8. Ryder
Chapter Eight
RYDER
Three days. That's how long I've been avoiding Frankie.
Three days of taking the long way to the SAR base to avoid passing the diner. Three days of lying to myself that it's for the best.
I stare at the ceiling of my bedroom, sleep evading me as it has every night since we returned. The memory of Frankie's face before Henry drove her home haunts me. The hurt in her eyes, quickly hidden but unmistakable. I did that to her. After everything we shared in that cabin, I shut down the moment we touched ground in Ember Heart.
My phone buzzes on the nightstand. It’s Axel, for the third time today. I ignore it, just as I've ignored the dozen other calls from my brothers.
The clock reads 3:17 AM when I finally give up on sleep. I dress in running gear and slip out. The pre-dawn air is cold and clear, the mountains stark silhouettes against the slowly lightening sky. I run hard, pushing my body to exhaustion, as if physical pain might drown out the ache in my chest.
My feet take me on a familiar route, one I've avoided for days. I slow as I approach the diner, dark and quiet at this hour. Through the window, chairs are stacked on tables, the counter wiped clean. In an hour, Frankie will be here, brewing coffee, prepping for the morning rush.
Frankie, with her warm, beautiful smile and quick wit. Frankie, who saw through my silence to what’s really underneath. Frankie, who was so fucking perfect in my arms that it terrified me.
That's the truth I've been running from. Not that it wouldn't work between us, but that it could. That what we found in that cabin wasn't just adrenaline or circumstance, but something real. Something that could break me apart if I lost it.
So I broke it first. Classic Ryder Blake.
I'm back home, making coffee when someone pounds on my door, hard enough to rattle the hinges. I already know who it is before I open it.
“You look like shit,” Axel says, pushing past me into the cabin.
“Good morning to you, too,” I mutter, closing the door. “Coffee?”
“I don't want coffee. I want to know what the hell is wrong with you.” He crosses his arms, looking so much like our father that it startles me. “Hunter says you've been avoiding everyone. And Frankie?—”
“Don't,” I cut him off sharply. “Just don't.”
“She came into the SAR office yesterday looking for you. Nina said she looked like she hadn't slept in days.” Axel's voice softens slightly. “What happened, Ryder? You two seemed... close, after the rescue.”
I turn away, focusing on pouring my coffee with unnecessary precision. “It's complicated.”
“Bullshit.” He moves to stand in front of me, blocking my escape. “It's only complicated because you're making it complicated. You like her. She obviously likes you. What's the problem?”
The mug slams onto the counter harder than I intended, coffee sloshing over the rim. “You know I don’t do serious stuff. What if it didn’t work out? I'll just—” I stop, the words catching in my throat.
“You'll just what? Hurt her?” Axel's laugh is harsh. “Hate to break it to you, bro, but you're already doing that.”
I sink into a chair at my small kitchen table, suddenly exhausted.
“I don't know how to do this, Ax. The whole... relationship thing.”
Axel sits across from me, his expression softening. He shakes his head. “Life is complicated, Ryder. Relationships are messy. But at the end of the day, I'd rather have messy and real than safe and alone.”
“What if I mess it up?”
“You probably will. Multiple times.” Axel grins. “But from what I hear, Frankie's no pushover.”
Despite everything, a smile tugs at my lips.
"So what's the real issue here? Why are you pushing her away?"
I stare into my coffee, searching for words.
“She deserves better than me,” I say finally.
“But she chose you , for whatever insane reason. The question is, are you brave enough to choose her back?”
Am I? The question echoes in my mind as Axel leaves, promising to tell Mom I'm still alive but refusing to make excuses for me. “Fix this,” he says at the door. “Or I'll send Hunter to kick your ass.”
By seven, I've made up my mind. I shower again, dress in clean clothes, and head to the SAR base to tell Logan I’ll be late for my shift today.
As I enter, Logan looks up from his desk, his expression carefully neutral. “He lives.”
“Barely,” I admit.
My oldest brother raises an eyebrow, setting down his paperwork. “You’re the best pilot we’ve got. It would be a shame to lose you.”
“I screwed up. With Frankie.”
“No shit.” Logan leans back in his chair. “Are you going to fix it?”
I nod. “I’m going to try.”
Logan looks down at his hands. The clock on the wall ticks, filling the space. “Dad told me I needed to sort things out with Gina. I didn’t listen. I thought joining the military would fix everything.”
I hold my breath. Logan never talks about Gina.
He sighs, looking up at me. “Then he died, and I got injured… don’t be like me, Ryder. Don’t leave it too late.”
The radio crackles into life and he waves his hand. “I’ll take it. Get your ass to the diner.”
The diner comes into view, its windows steamed up from the morning crowd inside. I park across the street, taking a deep breath before getting out and going inside. Hunter, Marcus, and Troy are sitting at the counter, eating breakfast.
Frankie stands behind the counter, coffee pot frozen mid-pour, her eyes wide with surprise. She's beautiful even in her simple diner uniform, though there are shadows under her eyes that weren't there before.
My fault.
When I reach the counter, I stop, suddenly unsure. All the rehearsed speeches flee my mind, leaving only raw truth.
“I'm sorry. For shutting down. For running.”
Frankie's expression is guarded, wary. “Ryder?—”
I take a breath. “Please, let me finish. I need to say this. For two years, I've sat at this counter, watching you, wanting to talk to you but never finding the words. Then in that cabin, I finally did. And it scared the hell out of me. Because what I feel for you… is big, Frankie. Too big to hide anymore.”
The coffee pot trembles slightly in her hand. She sets it down carefully. “You've been doing a pretty good job of hiding for the past three days.”
“I know. I was afraid… not of what might happen, but of what already had. That you'd gotten under my skin, past all my defenses. That I'd started to need you. It's not an excuse. Just the truth.”
I'm dimly aware of the audience around us, of Henry behind the grill with his spatula suspended in mid-air. But none of that matters. Only her , and the cautious hope beginning to dawn in her eyes.
“I love you. I've probably loved you since the first day I walked in here and forgot how to form a complete sentence. And I'm done running from that. If you'll give me another chance, I promise I'll never stop telling you how I feel. I'll never shut you out again.”
The diner is so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Frankie stares at me, her expression unreadable. Then, slowly, she comes around from behind the counter to stand in front of me.
“You promise?” she asks, her voice steady despite the tears shining in her eyes.
I take her hands in mine. “I'm all in, Frankie.”
Those big blue eyes look up at me. Then her lips curve into that smile that's haunted my dreams for two years.
“It's about damn time, Ryder Blake,” she says, and then she's in my arms, her mouth finding mine as the diner erupts in cheers and wolf whistles.
I kiss her deeply, my arms tight around her waist. When we finally break apart, her cheeks are flushed, her eyes bright.
She runs her hand over my cheek. “I love you too. Even when you're being an idiot.”
Around us, the diner is in chaos. My brothers high-five each other, customers applaud, and Henry’s wiping his eyes with a dishcloth.
Later, when the commotion has settled and the diner has reluctantly returned to business as usual, Frankie and I sit at a small table in the corner. My brothers have given us space, claiming a booth on the other side of the room where they pretend not to watch us while doing exactly that.
She reaches across the table, her fingers intertwining with mine. “So what happens now?”
“Now?” I bring her hand to my lips, pressing a kiss to her knuckles. “Now we figure it out. Together.”
“Together. I like the sound of that.”