The Shore (20 page)

“You drove to his house,” Cody said as a statement.

“Yes. But I know I shouldn’t have.”

“What happened, Ryan?”

She really didn’t want to tell him this, but she didn’t want any secrets from him either. “I cried. He held me while I cried.”

“What else?” He hated pulling this out of her, but he had to know. He wasn’t even sure he had a right to know.

“I immediately regretted going to his house.”

The words helped, but Cody suspected there was still more.

“He started kissing me.”

“Did you kiss him back?”

“Yes,” Ryan answered, looking at her hands. There were tears in her eyes again.

Cody could feel his blood begin to boil again. “What else?”

Ryan didn’t say anything.

“What else, Ryan?” his voice persistent.

When she didn’t answer, he asked, “Did you sleep with him?”

“No!” she said quickly looking at him. “I didn’t sleep with him, Cody.”

He just looked at her.

“Things were headed that way, and I know he wanted to, but I didn’t. You were the person I wanted, Cody, not him. I stopped him. I told him no.”

Cody nodded.

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

It was quiet for what felt like a long time.

Cody had considered there may have been someone back in Charlotte, someone that was current in her life that he'd have to contend with. He never thought about an old flame making the moves and taking her from him.

Ryan looked down to her hands again. “You scare me, Cody.”

Cody's head jerked up at her words.

“I scare you?”

“No, that didn’t come out right.” Ryan sighed and thought for a moment. “It’s not you that scares me, it’s these feelings I have for you. I’ve only known you for a handful of days, but there is something about you. Something I’m attracted to and don’t want to let go of.”

He walked to her and took her hands in his again. “Then don’t.”

“But I don’t even know if you want me.” Her voice was small as she said the words and Cody had to strain to hear them.

“You don’t know if I want you?” he asked, surprised by her statement.

He wanted to point out all of the changes that happened in the house the last couple of days, how everything that had been Laura’s was gone. But he didn’t want Ryan to think it was because of her. It was, partly, but he wanted her to know he was ready to move on. To welcome her into his life.

“God, Ryan, I can’t stop thinking about you. Yes, I want you in my life. When we’re together, all I want to do is hold you and kiss you and touch you. When we’re not together, you’re all I can think about. You’re beautiful. I can’t take my eyes off you. I want to hear you laugh. I want to see you smile, and I want to be the reason you do.” He looked at her and could see Ryan coming back to him. The woman he wanted to spend his time with. “I want to torture you and run the dunes with you.” He grinned. “I want to play on the beach with the dogs and watch sunrises and sunsets together…”

“Just not on the Sound side, okay?” Ryan said, half teasing. This time the moisture in her eyes was happy tears.

“Okay,” Cody smiled. “I will be forever grateful to your little Mini and that patch of sand you drove onto because it brought you back into my life,” Cody said, putting his hands on either side of her face.

“Yeh, I’m kind of grateful for that sand, too.”

Cody sighed, almost contentedly, noting the smile on Ryan's face.

“Are we okay then? Is this fight over? Can I kiss you now? Because I haven’t kissed you in two days and it’s killing me.”

Ryan nodded but then remembered something. “Yes, the fight is over, but before you kiss me, I have two questions.”

Cody raised an eyebrow at her.

“First,” she said, raising a hand to his face and very gently rubbing her thumb along the upper part of his cheekbone, “how's your eye?”

Cody reached up and took her hand in his. “A little tender, but I'll live.”

Ryan frowned, knowing she was the reason he was hurt.

“It's okay. Give it another week and it'll be healed. You won't even know it happened.”

This time Ryan raised an eyebrow, but nothing more was said on the issue.

“What's the second question?” Cody asked, becoming impatient at the thought of kissing her.

“Come with me?”

Cody had a questioning look on his face when he nodded. Ryan stood then pulled on his hand and led him into the living room.

“There are things missing in here. And in your room.” Ryan said the words and let them hang in the air until Cody was ready to talk.

He answered in a quiet voice. “I packed up Laura’s things and took them to her parents’ house.”

Ryan nodded. She didn’t want to interrogate him, but she wanted to know. “Why, Cody? Why now?”

“Because it was time.” He paused for a moment and then continued. “I loved Laura, and a part of me always will.”

Ryan nodded. She was fortunate to have never lost someone really close to her, but it was a concept she could understand.

“But it’s time I move forward with my life.” He looked at Ryan and when she didn’t say anything, he continued. “I went to visit her. I told her about you.”

“You did?”

Cody nodded. “I told her how much she would have liked you. How much I like you.” He wiped the tears from Ryan’s cheeks. “I asked her if it was okay that I moved on.”

Ryan sniffed.

“And she gave me a sign. I know I didn’t need her permission, but I asked for it.”

“Cody…”

“I left the cemetery and came back here and boxed up all of her things. There is a shoebox in my closet with a few pieces I wanted to keep, but the rest went to her parents’ house.”

Ryan looked into Cody’s eyes and saw he was right there with her.

“It was time to put the memories away. They’re still here in my heart,” he said as he put his hand over his heart, “but I want to start moving forward with my life, Ryan. I want you to be part of that.”

“Me, too,” she smiled as the tears continued to fall. They hadn’t said the word “love,” but that’s exactly what she felt.

He smiled down at her. “
Now
can I kiss you?”

Ryan just nodded as Cody bent down and lightly brushed her lips with his. Not pulling back he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her tight against him. He kissed her again, but this time he tilted his head to the side, and covered her mouth with his. Ryan’s arms wrapped around his neck and he felt her hands in his hair.

