Chapter 20
Chapter Twenty
SAM
It took Ryker and Gramps the entire weekend to fix the rocking chair.
I felt terrible that the chair broke under my weight, but I was also thankful it broke when it did rather than when Lana was using it to nurse Junior.
Gramps was never one to show his sadness to us kids, but after the rocking chair was repaired, he was often found around the house humming a happy tune.
I was much less reserved about displaying my happiness and showed Ryker just how thankful I was for his help by giving him the blow job of a lifetime. I swore the man had the stamina of a freaking warrior ’cause my jaw was on the point of locking by the time he’d finally come in my mouth.
Even after the rocking chair had been repaired, Ryker still frequented the shed with Gramps. They refused to tell me what it was, saying that it was a secret project for the two of them.
I liked how they got along and were spending more time together. Besides the sound of the saw, I’d hear laughter coming from the shed every so often, which only made me more curious about what they were doing in there.
“What do you think they’re working on?” I asked Lana one day.
She only shrugged, seeming not to care. But the way she dropped the conversation so fast made me wonder if she was in the know and was purposely hiding it from me.
They only worked in the shed for a couple of hours a day before coming in for dinner. Most nights we’d eat here since Ryker was already here working in the shed, anyway.
Ryker was sweaty, with sawdust sprinkled all over his skin, when he came into the house.
“It’s been a month. Are you finally going to tell me what this secret project is?” I asked when I ambushed him in the bathroom.
I didn’t care that he was sweaty as I pasted myself to his back while he tried to wipe most of the sawdust off his body.
“You’ll find out soon,” he replied, which had me pouting into his back.
“You’ve been saying that all month!” I grumbled, then pressed a kiss to the sensitive spot behind his ear. “Are you sure I can’t tempt you to tell me? We’re getting our results back soon. Just in time for my birthday, too.”
Before I knew it, I was being swept off my feet. Ryker held me by my ass and pressed me against the wall as he kissed the life out of me.
“Such a troublemaker,” he murmured against my lips, which had me smiling.
While we hadn’t been very careful about using protection—it wasn’t my fault the man was so irresistible—we still hadn’t ventured into anal and decided to wait till we got tested first and forgo condoms for our first time together.
Though that didn’t mean we didn’t have a very active sex life, the wait to have him inside me was still torturous. Considering how we rushed into this relationship, I knew it was good not to rush into this, too. While I didn’t doubt Ryker’s feelings for me, it didn’t hurt to give him time and make sure he was extra sure about us.
“They’re waiting for us,” Ryker grumbled as he set me back to my feet, ignoring my attempt at seduction.
He adjusted his filling pants, then left the bathroom. I tsked and followed him out to join my family for dinner.
The man had the willpower of steel.
A few days before my birthday, I got a call from my best friend. Jay had gone on a road trip with his boyfriend and stopped by Kither Springs to visit me.
I hadn’t seen my best friend since I’d moved here, though we were in constant communication. I hadn’t heard from him these past few days but figured that was to be expected since he was on vacation with his boo.
What I hadn’t expected was the matching gold bands Jay and Ash wore on their ring fingers when I saw them at Hector’s.
“Jaydan Cobb! That better not be what I think it is!” I squealed and pulled him toward me for a better look.
It indeed was a gold wedding band. Jay was absolutely glowing with happiness as he showed off the ring. He laughed and snuggled into his partner’s side.
“You remember Ash, my husband ,” he said with a happy smile.
“I can’t believe you got married without telling me! I should revoke my best friend card right now!” I joked, and Jay laughed.
“It’s good to see you again, Sam,” Ash said, giving me a hug. “We might have made a stop in Vegas on the way here and gotten hitched, but we’re planning on having an actual ceremony to celebrate with our friends and family.”
Jay nodded in agreement, then cast a glance at Ryker. “You told me your partner was hot, but you didn’t tell me just how hot,” he commented, and of course, Ryker’s face heated at the compliment. I laughed and pulled his large frame closer to me in a hug.
“Your husband is right here , darlin’,” Ash grumbled, but he was smirking as he pulled Jay into his arms.
