Wildcard: Volume One

“Good. He’s already made friends with the little boy in the next bed. The doctor is running a series of tests to see if he qualifies for the trial.”

“Good,” I murmur. I hope he does, because I hate the thought of bringing them all this way for nothing. I smile because I can’t believe I’m putting someone before me. “Are you hungry?” I ask, raising my eyebrows. I know her well enough to suspect that she probably hasn’t eaten all day.

“Famished,” she smiles. She leans her head against the back of the seat and sighs. “But I am so exhausted.”

“Are you sure you want to go out? The hotel does a pretty good room service if you don’t feel up to it.”

“Would you mind?” she asks, wrinkling her forehead. “I kind of like the idea of relaxing.”

“Of course not,” I say, but I’m lying.

I am disappointed, but I’m not about to admit that I’d been waiting for this all day. She’s obviously wrecked, and still recovering from the flight. There is always tomorrow.

I pull into the parking bay directly outside of the hotel entrance.

She looks at me, surprised. “You’re not coming up?”

“I thought you wanted an early night.” Now I’m confused.

“No,” she smiles. “I want a relaxing night. There’s a difference.”

“Right,” I say, a smile slowly spreading across my face.

Suddenly the night doesn’t seem so lost after all. I drive around to the valet and hand my keys to the attendant. He’s too busy checking out Scarlett as she exits the car. I give him a hard stare and his face reddens. He mutters an apology and disappears inside my car.

I chuckle, because I don’t blame him. If I were him, I’d be staring too.

**

I follow her into the hotel room and place her arm around my waist, pulling her into my embrace. She breathes in and I laugh because she was holding her breath. She’s so damn cute. “I’m going to kiss you now.”

“Okay,” she smiles.

“Okay,” I agree.

I raise my eyebrows and she laughs. Before I can react, she moves in and kisses me. It’s just a peck on the lips, and I chuckle as she pulls away. Her green eyes are twinkling as she bites her lip.

“Why did you do that?” I ask.

“Because I wanted to get it over with,” she says, her cheeks glowing red.

“Gee, thanks.” I roll my eyes.

She laughs, reaching over to swat my arm playfully. “That’s not what I meant. I’m nervous. I haven’t kissed anyone in a long time, Ryder.” She covers her face with her hands as I chuckle. “Don’t laugh.”

“That wasn’t a kiss, Scarlett,” I tease, pulling her arms down.

I wrap them around my waist again and crush her mouth against mine, my tongue massaging hers as I gently suck on her bottom lip. I feel her relax against me as I caress her face, stealing every little kiss I can.

“That was a kiss.”

I pull away and my heart melts as I take in her beauty. I pull her toward me again, this time with more urgency. I taste her lips, my tongue massaging hers.

She giggles and pushes me onto the couch. I sigh as she climbs into my lap, curling her arms around my neck. “I’m not hurting you, am I?” she whispers.

I shake my head and press my lips to hers again. It hurts like hell, but I’m willing to put up with it for the sake of having her so close to me.

“I thought you were hungry?” I ask.