The Unexpected Series (Unexpected #1-3) (81 page)

“Is this your client meeting?” I jokingly ask as I approach the table.

She turns a vicious stare towards me, and I stumble. “As a matter of fact it is. This is Trent Decker, who owns Decker Construction and he’s hired me to plan his weekend for him. It consists of me tying his sexy ass to the bed and fucking him senseless. I’m doing this pro bono of course. I’d hate to be called a prostitute.” She smirks.

Trent chuckles and extends his hand towards me. “Trent Decker, Noelle’s fiancé.”

“I heard.” I laugh. “I’m Ryder Blake, Noelle’s current tongue lashing victim.”

His handshake is firm. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” I comment letting go.

“Okay, ladies, is the sleepover done?” she asks holding out her hand with a key in it. “Here is the key. She probably has the flu so make sure you get a mask and a lot of Lysol before you head over there.”

I take it from her. “Thank you so much.”

“Thank YOU. Now I won’t have to restock my cabinets in Airborne. Tell her to make sure that shit is gone before she comes back to work.”

I wave and leave them to their meeting. Walking back to my car, I think about Noelle and Trent. Sure Jace got hurt, and he is my friend, but you could see from a distance that they are meant to be. I wonder if people would see the same thing if they observed Hadley and me. Would they see a couple who could never make it work or would they see the soul mates that I feel like we are. I don’t care. I just want to get to Hadley.

I
’m going to die.

This has to be the end. I can feel it.

Soon I will see the bright light and I’ll have no choice but to follow it and hope that I get into Heaven’s doors.

My head is pounding. My ears hurt and my eyes won’t stop watering. I’ve gone through two boxes of Kleenex and due to the constant vomiting I’ve had to change my clothes three times. The last time I didn’t bother putting new ones on.

So here I lie in my bed, panties only, on top of my covers, with my head hanging over the side so that if I puke again I’ll be sure to hit the bucket I placed down on the floor.

I can hear my phone ringing in the distance though I swear its right next to me. My arms are too heavy to reach out and grab it. I can barely push back the hair that is stuck to my face.

I glance over at the clock finding the bright light of it offensive and see it’s just after four o’clock. My phone rings again but all it does is lull me back to sleep.

The closing of my door startles me awake but I can’t muster the energy to grab the gun in my nightstand or even just lift my head to see who it is. Running through the day I figure Noelle has come to check on me since I left a message early this morning that I was dying and would like her to clear my Google searches. Who looks up zombie porn images anyways?

A cold compress hits my forehead and it’s euphoric, instantly easing my headache. Warm hands rub up and down my back but they are too large to be Noe’s.

“Hadley,” Ryder’s sweet tone calls out. “What can I do for you?”

“Bucket...” I moan out feeling another wave of nausea.

Ryder sounds confused. “Bucket?”

Before I can answer I lean over further and empty the nonexistent contents of my stomach.

His hands drag along and pull my hair away from my mouth before he continues to rub my back. “It’s okay. Get it out.”

“Go home, Ryder. I don’t want you to see this,” I warn him, attempting to push him away from me when the vomiting subsides.

He ignores me, taking the bucket away. I hear his footsteps lead into my bathroom, the flushing of the toilet and the running of the water in the bathtub tells me he is cleaning up after me.

I bet I look sexy now.

The bed dips behind me and the last thing I remember before I fall back asleep is the soft caress of my hair beneath his touch.

~~

“H
adley,” his voice softly calls out again. I look up, finding it’s now nine o’clock at night. Noticing I can actually move I turn over finding Ryder sitting on the edge of the bed. His dark blue eyes look concerned, and his hair is matted down on one side.

“You look sleepy.” My voice croaks.

He smiles. “I made you a bath. Come on.”

I allow him to help me up and practically carry me to the awaiting bath. “Turn around,” I tell him before I pull my panties down.

He eyes me. “Seriously, Spark. If I let you go then you’re going to fall and I told you before, your naked body is engrained into the back of my eyelids.”

I hesitate and groan before giving in and sliding my panties off of me. He gently holds my hand and helps me into the warm water. I sink down, laying my head on the edge of the tub.

“Too hot?” he asks from beside me.

“No.” I shake my hazy head. “It’s perfect. Thank you. How did you get into my house?”

He laughs. “Noelle gave me a key.”

My body relaxes more as I feel him bring water up and over my shoulders and collarbone. “Aren’t you worried I’m going to give you whatever bug I have?”

“You mean the flu? No. I had my flu shot. Did you?”

I open my eyes finding his. “No,” I whisper. I can’t say much more because the stare he is giving me is that of a caretaker. Even sick I thought he would use this as an advantage to get closer to me. To touch me but all I see is someone who is concerned and wants to take care of me. “Thank you,” I say but it doesn’t feel like enough.

Braden never took care of me when I was sick. He was always worried that I might contaminate him. So, all those times I just wanted to be held when I didn’t feel well I had to cuddle up with my pillow and make do on my own.

Ryder smiles. “Of course.”

When the bath starts to get cold he helps me out and into some warm pajamas. As I lay in my bed I hear him messing around in the kitchen and when he walks back in he has a bottle of water, some crackers and the charger for my cell phone.

He places the items down on the nightstand and plugs my phone in. “Call me if you need anything, okay?”

Leaning down, he brushes a kiss underneath my ear. As he turns to walk away I call out his name, “Ryder. Will you stay?”

