Chapter 15
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
EVE
I glance over at Ryder and feel the tension swirling around the vehicle. I wish I could tell what he’s thinking, but he’s doing a damn good job of hiding his emotions from me. For the past two days, he’s been avoiding me like the plague. He makes sure we are never alone, whether it’s Bobby at work or Ryland at the house.
I’m trying my hardest to give him space and the time he needs, but the bottom line is I miss him. I miss the way we were together and how we never hid our emotions from each other. I miss being his and how I felt in his arms. I miss my best friend. I miss… my Ryder.
I feel his eyes on me and turn to meet his greys. The backseat feels small with his big frame beside me. His thigh brushes against mine, and I want to cry from the contact. It’s so hard to be so close to something you want so badly and not be able to have it. A frown appears on his beautiful face as his eyes dart to my lips. I release my bottom lip from my teeth, which I was subconsciously biting on. His jaw hardens as he looks away.
Sighing, I turn my head to look out the window again.
“Did you hear what I said?” I notice Sophia looking at me from the front seat.
“I’m sorry. What was that?” I was so deep in thought I wasn’t paying attention to the conversation around me. As always, my focus is on the man beside me, who is obviously in his brooding faze right now.
“I was just asking if this was the first time you have seen Miles play?” Sophia looks at Ryder, and a small smile plays on her lips as she meets my eyes again. Anyone within a mile radius of us would be able to feel the chaotic energy between us. I’m glad someone is finding humor in this.
“I only saw him play once in front of a crowd. The rest was just garage band practices and a few parties we went to with friends.”
“Where did you see him play?”
“Prom,” I say quietly.
“Oh, fun! Did you guys go together?” I meet Ryder’s eyes, and for a brief moment, I see what I’m feeling when I think back to that evening. It was the night I truly became his in every sense of the word and knew I would never love another the way I loved him.
“Yeah, we did. It was one of the best nights of my life,” I say, repeating what I told him that night. I hold his gaze and try to take in everything he is showing me right now in those greys. He breaks away far too soon, and I hide my disappointment as I turn back to Sophia.
“I bet you two were such a beautiful couple that night. What color was your dress?”
“Blue,” I hear Ryder say. “The same color as her eyes.” Surprised that he joined in on the conversation, I turn to look at him but he’s back to looking out the window.
Sophia gives me an encouraging smile and winks at me before focusing her attention on Travis for the rest of the drive there.
By the time we get to the restaurant, I’m in desperate need of a drink. I’m determined to put everything aside for the night and just enjoy the moment. It’s been so long since I’ve been out and truly allowed myself to have fun.
Sophia must have read my mind because as soon as we sit down, she orders us two margaritas and a round of tequila shots for our table. The outdoor sitting area is packed tonight as I glance around at all the people eating and drinking.
Captain Jack’s has always been the local’s go-to place for good music and fresh seafood. The restaurant sits right on the water, and people love to gather around sunset and watch the boats come in with their catches of the day. I’ve been here a few times with Ryder and his family and have always loved the laid-back atmosphere of the place.
I spot Miles setting up his drum set and speakers with his band. He looks up and meets my eyes. Grinning, he gets Seth and Link’s attention, and they walk over to us.
“Our favorite groupie is back!” I laugh as Link picks me up in a big hug. Whenever Ryder wasn’t working, we would spend a lot of time in the garage watching them practice their new songs on us.
“I better be your favorite groupie.” I smile into his bright blue eyes. His dark hair is longer now, and his curls peek out from under his ball cap. “I earned that title with all the chocolate chip cookies and brownies I would make for all your practices.”
“God, I miss those,” Link closes his eyes on a groan.
“Not as much as we missed you, though,” Seth grins, pulling me in for a hug. “It’s good to have you back, Evie.” His green eyes hold mine with a smile.
“It’s good to be back. I can’t wait to hear you guys play tonight. I’m so proud of the three of you,” I beam at them.
Miles throws his arm around my shoulder and gives me a squeeze. “Thanks for coming tonight.”
“I wouldn’t have missed it.”
The waitress comes back with our drinks, and Sophia hands out the tequila shots to everyone.
“To Evie being back with us!” Miles holds up his shot glass, and everyone raises with his. I glance around at all the faces I’ve missed and end on Ryder. His intense greys hold mine as I lift up my glass.
“To family,” I say quietly.
“To family,” I hear everyone say before knocking back the tequila. Ryder lifts his in my direction, and we both shoot it back. The burn slides down my throat as his eyes never leave mine.
“We’ll be back during our break. Try to have a little fun tonight, will you? It’s long overdue.” Miles’s question pulls me away from Ryder’s intense energy that wants to wrap around me.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure she has a good time.” Sophia scoots my margarita closer to me, and I laugh before taking a sip.
“Damn, those are good. I can’t even taste the tequila.” I take another sip and hear Miles laugh.
“Drink up, Evie girl. I better see your ass on the dancefloor later,” he grins before walking back over with Seth and Link to finish setting up.
I sit back down at the table and try to ignore the body next to me. He can continue brooding all he wants, but I need a night to forget. I’m going to have fun tonight whether he joins in or not.
I down the rest of my drink and look over at Sophia.
