I wriggle my toes and fingers, slowly trying to awaken my body before finally opening my eyes and giving up on any hopes of rest for the day.
My phone vibrates on the nightstand, and before I can reach for it, another message comes through.
My heart stops beating as I open the text, finding a picture of Ryder and me taken in the parking lot of the pole fitness studio.
Unknown
I see you.
My still, beatless heart plummets to my toes.
I roll out of bed and run into the living room to find Ryder with his thick-framed glasses hanging off his nose as he reads with a book in one hand and a coffee in the other.
He glances up and smiles brightly. “Morning, darlin’.”
“Hey, um, I have something I need to show you.” Worry colors his face as I take a seat beside him. He takes off his glasses and sets them down beside his book on the rustic wooden coffee table.
I hand him my phone with the messages open. His gaze flits across the screen before meeting mine, his brows pinched in anger.
“Is this from your ex?” he asks, his voice hard.
“I’m not sure who else it could be from, but—” My stomach churns with anxiety. “I haven’t heard from him at all, not a single peep since I left for my bachelorette party and never came back. My parents told him we were over, grabbed my things, and got the hell out of there. He hasn’t so much as called.”
He hums beside me, clearly mulling over my words. “Seems he’d be coming a long way out of the city to take a photo like this. Is there anyone else who would want to scare you?”
An exasperated sigh leaves me when I realize,yes,there is someone who would want to scare me. “Yes, God, I’m so stupid for not realizing sooner.” I drop my head into my hands, groaning with annoyance at myself. “Lemmon.”
“Lemmon?” he asks in confusion.
“Yeah, Mayte and I ran into her the other day, and she basically told me to watch out because she wasn’t gonna let me steal her man,” I tell him, rolling my eyes.
“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” he asks, his tone unnervingly clipped.
I shrug, unsure of what to say. “She mentioned something that made me worry she knew we’d gotten married so I could get on your insurance policy, and when I’m anxious about something, I develop avoidant behavior. Basically, I pushed it out of my mind so I wouldn’t have to deal with it, and now, here we are, beingforcedto.” Lemmon is not someone who deserves a moment of my time, not physically nor mentally, but Ryder and I thrive on open communication, and I should’ve known he’d want me to tell him.
He scrubs a hand down his face, and I think I’m about to be sick. My jaw is locked as I prepare for the lecture I’m about to receive.Just like my ex always had.
When his eyes meet mine, they crinkle at the edges, and he rests his palm in my lap. “If anything ever happened to you, I’d never forgive myself, Lola. I would die an empty man, soplease, if she ever says anything to you again, let me know. Can you do that for me, baby?”
I blink at him, his words slowly realigning into full sentences as my poor, groggy brain tries to catch up.No lecture?
“Can you do that, Lola?” he asks again, and the haze finally clears.
I nod. “Yeah–yes. I can do that.”
“Good. Now, quit worrying. The only people besides us who know our motivations are our family.” He squeezes my thigh and stands before bending down to kiss my forehead, disappearing into the kitchen. I’m left sitting here, thrown off by his ability to make me feel cared for and respected.
When he returns a minute later, he has a mug in one hand, a bag of ice in the other.
I cock my head at him in confusion as he takes a seat beside me.
“Go ahead and lie back, darlin’. I’ve got you a cup of coffee, and I’m gonna rub your feet while youice those hands.”
I look down at my aching hands, and sure enough, the joint in my index finger is red and swollen, with a few fat knuckles on the others.
The urge to argue that he doesn’t have to take care of me is overwhelming, but the desire to becared for is so much stronger.
I take the coffee, sipping it. The familiar taste ofcafé con lechehits my tongue, and I release a moan.
