Chasing Mr. Wrong (Chasing Love 4)

He just shot her a smile. “Yeah, I saw how difficult it was dialing the phone to order room service.”

She shrugged. “It’s my version of cooking. Still counts. Sort of…”

They both laughed.

Ryder held out a spoonful of dessert and she leaned in to let him feed her.

“Oh my God, this is good,” Whitney said around a bite of apple cobbler. Yep, room service was the best idea ever. He had stayed true to his word and not touched her until after their meal. He got his pseudo date, and Whitney got him on her bed. Only he was still clothed—something she was hoping to change shortly.

She sat on the mattress, legs crossed and facing Ryder, while he leaned against the headboard and held the bowl of dessert they shared. He reached out with a spoonful for her. She took another bite, and when the spoon left her lips, he instantly brought it to his own mouth. Watching the man eat was hot. Watching him walk was hot. Watching him stand and do nothing was hot.

She was hard pressed to find anything about Ryder that wasn’t, in fact, hot. And now her train of thought was on what muscles lay beneath that perfectly pressed shirt of his. Not to mention, he was feeding her, sharing with her, like they were…

Don’t say it.

Because they weren’t a couple. Or even friends. They were just having fun. That’s it.

His cell on the bedside table buzzed. He glanced at it, then took a deep breath and ignored it.

“If you need to get that—”

“It’s fine,” he said. But just then, the phone buzzed again.

“You’re a busy man,” she said. “And apparently in high demand.”

He glanced at the bowl of dessert. “There’s a lot going on for the opening of the Davenport Hall.”

“Are you worried?” she asked quietly.

He shook his head. “Yes and no. There are a lot of people watching. A lot of eyes on this event.”

“The town you mean? Are they all expecting you to have built this awesome Hall, one with no equal?” She gave a playful smile, but Ryder was serious.

“Kind of…yeah.”

Wow, that was heavy. And a lot to deal with.

“This one is important because it’s a showcase of me and my crew’s work,” he said. “My men are waiting to see if we get a chance to bid on Davenport’s next project.”

“Job security,” she said.

“Yeah. But it’s more than that. We’re not just restoring the Hall. We’re restoring the city. It’s a chance for the community to come together. Penny is providing food, the booster club hired the band… Everything and everyone comes together and they earn their livings that way.”

“So basically this event has a lot of futures wrapped up in it.”

Ryder nodded and that’s when she saw the pride in his eyes. He was riding at the forefront of this community project like he was born to do it. Because he was a strong, good man who cared about his community. He was a leader.

“So, have you ever had apple cobbler before?” he asked, holding another spoonful out for her.

Part of her wanted him to go on speaking about the Hall and his love for the city of Diamond. She’d suspected that his need for self-control was about some deep insecurity. And maybe there was a little of that, but she saw, too, that it was born from a deep devotion to the people he loved. He believed they depended on him, and he’d die before he let them down. No wonder he put such pressure on himself to keep control.

She knew that look in his eye, though. He needed a little distance. So she took the cobbler with a smile.

“No, never had it before,” she said. “The group home had mostly boxed meals, and none of my foster parents ever cooked much.”

Ryder stilled.

Whitney went pale. At least, she was pretty sure she did, since she felt the blood drain from her face. She never talked about her life. Her past. Any of it. She’d had her sister to talk to, and that was it. And she was gone now. So there was no reminiscing about her less than stellar childhood required.