He pauses. “Are you sure? I can sleep on the couch and you can just yell if you need anything.”

“Yes. I’m sure,” I reply. “But I’d like you to just hold me if that is okay.”

He nods and says, “Anything you want,” as he crawls behind me and pulls me to him.

~~

M
y body is stiff, and I feel weak as I wake up the next morning after an x rated dream. I take a quick inventory finding the nausea is gone and the headache is dull but I feel warm. Feverish. It must have to do with the over six foot man, who was the star in said dream, wrapped around my body. His hard muscles pull me against him, and his fingertips are hovering just under my belly button causing my hormones to go into overdrive. I shift and freeze as his morning wood makes its presence known. I can feel his breathing on my neck and it starts to become longer. Deeper. Heavier. His hands move, dropping lower, caressing the skin above barrier of my panties. I want to grab them and push them between my folds. His erection hardens, if that’s even possible, and my body lights up starting in my toes and shooting straight up to my chest. My hands reach down, feeling brazen and more turned on than I’ve been in a long time, and lie on top of his putting pressure on them. Directing them past the elastic of my thong and lower.

“Hadley,” he whispers, taking a nip out of my shoulder. “How are you feeling?”

“I’d feel better if your fingers were inside me.” It has to be the flu. It’s made me crazy because there is no other way I would’ve said that otherwise. Or maybe it was the dream but I’m desperate for his touch.

He takes the lobe of my ear between his teeth and sucks. “Don’t say it if you don’t mean it.” His voice comes out raw and primal, sending shivers down my spine.

I reach back behind me, snaking my free hand into his boxers and gripping his dick tightly. I drag my fingers up and down his length. “I mean it, Ryder. I need this right now.”

A satisfied groan escapes his lips as he pushes himself up and down in my hands. His fingers go to work rubbing through the juices that his nearness has created. I haven’t been this wet in a long time.

“God, Hadley. I missed this,” he says pushing two fingers inside me. I buck at the invasion and squirm as he scissors them within me hitting every nerve ending they can. My pace on his cock quickens as does the tempo of his fingers.

We’re panting, writhing beneath each other’s hand, and I quickly feel myself come to the brink. “Ryder...” I whisper.

“I can feel you, Hadley. I can feel your walls clenching around my fingers,” he says picking up the pace. “I know your body like the back of my hand. Come for me, Hadley.”

His words send me over the edge and my hand grips his dick harder as I ride out my wave. He stiffens underneath me and breathes out my name before he lifts up my shirt and his warm liquid spills onto my back.

I fall onto my stomach so none of it seeps onto the sheets. Ryder doesn’t move for a moment before saying, “That looks fucking sexy.”

“Ryder!” I yell over my shoulder.

The bed springs up and a minute later he is rubbing my back with a warm towel. After I’m cleaned up I reach over and grab my water bottle and one of the crackers. I sit against the headrest and watch Ryder as he walks back in from the bathroom.

I lift the food and drink up. “Thank you for this.”

He reaches over me, grabbing a cracker of his own. “I was so worried about you yesterday. I tried to call you a dozen times and nothing. I finally called Jace for Noelle’s number since no one was answering at your work and she told me you called out and were sick.”

“I’m sorry. I could barely even lift my head to see who it was.”

“Or put on anything other than panties. Do you know how hard it was, or I was when I walked in and saw your ass hanging out in the air? I had to remember you were sick before I violated you,” he says.

“That would have been a nice way to wake me up, though I did puke once you did.”

He shakes his head to, I assume, get the mental image out of his head. “I have to get to work but do you want me to do anything before I leave. I hate to go when you aren’t feeling better.”

I finish chewing and swallow the cracker. “I’m doing a lot better than yesterday.”

He sighs and looks away from me. “Yea. Me too.”

The way he says it concerns me. “Did something happen? Was it Braden?” I cringe when his name leaves my lips.

He shakes his head no. “My partner and I got shot at. He got hit and I didn’t but I feel like it’s my fault.”

My stomach drops and not from the flu. In my two years with Braden I was always worried about something like that happening. When he was on nights I would barely be able to sleep knowing that the harshest crimes happen during the nighttime hours. Knowing that Ryder actually got shot at makes me feel nauseous all over again.

“Is he going to be okay?” I ask rubbing his forearm up and down.

“Yea, it’s just a flesh wound to his left arm. He didn’t even have to stay overnight. I just hate that we didn’t catch the guy.”

“Are you scared to go to work today?” I ask only because he looks nervous.

“No.” He laughs. “But I’m pretty sure that your boyfriend will be riding along with me today.”

I almost forgot they work together, almost. “He’s not my boyfriend, Ryder.”

“Well.” He pulls me closer. “The spot is vacant. Is this something I could fill?”

I laugh. “Well, I know you want to but right now I think we need to just see where things go. Be friends.”

He nods and then kisses me on the cheek before getting up. “Well, I don’t know if your friend Noelle ever put her fingers inside you but please give me a call if she ever plans to. I’d like to be there...or videotape.”

I smile as I watch him collect all his things. He kisses me on the cheek again and reminds me to call or text him if I need anything. As the door shuts behind him I fall back onto my bed and look up at the ceiling.

What the hell am I doing?

I don’t want Braden.

I don’t know if I want more with Ryder but what we did this morning felt so comfortable and sexy as hell.

I need to take my time. Make sure everything that needs to be said is said. He needs to explain why he said what he did about me under those bleachers. He needs to know why I left and he needs to know about our baby.