But for Blake it was enough.
“I missed you, too,” she whispered back.
When he reached down and took her hands she curled her fingers around his and when he drew her into him she did not resist.
As he stared down at her his eyes were dark and enigmatic. “I’m going to kiss you. You know that, don’t you?”
Blake’s heart fluttered. She knew it. With all her heart she knew it and she wanted nothing more. When she answered it was with one word, an urgent, breathless, “Yes.”
At her response he released her but it was so that he could slide his hands up her arms and around her shoulders and then he was pulling her into his arms and against the rock-solid wall of his chest. The pounding of his heart told her he wanted her. It felt like he wanted her as bad as she wanted him.
When Ryder lowered his head to claim her lips she lifted her face to meet him. Their lips touched and the thrill that rippled through her made her moan. Wanting more, wanting him so desperately, she slid her hands up to grasp his arms and so she clung to him, drawing from his strength, fortifying herself with his latent power.
This time Ryder’s kiss was urgent and masterful. There was little in the way of gentleness. This time it was all about the desperation of desire, the wanton expression of want.
Right then it was what Blake wanted, needed desperately. She gave Ryder as good as he was giving, kissing him back with such fervor that when he pulled back she moaned again and reached up to cup the back of his head with both hands. When their lips touched again it was she who was doing the kissing, taking from Ryder all that she’d been craving all those lonely weeks.
When they finally parted both of them were panting and as Ryder stared down at her his eyes searched her face. “What’s wrong, Blake?” he asked, his brows knitted. “What’s happened to you?”
Blake’s heart lurched. Had she come on too strong? “What do you mean?” Her tone was cautious.
For a moment Ryder said nothing but then he tilted his head as he regarded her. “Something’s changed. There’s a tension in you that wasn’t there before.”
Taken aback, Blake dropped her gaze. Could he read her that easily? He was perceptive and that meant she would have to explain. She bit her lip and she nodded.
When she looked up at him she was struggling to contain her emotions. “A lot has happened since you left,” she said softly. “There’s something I have to tell you.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Your lover? He’s here in town? What the devil is he doing here?” Ryder couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Blake had spoken as if this guy was in her past but now he was here in Pequoia and what the heck did that mean?
“My fiancé, Ryder.” She shook her head. “My ex-fiancé. There’s absolutely nothing between us.”
“Then why is he here?” Confused, as he spoke Ryder drew back and away from Blake. He needed space, some air. He needed to think. “I thought you said he didn’t know where you were.” As he watched her face his eyes narrowed. “When you saw him in Dallas did you tell him?”
Blake glared at him. “Of course I didn’t. I’m trying to stay out of his way, not invite him back into my life.”
That made him pause. He wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt but he had to ask. “Are you sure?”