Page 27 of Deserving Ryleigh
Brick looked confused. Luna was standing off to the side, wringing her hands, not sure how to soothe her angry father. Then a noise behind him had Tiny spinning around.
Ryleigh was standing there, eyes big in her face—and she looked completely shattered.
He was moving before he registered what he was doing, approaching Ryleigh as he would a skittish colt. She was staring at the food strewn around the kitchen as if it was going to reach out and bite her.
“Ryleigh?” he said, taking a step into her line of sight, blocking Robert from her view.
She looked up, and the expression on her face almost made Tiny go to his knees. She looked lost. And so damn sad, it made his heart hurt.
“This is all my fault. I knew it was coming, but this is…it’s not good.”
“This isn’t your fault,” he told her. “There was probably a new employee packing Robert’s order, and he or she just messed it up.”
But Ryleigh shook her head. “No. It’s not that. Tonka’s insurance, the reservation, the fuel, the food…it’s all him.”
“Him who?” Tiny asked gently. He wanted to pull her into his arms, to comfort her, but she looked as if she would break into a million pieces if he touched her.
Her gaze cleared slowly…and Tiny could see the resolve transform her expression. “We need to talk.”
“Okay,” he said without hesitation, relieved that she was finally going to confide in him.
“Everyone needs to be there. The Refuge owners, that is.”
Tiny wanted to insist she tellhimwhat was bothering her first. But if she needed Brick and all the others to be there to hear whatever it was she had to say, he wasn’t going to object. “All right. When Spike gets back from Albuquerque with Reese, we’ll get everyone together and?—”
But she was shaking her head. “No. Now.Right now, Tiny. It can’t wait.”
“Okay.”
“What are we talking about?” Brick asked.
Ryleigh turned to him. “I know what’s going on. And unfortunately, it’s going to get worse.”
“Worse?” Brick asked, a muscle in his jaw ticking.
Ryleigh nodded.
“You want to meet us in the conference room? I’ll go get the others.”
Tiny wanted to protest. Ryleigh hadn’t eaten much before they’d been interrupted by the irate guest. And she looked pale. But Brick had already left the kitchen to gather their friends.
Putting his hand on the small of Ryleigh’s back, Tiny led her out of the kitchen, leaving Robert still mumbling under his breath about the disaster of the food delivery.
He saw the others getting up from the tables and heading toward the conference room, as he followed Ryleigh inside. She didn’t sit at the large table, instead began to pace back and forth.
Tiny eased himself down onto a chair but kept his gazefixed on Ryleigh. He didn’t like this. Not one bit. Whatever was going on, he had a feeling he wouldn’t be able to fix it easily. Not like he could while he was still on the teams. Whatever was happening wasn’t something brute strength could resolve.
None of them were going to like whatever Ryleigh had to say. Of that he had no doubt.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Ry paced back and forth as her brain spun with how she was going to explain everything. How she was going to tell these men, who’d worked their asses off to make The Refuge successful, that everything they’d worked for was probably going to be destroyed, little by little.
Admitting that her name wasn’t Ryan felt likenothingcompared to what she was about to tell them. They’d accepted her, embraced her into their Refuge family. And now she had to tell them she’d brought an enemy right to their doorstep.
Stone was the last one to enter the room, and he closed the door behind him. The click of it latching seemed abnormally loud. Ry looked up and saw six pairs of eyes locked on her. She swallowed hard.
Stone walked toward the table and sat.
