Riddick
Hefting my duffel bag with a change of clothes and my toothbrush and toothpaste, I step out onto the sidewalk and stop.
I worked overtime at the warehouse yesterday, and did a double shift at Fritters, so I came home late. I nuked a frozen burrito and swallowed it whole, then fell face-first into my bed and didn’t move until morning, not even with my back killing me.
Something I rediscovered in the morning as I limped around groaning like I was dying. Felt like it, too.
After two cups of strong, black coffee I thought I was wide awake, but the deep blue Wrangler Jeep I see waiting on the street looks like a mirage in a desert. Beautiful, shiny, brand new, for sure damn expensive.
Ryan rolls down the window and nods at me. “Hey, Rid. Climb in.”
I stare. It’s really him, his blond hair falling on his forehead, a smirk on his face. He looks damn good. So good my dick wakes up too and waves hello, straining inside my pants.
Goddammit. How does he do that? That smirk is grabbing me by the balls.
Then the backseat window rolls down, too, and Brylee waves at me, her ginger curls gleaming in the pale morning light, and her eyes shining. The curve of her long neck where it meets her delicate jaw, the smile tugging on her full lips…
Groaning inwardly, my dick going from semi- to rock hard, I make it to the jeep and climb inside, next to Ryan, stowing my duffel at my feet.
“Hey,” I say, and jerk when slender hands slip around my neck and her scent surrounds me.
“Rid,” Brylee whispers in my ear, and I shiver in pleasure at her nearness. “You made it.”
“Ah-huh.” I turn my head just enough to feel her soft skin on my stubbled jaw, and our mouths brush in a quick kiss that I feel all the way to my dick like an electric jolt.
“Good morning,” Ryan says when she pulls back and I return to my senses, her taste still on my lips. I find him watching us with an amused glint in his eyes and that lingering smirk. “Do I get a kiss, too?”
“That depends.”
“On what?” His eyes narrow and he leans closer, his darker scent blending with Brylee’s light one.
I lick my lips and his gaze zeroes in instantly, another hot drop to the arousal thrumming through my body. “On whether you brought breakfast.”
He chuckles, a trickle of fire over my senses, and pulls out a cup with a plastic lid and a paper bag. “There you go.”
I take everything on autopilot, brain going blank. “You bought breakfast?”
“The donuts are great,” Brylee says, her hand lingering on my shoulder. “And you should kiss him.”
I should? I glance at her, craning my neck to get a good look at her expression, and she seems… expectant? Curious.
Excited.
Ryan’s hand slides over my shoulder, behind my head, cradling my skull. His breath smells of sugary donut frosting and coffee. His smile turns crooked, a bit uncertain, and then he’s kissing me, a light brush of lips and teeth.
It leaves me more shaken than I’d like to admit when he pulls back, his breathing ragged, and grips the wheel.
“Gosh,” Brylee says, her voice hushed. “That was hot.”
“We aim to please,” I mutter, and Ryan’s broad shoulders shake with silent laughter. “What?”
“Eat your donut, Rid.” He shifts the car into gear. “The weekend is only starting.”
***
“Any news about my brother?” I ask him as we drive out of town. A light rain has started and it pelts against the windshield. The coffee is good. The donut is history, inhaled within the first two minutes. I barely tasted it. “From that PI of yours.”
“He’s not mine.” Ryan’s teeth glint in a quick smile. His hands clench on the wheel. “He’s following a new lead, he said.”