office
with the principal and she will get him to cover my classes for the
day. Thank God for substitutes!
Driving back to Ryder’s, I notice a familiar
SUV following close behind. It looks like my security detail is
back in place. I pull into his driveway and shut off the car.
Reaching into my purse, I pull out my cell and immediately text
Ryder.
Hey handsome, wasn’t feeling well. I’m going
to take the rest of the day off. At your place now, see you when I
see you. :(
Immediately I get a response.
Babe, take it easy. B there soon.
Ryder is so awesome. I love how he’ll drop
whatever he’s doing to take care of me.
Lying down on the bed, I can’t help but think
about Brent. The guy has some serious issues and I’m not sure what
he’s capable of. Rolling up the sleeves of my blouse, I notice some
bruises starting to form on my skin. Shit! Ryder is going to lose
it when he sees that Brent left marks on me.
Approximately a half an hour later, I hear
the familiar rumble of Ryder’s motorcycle. My stomach instantly
settles, knowing that Ryder will soon be with me. I hear the door
open and close and his booted footsteps walking down the hallway
towards me.
The door opens and Ryder stands there looking
at me with a concerned look on his face. “Hey,” I murmur, holding
my arms out to him.
Ryder walks towards me and lies down next to
me, taking me in his arms. “What’s goin’ on? How are you sick?” he
asks, clearly worried.
I tell him everything that happened between
me and Brent. As I show Ryder my arms and the photo of the message
left for me, I can feel his body tense against mine. I look up at
him and see the darkest expression fall across his face.
“That motherfucker is going to pay. After I’m
through with him, he won’t be botherin’ you anymore. Trust me,” he
says, through clenched teeth.
Oh, I trust him. He would never let anything
happen to me. I cuddle into his warm body and nuzzle my face into
his neck, as he rubs soothing patterns down my back. I fall asleep
that way in Ryder’s arms.
I wake up and look at the alarm clock
display. It reads 2:20 pm. Holy crap! I slept most of the day. I
notice that I’m the only one in the bed. I stretch and then get out
of the bed and head out into the hallway. Walking towards the
living room, I can hear Ryder’s angry voice. He sounds totally
pissed. I walk quietly into the room and stand behind the sofa and
eavesdrop on his conversation.
“I gotta teach that fucker a lesson. He
doesn’t fuck with Ella and not have to deal with the consequences.
Find out where he lives. I’m gonna pay him a visit.” There’s a
small pause in the conversation as Ryder listens to whoever is on
the other line. “You got ten minutes. Call me with the address.” He
disconnects the call.
“I know you’re there, babe,” he says.
“Ryder, what are you going to do? You’re not
going to kill him are you?” I say, sounding worried. I really don’t
want to have to visit him in jail. We’ll definitely never have sex
if that happens.
“Babe, I’m not gonna kill the asshole. I’m
just gonna fuck him up. He can’t say that I didn’t warn him.
Bastard has it comin’,” he sneers.
“Won’t you get in trouble with the police?” I
ask.
“Listen babe, he laid his hands on you and
left marks. He scared you and is trying to claim you as his. NOT.
FUCKIN’. COOL. So a couple of the guys and I are gonna pay him a
visit with a message. I can guarantee you that when we’re done with
him, he will not be after you anymore or goin’ to the cops.”
“Okay, I just don’t want to be visiting you
in a penitentiary, when you’re finished sending your message,” I
say, sitting down next to him on the sofa. He lets out a deep belly
laugh and hauls me towards him and embraces me in his arms.
“So what do you wanna do for the rest of the
day?” I guess we’re finished talking about the whole Brent
situation.
“Don’t you have to work?” I ask. He
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