Ash used to play pro football as the tackle for the Austin Troopers, but he’d retired recently and was now working at Queering Sports, a nonprofit in Austin, to support queer kids who were interested in football and cheer.
Ash was Jay’s younger brother’s best friend, but they didn’t reconnect until Jay and I moved to Austin after college to start his yoga studio. Seeing them now, it was hard to believe they hadn’t gotten together earlier with how perfectly they fit together.
After a round of introductions, we found a booth to sit at. Atlas quickly came bouncing over to take our drink order. He shot me a wink before flitting off.
I’d gotten to know Atlas a bit better after my last few visits to Hector’s. He was a few years younger than me but had a solid head on his shoulders and seemed to be settling down well in Kither Springs. Last he’d told me, he was still living with Hector and was still making his crush on the older man blatantly obvious.
“So, tell me everything! Who proposed? Did an Elvis lookalike marry you off?” I grabbed Jay’s hand and asked.
They launched into a story about how their car broke down a few days into their road trip. While waiting for their car to be fixed, they spent the day exploring a traveling circus that happened to be near the garage working on their car. Afterward, right there in the middle of the road in California, Jay mentioned they should get married.
By the way they locked gazes, love and tenderness filling their eyes as they looked at each other, I knew neither of them cared about the location and specifics of the proposal. To them, it was the perfect moment.
And that was how they decided right then and there to drive to Vegas and get hitched before the chapels closed for the night. I was disappointed to hear their ceremony hadn’t been conducted by an Elvis lookalike.
When Ryker went to the bathroom, Jay leaned over the table and excitedly said, “That man can barely keep his eyes off you. He’s absolutely smitten.”
Had Ryker been looking at me this entire time? To me, his gaze on me had become so normal, but was it excessive to others?
I wasn’t the type to get shy over things like that, but this time, I couldn’t help the sudden heat that lingered under my skin.
Jay and Ash had knowing smiles on their faces when Jay stated, “You love him.”
It was a simple statement, but hearing it out loud made my heart go double time.
“I do,” I confessed. “I think…he might be it for me.”
“I’m so happy for you, Sam!” Jay said, sounding so excited as he slid into my side of the booth to pull me into a hug. “Have you told him how you feel yet?”
I shook my head. I didn’t doubt that I could trust Ryker with these feelings, but that didn’t make it any easier, especially with the history I had with dating.
Guys never stayed around, and if they did, it was usually to use me for my body. While I knew Ryker wasn’t like them and he’d made it very clear he was with me because he saw a future with me, letting go of my past hurt wasn’t easy.
Jay must have read something in my expression, because he squeezed my hand and said, “Take it at your pace. I might have just met him today, but even we can see that man is smitten with you. He’s not going anywhere, isn’t that right, babe?” Jay shot the question at his husband, and Ash nodded, too.
“He’s almost as smitten with you as I am with Jay,” Ash teased, which had Jay rolling his eyes.
“Geez, can’t you be serious for one second?” he admonished, but his lips quirked in a soft smile. Jay looked over my shoulder, toward the direction of the bathrooms, then said, “Who’s Ryker with over there?”
I glanced in the direction he indicated to see Ryker standing with two men. He gave them both a hug, then chatted and laughed with them.
If this was any of my past relationships, the sight would have caused me to turn green with jealousy, but Ryker never once gave me a reason to make me feel insecure. He’d always been as steady as a rock with his affection and commitment to me.
After taking a closer look at the two men Ryker was talking to, I realized they looked familiar. I finally placed the taller man as Jones’ older brother, Jordan. And the person next to him must be…
“Ohmygod! Is that Wren from A Wrenderful Life?” Jay bounced in his seat in the booth, causing me to bounce with him.
“I didn’t know your partner knew someone so famous,” Jay said, sounding a tad bit starstruck.
“Why are you acting like he’s the first famous person you’ve met?” Jay’s very famous retired NFL player of a husband grumbled as he chewed on his drink straw.
To that, Jay only laughed, then turned back to stare at the popular travel vlogger. “Do you think Ryker will introduce us?”
“Since when were you a fan of Wren?” I asked, nudging him in the stomach. “You didn’t even know about him when I first showed you his channel.”
