11. Ellie
ELLIE
I avoided seeing Ryder like the plague. He seemed to pop up all around town, in the most random places.
Like the coffee shop.
The diner.
The General Store.
Okay, they weren’t exactly random places, but why did he have to show up when I was in the same place?
Was fate intervening to bring my childhood bully back to torment me in my adult years?
Because frankly, with all the shit going on in my life, I really didn’t need anything more to push me over the edge.
I scanned the streets as I got out of my Jeep, looking for any signs of the devil himself. For just a second, I thought I saw him at the flower shop, and quickly ducked behind the driver’s side door, peering over the hood like a creeper.
“Um…what are you doing?” Josie asked as she came around to my side, watching as I squatted like a lunatic.
“Just…I thought I saw a penny on the ground,” I said, scanning the pavement for the coin.
“Are you that broke that you need to search for pennies? Because I’m pretty sure I could help you out a little.”
“No, it’s just a luck thing,” I lied.
Yes, I really was broke, and yes, I was lying about my reason for squatting on the curb.
But Josie wasn’t buying it. “You’re searching for a penny for luck,” she grinned. “That’s…interesting.”
“It’s actually not.” Hell, I was already in the lie. I might as well keep going. “When things are down, sometimes you look to other…forces to turn things around for you.”
“Everyone in this town would say you need to go to church.”
“Well, church isn’t going to fix my problem,” I muttered.
“What’s that?”
“Nothing.”
“Because it sounded like you said church wasn’t going to fix your problem, which would mean that your problem is not the usual sort of problem.
Feeling down, needing guidance in life, praying for a miracle,” she ticked off.
“So, the real question is, what would make you fling yourself to your knees behind your Jeep in the middle of the day?”
I scoffed at her question and headed for the bookshop. I was not going to play her game. Mostly, because I knew I would lose.
“Is it animal, mineral, or vegetable?”
“What?” I called over my shoulder.
“Well, there has to be a reason you’re hiding, and I don’t buy that you needed luck. Which means there has to be something or someone you’re hiding from.”
“That’s just ridiculous,” said, yanking open the bookstore door, only to stop in my tracks when I saw my nemesis standing in the thriller section, reading the back of a book.
Josie bumped into me from behind and peered over my shoulder. “Hmm, must be animal.”
I was frozen, totally lost as to what to do. Did I move forward? Did I flee for my life? There were so many options, but I was running out of ideas on how to handle my current situation.
Before I had a chance to make up my mind, Josie gave me a shove forward, nearly making me fall on the ground. Strong arms caught me at the last second, keeping me from the inevitable faceplant.
“Perfect,” I muttered, already well-aware of who was holding me upright.
I was going to kill her. Murder her and maim her body so not even JR or Sawyer would recognize her. And when I was done, I was going to pour hot coffee on her face.
“Well, if it isn’t Ellie from the Underground,” he chuckled.
I refused to give in to his teasing. It would only make things worse for me. So, instead, I glared at his gorgeous eyes defiantly.
“You’re an ass.”
“That’s not what you were saying the other night when I rescued you from the most boring date on the face of the earth. How long did it take him to flee?” he asked, his eyes dancing with humor.
“Yes, in the future, whenever I want to be mistaken for a hooker or a sex fiend, I’ll be sure to give you a call.”
“That would require that I give you my number,” he said, leaning against a bookcase. “Which I’m not opposed to. I happen to like it a little rough in the bedroom as well.”
Josie choked behind me, gripping my shirt as she buried her face against my back.
“Is there a reason you’re here?” I snapped.
“In the bookstore? Yes, I’m looking for a book.”
“Well, you shouldn’t be here.”
“And why’s that?”
“Because…because I was here first, and I think you should leave.”
He ran his hand over his jaw thoughtfully. “Interesting. I mean, I was inside the store when you walked in, which is how I caught you when your friend shoved you toward me. And I believe the bookstore is neutral territory.”
“For who?”
“For booklovers?” he said, almost as if he was uncertain.
“I still think you should leave. Only nice people are allowed in here.”
Cassidy, the shop owner, walked over with an armful of books, smiling at all of us. “Is there anything I can help you find?”
“Yes,” I grinned. “Ryder was looking for some self-help books. He needs something to help him with his narcissistic tendencies.”
“And Ellie needs a self-help book for overcoming intense sexual desires,” Ryder said, his eyes laughing at me. “Preferably anything about BDSM.”
I gasped in horror, about to take a swing at him, when Josie grabbed my arms from behind.
