Chapter 41
Chapter Forty-One
I stomp toward the patio, my thoughts a flurrying storm of warring emotions as the heels of my boots sink into the brittle grass.
Yes, I’m hurt Noah didn’t trust me enough to tell me that he and Marco are dating, but the revelation that my brother’s been sleeping with my arch nemesis for years is threatening the entire foundation of our relationship.
We’re family. We’re supposed to protect and trust one another…
A bitter laugh escapes my lips at the hypocrisy of my anger, since I’ve been fooling around with his best friend after he explicitly asked me not to. But unlike Noah, I was going to tell him… And this thing with Ryker doesn’t feel like just fooling around.
Not anymore. Not for me.
Being with him is like finding a soft, cool place to lay my head after a day of toiling under the sun. Like stepping into a pair of perfectly broken-in boots after stumbling through life in unstable high heels.
And now I’m leaving…
I stop dead in my tracks, body jolting as if I’d walked into an electric livestock fence. I’m leaving Deadwood next Sunday, and Ryker has no choice but to stay.
I glance around the yard like I might find him there, noticing for the first time that the crowd that filed out earlier is gone and the music is off. Through the window, I spot Marco as he scurries about inside, collecting discarded bottles and cups in the living room.
Everyone else must’ve left for the bar.
The front door opens and Noah trudges in, heading straight for the kitchen where he sticks his entire bloodied face under the faucet. With a frown, Marco sets down the trash and grabs something from a drawer. Then he taps Noah’s shoulder before delicately placing a towel against his bleeding nose. When my brother nods, Marco pulls him into a fierce hug.
A tiny pang of guilt needles at my stomach, and I quickly turn away. I might’ve busted up Noah’s nose, but the trust he shattered between us will take a lot longer to mend than broken bones.
Movement has my head snapping left to where a small group is gathered in the tree line. There are only about ten of them, but I spot Isabel’s glossy dark hair gleaming in the moonlight near the back.
The wind picks up, and I fold my arms across my middle. It might be the breeze rattling the chain-link fence or the owl screeching from its high perch in the dense trees, but all around me, the shadows seem to shift and move, almost as if they’re reaching out to grab me.
My pulse drums in my ears as I step off the concrete patio and into the grass, my body making the unconscious decision to head closer to the group. I hadn’t realized it at first, but there’s a man standing in the center of their circle. His back is turned to me, body cloaked in darkness, but even from thirty feet away, it’s easy to see how captivated these people are by whatever he’s saying.
A few more steps, and his voice hits my ears, the cadence low and even. No one around him speaks, no one smiles or laughs. They just hang on to his every word as he turns, arms stretched out and palms facing skyward .
I freeze mid-step as Kane’s sharp features come into focus. An unsettling tingle crawls up my spine. Sheep. Easily influenced. Do as they’re told. Most of them incapable of independent thought. Isn’t that what he just said about these same people?
Rain-soaked pine and a faint hint of honeysuckle flood my senses. “Did you and Noah work things out?”
“Not even close,” I huff, rage pouring back into my bloodstream full force. “I still can’t believe that out of everyone my brother could’ve been screwing around with, he picked Cooper fucking Blackthorne.”
I turn and lift my gaze to Ryker’s, my shoulders curving forward as I brace myself for the question I have to ask. “Did you know?”
“No, I didn’t.” He wraps an arm around my waist, fingers digging into my hip when he tucks me against his side. “Which is why Noah and I are about to have some words that will probably end with him eating my fist.”
A weight lifts from my shoulders, the corner of my mouth twitching up. “There’s a good chance I already broke his nose. And I kept my thumb in the right position this time.”
“Sure you did, Princess.” Soft light twinkles in the reflection of Ryker’s eyes, his expression full of amusement as he brushes the white strands of hair away from my face. A twig snaps in the tree line, and he scowls when he looks over and spots Kane. “Do you want to get out of here and go back to the plan where we pretend we’re only children for the rest of the night?”
I glance toward the window where Noah is still holding his nose, his free arm waving around animatedly while I assume he rants about what happened between us. Just looking at him makes the knife of betrayal sticking out of my back sink deeper.
I nod, letting Ryker lead me away from the party without ever looking backward.
Our walk to the truck is cloaked in darkness and serenaded by various insects and other creatures of the night. A warm wind whips across the slanted roofs of the crumbling Victorian mansions on one side of the street and through the narrow alleys and side yards of the Colonial Revival homes on the other, lacing the air with delicate notes of maple and birch with just a hint of mildew and rotting timber.
The night is quiet and calm, and with only a few inches of space between Ryker and me, the silence is comfortable instead of unnerving.
Even so, a slight churn of nervousness flutters inside my stomach. I’m determined to turn this night around for both of us, and since we’ll have the house to ourselves, I have a good idea of how I can accomplish that…
“All the lights in the Blackthorne house are off and Beau’s car is gone,” Ryker announces when we get to the truck. He glances up and down the quiet street before exhaling and reaching into his jeans for the keys.
Something falls out of his pocket, clattering to the pavement before bouncing beneath the truck. Ryker curses, and I spring into action, my skirt riding up as I hastily drop onto my hands and knees to retrieve the item from under the carriage. “I’ll get it.”
