My voice pulled him out of his trance, and he managed to look at me. His eyes looked deeply troubled, and I was about to beg him to tell me what the fuck happened. He looked like he had a million things on the tip of his tongue, but no words came out. I considered it a small win, however, since he at least made eye contact with me and nodded his response to my question.
The man returned with our coats, and I handed Ryder his before I put mine on. We’d just gotten our coats on and buttoned when Oscar pulled up to the entrance. I placed my hand lightly against Ryder’s upper back and guided him outside to the car. Two valet attendants quickly opened the rear doors for us, and we got into the warm car.
“Evening, Mr. Christos and Mr. Smith,” Oscar said as he made eye contact with me in the rearview mirror.
“Evening, Oscar. The hotel, please.”
“Yes, sir.”
We had a long drive back to New York City ahead of us, and I was going to go insane if Ryder was just going to sit silently the entire time. Ryder turned his seat warmer on and slouchedback against the cushion. Propping his arm against the door, he leaned away from me and rested his head on his arm. Even though he closed his eyes, the stress line on his forehead hadn’t gone away.
“Ryder, talk to me. What happened this evening?” I asked quietly.
“I got a really bad headache.”
At this juncture, I didn’t believe it. I felt there was too much going on. Especially with Will’s presence. Healthy eighteen-year-olds typically didn’t get debilitating headaches like that, unless they were prone to having them. Which, I supposed, could be the case.
“Do you get headaches often?” I asked.
“No. This one was just really bad.”
At least he was answering me. And since he was with me, I knew he was safe.
Was I reading too much into this? Was this really a headache?
Will looked very concerned when I saw him as we left. Did he know about the headache? If he did, how did he know?
“It might be best if we have a doctor check you over,” I suggested. Ryder laughed but didn’t open his eyes. “Why is that humorous to you?”
“Don’t you think that’s overkill?”
“I don’t think anything is overkill when it comes to your health and safety, Ryder.”
Again, he laughed.
“You people are something else. A small headache and you guys are ready to drag someone to a doctor to get them checked out. I wonder what you would do for a real injury,” he sarcastically added.
I took a deep breath and closed my mouth for a moment. I knew where his comments were coming from. His foster parentsdidn’t give a fuck about him, and I’d seen what was leftover on his body from their abuse. I was certain he tended to his own injuries and wounds; all of them were most likely much worse than a headache.
I took my phone out of my pocket and wasn’t surprised that I had a text from Will. What I had been surprised by was that there were five texts already from him. Obsessed?
Something is wrong with my boy. Find out exactly what happened and call me immediately.
Take care of him, Atlas.
He said it was a headache, but I don’t believe it. In case I’m wrong, get him checked out by a physician. If one of those Omnia doctors can’t see him this evening, let me know and I’ll send my doctor to see him.
But if someone said something to him that caused him to react like this, I want to know about it.
I’ll wait for your call.
The only reason that a smile spread across my face was because I knew Will Stone was into Ryder. As in, immediate infatuation. And though Will and I had been friends for many years, I’d never seen him obsessed with anything or anyone.
Hoping to at least temporarily settle him, I took a quick moment to text him back.
He’s safe and with me. I’ll call you as soon as I know something.
I wasn’t expecting him to text me back, and certainly not this quickly. It was as if he was holding the phone in his hand, waiting for me to call or text.
