Jane
I step backfrom him and cross my arms over my chest. “Fine. Go ahead. But it’s not going to change my mind. I don’t believe you when you say you’re serious. I’ve heard that line before. And it was just a game for the man saying it. A way to get what he wanted without actually having to work too hard for it. Plus bonus…he got sex out of it.” I can’t keep the bitterness out of my voice and the ruddy hue that suffuses Ryker’s face startles me. His jaw clenches and he gives me a devious, angry smirk.
“Yeah. I don’t know that story but you are going to have to tell me someday. And hopefully give me a name because he sounds like someone I need to have words with.”
“I don’t talk about what happened.” I wander over and sit down on the large couch in the great room. “But if you have something you want to get off your chest, go right ahead.”
He sits down in one of the chairs in the room and studies me. “Okay. So…”. He stops and runs his hands through his hair, sighing. “Boy, this is harder than I thought. I didn’t want to actually tell you any of this but I feel like if you want to feel like I’m serious…you need to know this. I’m rich.”
Jane rolls her eyes. “Yeah…okay. Sure. I suppose you’re a billionaire in hiding or something.”
A smirk crosses his handsome face and he chuckles. “How did you know?”
I stand up and pace around the room. “For heaven’s sake. I wasn’t being serious! I was being facetious. Or sarcastic. Whatever you want to call it. That’s like every woman’s favorite trope.”
“You know…” he sits back and crosses one knee over the other. “I like your vocabulary. You’re just full of fun, unique words when you rip into me.” He laughs, throwing his head back, which makes my eyes catch on his exposed throat. I gulp and choke on my own spit. Even his freaking throat is muscular and tanned and just delicious. Jesus! Get your mind out of the gutter, woman!
“But I am rich. I own about a dozen companies through my company, Hawke’s Inc.”
“Oh shit.” I can’t stop staring at him. “Why didn’t you say anything sooner?”
“Why would I? We just met. I actually like the fact that you didn’t kowtow to me at all. That you act like I’m just a guy.”
I shoot him a glare. “That’s all you are. Just a guy. Granted, one that’s worth a lot of money. But you’re still just a guy.”
He nods and smiles again. “Yes. I know. But most people just want to get money out of me or have me save their company or who knows what. Basically, I’m just a checkbook to most people and I like that you don’t think like that. That’s why I didn’t really want to tell you who I am.”
I turn and laugh. “Well, it still doesn’t really matter who the hell you are. What matters is that I’m not looking to be another notch on your bedpost.”
His eyes glint with anger and he clenches his jaw, working it back and forth until he grinds out, “I am not that kind of man. I have only slept with two women my whole life. One was the girl in college that I lost my virginity to and the other one was my wife.”
“You’re married?” My jaw drops and anger rips through me like a tornado tearing apart a trailer park.
“No. I was. I’ve been divorced for several years.”
I can see the pain in his eyes. Pain, loss and anger. “What happened?” I sit down and gently touch his hand, unable to resist trying to make him feel better.
His warm hand wraps around mine and I have to fight off the urge to run. There’s so much emotion roiling in my gut right now. So much temptation that is absolutely irresistible to me. He’s like catnip and I’m helpless and just want to roll around on him.
“I needed to move to get away from where I was at. I had been having some issues and they were getting worse. The doctors said that it would be extremely conducive to my recovery to move to a quieter area.”
“So you moved here? To the mountains? There was nothing in between that you could do?”
“I needed that space. Needed to feel less hemmed in. Needed to breathe the fresh air and have time to think. So I moved here. I do most of my work with my companies online with occasional trips into the office to make sure everything keeps running smoothly.”
I nod my head and try to ignore his hand stroking my fingers, tugging at them and just touching me incessantly. “So you moved here. And are you doing better now?”
“Yes, I am. I take care of my businesses but give myself plenty of down time to keep my sanity, basically.”
“Did you do away with your umbrella company?”
“No. I still run my company myself but I do have executives that run the smaller in-house stuff. It works and it keeps me healthy.”
“What was wrong with you?” I ask him and he stands and paces. “It doesn’t matter. It was just a small issue. Easily taken care of. The point is that I needed to get away from the stress of the office and my wife refused to come with me.”
“Your wife wouldn’t move with you? Even though she knew it was for your health?”
“Nope. She actually slept with a rival CEO when she found out that I needed to leave town. As a parting gift to me, I guess.”