No Turning Back (Breaking the Rules #4) - A.M. Madden Page 0,58

deep-blue eyes danced with optimism. In that moment, all the stress he carried seemed to leave his body before my very eyes. When he kissed me again, that time slower, more purposeful, I felt all the stress in mine leave as well.

We seemed to flip our living arrangements around. Since Ryder quit his job two weeks earlier, we now spent our weekdays in Fort Lauderdale and weekends in Miami. The best part was having him home every day. He took over my small spare room, making it his office. And I did my work in the living room or on my balcony.

Ryder made it a point to keep to some sort of a work schedule… kind of, because every day he came to find me for a “Ree break,” as he called it.

He and his best friend, Wes, decided to become partners, and for the time being they each would work from their respective apartments. Once things were up and running, which could take months, Ryder said we would all decide where their office location would be. He claimed that I had just as much of a say as they did. Of course, Ryder had already hinted it should be in Fort Lauderdale, arguing that if one of them had to commute, it would be Wes… who didn’t care as long as he could keep his swanky bachelor pad in Miami.

Of the twenty-four clients Ryder had at Morton, only six followed through and actually left with him. Ryder didn’t seem to be too concerned and admitted he suspected as much. That made securing new talent first and foremost on his agenda, and while he focused on that, Wes would handle the administrative end of the business.

They’d already incorporated themselves as the R. Carter Agency, since Ryder’s name would be the draw for new clients. They had also already hired a lawyer and an assistant for Wes. Her name was London, a leggy blonde who’d left Morton the moment she heard Wes had quit. Based on their sexual chemistry, Ryder warned him to keep it in his pants. Especially since they would both be working together out of his apartment.

At hearing all that, my quirked brow forced Ryder to say, “He most definitely will not be keeping it in his pants,” with an exaggerated eye roll.

As for me, a second sonogram showed the twins were progressing normally. We heard the heartbeats and were given a more definitive due date, give or take a week. Cooper and Ricky were out-of-their-minds excited. Rebecca had to sit them down and have a heart-to-heart, explaining excitement was okay, but they needed to be cautious with how anxious they were in preparing for the babies’ arrival… meaning no extravagant purchases, something Ricky loved to shower his niece and nephew with.

It was a somber discussion. There was always the possibility something could go wrong, although I left that part out for obvious reasons when recounting the situation to Ryder. Some could argue that focusing on negativity wasn’t healthy, but anyone who lost a child before term would beg to differ.

So far, I felt fine. The dreaded morning sickness I’d read about hadn’t hit yet. Granted, it was early in my first trimester, but on Rebecca’s advice I had a stock of saltines on hand just in case. My breasts were a little sore, and Ryder liked to think that was because of his over-the-top affection toward them. Just last night those said affections were mind-blowing, and that led to memories of all the other affection that he showered me with.

“You ready?” he asked, scaring me since I’d been so lost in thought.

While dragging the zipper around the carry-on, I nodded. “Ready.” He came over and lifted the luggage off the bed. “When will you tell me?”

He rolled his eyes at the broken record I’d become. “When will you stop asking?”

The mystery was all part of Ryder’s master plan. As long as I felt up to it, he planned to take me on a secret trip once a month. According to his calculations, we could hit four or five locations before I’d be restricted from traveling.

This idea of his was sweet, but it had caused a bit of an argument between us. I knew he wanted to show me the world, and I loved that he did. There was one tiny caveat… I wanted him to save his money. He argued he had plenty of it, and a small weekend getaway every few weeks wasn’t going to make