Page 71 of When You Stayed
My sister made a sound that could only be construed as shrieking. “Wait, so you’re together?”
I smiled, slumping into the rolling chair. I’d make a terrible spy if this was all it took for me to give up my search. “Yeah, I think we are. I showed up at his office today and tried to pick a fight with him, but it ended with him kissing me.”
“That’s why he picked you up for work.” Taryn sighed dreamily. “Okay, this is so cute. You’ve had a crush on him for so long. I’m happy for you, Royce.”
“I’m happy for me too.” Although I was also apprehensive about what Connor had warned me about. I needed to figure out what he meant by that. I wanted to tell her about it, but Taryn was intense enough that she’d kidnap him or hold him hostage until he confessed to whatever Connor was talking about.
“How bad is Dad freaking out?” I asked, tugging at another random folder.
The sound of a door opening and closing sounded on her end before she answered. “He’s yelling on the phone at someone. It sounds like it might be Ford because he’s using a lot of cuss words. Something about warning him several times.”
Yeah, that sounded about right.
“Also, I looked up the address. It’s a bar near Murdoch, Virginia…which is super close to the border of North Carolina.”
“Are there any pictures of the bar?” I sat up and checked through the glass window into the hall to ensure no one was coming.
Taryn replied with a sigh. “I pulled it up on my laptop. No, there’s not much here. Are we going on a road trip?”
I bit my lip thinking back to what Connor had mentioned about the club that Rodney was working with. “Not on our own. As much as I hate the idea of it, I need to talk to Ford and then Dad. It might take a day or so for them to calm down and not want to kill each other. Dad’s the president though, so it’s not like Ford has much power there. Hopefully Dad can’t bully him into breaking up with me.”
“He better not,” Taryn yelled from somewhere away from the phone. “I will lose my shit on him if he does. But so will Mom, so I think we’re okay.”
My cell lit up with a text against my face.
Nick: Where did you go? The set is nearly finished.
“I gotta go. I brought a change of clothes with me, so I probably won’t go home unless something goes wrong with Ford.”
“I’m so happy for you. Ignore any calls from Dad, love you byyyee.” Taryn called excitedly.
I hung up and rushed out of the office, locking it on my way.
Ford waited at the bar as soon as midnight rolled around. Nick would lock everything up, so I didn’t have to do anything other than say goodbye to the band. Once I was finished, I saw Ford standing near the stool I typically perched on, with my bag slung over his chest and my pink helmet in his hand.
He’d brought my helmet for me to use while riding on the back of his bike. I expected his face to be solemn or stern like it always was anytime I saw him, but that famous Ford Ryan smile that other people were lucky enough to receive was now aimed directly at me.
That cloud I had floated in on was seemingly back under my feet, forcing a dopey grin to spread across my face.
“Hey.”
Ford didn’t reply, he just tipped my chin up and kissed me. Right here, in front of everyone. I suppose he wouldn’t care since he’d kissed me senseless while Johnson watched on. I gave in to the feel of his mouth on mine, the warmth against my chest as he pressed closer, and the strange feeling of shelter that I’d never experienced before. He was like one of those weighted blankets Taryn was so obsessed with.
“Ready?” he asked, his voice all gravel.
“Yeah.”
His mouth moved to my ear, and I felt the smile in his voice as he said, “You packed overnight clothes.”
Not a question, but an observation, probably from peeking what was inside my bag. I didn’t feel embarrassed, but a slice of heat slid through my chest.
“I did.”
He wrapped a loose curl around his finger. “See, look at that. We’re already in sync and shit.”
I laughed, pushing at his chest as he walked me out. The ride over to his house was quick. Honestly, I probably could have walked with how close it was, but I already knew Ford would never allow that. Instead of parking in front of the house, or behind his construction truck, he pulled something from his pocket and after pushing a button, the garage opened.
With his feet down on the ground, he moved us forward inside the small space and turned off the engine.
