Chapter 20
Sleep wasn’t something Ryder ever worried about. His head hit the pillow, and he was out. Knowing Libby was in his house was messing with that. He needed to know what plans she had. When she left here, she’d be on her own again, and that was a terrifying thought.
Plus there was now that kiss. What the hell had he been thinking, grabbing her like that? Hauling her into his lap again hadn’t been his wisest move, either, because he knew she fit there perfectly. Then there were her lips. Made for sin, they’d given him visions of plenty of things he’d like her to do with that mouth.
Fuck! Now he was hard as well as tired.
What father cuts off a kid’s finances? It was an asshole thing to do as far as Ryder was concerned, and surely he had to know she wasn’t used to living on her own. Basically, she’d fallen out of the nest, and he’d gone, “Well, fuck you. Survive.” Mind you, it was a pretty dumb move on her part to allow him to have that much control.
She’d charmed his family tonight. Offered to do the dishes and then helped Ally with homework. He wondered if she was really an average ballet dancer or if she was actually good at it. He could see her in one of those pink things, with the shoes.
Sleep wasn’t coming, so he got out of bed and tugged on sweatpants. Ryder then headed down the hall to the kitchen. Once he’d made hot chocolate how he liked it, with plenty of marshmallows, he grabbed his laptop that he’d picked up on the way home from curling practice and headed for the sofa.
Business was going well, but Ryder had plans to start something new. He’d been toying with moving into specialized confectionery. The giants in that industry had the basic stuff covered, but he wanted to sell to those that were shopping for a special occasion.
Looking over what Libby had done, he could see his desktop was organized and the spreadsheet she’d fixed was the same. Ryder wrote up more notes for what he planned to do and what he needed to research to make it happen.
“Hey,” Libby said from behind him. “You can’t sleep either?”
She wore winter pj’s. These were black with yellow-and-red tartan down the sides. Absolutely nothing sexy about that look, and yet he couldn’t help it. Something about Libby Gulliver made his body hum with need when she was close.
“Hey, Libby. I made hot chocolate if you want some.”
She headed for the kitchen and returned with a mug. Ryder thought she would take the armchair, but no, she sat next to him and curled up her knees.
“What are you doing?”
“Before I tell you, thanks for all that stuff you did on my laptop. It’s organized so that even someone like me can find things.”
“If you start organized, it makes things easier.”
“So I’ve heard. What else you got?”
She looked confused.
“What else are you going to tell me about you?” Ryder clarified.
“Nothing.”
“Why nothing? My life is an open book.”
“I don’t think anyone’s life is an open book, but I really don’t want to talk about me, Ryder.” He watched as she curled her legs up tighter and clutched the mug like he was a threat to her, which just pissed him off. He’d saved her from dumb actions twice. Surely she had to know he wouldn’t do anything to hurt her by now.
Okay, maybe it wasn’t that long they’d known each other, but still.
He watched as she straightened the pillows to her right and then put her cup down on the coaster his mother told him he’d needed but he didn’t use, which meant he’d ended up with rings he had to polish out.
“Are you a person who’s always organized like my sister?” Ryder said when the silence stretched between them. “She knows what she’s wearing before she opens her eyes.”
“Yes… well, usually, but that’s been tested lately,” she said.
“Have you thought about what to do when you leave here, Libby?”
“I’m unsure still.”
“So what? You’re just going to keep driving randomly around until an idea comes to you?” Ryder asked.
“Why do you care?” The words came out with a bite to them. Clearly, she didn’t like him pushing her.
“Is going back to your loser ex-fiancé an option?”
Her eyes shot to his.
“He’s not a loser. He’s… he’s just a product of his environment, like me. Why do you care, anyway? I’ll be out of your hair soon.”
Why, indeed? “Because you don’t make good decisions, Libby, and going back to him would be another bad one.”
“I can make good decisions! I am also a big girl and can sort out my next steps without you,” she said in an agitated voice.
“And yet?—”
“Right,” she cut him off. “You saved me and gave me a place to live. I’m grateful,” she snapped.
She didn’t sound grateful. She sounded pissed off. Ryder wondered why he couldn’t let this drop.
“What are you doing on your laptop?” Libby said, which he guessed was his signal again to drop the inquisition.
