“Anson and me,” he said. “But this… this is from me.”
I watched as he picked up a single red rose and brought it to me.
“Oh, Ryder,” I whispered. “It’s pretty. I love red roses.”
“I know,” he murmured. “I’d have filled the place with them, but unfortunately, the worst florist in the city is on our block. Go figure.”
I chuckled but reached for him. He came wordlessly, and I hugged him tightly.
“Thank you. It’s perfect.”
“I’d get you an entire rose garden if I could,” he said softly. My heart jumped at his words, and a surge of feelings rushed through me. I forced them down and pulled away from him.
“I’m going to put it in some water,” I said, knowing damn well my cheeks were red.
He stared at me, something on his face I didn’t recognize, but I turned my back in case he could see what I was feeling.
I was in too damn deep.
42
ANSON
Iyawned and walked out of Ellis’s bedroom after helping put her to bed. Tonight, Rosalie and Ryder had read her a story Ryder had written.
I had no idea he’d written a story for her, but he had. It was about a little ballerina who developed superpowers. It was actually impressive, and even Evan sat forward as Ryder and Rosalie read it to her.
Of course, Ellis loved it.
But I hadn’t been watching Ellis. I was watching Ryder. Whenever Rosalie took over reading his words, all his attention was on her. Tiny smiles. The way his eyes stayed trained on her.
He had it bad for my wife.
And yet, I still didn’t hate it.
Six years ago, I may have beaten his ass for looking at my girl, but a lot of things had changed in my life. Now, all I wanted was to share my love with my best friends. I was fortunate to do that with Klaus and Evan, but adding Ryder would be the best damn thing in the world.
I was rooting hard for him to make a move.
But the asshole kept pushing his feelings away.
“Sleeping in here tonight?” I asked as I went back to Rosalie’s room in our home.
“You know it,” Evan said as he closed his laptop from his spot in her bed.
Klaus walked out of the bathroom and chuckled. “Looks like we’re having another sleepover.”
“I don’t mind,” I said, climbing into bed. Klaus took the outside, and we lay in silence for a long beat before Evan spoke.
“Is the plan still the plan?” he asked.
“Yes,” I replied. “I don’t really mind one bit if we move to Chicago. We can keep our place here and split the time if we need to. Chicago right now is the best idea.”
“I’ll send you guys more listings once I’m back at the office in the morning,” Klaus said. “I’ve found several options, but honestly, Rosalie seemed like she really loved the apartment I got her.”
“It only has three bedrooms,” I pointed out.
Klaus scoffed. “We have twelve in this place, and yet we’re all in the same bed. I’d say bedrooms aren’t an issue.”
