“I’m so sorry,” I began, “I didn’t mean to... not out loud... this is awful.”
I was blowing this; I was single handedly fucking up speaking to someone. I was grateful for the loud music because I didn’t want to hear Ryder laughing at me. I jumped and dropped my hands from my face when I felt a hand on my bare thigh. I looked up and found Ryder was grinning down at me.
“Hi,” he said, smiling wide. “Branna was it?”
He knew good and bloody well what my name was, he was teasing now.
I cleared my throat. “Hi back... Ryder was it?”
“Yeah,” he smirked. “I’m Ryder.”
Yes. He. Was.
“Ryder,” I repeated.
He lowered his head back to mine and said, “You’re beautiful.”
I blinked, dumbly. “You’re beautifuler.”
I cringed the second the words left my mouth.
He snorted and asked, “Who’s sweet talking who here?”
Not me, I knew that much, I was talking out of my arse.
I shuddered. “You can sweet talk me, I’ll be quiet.”
There was less chance of me making a complete arse of myself if I kept my big mouth shut.
“I don’t know,” he mused. “I like this. You saying what you want to say then getting embarrassed over it. It’s very cute.”
I flinched.
Ryder blinked at my reaction. “Did I say something wrong?”
I shook my head. “No, it’s just, I call me sister cute all the time and because we look similar it just weirded me out for a second.”
“How old is your sister?” he asked, the corners of his eyes creasing.
“She turns eighteen next month,” I said, and then found myself frowning. “She’s growin’ up very fast on me.”
Ryder raised a brow. “On you?”
I nodded. “Yeah, our parents died when she was nine. I was nineteen at the time and refused to let anyone raise ‘er but me, so I put everythin’ on hold and brought ‘er up. She’s a good kid, too. I think I’ve done a good job with ‘er.”
Ryder was staring at me with his mouth agape, and what we were just conversing about hit me like a cold shower.
Fuck.
I think we had been flirting and I somehow managed to fit in the fact that I was a mother figure to my kid sister and that I’ve spent most of my life raising her. What I should have spoken about was sex related things, not baggage related things. I was really fucking this up. I felt my cheeks heat up.
Talk about a mood killer.
“I’m so-sorry,” I stuttered. “I didn’t mean to take a huge turn in the conversation.”
Ryder shook his head. “No, don’t apologise, I was just a little caught off guard. So, you’ve raised your sister?”
He was interested in the information that much was obvious. I just didn’t get why. I bit down on my lower lip and nodded.
“All on your own?” he questioned. “No boyfriend?”
I shook my head. “No one serious, I brought a man home once for dinner but me sister—who was eleven at the time—didn’t like him because he couldn’t say her name right. He was from Spain and his English wasn’t the best. She ran him out of the house while I was cookin’ and we never saw him again. I stopped datin’ after that.”
When I finished speaking, Ryder had his head tilted back with the soothing sound of his laughter tangling up with the music. It was alarming how relaxed his laughter, and overall presence, made me feel. He was a stranger, but I felt very comfortable next to him. It was odd, but in a really nice way.
“Your sister sounds incredible,” Ryder said with a big smile on his face after his laughter subsided.
I nodded. “Yeah, she’s me world.”
Ryder used the arm that was over the back of the booth to drape over my shoulders. I went as still as a statue as he pulled me closer until the side of my body moulded against his.
“Where is she tonight?” he asked, his lips almost pressed against my ear.
I swallowed. “At home. She’s probably sleepin’ now, she had a long week at school.”
Ryder hummed. “I’ll have to bring you to my place then, I wouldn’t want to wake her up. She might do more than kick me out.”
I felt my eyes widen and my heart come to a complete stop.
“Branna?” Ryder murmured.
I snapped out of my momentary shut down and turned my head to him and said, “Look, you’re gorgeous, and trust me when I say that I really, really want to go back to your place with you...”
“But?” Ryder offered.
“But,” I swallowed. “I’ve never had a one night stand before, and to be honest, the prospect of it kind of scares me.”
Ryder’s eyes scanned over my face when I finished speaking. “Would you believe me if I said we wouldn’t have to have sex?”
I blinked. “Why else would you want me to come back to your place?”
He laughed and shook his head. “This is going to sound like bullshit, but I like talking to you, and listening to you speak. From what I’ve heard, you sound like an incredible friend and sister. You’re independent and that’s hot, but you know what’s downright sexy?” he asked and I shook my head, not being able to verbally speak yet. “Your shyness and nervousness. It makes my dick hurt. You’re beautiful and have a sense of humour. I haven’t come across all that goodness in a woman in... ever.”
I had to look away when blood rushed to my cheeks. Ryder laughed and placed his hand under my chin, forcing me to look back at him. “Yeah,” he grinned. “That shyness is definitely hurting my dick.”
The pulse between my thighs throbbed so hard I had to rub my legs together to try and soothe the ache. Ryder’s eyes dropped down to my thighs and caught the motion, he kept his eyes lowered, and a smirk slowly curved his mouth. He knew I was aching.
“It’s only fair,” he murmured when his gaze returned to me. “If my dick hurts, I want your pussy throbbing.”
Oh, Christ.
“Ryder,” I breathed and squeezed my thighs tightly together. “Don’t talk like that.”
He growled at that and brought his mouth to my ear, breathing into it. “Why not?” he asked. “Your clit hurts so good right now, doesn’t it? It’s begging to be rubbed, licked, and sucked.”
I lifted my hand to his thigh and squeezed in warning. “I’m serious,” I panted. “I will do somethin’ insane if you don’t stop.”
“Yeah?” he said as his teeth nipped my earlobe. “Like what?”
I lost a little bit of my control when I said, “Like fuck you where you sit.”
I heard Ryder’s quick intake of breath, and felt his leg muscle tense under my palm. “How would you fuck me, sweetness?” he asked after swiping his tongue over my skin. “Would you ride me slow and deep? Or fuck me fast and hard?”
Screw being in control.
“Let’s find out,” I almost snarled.
Ryder pulled back and looked at me with wide eyes, but before I lost my nerve, I let the pulse between my thighs urge my movements. I turned, bent my knees and crawled onto the seat. I cocked one leg over Ryder and sat on him, not being able to resist rocking my pelvis forward.
I groaned out loud when I felt the thick hardened length of Ryder’s cock press against me, causing a shiver to spread throughout my body. I looked down to Ryder when I felt his hands clamp down on my arse. He squeezed my flesh between his hands and lifted his head up to mine. I lowered my mouth to his, and let it hover a hair away.
“You’re coming home with me,” Ryder growled. “I don’t fuck in public, but darling, you’re making me rethink that.”
I groaned and rocked my pelvis against him once more. “I think I can come from doin’ this alone,” I said into his ear and then pulled back and snaked my tongue across his lower lip.