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“I think we’re good.”
He squeezed her hand, then threw open the door.
“Oh wow.”
Vic walked out slowly, taking it all in. New York from the rooftop of the Prince Plaza Midtown was something to behold. Sure there were bars and restaurants that let you have this view, but there was nothing like standing in dark solitude on a plain, empty roof like this one, taking in the glimmering magic stretching out into the blackness as far as the eye could see.
The night was crisp and cold, but up here, miles away, it seemed, from the crowded ballroom below, Ryder felt free. Judging by the awestruck look on Vicky’s face, she felt it too.
She stepped up to the half wall that ran along the roof’s edge, peering down at the lights of 5th Avenue. The wind picked up, and she wrapped her arms around herself.
“Are you cold?” He stepped up beside her. “We can go back in.”
“No. No, this is amazing.”
He shrugged out of his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She threw him a wry look.
“What?” He grinned. “I’m not a complete jerk.”
She studied him. They were standing close, his arm still draped around her shoulders, and the silence quickly became unnerving.
“No,” she said finally. “No, you’re not.”
Well, damn. He didn’t have a response for that, snappy or otherwise, so he just turned and looked out over the city. She turned, too, so they were standing shoulder to shoulder.
“How do you do it?” she asked. “How do you let them be so awful to you and not let it get to you?”
He shrugged. “Lots of practice.”
She shook her head.
“I think maybe I get it now. What it’s like to be on the outside of all this.” She gestured vaguely toward the door that led back into the hotel. “Maybe a little of why you hate it so much.”
He kept his face to the street but slid his eyes over to watch her from the side. Her face was rosy from the cold, lit in the glow of the city. Her breath came out in delicate clouds, drifting up into the sky.
He didn’t hate all of it.
But he didn’t say that. Instead, he shook his head and snorted out a laugh. “Honey, you don’t know the half of it.”
Suddenly her hand was on his arm, warm and firm. She turned him to face her. “Thank you.” She slid her hand down and wrapped her fingers around his. “Thanks for getting me out of there. And thanks for coming in the first place. I know you didn’t want to.”
“Eh, it wasn’t so bad.” He looked into her wide eyes. God, he could get lost in them. “My mom told me she was pleased I made the effort. Which, you know, is the first time she’s been pleased with me in . . .”
He meant it to be flip, but suddenly his throat was tightening. He looked down at his shoes. “Well, in a long time,” he finished quietly. And Jesus Christ, his voice came out raspy and choked.
He didn’t look up, but he could feel Vic’s eyes on him. Hell, she was standing so close he could feel the heat coming off her body, but she didn’t move.
Then she did.
Her hand grazed his jaw, barely touching him as she gently turned his face up to hers. Her eyes searched his for a heartbeat, then two.
And then her mouth was on his.
Her soft lips pressed against his, dazing his senses. Time froze, and everything around them slipped away. And then he was grabbing her by the lapels of his jacket, pulling her close and closer still. Damn, he couldn’t get close enough.
He pressed her mouth open, backed her against the wall looking out over the city.
Vicky was kissing him. She was kissing him.
