Chapter Nine
Whoa.Emma lay in bed, her body still humming with satisfaction. Had she really let Ryan put his hands up her skirt right there in the back hallway of The Music Factory? Yes, she had, and oh, had it been worth it. If this was what it felt like to be bad, she never wanted to be good again.
Who’s in for cinnamon buns in the morning?she texted to her friends.I have a major dare update to share.
OMG, Gabby replied.This better be good! You guys were so obviously hot for each other on the dance floor tonight.
Oh, it’s good.She inserted a winking emoticon and several flames.I’ll spill all the deets tomorrow around 8?
This ignited a flurry of texts from Gabby, Carly, and Mandy, all of whom promised to be there tomorrow morning at eight to hear her news. Emma set her phone on the nightstand, turned out the light, and crashed almost as soon as her head hit the pillow, with Smokey snuggled in beside her.
She awoke the next morning with memories of Ryan still dancing in her mind. Holy shit. That really happened. Nothing boring or predictable about anything she’d done last night, and she liked it. Shelovedit. No use trying to deny it any longer. It wasn’t just a wild and crazy fling she wanted.
She wanted Ryan.
And there was no way she was going to let him push her away again. It still sent a hot thrill through her when she remembered the way he’d touched her, the harsh possessiveness of his words when he’d told her to forget about other guys.
Oh, they were forgotten all right.
And her body ached for him to touch her again. She wanted more. She wantedeverything. And she was going to have it, dammit.
She showered, dressed in jeans and a long-sleeved tee for work, and headed to A Piece of Cake to meet the girls. Carly had fresh cinnamon buns and coffees waiting.
“Please tell me you hooked up with Ryan last night,” Gabby said with a huge smile as she slid onto the seat next to Emma’s.
“Define ‘hooked up,’” she said with a grin.
Mandy came up behind them, her eyes wide. “Holy shit, Emma. Tell us everything.”
“We were at The Music Factory last night to hear his brother DJ—which is a whole other story because I’m so proud of Trent—but after everyone else left, we were still dancing, and somehow dancing turned to kissing, and—”
Gabby gasped.
“He took me down this hall in back, and holy crap, you guys…”
“What?” Mandy asked. They all leaned in, hanging on her every word.
“Well, let’s just say,thingshappened.” Emma felt her cheeks getting hot.
“Things?” Mandy repeated with a laugh. “What kind of things?”
Emma glanced around the bakery, but no one else was nearby to overhear her naughty confession. “Well, his hands were up my skirt, and he’sverygood with his hands. And…he’s a dirty talker…and—”
“Oh my God!” Carly squealed.
Mandy sat back with a wide smile. “Nowthat’swhat I’m talking about. Way to go, my friend.” She raised her hand and slapped a high five with Emma.
“And then what happened?” Gabby asked.
“Then he sent me home and said we’d talk about it today.”
“Like I said in the beginning,” Mandy said, “Ryan Blake is a sheep in wolf’s clothing. He’s the perfect guy for you to experiment with, Emma, because he’s a gentleman at heart.”
Emma knew Mandy was right, which meant she had to watch out where Ryan was concerned. She’d spent most of her life wanting him, and once she had him, she’d have a hell of a time not falling head over heels in love with him.
A few hours later, she was back out at Off-the-Grid, overseeing several seasonal contractors as they reseeded the grass in the field behind the house while she finished up the flowers she was planting along the walkway.
Ryan came sauntering out of the building, looking all badass and sexy, and she practically swooned into the begonias. “Got a minute?” he asked, his expression masked by his sunglasses.