As quickly as I can, I grab the silver lighter and crawl back out.
I’m still on the ground when Ryker steps into my space and cups my chin, forcing my eyes to his. “Fuck, Princess,” he sighs, running his thumb over my bottom lip. “You really do look so goddamn good on your knees.”
My heart gives an excited thud, heat flooding to my inner thighs.
Be daring, Willa.
“You keep saying that,” I murmur, staring up at him through veiled lashes with my heart in my throat. “Maybe you should show me why you think so?” I hand him the lighter, which he swiftly pockets, but I stay on my knees, slowly reaching for his belt. “Or maybe I could show you? ”
Ryker’s breaths quicken, his gaze homed on mine as his buckle clatters to the side and I start in on the top button of his jeans. Eyes black in the low light of the moon, he clenches his jaw. “You don’t know what you’re asking for…”
I take a deep breath. Here goes nothing. “Really? Because I’m pretty sure I’m asking you to fuck my mouth…”
“ Fucking hell ,” he hisses, already undoing his zipper. “Put your jacket under your knees.”
Giddy, I scramble out of my coat and place it on the asphalt, the relief on my kneecaps instantaneous as I climb atop it. When I glance up, Ryker is fisting himself, the head of his enormous cock glistening in the moonlight.
Jesus . How the hell is that thing supposed to fit in my mouth?
Eyes wide, I swallow down the tightness in my throat. “You’ll show me what to do?”
Leaning over, Ryker grabs my face with one hand and tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear with the other. “Anything you do will be perfect,” he says, the tip of his nose brushing against my own. “Just no hands, okay?” He waits until I nod before kissing my forehead and standing back up.
The air shifts, and I swear Ryker’s voice drops three octaves. “Open your mouth and stick out your tongue for me.”
The pulse between my thighs goes wild from the memory of him saying those exact words on the water tower. Adrenaline coursing through my veins, I push up off my toes to make myself taller and grab onto his jean-clad thighs for balance. Keeping my eyes locked on his, I slowly open my mouth, salivating as he strokes himself—this time mere inches away from my face.
“Perfect, just like that.” Breathing heavily, he angles himself forward, threading his fingers in my hair with one hand while tapping the thick head of his cock against my waiting tongue with the other. My clit throbs at the taste of him.
“ Fuck ,” he moans, thighs tensing beneath my palms. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to fuck this smart mouth of yours. ”
Body buzzing, I let go of a keening groan when he slides his cock a few inches into my mouth before sliding back out. The hand in my hair tightens and then he’s dragging his shaft across my parted lips.
“These pink lips of yours are so goddamn beautiful,” he whispers as he sweeps his cock over them, repeating the same process on my cheeks and then my chin—like he’s marking me. Every time his dick touches my skin, it sends an electric zap straight to my clit.
“ Hmm . Too fucking perfect,” Ryker growls. “Open wider so I can fuck that pretty mouth.”
God, yes . Straining my neck, I take down as much of him as I can before wrapping my lips around his shaft and flicking my tongue. I moan, my eyes fluttering open and closed in delight at the slightly salty taste of his skin. I do it again, this time rotating my tongue to explore the feel of him.
For a second, I’m nervous I’m not doing it right, but then Ryker tilts his chin skyward and lets out the sexiest breathy sigh, causing my belly to erupt into a flurry of need.
I’d do literally anything to hear that sound again, but his grip is so tight in my hair, I can’t actually move anything besides my tongue. So that’s what I do, swirl my tongue and draw him as deep as I can, devouring him with the same enthusiasm I would a popsicle in the heat of summer.
Ryker glances down at me, biting the corner of his lip as he pushes in farther. My jaw struggles to hinge wider and accommodate his length. “That’s it, Princess. Look at you. So fucking beautiful with my cock in your mouth.”
Chest so warm I wouldn’t be surprised if I was glowing like a firefly, I let Ryker gently guide my head up and down his thick length. He never takes his eyes off me, not for a single second. Not even when he adds his other hand to my hair and starts thrusting into my mouth in earnest.
My pussy throbs, and I’m a mess. Not only is there drool dripping down my chin and moisture soaking through my thong from how turned on I am, but every time Ryker grunts and pants as he pumps against my tongue, it awakens something wild in me. Something feral and desperate for more.
I work my tongue faster, drawing on every smutty book I’ve ever read and every filthy porn I’ve ever streamed to bring him closer to the edge.
“Fuck, Princess. A little deeper.” His nails dig into my scalp as he takes full control of my head. “Yeah, that’s it— Jesus— Fuck .” Ryker tenses beneath me, and a proud warmth pulses through my torso.
He’s close.
Laughter sounds from down the street. “Fuck,” Ryker hisses before abruptly pulling out of my mouth and dragging me to my feet. Dazed and slightly disappointed, I follow the direction of his stare to where I can just make out a group of ten or so people filing out of Marco’s backyard.
There are no streetlights over here, so I’m not exactly worried about anyone seeing us…
But then I notice the single dark silhouette standing in the road.