He would get his answers before she left town, even if it meant holding her down to get them.
“I’m looking at setting up online sales,” Ryder said. “It’s something I’ve been toying with for a while now.”
“What would you sell?”
“Specialty chocolates and fudge,” he said, looking at his laptop rather than her curled up beside him.
“Do you know about that kind of thing?” Libby asked him.
“Yeah, I did a master class and several other small courses over the last few years.”
“I understand it’s difficult?”
“How did you come by that knowledge?” Ryder asked, looking at her now. Being a chocolatier wasn’t something just anyone wanted to do.
Her eyes lifted to his, and their expression wasn’t empty anymore. Panic was what he saw in the green depths now.
“Libby—”
“You should follow your dreams, Ryder,” she said, getting to her feet. She then walked to the kitchen and away from him.
He followed.
“What did I say?” She had her back to him and was washing her mug so hard, it was amazing it didn’t break.
“Nothing. I’m going to bed.”
“What did I say that made you walk away, then, Libby?”
“Nothing.” She turned, holding his dish towel clasped in her hands.
Ryder moved closer. “You reacted to me wanting to design specialty chocolates. I want to know why.”
“Why would I do that?”
He leaned into her space. “You tell me.”
They were close enough that he could see the flutter of her pulse. He reached out to stroke the skin with a finger. Soft, he thought.
“Something happened back there that had you leaving, and as we were talking about me taking my business online with specialty chocolate and fudge, I’m thinking that was what spooked you.”
Their eyes locked, and he saw the turmoil then.
“Libby, it’s okay. I don’t need to know. I’m just not the most patient man when I want information about someone.”
“Why do you want to know about me?”
“You interest me, no matter how hard I’ve tried to fight it.” He brushed his thumb across the scar on her jaw. “You’re beautiful, but there’s also that brain of yours, which intrigues me. How did you get this?”
“I was late to a meeting and tripped on the stairs. I landed on a ledge.”
“Ouch,” he said, brushing his fingers back and forth along it.
“Ryder, my life… it’s a mess, and there is so much you don’t know about me.” Her words were breathless now as he closed the distance between them.
“Shhh, it’s okay, Libby.” He kissed her slowly.
“Ryder,” she whispered against his lips.
“I know.” And he did. They shouldn’t do this, but neither one of them was pulling away. He leaned in and took her bottom lip between his teeth. She moaned, and he was gone.
Ryder took the kiss deeper, exploring her mouth as she opened for him. Sliding his hands up her hips, he craved the feel of her skin. Easing his fingers under the hem of her shirt, he felt Libby shudder as he touched her.
Christ, she was sexy. That subtle scent she wore that he’d been smelling every time she was near. The sweet curve of her lips beneath his. It all got to him. Even wrapped in layers, he knew she had a lovely body, but dressed in a fitted long-sleeved pajama shirt and baggy bottoms, he could feel every curve.
He stroked her stomach slowly, mapping the woman he didn’t know nearly well enough to be doing this to. Ryder was on fire as he battled the desperate need to take her on his kitchen counter, and he’d only touched her stomach.
She arched into him, her hands going to his shoulders. One sifted through his hair, her nails scraping his scalp. Control, Ryder. His hand moved upward, fingers brushing the underside of a breast. He wanted to feel the full weight of it cupped in his hand.
“Yes.” She arched into him, and his hand moved higher as her tongue stroked his.
Fuck, she felt good. Blood pounded through Ryder’s body as he caressed her breast, his palm skimming the peak of her nipple. The small whimper she made had his other hand sliding into the waistband at the back of her pj’s and down, over the swell of her ass. Cupping one cheek, he pulled her closer.
“Bed,” he rasped against her lips.
“Oh my God, what am I doing?” She leaped back and away from him. “I-I walked out of my wedding a few weeks ago, and now I’m kissing another man.”
“Libby.” He reached for her. But she turned and ran to her room, leaving him hard, aching, and wondering what the hell he was supposed to do now.
Shit. She walked out on her wedding a few weeks ago and had kissed him today like he mattered. What the hell was he supposed to make of that?
Ryder headed for his room. After a shower where he’d thought about her and stroked the tension out of his cock, he fell on his bed. Tomorrow he’d have to do something about Libby Gulliver, but not now. Now he needed to sleep.