The kiss was getting pretty intense and Cody had to pull himself away.

Wall calendars, three-hole punches, mango salsa.

He bent down and put a soft kiss on her nose then wrapped his arms around her in a hug. She laid her head on his chest and hugged him back tightly.

“Do you have any plans for today?” Cody asked.

Ryan let up on her hold of him just enough to be able to look up at him. “Not, really. Madison’s here, and I need to see what she's up to.”

“Yeh, I was kind of surprised to meet her last night. When did she get here?”

“Yesterday morning. She, umm… When she couldn't get ahold of me the other night either, she drove out here.”

Cody nodded. “I see. Think she’d mind if I stole you for the day?”

“Hmm... probably not. But you might owe her one.”

“I’ll owe her two if that’s what it takes,” he grinned. He leaned down and kissed her again.

“What did you have in mind?”

“I dunno. Maybe take the bike down to Ocracoke for a late lunch or something and then come back here and we could watch a movie.”

“The bike?” Ryan asked. “What bike?”

Cody chuckled in that sexy way Ryan loved so much. “My bike.”

Ryan nodded slowly. She thought about spending the afternoon with her arms wrapped tightly around him. She could certainly think of a worse way to spend the day.

“Okay,” she grinned.

“What? Why are you grinning?”

“Because I get to sit behind you with my arms wrapped around you all afternoon.”

“Hmm… that does sound pretty good. You want to drive so I can have my arms wrapped around you all afternoon?”

Ryan laughed. “I don’t think that would be a good idea, or safe.”

“Okay,” he said and kissed her.

“I need to get Berkley from Mac and Riley’s house and take a shower.”

“You could shower here…” Cody suggested as he raised his eyebrows.

She swatted him playfully on the arm.

“I’ll shower at my place. Besides, if I’m going to ditch Madison all day, I should probably talk to her. She’s probably dying to know what happened last night. Plus, I need to get clothes. The only options I have here are the outfit I wore last night or your boxers.”

Cody pouted and Ryan couldn’t resist but take his pouty lip between her own lips and kiss it.

“Keep that up and I won’t let you leave.”

She started to tickle him which released his hold on her and she snuck away.

“Oh, this is war!” he yelled.

Ryan ran down the hall and Cody chased her into his bedroom. She was standing on the far side of the room and they looked at each other across the bed.

“You do realize you have to get through me to get out of here, right?” Cody smirked.

Ryan nodded. She hadn’t thought of that.

Shit!

Pretending to go to the right, Ryan dodged to the left and climbed over the bed. She was too slow and Cody caught her, pulling them both down. She liked the feel of him on top of her and knew it was going to take everything she had to get up and walk away.

Cody looked down.

“Gotcha!” he grinned.

He pinned her hands over her head with one of his own and could feel every inch of her as she laid beneath him. Her breasts. His cock trapped between them, which had done more than just awaken.

He lowered his head and kissed her, running his tongue between her lips, which she willingly opened. He reached up with his other hand and laced his fingers between hers. The kiss continued to heat and Cody found himself pressing his groin into hers. When he realized what he was doing, he stopped and moved off of her.

“Damn it!” Cody sighed.

Ryan laid there for a second and then turned to her side, laying one leg over his and her hand on his chest. “I’m sorry, Cody.”

Cody quickly turned so he was facing her and put his hand on her face. “No, Ryan. There is nothing for you to apologize for. I’m the one that’s sorry.”

“But I’m the one who’s making us take this slowly.”

“We made that decision together, Ryan. I told you before we’ll take this as slow as we need to. That hasn’t changed.”

Ryan looked down and away from his eyes.

He lifted her chin so she would look at him again. “I’m fine with it, Ryan. I may end up with blue balls…” he said with a grin and Ryan smacked him in the arm. “But I’m okay with it, really.”

Ryan sighed and gave him a quick kiss. “Alright, let me go do what I need to do and then I’ll be back, okay?”

Cody nodded. “Okay.”

Ryan placed a soft kiss on his nose, untangled herself from Cody and stood up.

“I should be about an hour, maybe an hour and a half.”

Cody stood next to her. “Okay.”

“Do you mind if I just wear this home?” Ryan asked, referring to Cody’s t-shirt and boxers she had on.

“No, that’s fine. I kind of like you in my clothes,” he grinned.

Ryan gathered her things and went to find her keys. “Umm…”

“Yeh?” Cody asked.

“I didn’t drive here. My car is at Mac and Riley’s.”

“Oh, shit,” Cody said and they both laughed. “Come on. I'll take you.”

Cody grabbed his keys and phone and called Mac and Riley’s place as they walked to the truck. He let them know they were on their way to get Ryan’s car and pick up Berkley. Cody had a key to get into the house if they weren’t there, but he always liked to call before he showed up. He had walked in on them once, when they were in serious baby-making mode. As much as he loved them both, he never wanted to see that again.

They climbed into the truck and after Cody backed out of the driveway, he laced his fingers with Ryan’s.

“I’m glad we talked this morning,” he said with a smile.

“Me, too.”

Cody lifted her hand to his mouth and place a small kiss on her knuckles.

When they reached Mac and Riley’s house, they saw Jake playing with Berkley in the yard. Berkley looked like she was in seventh heaven. They got out of the truck and Berkley charged toward Ryan when she saw her.

“Hey girl!” Ryan said, patting the top of Berkley’s head.

“You guys have fun?” Cody asked Jake.

The little boy nodded his head frantically with a big grin on his face.