“You ready for another one? I’m not drinking alone tonight.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” she grins and downs her drink too.
Travis chuckles beside her and stands up. “I’ll get you girls another.”
“You’re the best.” Sophia tilts back to look at him, and he doesn’t hesitate to press his lips to hers. A pang of jealousy hits me when I see the way they look at each other. Travis whispers something in her ear, and she giggles. Her bright green eyes shine with the kind of love I once had.
“Need anything, Ryder?” Travis asks.
“Just a beer, thanks.” I glance at him, and for the life of me, I can’t tell what he’s feeling. He leans back in his chair and places his arm across the back of mine. In the past, I would have immediately curled up next to him, both of us wanting to be as close as possible to one another.
I take a sip of my drink when Travis returns and grin when I hear Seth’s voice over the mic introducing the band. Excitement flows through me as they start to play. I’ve always loved to watch them. You can feel their love of music in every note they play.
Jake walks over and joins us. He had a late appointment, so he met us after work.
“What did I miss?” He asks, sitting down. I’ve noticed how the girls in the restaurant have been sneaking glances at our table since we got here, but add one more, and I can immediately feel all the eyes on us. The Montgomery brothers have always had a way of owning every place they are in. Guys want to be them, and the girls want to be under them.
“Miles hasn’t been playing long, so you didn’t miss much.” Travis takes a sip of his beer while his other hand rests on Sophia’s shoulder as he absentmindedly plays with her dark strands.
I get a goofy grin on my face as I look at Jake. I can feel the tequila working its way into my body, making me giddy.
“What?” He laughs.
“Nothing.” I shake my head and giggle. “I’m just really glad we all got to be here tonight. I’ve missed this.”
“How much tequila have you had?” His eyes light up with amusement.
“Just a little,” I giggle again. “I’m just happy that I’m sitting here with all of you and get to see Miles play.”
“Well, I’m happy that you’re happy. It’s good to see you having fun tonight.” Jake signals for the waitress and orders another round for everyone.
I’m feeling pretty good on margaritas by the time the small dance floor in front of the band gets crowded as one of their popular songs comes on. Reaching over and grabbing my hand, Sophia pulls me up.
“I love this song! You have to dance with me.” She kisses Travis loudly on the lips and grins. “Save my spot.”
“It’s yours, trust me,” he chuckles.
Laughing, I let her lead me to the front of the dance floor, where we have a good view of the band. Miles winks at me when he sees us dancing. Letting the music flow through me, I feel my body sway and move to the beat.
The band plays four more songs, and by the time they are done, my cheeks hurt from grinning. The music slows down, and I see Travis come up to pull Sophia into a slow dance. I turn to head back to the table, and I feel a hand grab my arm.
“Where are you going in such a hurry? No slow dance?” I glance up and see a guy a little older than me. He’s smiling down at me, and before I realize what’s happening, he’s pulling me close, swaying us to the music.
I try to loosen the tight hold on me when I hear a deep voice from behind.
“You have two seconds to get your hands off of her before I remove them myself.” Whipping my head around, I see Ryder glaring at him.
“Dude, chill. It’s just a dance.” He holds his hands up, and I step back, wanting to get out of his space.
“Funny. I didn’t hear you ask her to dance, nor did I hear her say she wanted to. Looked to me like you just grabbed her without her permission.”
“Ryder, it’s fine. Let’s just go back to the table.” I place my hand in his to try and diffuse the situation.
“Everything okay here?” Travis appears by our side with Sophia.
The guy looks between the two of them, and I can tell he’s getting nervous. “It’s all good,” he says, “I was just leaving.” He walks away to join his friends on the other side of the bar, and I breathe a sigh of relief.
Sophia wraps her arms around Travis and leads him back to the dance floor. Ryder is staring after the guy like he wants to go after him.
“I’m going back to the table.” I turn to go, and his hand palms my stomach, stopping me.
“Wait.” Sighing, his fingers grip my dress tighter. “I don’t want this to ruin your night. You were having so much fun, and I was on my way to ask you to dance when I saw that guy grab you. I’m sorry if I overreacted.”
He steps closer, and I breathe him in. My head is already fuzzy from the alcohol flowing through my body. Add his presence on top of it, and I couldn’t even tell you my own name at this point.
“Dance with me.” His breath caresses my ear as I feel myself sink into him. He pulls me close, and I close my eyes to the sensations that surge through my body as he presses against me. We sway to the music as the whole world disappears around us.
“I can’t do this anymore, Ryder,” I whisper against his shirt. “One minute, you are avoiding me and looking at me like you can’t stand me, and the next, you are acting like a jealous boyfriend to a stranger. It’s exhausting, and I don’t know what you want from me.”
“I’m trying, Eve. You don’t know how badly I want to go back to how it used to be between us.”
“If you can’t find a way to forgive me for leaving, then there will never be an us. ” I force myself to leave his arms and walk back over to the table. Jake takes one look at my face, and sympathy flashes in his grey eyes.
“What happened?”
“Nothing a shot of tequila can’t erase.” I stop the waitress and order another shot, making it a double this time. I’ll probably regret it in the morning, but right now, I just want to numb this ache that’s forming in my chest.