“You—”
“Um…I have a feeling I walked in on something that has nothing to do with books,” Cassidy laughed.
“You have to throw him out!” I shouted, losing it just a little.
“You…you want me to throw him out? For what?”
“For being a jerk!”
“I saved your ass in the bar, and now you’re butthurt about it.”
“I am not butthurt! What does that even mean?”
“Ooh! I know this one!” Josie shouted behind me, nearly making me deaf.
“Why don’t you just go away?” I snarled at the man. “This place is for people who love to read. I doubt you’ve ever picked up a book in your life.”
“Then how did I become a lawyer?”
I was so at a loss for anything to say. Thankfully, Josie whispered in my ear, “I heard you got fired.”
“Yeah, I heard you got fired,” I said, feeling rather proud at the moment.
That is, until I saw his face fall and anger take over. That was not the reaction I had been expecting.
He stepped back, actually backed down from our little spat, and reshelved the book he had been looking at. “Have fun in your bookstore,” he muttered as he stormed out.
“Ha!” Josie shouted, leaping in the air. “You won! You so knocked him down and kicked him to the curb!”
But as I watched him walk to his car, I didn’t feel like the victor. I felt like a horrible person, and I was never a horrible person. I was always nice, always aware of how others must be feeling. And instead of taking the high road, I nailed him where it hurt. And for what?
“You won!” Josie laughed. “Why aren’t you happy?”
I gave a small smile so she didn’t press, but the day of shopping was officially ruined. Which was fine. I really shouldn’t be buying anything anyway. Even if I did love books and my Tbr was growing faster than my ability to store them.
“Um…is everything okay?” Cassidy asked.
“Yeah, it’s fine.”
Carrying her collection of books, she headed over to set up a new display, leaving me alone with Josie.
“Come on! You should be jumping for joy! You put him in his place!”
“Yeah, but that’s not what I wanted,” I sighed.
“It’s not?”
“No! I hate being mean to people.”
She slumped in the nearest chair, letting out a huge breath. “Oh, thank God. Because honestly, I’m not cut out for trash talk, and that was the one thing I could think of. If it had gone on any longer, I would have been useless.”
“I didn’t want to make him feel bad. I just didn’t like that he told my date I was into BDSM.”
“Because of the whole cheating with Liam thing?”
“Thanks for the reminder.”
“Well, you and I know it’s not true.”
I took a seat in the beanbag chair beside her, wishing I could go to the bar right now and drown my sorrows, but it was eleven in the morning, and that was not acceptable, even if the bar was open.
I plopped my head back on the bean bag, snuggling into the warmth of it. “I should get one of these for at home.”
“To sink further into your sorrow? No, what you need is something positive.”
“Like what?”
She thought about it for a second, then jumped to her feet and held out her hand. “Come on. I’ve got a plan.”
I grudgingly put my hand in hers. “Why do I have a feeling I’m going to hate this?”
I struggled to breathe the fresh mountain air. It shouldn’t be this difficult. After all, the roads were only slightly hilly, and I worked out regularly. Yet, me outside, running in fresh air, most definitely didn’t agree with any part of my body.
I stumbled to a stop on the side of the road, bending over to gulp in loads of air. “Can’t…make it,” I gasped.
“Me neither.” She collapsed on the ground, her legs and arms sprawling in all directions.
“Why…did you think…this was a…good idea,” I gasped around every inhale.
“Fresh air…endorphins…happy.”
I got what she was saying, and I still didn’t agree with a single word of it.
My legs collapsed beneath me. They were absolute jello, and that was interesting since I did yoga and pilates during the week. But running required energy…muscles in places you didn’t know about until you started using them.
Running and I would definitely not become friends.
“I feel sick,” she moaned. “My stomach is churning.”
“Who said running was a good thing?” I asked, staring up at the swirling sky.
“It could be the heat.”
I rolled my head in the grass to look at her. “It’s seventy degrees.”
“Right, but…” She took a deep breath, then blew it out. “Our bodies are used to the cold. Seventy is like…an extreme change of temperature.”
“Yeah,” I nodded, thinking that made perfect sense. “Which means, we should never run.”
“Not ever again,” she agreed.
“So…what do we do now?”
“What do you mean?”
I tried to sit up and failed. I couldn’t move if I wanted to. “We’re outside of town. No one will find us for hours.”
“Maybe if we sit up?”
“Highly unlikely,” I said, still feeling the pain in my chest from too much exercise.
“We could walk back.”