“In your truck or my rental car?”
“My truck, naturally. I sometimes go on long drives just to clear my head.”
“Where would we go?”
“Anywhere. Nowhere. I think it would be nice, to go with the flow with you, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking, as that is no longer in the realm of impossibility.”
A tray of steaming plates of pasta, pizza, steaks rushed past their table, the server gallantly delivering a feast to the next table over. All smiles, the lucky diners waited patiently for their food, and politely took testing steps, raving over the flavors.
Zoe sniffed the air, her stomach rumbling at the unfairness.
“Ours will be here soon,” Ryder said, with only a hint of sarcasm, and he reached across and patted her hand gently. “Soon,” he said again, full of teasing pandering this time.
Hunger was soon sated, and they managed to talk about benign things for a solid hour while they ate, and even ordered dessert. As this was about as close to a date as Zoe was going to experience anytime soon… oh fucking hell, like, probably for the next three to ten years…
The sun was low when they stepped outside, and the evening chill had blown in with the breeze. Town was bustling under the clear sky, and she knew Halseth’s would be swamped right now.
She pulled into the driveway of the rental house, and looked over at Ryder. “We should have ordered another round of dessert to go.”
“Are you always this expensive to feed?” he teased, and unhooked his seatbelt and turned subtly to face her. “Not many people order another round of breadafterdinner, plus tiramisu and raspberry gelato. If this was a real date, I’d be too full to have sex.”
“Lucky thing.” Zoe’s nose scrunched as she grinned at his tease, the flirtiness of his dimpled grin setting her skin prickling. “Walk me in?”
“I’ll tuck you in if you want,” he said, grinning wider and holding her gaze in his until the liquid sky of his melted her down to her toes.
Zoe winked and quickly turned to climb out of the truck. As they neared the front door, Zoe slipped her hand into his, the sweetness of the sensation too easy, stirring but comfortable and she considered letting go before it became a thing.
But she didn’t want to.
They were quiet as they walked into the house, the front room dark aside from the entry lamp. Lights flickered under Evan’s door, and the noise from the TV was not quite audible enough to hear what he was watching.
Here would be good. She should release Ryder’s hand before walking into her bedroom. The front door would have been the wiser choice, but it was too late for that.
Zoe pushed open her bedroom door. Only the bedside lamp she’d forgotten to turn off this morning illuminated the room.
Ryder’s pace slowed, and he began to pull away before coming fully into the room behind her.
Stupid. Definitely a terrible idea.
Zoe pulled him closer and wrapped her other hand around the base of his neck. She lifted to her toes to reach him.
No hesitation, no hemming or hawing or even an awkward breath of deciding if he was in or not, Ryder clutched his free hand around her rear, released her other hand and drew her entirely in. In the dark of the room, it was too easy to flow into the kiss. Sweet at first, a craving easing into satisfaction.
Zoe gripped her other hand around him as a desperate yearning peaked and she needed more.
Ryder floundered as he reached to close the door behind them, but was quickly back and kissing her ravenously.
Angling, closer and hands everywhere, Zoe didn’t know where to start. She tugged up his t-shirt and he slipped it over his head before returning for her shirt.
While she worked his belt, his top button, he unsnapped her bra and palmed a breast.
“Ouch,” she hissed, and recoiled but kept her hands busy.
“Sorry,” he murmured, his mouth already trailing down her neck. Quickly shifting his approach, he brushed his thumbs over her breasts with a featherlight touch, only adding delicate pressure when she leaned into him.
The moment she had his zipper undone, she pushed his pants and underwear out of the way and grasped down hard, desperately, and holy hell she wasn’t sure she’d ever been this greedily horny before.
Ryder hissed and ground into her hand, and started working on her pants. “We already used up my wallet condom,” he murmured as he trailed a line of kisses along her shoulder.