“Evie, don’t run away from me,” he says under his breath, so only I can hear. “Please.”
With a sharp tug, I free my hand, shooting him a piercing look becauseyour grandmother is right there, for fuck’s sake.
“Eve,” he says.
I run my fingers through my hair in an attempt to fix what surely looks like post-sex hair. Or pre-sex hair, I guess.
And Nora only grins, Vic standing next to her with a similarly delighted expression on his face.
“Perhaps we should have waited a few more minutes,” Nora comments, the mirth in her expression sending a fresh wave of heat across my cheeks.
Ryder rolls his eyes, taking a begrudging step away fromme. He runs a hand through his hair as he turns to his grandmother, letting out a long breath. “You ready to head home, Gam?”
Her grin widens. “Are you?”
“Come on,” he says, stepping down to the dirt road and gesturing for them to follow.
“Not going to say goodbye to your girl?” Nora asks.
Ryder continues down the dirt path. “Come on, Gam.”
She shrugs. “It was such a delight to meet you, sweetie,” she says to me, and I want nothing more than to sink down into the floor of my living room and disappear.
“It was a delight to meet you as well,” I say.
Vic gives me a big grin. “I’m just going to make sure Nora gets to the car okay. I’ll be right back.”
I wave him off. “Don’t worry about it, Vic. Take whatever time you need.”
“I can send Ryder back up for you, if you’d like.”
I give him a flat look. “Vic!”
He holds his hands up in surrender. “Just trying to help.”
So help me god, the two of them lean into each other andgiggle.
How are they so damn adorable?
I shake my head, but before I can close the door on my embarrassment, Ryder turns around, walking backward while Vic and Nora huddle together, their voices low.
I freeze with his eyes on mine, his gaze simultaneously too much and not nearly enough.
He walks like that for a few paces and it’s like we’re still connected, despite the growing distance.
When he finally turns around to watch where he’s going, I shut the door and lean against the other side, wondering why my brain keeps telling me to kiss the man who wants to destroy everything.
21
RYDER
Istep into The Pub, scanning the old, dimly lit bar until I spot Aiden hogging two spots at the end and talking easily with the bartender.
He was always able to make friends with anyone who crossed his path. There are some people from this town that I’m glad to keep in the past, but Aiden is one that I’m glad I’ve run into again. We might have been troublemakers when we were younger, but it’s not like we werebad influenceson each other.
We just liked biking through the woods and staying out too late and drinking more than we should have at that age.
I take the seat next to him and nod to the bartender, a man with a friendly smile and graying temples who moves slowly but efficiently, picking up empty glasses as he spots them and clearing them from the bar. I recognize him from the night I came here with Eve.