“It’s because you showed me his channel and I watched his videos on Kither Springs that I became a huge fan. He’s always down-to-earth in his videos and never afraid to go off the beaten path while making his adventures always seem cozy and fun.”
“This is a whole new side of you I’ve never seen, Jay,” I said in surprise, trying to hold back my laugh.
“Same. Who are you and what have you done with my husband?” Ash commented. He reached over to give Jay a teasing pinch, but Jay smacked his husband’s hand away.
“Oh, look! They’re coming over! Be cool!” Jay hissed.
“The only one who needs to be cool right now is you,” I muttered, which earned me a painful elbow in my stomach.
I grumbled at my best friend but quickly pasted a smile on my face when Ryker and his friends reached the table.
“Jordan, you remember Sam Monroe, yeah?” Ryker said to his boss.
Jordan looked like a more mature version of Jones. They shared similar giant builds—again, I was wondering if being huge was a criterion for choosing friends. He had similar kind, dark eyes as Jones, too, but where his younger brother was all charming smiles, Jordan looked more serious.
The much smaller man beside him was representative of the small bird he was named after. He was tiny—about my height, of which I was very happy to have someone finally on my level — and had a very expressive face. He was the complete opposite of his boyfriend.
“I finally get an official introduction to the famous fiancé,” Jordan said with a grin. “Glad to see you back in town.”
“So even you heard the rumors despite always being on the road these days, huh?” I said with a nervous chuckle.
Despite Jordan being Ryker’s boss, he’d been traveling on and off these past few months, and this was my first time seeing him since moving back to town.
Ryker told me he hadn’t told Jordan about our arrangement, so they thought the engagement was real.
“Sure did. Imagine my surprise when I returned to find my brother’s best friend suddenly engaged,” he said. The way he glanced between me and Ryker reminded me of the way Jones had when this arrangement first started. His eyes said they knew more than he let on.
Now that Ryker and I were dating for real, we hadn’t discussed what our plans were about our supposedly upcoming nuptials.
Was it crazy of me to want to keep our current standing? I liked having the entire town know that Ryker was mine.
“Have you met Wren?” Jordan suddenly said.
“I haven’t, but I’ve heard so much about you,” I replied and reached for a handshake.
“Good things, I hope,” Wren said with a teasing smile.
A throat cleared beside me, and I glanced to see Jay subtly trying to get my attention.
With a laugh, I introduced them. “This is my best friend, Jay, and his husband, Ash.” I covered my mouth with my hand like I was about to tell a huge secret and added, “Jay is apparently your biggest fa— Ow !”
I turned to glare at my best friend for his latest stomach jab—I didn’t remember him being this violent—but he had a face of innocence as he spoke to Wren. “I’m a huge fan of your vlogs! I can’t believe I’m meeting you in person.”
“You’ve never fanboyed that hard for me.” I heard Ash mutter as his starstruck husband discussed Wren’s latest vlog in Ireland. That must have been where the two had been off to these past couple of months.
I’d heard of how some social media influencers could be really stuck up in real life, and that was why they always said never to meet your idols in person, but I was happy to know Wren wasn’t like that. He was patient, took Jay’s excitement in stride, and chatted happily with him about his adventures.
While the four of them talked, I scooted to Ryker’s side. “You okay?” I asked, sensing that his mood was a bit off.
He shook his head, and I took his hand for my own.
“Jordan was just telling me how he hadn’t had Jones over for dinner for a while. Apparently, Deke’s not even letting him hang out with his brother now,” he said with a sigh.
I squeezed his hand in comfort. Ryker still saw Jones at work, but Jones hadn’t been to any hangouts, claiming that Deke was still adjusting to the new environment, and he couldn’t leave him at home alone.
I knew Ryker was pretty worried about his best friend, but he also knew that there wasn’t anything that could be done, either, besides meddling in their relationship—which everyone knew was a slippery slope that could put a friendship on the line.
“Everything will work out,” I told him, giving his hand another squeeze. “And if it doesn’t, I’m here to support you in whatever happens the way you’d be there to support me.”
“You’re in?” he asked softly. I wondered if he meant if I was in the relationship or helping him support Jones, but whatever it was, there was only one answer.
“I’m in.”