Oh, wow. What could I say to that? All I wanted to do was wrap my arms around him and pull him into a kiss.
“Between you and me, I think my chances aren’t half bad. She gave me her permission to take you out to a movie pretty quickly.”
“That’s because you tricked her. You essentially made her believe I might watch cartoons with her if you take me to the movies.”
Ryker grinned unapologetically. “Hey, I saw my chance, and I seized it.”
“You most definitely did.”
“And I’m not done doing that yet.”
I laughed, and this time I did pull him into a kiss. One thing I knew about Ryker. If he didn’t see a chance, he created one.
Chapter Fourteen
Ryker
The next morning, I was at my sisters’ store at ten o’clock. To my surprise, only Tess and Skye were here. Tess was perched on a ladder, pushing merchandise boxes around on the last shelf. Skye was handing her boxes.
“Where are the rest of your helpers?” I asked, referring to Cole, Hunter, and Josie. Since the store officially opened on Monday, we had a lot of last-minute details to take care of.
“Cole’s bringing breakfast, so he’ll be a bit late. But Josie and Hunter should be here any second.”
“Okay. Can’t believe they’re coming. Didn’t they land last night?”
“I told them they can sleep in or just skip today, but they insisted,” Skye said.
After they finished the boxes, Tess climbed down from the ladder. My sisters looked absolutely
exhausted. They both had dark rings under their eyes, and Skye was paler than usual.
“What time did you two go to bed?” I asked them.
Tess waved her hand. “Don’t make me think about it. I think I slept two hours in total. But I haven’t slept much the past week either.”
“Yeah, I only got in one hour Thursday evening. Got stuck here sorting through inventory, and we had more deliveries coming in at six o’clock.”
“You slept here?” I asked.
“Hey, don’t judge. The couch is comfy,” Skye said on a frown. I’d been naive enough to think that after they quit their day jobs, they’d be taking it easier.
“You two will burn out if you go at this rate.”
Tess pointed a finger at me. “I’ll make you a deal. You stop nagging us about that, and we won’t ask about your plans for the date.”
Skye jerked her head back. “Ummm... don’t make deals in my name, sister.”
I burst out laughing. This morning was off to a brilliant start.
“Besides, you’re one to talk. Who was working a hundred hours a week to make director just a few years ago?” Skye asked.
“I was twenty-five, and it was only for a short time.”
Tess gasped. “Oh my God, he just called us old.”
“I didn’t. Fuck, I did. I need coffee,” I said on a groan.
Skye shook her head energetically. “No, no. It’s easier to spill secrets when you’re half awake.”