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It sounds to me you’re acting more like my overbearing brother. I swear, if it was up to the two of you, I’d never step foot outside by myself.” Sounded like a solid plan.
With the history around us, I was thankful we’d gotten to this place. Where we could be easy together. Friends, even though it was fucking painful being this close to her most of the time.
“I already rode in, Cookie, so you might as well let me.” I’d started calling her that years ago. Now there was no way I could stop.
“Guess I like you on your knees for me.” A snort left my nose. I’d been for years, and she didn’t have a clue.
I expect you to call me. Whatever you need. And there is no such thing as too much when it comes to you.
Because I’d wanted to give her everything I had, but the only thing I had been able to do was give her the one gift that I could.
She viewed it as a debt. Like something she needed to repay. She could never understand that what I’d given her was my heart.
“I don’t want you to waste your time on me,” she whispered. “I know you have your own life. Things you need to take care of.” A puff of disbelief escaped between my lips. “You could never be a waste, Dakota Cooper.”
The man was chiseled strength and constrained danger. Hotter than any sin I’d ever dream of committing.
I’d been in love with Ryder Nash since I was nineteen, probably earlier than that if I was being honest with myself. I was working on getting over that, though.
She tsked a sound of surprised disbelief. “That boy always seems to know when you’re in trouble, doesn’t he?” I couldn’t keep from rolling my eyes. “He didn’t know I was in trouble. We just happened to be in the same place at the same time.” It wasn’t like he had some sort of sixth sense about me.
I couldn’t keep pining after him my whole life. It was time to let go.
“Then you came to the right place.” “Came to the best place.”
“Don’t you start. That boy is here every other day, hanging around like a puppy dog, nothing but a mutt begging for food.” “Um, yeah, he does come to eat,” I drew out. “Looks to me like you’re feeding him the wrong thing.”
“You are so full of shit, Ryder. You’re literally about to levitate off your seat, head spinning around. Demon-possessed. I’m actually scared.” Caleb let go of a chuckle. “You should be terrified, Ezra. Turn your back, and you’re bound to wind up missing tonight. Fucker’s going to have you buried in a shallow grave for even thinking about going after his girl.”
Twenty minutes later, I was swiping a napkin over my mouth and slumping back in the booth. Knocked the fuck out from everything that was Dakota Cooper.
Cody might have always supported me, but it was Ryder who’d given me the courage to chase my dreams.
“Was it good?” she finally asked because they needed to be if she was going to be the best baker in the world. Ryder grinned with his big red lips. “That was my favorite thing I ever ate.”
“I’m not sure, Dakota, but if you are? I promise I will take care of you. Protect you.” “Why?” “Because protecting you is what I was created to do.”
“Are you sure it’s not a bother?” I asked. “Like I said, taking care of you is what I was meant to do, Dakota.”
God, why did a man snuggling a baby have to look so good?
“You’ll stay here as long as needed, Dakota. Until we know you’re safe, and I won’t let you go a second before that.”
“You think any of those women could ever be more important than you?”
“I think everyone just wants me to disappear. Go away. Forget all about me.” “Well, that’s not going to happen, Dakota. I could never forget about you.”
I’m saying it because you’re probably my favorite person in the whole world.” She peeked out at him, trying to catch his lie. “Not better than you like Cody,” she challenged. “Ha. I like you ten times better than I like Cody.”
“We each have our own lives, Ryder.” I forced it out around the tumult. His teeth ground. “You are my life, Dakota.”
A comfortable place for her? Too fucking bad it wasn’t in my bed.
But love was like that a whole lot of the time, wasn’t it? Painful. Unfulfilled. Unrequited. That or you were terrified you were going to lose it once you had it.
“You don’t have to go back to your house soon, Dakota. My place is yours for as long as you want it.” Forever if need be.
The money I’d given her. It’d been my biggest pleasure and my greatest downfall. But I knew, standing there looking at her right then, that I’d do it a thousand times over.
Taking extra precautions to protect my son didn’t make me weak. It made me smart.
I didn’t know if I was irritated or turned on. Both, which pissed me off, too.
It wasn’t like it was the first time we’d shared words like this. But it might have been the first time I wanted to tell him to fuck off. Tell him he didn’t have the first clue what I would really do for her.
I couldn’t stop the reaction, the way my stomach had sank and every nerve in my body had short circuited at the thought. The thought of losing her. Forever. In a way I could never get her back.
You’re the most desirable woman I’ve ever met. And yeah, I think you’re worthy of love. Worthy of it more than anyone I know. Don’t ever mistake that.”
“You deserve everything. Had once thought I’d be the one to give it to you.”
Kid had basically confiscated the place, his shit strewn all over, and I couldn’t help but think that’s the way that it was supposed to be.
“So gorgeous, Dakota.” His voice was hushed, dragging through the dense air. “Earth shatteringly beautiful. You make the world stop spinning every time I look at you.”
“Do I want you to? I’ve been dying to feel that sweet mouth around my cock for years. You don’t have the first idea how fucking bad I want you, do you, Dakota?
“Would love you every day of my life if I could, Dakota.”
“You are playing with fire, Dakota Cooper.” “Maybe I want to burn.”
Her mouth was a fucking dream. Her cunt perfection.
“Besides, how am I supposed to get myself more of those Midnight Temptations if you aren’t there to offer it?”
You really are trying to spoil me, Ryder. Keep it up, and you won’t be able to get rid of me.” “That’s the plan.”
“The entire day, Dakota. The entire fucking day I was thinking about you. Couldn’t get you off my mind. Not for a second.”
“And don’t you start about me doing too much. Not unless you want me to take you over my knee for complaining.” He tried to hide his smirk when a blast of red jumped to my cheeks. “You’re awful bossy, Ryder Nash.” The taunt was my attempt at distracting him. Only that redness flamed when he warned, “You don’t know bossy, Dakota. Now go before I make good on it.”
“You’re looking at me like you want me to wreck you, too.” “You wrecked me a long time ago.”
Restraint wasn’t exactly my strong suit, and I had none of it then. Every ounce of it obliterated when I turned around to Dakota standing in the doorway.
“Look at you,” I said again, voice so low. “Do you see what I see? Because what I see is this fuckin’ stunning woman who’s got me so hard I can hardly think straight. So twisted up, I might black out. A woman who walks into the room and every head turns, drawn to her beauty.”
So thoughtful and kind that it breaks my heart looking at her because I know I could never be a match to who she is.”
