No Turning Back (Breaking the Rules #4) - A.M. Madden Page 0,27

I just wanted to be alone with myself. There were so many conflicting emotions swirling within me, from excitement to panic, because of the IVF and because of Ryder, it overwhelmed me. I truly took the time to reflect on what I hoped would happen in the upcoming months, and to prepare myself if, for whatever reason, they didn’t happen.

I had decided that putting off the inevitable wasn’t going to make it any easier.

So, with sweaty palms and an erratic heartbeat, I tapped his contact in my phone.

“Ree,” he said as a greeting.

“Hi. Is this a bad time?”

“I’m about to head into a meeting. Can I call you back?”

“Actually, I’d like to see you. Tonight… if possible. I think we need to talk.” This was it. The IVF was over. It was what it was, and with that realization came a newfound desire to come clean with Ryder.

“I do too,” he conceded.

“Okay. I look forward to it.” It was true. I thought about our kiss on the beach often, and it always had me yearning for him. The sooner I knew Ryder’s feelings on my surrogacy, the sooner I could move into the future one way or the other. And the more time I spent avoiding him, the more I missed him. That spoke volumes on which way I hoped it would go.

“Text me your address. I’ll be there at six.” He left no room for argument, of which I hadn’t any left in me. He then said, “I’ll bring dinner.” And that made it clear he wanted no distractions.

At six on the nose, my buzzer sounded. After quickly confirming it was indeed Ryder, I granted him access into the building and opened my door in wait. When those elevator doors parted, just seeing him again stole my breath. Sure, dark jeans and a fitted polo shirt were sexy enough, but adding that cocky smirk and those hypnotic blue eyes holding mine to the mix sent tingles shooting through every part of me.

“Hey.” His lips landing on my cheek morphed those tingles into full-blown electrical charges.

“Hi. Come on in.”

“You look great. Feeling better?” I cocked my head, confused until his comment reminded me of my attempt to keep him away the day I had been inseminated.

“Yes… much.” The takeout bag’s logo hanging off one hand drew my attention. “How did you know?”

“Know what?”

Pointing to it, I said, “That I love this place.”

“Lucky guess. It’s down the street, and I remembered you love Thai.” As he set the bag down on my island, his gaze swept around my condo. “This is awesome.”

“I know. It really is a great place. Come, let’s eat before it gets cold. Then I’ll give you a tour.” Before possibly chasing you away forever.

Ryder followed me around the kitchen and helped set the island with the plates and utensils that I passed to him. He also pulled out a bottle of white wine, asking for glasses and a corkscrew.

After pulling out one glass for him, I said, “Um… I’ll pass.”

“Is it your stomach? Maybe Thai wasn’t such a great idea.” He pointed to one of the containers. “You can stick with the bland white rice to be safe.”

Screw waiting until later. I could no longer deflect or lie to him. Ryder wanted me back in his life and deserved to know the truth. The longer I waited, the harder it would be… and now was as good of a time as any. “Actually, come sit and I’ll fill you in.”

When he gave me a concerned look, my heart began pounding that nervous tattoo I’d become accustomed to. Choosing to stay silent, he nodded and took a seat beside me at the island. In the way he studied my expression, I could sense he knew this had to do with my reticence. Not letting that deter me, I jumped to the point.

“I had said I moved to Florida because I needed a change, which was only half-true. There is another reason. You know about Cooper and our history, but you don’t know details of our relationship as it stands now.”

“You aren’t over your ex?” Ryder asked, jumping to an obvious conclusion.

“Oh, no. It has nothing to do with that. Like I had said on our date, he’s a really good friend, probably my best friend. And his husband, Ricky, is as well. I adore them and would do anything for them.” I smiled at the relief that quickly altered his frown, but only briefly before continuing to drop