Page 53 of Special Delivery

By the time I get my shit together, he’s already on the way to his bedroom, so rush I after, catching him just in time to stop the door from closing.

“Hi,” I say, internally kicking myself for not coming up with anything better.

“Hi.”

“What you heard back there… it was nothing. I didn’t,” my voice drops to a whisper, “have sex with you to break off our parents’ wedding.”

“You didn’t?” He crosses his arms in front of his naked chest, a smirk playing on his lips.

“No! It was real. Last night was real.” Why do I care so much about what he thinks? What happened last night won’t happen again.

The chuckle that rumbles out of him surprises me. “I know it was real. I was there, remember?” He winks, and my nipples tighten, just like that.

Fuck. I copy him, crossing my own arms in front of my chest.

“So why did you get out of there like the place was on fire?”

“It was obvious you three were in the middle of a discussion. I didn’t want to interfere.”

“Oh.” That makes sense.

He takes a sip of the coffee, and I stare at his Adam’s apple as he swallows. “So, will you be telling Daddy about how his fiancée’s son defiled his daughter?” He runs his tongue over his upper teeth, taunting me.

A shudder runs through me. Talking about my sex life with my dad is the last thing I’d want. “No.”

“Good. Because if you did, I’d be forced to tell him how you begged for it.”

I let out a loud gasp and slap his chest. Big mistake. He’s naked and my hand is now asking for more.

“You wouldn’t.”

The corners of his eyes crinkle with a smile. “I wouldn’t, but I honestly hope that this game you and your sister are playing is done. Do with me what you will, but my mom doesn’t deserve it.”

My stomach fills with shame. I let out a loud sigh before sitting down on the bed. “Your mom is amazing. I’ll be forever indebted to her for that aloe vera gel that I’m pretty sure saved me from a skin transplant.” He chuckles. “We just had really bad luck with Dad’s previous girlfriends. Best-case scenario, they were after his money. Worst-case scenario, we lost a house that we grew up in, and watched our dad barely keep it together after the breakup.” He sits next to me. “Some of them were mean to us, which wouldn’t hurt now as it did back then, but mostly we’re scared for him.”

He pauses for a beat before responding, “I get it. Finding out your parent is getting married to someone you never met must be a shock. Especially if they already have a track sheet like Roger obviously does. I’m scared my mom will get hurt, too. She’s an adult, though, and if she trusts me, the least I can do is trust her.”

“That actually makes sense.”

“Don’t be so surprised. This head”—he taps his temple with his index finger—“has some pretty good ideas when it’s not dealing with debilitating pain.”

I wince. “How’s your head today?”

“Erm…” He pauses. “Good. My head’s good.”

A loud knock sounds at the door. “The ride to the airport is arriving in an hour. Please pack before doing anything else,” Emma’s voice ends in a giggle.

I turn to Ryan with a smirk. “I guess we should pack.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Ryan

My head is stuck in my thoughts as I start packing on autopilot. I didn’t even notice it before she asked me, but I woke up without a headache. I slept like the dead and woke up without pain. Both things are equally unbelievable.

When my headaches first started, my sleep quality went to shit. I’d wake multiple times during the night, different made-up scenarios eating at me, and struggled to relax enough to fall asleep again. Even after moving back home, I still woke up in pain every day, my body in a state of fight-or-flight.

It could be a one-time thing. Although, my temples were pulsing the other day, and they stopped when she joined me on the balcony. Another text from John threw me off my axis before our snorkeling trip, yet after eating her out, stress was expelled from my body. It’s not orgasms. God knows I’ve tried that before leaving San Francisco.