It bothers me she didn’t trust me enough to help her. “You didn’t need to do that. I would have helped you.”
“I know. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have been embarrassed to tell you.”
“No, you shouldn’t have. There is nothing embarrassing about it. You’ve been blind almost your entire life, Em, of course you can’t read.”
She nods. “I know. To be honest I didn’t expect you to take me somewhere like this.”
“What do you mean?”
She shrugs. “I just never really thought of it as your kind of place.”
“It isn’t. I fucking hate it. I only brought you here because I figured it was the kind of place you were used to.”
Something passes over her expression just before she says: “It is the kind of place I’m used to, which is why I looked forward to wherever you were going to take me, Ryder. Because you have always taken me to a place where I belonged, not where I was expected.” Her words hit me like a punch to the gut.
She drops her gaze as if not meaning to have said that but I’m done with the games. “Come on.” I pull her from the door before opening it.
“Are you taking me home?” she asks softly, her tone sounding disappointed at the thought.
“No, Em, I’m nowhere near done with you.” She smiles up at me, and before I can stop myself, I lean down and press a quick kiss to her lush mouth, making sure not to linger, then help her up in the truck. I glance back at the restaurant one more time and realize what an idiot I truly was. I should have realized that the Emily I knew six years ago would still be the Emily she is now. She never cared about this shit, never cared about this lifestyle.
I get into the truck to see her watching me uncertainly. “So where are we going now?”
“Somewhere I should have taken you to begin with.”
Emily
The further we drive, the more curious I become. After grabbing some fast food, something I haven’t had in years because my mother would have a heart attack, we started on our way to wherever Ryder is taking me. We’ve been driving for about thirty minutes and I don’t recognize anything, but I haven’t ventured out much since getting my sight back. Only to work, doctor appointments and the mall with Cece.
I look across the dark vehicle at Ryder, his strong profile lit by the cars that pass us on the highway, and think about tonight’s events. I shouldn’t have been so ridiculous earlier, I should have asked for his help with the menu but I was embarrassed. Because there I sat, looking at this incredibly attractive and intelligent man who could have any woman he wanted and here he was with me, someone who couldn’t even read the menu. I know it’s silly. Like he said, I’ve been blind most of my life, of course I can’t read, but it did not matter and I let my insecurity get the better of me.
I think about the way he kissed me, and the way my soul remembered it so well. My lips are still tingling from the sweet contact. This is not how I expected tonight to go. My plan was to catch up with him, and find the courage to ask him what happened between him and my father all those years ago, and why he left without so much as a goodbye. I need the closure; it will be the only way I will truly be able to move on. But, since that kiss, I have a feeling I will not find any closure, not when my heart is still so conflicted when it comes to him.
I get pulled from my thoughts when we pull up in front of an old, dirty building I can’t distinguish. The entire place is dark and looks abandoned. Ryder parks off to the side then turns to me with a smirk. “Let’s go.” He grabs his jacket off the seat and gets out of the vehicle.
I follow suit and look around the vacant lot, trying to figure out where we are. Ryder takes my hand easily, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world then leads me over to the massive building. I try to ignore the way my body is humming just from the small contact. He punches a bunch of numbers on a keypad and the big garage door rises automatically. The strong smell of oil and gas immediately infiltrates my nostrils.
When he tries to pull me into the dark building I resist, my heart beginning to pound with panic. I don’t like the dark; it has become my number one fear since regaining my sight back.
“Where are we?” I try to hide my anxiety but know I don’t succeed.
“It’s all right, Em. It’s Hector’s garage.” He steps away then flicks on the lights. I squint at the sudden brightness, and once my eyes adjust I take in my surroundings. Big, heavy machinery litters the massive space; old, beat-up cars are raised up high and tools scatter the floor, leaving the place in chaos.
“This way.” He tugs on my hand and leads me over to the opposite corner.
A big smile spreads across my face as we walk up to a black motorcycle. “Are we going to ride this?” I ask hopefully.
“Yeah, this is the new bike I bought from Hector.”
“Eeeek!” I clap excitedly and Ryder chuckles at my obvious enthusiasm. I look down at my attire. “Er, I guess I’m not dressed great for it.”
A dirty grin tilts his sexy lips. “I like it better that way.” He winks suggestively and I feel my face heat. Sheesh, I really hate that. “Here.” He passes me his jacket but I push it back at him.
“No, no, I’ll be fine. It’s a warm night.”
He glares at me and thrusts the jacket my way again. “No, you won’t. Take the jacket.”
“Ryder, I’ll be fine.”
“Emily, would you not argue with me for once, and just take the fucking jacket.”
I roll my eyes then rip the stupid jacket from him. “Geez, you have a serious problem with being bossy,” I tell him as I put the damn coat on. Oh man, maybe it’s not such a bad idea after all, it smells really darn good, but there is no denying I look ridiculous in it. I throw my arms up showing him how long the sleeves are. “I look stupid!”
His eyes roam down my body, suddenly making me think I might not look like an idiot after all. Sitting on the bike sideways, he grabs the lapels of the jacket and pulls me between his legs. “You look fucking sexy in anything you wear, but especially my clothes. And you look as good now as you did six years ago when we left that beach party and I took you on my bike for the first time. Except back then your dress was yellow, not pink.”
My heart turns over in my chest at his words. The night he talks about is a night I have never forgotten, and clearly he hasn’t either. The fact that he remembers it so vividly, right down to what I wore, repairs a small part of my scarred heart. “I can’t believe you remember what I wore that night,” I whisper.
“Baby, there isn’t a second of our time together that I don’t remember. You, Emily, are not someone I could ever forget.”
I stare at him speechless, a sudden storm of emotions roiling inside of me. Then why? I want to scream. Why did you leave me? He stares back at me, his gaze intense as if he knows what I’m thinking. I consider asking him, right here, right now, but as I dig for courage he ends up breaking the moment by grabbing his helmet and putting it on my head. It’s probably better. I will ask him eventually. I will. But maybe not tonight. For tonight – I want to forget about all the bad, forget about what took him from me and just be in a place that I haven’t been for six years, a place that only Ryder and I create.
“Lift your chin.” I do as he asks. After he tightens the straps, he straddles the bike, and oh boy does he look good on it. Heat pools low in my tummy when I think about what we did on his bike back in high school, or rather, what he did to me…
I suddenly notice he’s watching me with an arrogant smirk. “This is one of those times, Emily, when I know exactly what you’re thinking. It’s written all over your pretty, flushed face.”
Crap!
“If you want to go for a ride on this bike I suggest you get your sexy ass on the back of it before I change my mind and end up taking you for a ride right here.”
Oh god, just the thought of riding him instead of the bike has an ache starting between my legs. I scoff, hoping to hide his affect on me. “Settle down, Jameson. I was just noticing how completely awkward you look on the bike is all.”